IAVOM ~ 'Blowin' In The Wind'

The residents of today's vase were vigorously swirling about in the wind as I took this photo. Last week's snow and ice turned back to wet and windy yesterday with the arrival of storm 'Isha', which caused some considerable havoc across the country especially in Scotland. Today the sun is out and although the wind is brisk it's certainly abated. In my vase are :

• Stems of cornus sanguinea 'Anny's Winter Orange'.
• Stems of pittisporum' Silver Ball'.
• Flowers from one of my favourite snowdrops with the unfortunate name of 'Trumps'. I think that the snowdrop preceded the politician or certainly his arrival on the world's political stage. It has distinct green markings on the outside, flowers early and has clumped up well in the garden.

Thanks to Cathy over at 'Rambling In The Garden' for inviting us to share our vases little and large, whatever the weather or the season. Here another named winter storm is waiting in the wings for tomorrow but the weather gods are are promising to be more kind at the weekend. I'm looking forward to it! 

IAVOM ~ 'Just Picked and Plonked'

 In anticipation of a busy weekend and a weather forecast for frost I ventured out on Friday to snip some bits for this week's vase. It was decidedly cool, grey and extremely soggy so it turned out to be a quick and rather lopsided pick and plonk. I just wanted to get back indoors pronto! In my vase are :

• A sprig of viburnum tinus - I think that it's 'Eve Price'. We tried to remove this evergreen shrub a few years ago. Although the winter flowers are welcome the foliage was always attacked by the viburnum beetle which leaves a trail of unattractive lacy holes in its wake. We must have left a portion still in the ground which has taken off again. Further surgery is required. 
• A rather battered flower from anemone coronaria 'Mr Fokker' which I have never seen flower at this time of the year before now. It's a low growing tuberous perennial which usually flowers in the spring through to early summer and has the deepest most vivid of blue flowers .
  
  
• Last but not least the only dry bloom in the house is chrysanthemum 'Tula Green'. This has been in the shelter of the greenhouse. I've grown it before and lost it but was gifted a couple of cuttings from a friend this autumn and one of the plants has recently come into flower.

Thanks as always to Cathy over at 'Rambling In The Garden' for hosting. Looking outside this morning I saw that the predicted frost had not materialised but it's bitterly cold out there, so more of a day for inside activities including some vase hopping later. Wishing everyone a good week and happy gardening whether of the armchair sort or real life variety.

IAVOM ~ Just In Time

I'm cheating this week with my 'In A Vase on Monday' contribution so I hope that I'm forgiven. Back in November I purchased a couple of seasonal bulbs from a certain German supermarket - that little and often one. Both were hippeastrum bulbs to give them their proper name although I still think of them as amaryllis. One was in a box with bowl and planting medium included, whilst the other was a ready made job in a glass container complete with seasonal decorations. It was obviously more expensive than the boxed version but then I can use the container again as well as some of the decorations so I decided to treat myself. It has been exciting to inspect the bulb daily for signs of growth and after a tantalising wait to see the first flower open a couple of days before Christmas. There was no indication of what the colour of the flower was when I bought the bulb so that was part of the excitement,

Thanks as always to Cathy over at 'Rambling In The Garden' for her wonderful hosting skills. Wishing all my blogging friends a most peaceful and joyous New Year and happy gardening in the twelve months of the year to come! 🌱

IAVOM ~ Season's Greetings!

 

This week's little Monday vase celebrates Christmas as well as being a nod to the recent winter solstice. As we turn to the light there will be more and more flowers to pick so certainly a time to rejoice. In my vase are :

• Cornus or dogwood 'Anny's Winter Orange' stems.
• A couple of nameless violas.
• A sprig or two of winter flowering jasmine whose Latin name eludes me just now.
• A flower of the appropriately named galanthus or snowdrop 'Three Ships' - the flowers of which have certainly sailed in well on time this year.

The vase was hand painted by mum.

A big thank you as always to the lovely Cathy over at 'Rambling In The Garden', who entertains us each and every Monday, whatever the season and on special days too. Wishing Cathy and all my blogging friends a most Merry Christmas and happy gardening in the new year ❄️ 🤶🎄🌱❤️

IAVOM ~ In The Pink

 

A duo of pink chrysanthemums on this week's 'In A Vase On Monday'. Both chrysanthemums are currently in the greenhouse is only heated when the overnight temperatures fall to minus figures. I've not grown either before. They are :

•  'Avignon Pink' whose days with me are numbered. It is the lighter single bloom and looked a much warmer shade of pink in the catalogue. If it survives the winter and re-sprouts next year I will be looking out for a good home for it.
• 'Tula Purple' - the jury is still out on this one. It's not as purple as I hoped but it may get a more prolonged stay than it's companion.

Meanwhile in the greenhouse another of the Tula series is about to open. My last pickings of chrysanthemum 'Spider Bronze' for a vase on the 27th November, are heading in the direction of the green garden waste bin today. In their floppy gone over state they have paled to a much softer shade of orange and still look most pleasing to the eye. I'm definitely impressed by the staying power of these flowers and after two years of growing 'Spider Bronze' it's a definite keeper.

As always thanks to Cathy over at 'Rambling In The Garden' for hosting. No gardening for me today although I spent some productive time in the garden yesterday on what was a rare mild dry day. I finally planted my tulips in pots with himself's assistance, watered my cuttings and seedlings in the greenhouse, did some pruning and mulched the rapidly emerging snowdrops. Cutting off the old hellebore leaves is the next task on the list. Meanwhile it's a sorry state of affairs as it's housework that takes priority today but I will make sure that there is time for a coffee break or two and some vase perusing along the way.

A Week OF Flowers ~ Day 7

 

The last of my posts for Cathy's cheering meme 'A Week Of Flowers'. How the week has flown and here it has been a most cold one with heavy frosts and some snow at the weekend, so I'm finishing with some late bright August sunshine. The flowers are those of the hardy perennial helenium 'Sahin's Early Flowerer', which is in flower from July and lasts for a good while before coming to a standstill sometime in October. It's easy going, usually untroubled by pests and it is a magnet for pollinators. My plant grows in one of the sunnier spots in the garden where the soil is very heavy.  The plant usually gets the 'Chelsea Chop' treatment in May. I have grown it since 2009 when I first came across it in a holiday cottage where we were spending a week. The flowers were in a vase on the windowsill which you can see below.

I didn't know what the flower was so when I had the chance to ask the cottage owner I did and she told me more about the plant and showed it to me growing in the garden. When we left to return home she very kindly presented me with a small clump as a gift so it's a lovely memento of that week.

The construction is himself's creation. He had always been fascinated by the shape of pig arks and wanted to build something in that style! It's a bit of a man shed and gym but there is room for a few gardening odds and ends. It's where the last of my bulbs are waiting for me to plant them so hopefully warmer days will come soon. 

A big thanks to Cathy over at 'Words and Herbs' who came up with the inspiring idea of sharing photos of the flowers that have bought us happiness, at a time of year where there is not much in flower. Yesterday  I noticed that the very first of my beloved snowdrops are in flower so the year has certainly come round full circle. 

A Week OF Flowers ~ Day 6

 Today I'm going back to my favourite month of May for Cathy's 'A Week Of Flowers' with two trees, the flowers of which take my breath away every spring. Above are flowers from Malus 'Red Sentinel' whilst below are flowers from my Conference pear tree.

The two grow side by side in my garden and both were covered in a profusion of blossom. Sadly the pear produced very little in the way of fruit this year in complete contrast to last year. However the weather in spring and summer of the respective years was so different. I have a feeling that we had more than our share of rain this spring followed by some late frost so not an ideal scenario for fruit to set. I wonder what next year will bring? The crab apple on the other hand was smothered with its bright red berries up to recently. I must look later to see if there are any still hanging on to the tree. Thanks to Cathy for hosting    'A Week Of Flowers' over at her lovely blog 'Words and Herbs'.

A Week Of Flowers 2023 ~ Day 3

 

We woke up to a light covering of snow this morning and it's slightly warmer but not warm enough to be out in the garden. What better then but to be browsing through images of summer days  to select one for Cathy's 'A Week Of Flowers' 2023, over at Words and Herbs. Here is the hardy perennial geranium 'Rozanne', a really long and prolific flowering plant. Later in the year she enjoyed the company of dahlias and her flowers have only just come to an end with the first hard frosts. I like her so much I now have a trio of plants. 

A Week Of Flowers 2023 - Day 2

It's yet another bitterly cold day here with the threat of snow in the weather forecast so what better than 

a flashback to summer as my contribution to Cathy's 'A Week Of Flowers' for today. The photo was taken in my garden on 18th June and features the climbing rose 'Blush Noisette' with clematis 'Bletkiny Aniol' also know as 'Blue Angel'. The rose was bought as a bare root plant in the winter of 2009. I remember reading that it was a small climber growing to about 10 feet but she has achieved double that height. It repeat flowers - usually in September and in this mild autumn buds have opened throughout October and November. There were still a few flowers clinging on last week. For some reason the flowers always appear paler in photos. It is gently but noticeably scented. The clematis arrived later that year and scrabbles through the rose - sadly it doesn't really reach it's peak until just after the main show of the rose's first flowers. However for a week or so they are the most perfect companions.

Thanks to Cathy over at 'Words and Herbs' for providing some welcome flowery downtime to lighten this leaner time of year.

 

A Week Of Flowers 2023 - Day 1

This week sees me joining in 'A Week Of Flowers' - an annual celebration hosted by Cathy over at 'Words and Herbs' , where we can share the flowers in our garden every day for a week. On a cold and frosty December day when flowers are at a premium I'm starting with a glimpse of summer with papaver orientale 'Patty's Plum'. This hardy perennial gives me grief every year as I debate whether to dig it up and find a new home for it if possible or if not to lob it into the green waste bin. The flowers are stunning but only shine for just over a week and then vanish into a dishevelled crumple. It's not as if the remaining foliage is attractive to look at.  So far though it has won the day and remained in the garden. This photo was taken on the 9th June.

The plant has an interesting history. It was initially discovered as a chance seedling on the compost heap of Patricia Marrow's nursery in Somerset and then saved for posterity. Imagine if nobody had attended that compost heap for a while!

Thanks Cathy for brightening up these cold days with floral delights.