Oh, how glorious gardens are when the flowers start appearing. Looking back on blog posts in previous years everything in my garden is a week or two later than usual. We had some rain last week but not enough to really soak the soil and the temperature dropped for a week or two. However, yesterday and today there is a distinct warmth to the air and we are due for a warm sunny week ahead. This should bring everything on, nature has a way of catching up.
Rather than do a lot of writing in this post, I think the photos will say more than I can. Starting off with the front garden, the lilac this year is magnificent and the perfume is whafting down the road.
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Last year the Iris did remarkably well despite the snails and I am glad to say that they are looking great this year. The Choysia on the side patio outside the kitchen door is abundant with fragrance.
I love the Clematis ‘Josephine’ that is scrabbling through the Elder sambucus nigra.
I always forget to plant something under the alliums as their leaves start to die off and look untidy when flowering. Maybe this year I will remember; I read that Alchimilla Mollis is a good plant for this. I bought an Erysimum Walburtons Fragrance Star a few years ago and it is still going strong.
The Aquiligia are just about to flower and I am always so happy to see this pretty double pale blue one, which is ahead of all the others.
Even the strawberry plant is in flower.
Last year I tried to raise Stock from seed and although it grew quite strong it failed to flower. Much to my surprise, it did ok through the winter and is now in flower!
The Dicentra is almost on its way out. Such a shame it doesn’t flower the whole of the summer, it is such a lovely plant. The verbascum is in flower with spikes of different color.
This is the bottom flower bed, with carefully contained Spanish Bluebells at the back and the forget me nots creating a blue hue. I have managed to eradicate most of these chunky bluebells but they do give color to the garden. Just in front of the compost bin, there is a pretty clump of orange poppies.
There are still a number of flowers just about to appear including three peony flowers, which is very exciting as it hasn’t flowered for the last two years.
It is any wonder that gardens are thought of as being cathartic.