Garden Notes

I'm so glad the weather was good over the bank holiday weekend. We went into full gardening mode and cut, trimmed, pruned, dug up, planted and re-planted in the garden throughout Sunday and Monday. We did this with very little knowledge of what we were doing and so we'll see how that all looks in a few months. Trips were made to the garden centre and the recycling centre and it was all very satisfying. Today my muscles ache.

It seems like the garden changes so fast at this time of year, especially after rain. Within only a week - and sometimes days - things appear and I wonder if they are weeds or not, and whether I should pull them up or leave them. I'm glad I left the aquilegia, above.

The daffodils and tulips are all over now. They were lovely while they were here though. You never regret planting bulbs, do you? And I always wish I'd planted more, especially more tulips.I am patiently waiting for these to die down and then I might plant some annuals there, just for the colour and to fill up the bare earth.

The red wallflowers and hot pink azalea japonica are both coming to the end of their flowering season and I don't know what will bring colour in that border next as I am still getting to know this garden and can't remember exactly what I planted last year. But I really appreciated the colour they added throughout May. I remember my mum, in the garden centre last autumn, saying buy those wallflowers - just stick them in the ground and forget all about them and you'll have so much colour in the spring. Thank you Mum, good advice.

The two rhododendron bushes have been glorious again. 

They sit either side of our garden and give so much colour at this time of year. 

Even when they start to fade and the petals scatter the ground beneath them they are pretty.

And the bees like them.

The alliums are lovely too, and I wish I'd planted more of them, and in clusters rather than one or two here and there. They look really effective planted in groups. 

These three currant bushes are going great guns and I've no idea why as I've done nothing to them at all.

There is one large redcurrant bush on the left, already full of fruit. I don't really like redcurrants to be honest, I think they are sharp and overrated so goodness knows what I am going to do with all these when they ripen.

The two blackcurrant bushes are also looking promising. Again, I have no idea what to do with these. Jelly? Cordial? 

So, that's what is blooming. I am waiting and seeing with the rest. My hydrangea, planted last year, is looking promising. Not a natural gardener, I am trying to get the hang of bringing colour into the garden throughout the whole summer, not just all in May and then nothing in July or August.

I remain on Hollyhock Watch, marvelling at how tall they are growing and wondering what colour they will be. These must be the most anticipated flower ever.

I have planted a ridiculous number of marigolds, given to me by my mum and dad. They had hundreds, it looked like a canabbis farm in their conservatory. I have planted them in pots and the border and scattered slug pellets liberally. 

I'm also really curious to see what these two spiky-leaved planted below might do. I wonder if they are some kind of iris? I have no idea what kind or what colour though.

Luckily we can cheat and add instant colour to our gardens by going to the garden centre and buying stuff. John and I pulled up two dying conifer trees that a previous owner had planted directly under the living room window (trees! under a window!) and replaced them with hydrangeas. I know it all looks a bit sparse and sad right now (and try not to look at the upvc - hard, I know) but in a couple of years I hope they will all mesh in together and provide colour and a screen for that awful expanse of blinding white plastic.

I have tarted up my pots front and back, and wait for it all to flower and look lovely.

I always spend time on the containers by the front step. 

The entrance to our house doesn't exactly exude charm and, one day, I'd love to replace the upvc door and window with bricks and a wooden front door. A nice one, a modern one, which I'd paint a really good colour - I wouldn't go all faux-Victorian or country or anything like that - but there has to be a way to make the door to a 1960's house look good. 

Here it is. This photo reminds me why I've never shared photos of our front door here before. 

 Fingers crossed, those plants will add so much colour that no-one will notice anything else.

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Sorry, that was a really long post. I always think I've got nothing to say here and then I sit down to write and witter on and on. It's cold and wet today which, given that it's half term and the kids are really annoying me, is very irritating, but I am thinking of my gardening friends CJ and Leanne and reminding myself that at least it means I don't have to water the garden.

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In other new, my laptop is on it's way out (cue frantic backing up of all photos and documents onto the external hard drive) but I think my crafting mojo has returned.