I know I’ve been going on about it lately, but the August garden has had so many more flowers than it usually has, thanks to all the rain we have been having.
August abundance.
Autumn already?
I can’t believe it’s autumn already, or at least it seemed like it when we got up on August 9th to find it was thick fog and a lot cooler than it had been of late.
The Only Way is Up Now.
When you run out of space on the ground for any more plants, the only way is up. I wander round the garden looking at the trees and shrubs, wondering which are strong enough to support a clematis. Also, just because an arch or pergola already has a climber up it, maybe a clematis can be added for extra colour, either to flower at the same time as the original climber or to extend the season.My favourite family of clematis are the viticellas. When we first came here and I planted some of the large flowered varieties, they all succumbed to clematis wilt, something the viticellas will never d0.
Dinner missed by 1 hour!
A female pheasant decided to have a look around our garden one day recently. She was very nervous, constantly looking round to check that there was no danger. Photos were taken through the window, so apologies, not the usual standard!
Then there was Light.
I’m awake quite early these sunny mornings, the main window in the bedroom faces east. When the sun is shining and the birds are singing, what is the point in staying in bed? Wandering round the garden at 5.30 or 6am with a mug of tea is quite a magical time, I chat to the birds and the hedgehog if I meet him.
Flowers for July part 2
There are so many flowers in the July garden, that I felt they had to be divided into two. I was getting really disheartened with the garden and the weather, so much non stop rain meant that we couldn’t cut the grass for weeks as it was so sodden and I couldn’t get into the borders to tidy up, really, it looked a mess. All change now, non stop sunshine which has dried everything out, the grass is cut, more weeds have been tackled and dead heads seen to, it looks ok once more. The first photo is of Iris ensata which has really enjoyed all the rain.
July Foliage for GBFD.
Foliage day seems to have come round again so soon, so in a break from the rain (on the 18th of this month) I photographed as much as I could, starting with one of my favourites, Rosa glauca which is contrasting with its neighbour, Cotinus.
The thief wore black with a splash of yellow.
The thief that has been enjoying himself in our garden was dressed all in black with a splash of yellow for his beak and a yellow line around his eye. I wouldn’t mind but I provide a nice juicy breakfast for him each morning of mealworms, he is welcome to all the slugs in the garden and this is how he repays me!
Here is our culprit, the common Blackbird, photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
Flowers for July, part 1.
Another month where the sun has been in very short supply, non stop rain most days, all thanks apparently to the jet stream in the upper atmosphere sitting over the south of England. Floods in the nearest town are very depressing for the people living there, we continually have to go the long way round, our usual route seems to be perpetually flooded. In spite of all this plants carry on flowering, some better than usual, so here is my months supply of flowers in the garden. Had to make the most of every moment when the rain stopped for a few minutes, to dash out with the camera and photograph what I could. This first photo is of a purple leaved Heuchera at the entrance of the woodland, by the bridge over the ditch.
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Tagged Allium, alstroemeria, astilbes, campanula, Digitalis, Erigeron, Fuchsia, hemerocallis, heuchera, iris, July flowers, lily, Linaria, poppy, prunella, rodgersia, roses, saxifrage, sempervivum, trachelospermum
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Welcome to Powderham Castle.
Exeter Southernhay’s Rotary Club held their President’s Day this year at Powderham Castle, which is on the banks of the River Exe in Devon. Thank goodness the rain stayed away but it was still very cloudy with a bitterly cold wind, more like March than July. Before we had our lunch in the grounds we went for a Deerpark Safari, this way we were able to get really close to the fallow deer that live in the park.
