Spring's Cornucopia is out now. Order online here.
Robin gave it the name 'Penny's Smile' which I suggested to him in honour of my dear friend Penny, who was a beautiful girl and left this world far too young. She really loved the salvias of which I planted several in her late gardens. And she particularly loved this colour; so a more apt tribute couldn’t be found! To my surprise it has survived many cold winters here in the Midlands.
The weather has been challenging in many ways, and all of these photos have been taken between heavy showers.Thank goodness for the whorls! The flowers not only provide valuable nectar for our pollinators, they also offer shelter by acting like mini-umbrellas for bees.
The first six photos of hellebores are of Ashwood hybrids that we bought in 2008 and planted together in a small raised bed under a large cherry tree in our front garden. The other 12 are some of their children. The original plants seeded themselves freely ...
Most holidays to various Greek Islands in the 90s in particular were during September and October, and we always encountered Fig trees clinging to cliff tops or beside the roads smothered in ripe and juicy figs which were a delight to pick and eat sun-warmed from the tree. We determined we were going to have one ourselves.
With the increasingly dry weather we seem to be getting here now it becomes apparent which plants cope well with dry soil and which plants are suffering. Most Rudbeckia species for example don`t seem to be well adapted to drought. The only Rudbeckia which actually looks alright on my allotment at the moment is Rudbeckia triloba. ...
Chrysanthemum 'Romantica' was suggested for inclusion by HPS Hampshire Group in 2018 whose members have grown it since 2012. The name spelt with a 'c' as here is the RHS accepted name although a plant listed by Plant Heritage is C. 'Romantika', with a 'k', and may well be the same plant.
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