GOLD OVER, RHUS RUNS WILD

We are back from Wales and a celebration of our Golden Wedding. There is much to do. 
Our children and grandchildren gave us two roses - The Poet's Wife 😀, a golden shrub rose and a climbing rose, The Generous Gardener 😀 from David Austin Roses. It is time to plant them when we have decided where.
I am reading Adam Nicholson's The Making of Poetry on a year or so Wordsworth, his sister and Coleridge spent together in Somerset.    I was glad to see (and remember) that Wordsworth did not leave Cambridge with much of a degree. I have not much more to say about him, one of the two Ws to open the Lake District to tourism (the other is Wainwright). I think his poetry is variable, not all wonderful, but as my Grandfather's cousin Helen was a Wordsworh scholar when at Somerville College, Oxford I shall leave further analysis to her.

Back to the garden -

Rhus run wild - clever old gardener thought I would get rid of the Rhus typhi (Staghorn Sumac) and cut it down. Now the whole lower banking has sprouted with suckers - AAAAgh! It is a pernicious plant. Do not put it in your garden unless it is in a pot.

For some reason this brings from the depths memories of the singing of Yma Sumac who was Peruvian and had the most amazing range of voice. Just thought I would chuck that irrelevant bit of recall in.


Tea/coffee outside between thunderstorms yesterday with my brother and wife and their daughter's dog, shaking with fear of the thunder.
I wonder if we are heading for a monsoon type season every summer?





There is a lot of colour still in the garden - The Crocosmia lucifer with the stand of white birches behind, garden golden rod, red roses tumbling from the trellis beside the mower shed, and many more. Some of the buddleia is going over but we have a lot of butterflies now when the sun comes out between showers.

Under a nest above the back door I found half a tiny white egg shell - there is a new brood of house martins above me.
In the other nest they peer down at me seemingly feeling secure.

Earlier in the year I bought these erysimums in a job lot as R likes the purple Mrs Bowles - she down not like this mixed orange and pink plant though - they will have to be moved.

I have found that the wild ox-eye daisies have seeded themselves beside the drive tarmac so I have dug some up and potted them. Later they can go out under the white birches - I rather fancy a sea of white daisies there.

Redone the BigButterfly count - loads of Painted Ladies.
Walked back from veg beds to be confronted by two rabbits who skittered off onto the shrubbery.

Home to 48 hours of rain, long grass, a rabbit on the lawn ignoring me and 5 sweet pea flowers! It is going to take some time for the garden to dry out.