GOINGS AND COMINGS

Let me begin with a flop - or not - sugar solution put out to attract butterflies and here come the black ants!

One planting companionship that works is alachemilla and nepeta (catmint). This border is at a garden in Scotland but at home the alchemilla can seed itself and flop over edges to soften the straight lines.

White is suddenly coming to the fore again whether the thyme (or Doc's hat), elderflowers, white rosebay willow-herb or our two Rambling Rector roses of which below is one.

Mind you, not all is a roaring success. You go away to Scotland for a couple of days and the chard explodes. I think the term is run to seed? R and I have been weeding, deadheading and tidying up today. The aquilegias are almost over so they are being cut back, we are still pulling out goosegrass by the handful and there is still a long way to go. Whilst we were gone S the gardener strimmed the streamside not that there is any water in it. We have had one day with some rain but that is gone and none is forecast for the next two weeks. He has also moved the old compost and begun the removal of the old compost heaps which clever old me made out of willow. So they rooted and do not want to go.

When in Scotland we visited three gardens - the National Trust one at Threave, the almost lost gardens at Arbigland and Elizabeth Macgregor's wonderful walled garden in Kirkcudbright. Her white wisteria was in full flower.

The candelabra primulas at Threave were stunning.

We have a few by our pond and the primula veris plus the usual self sown mimulus guttatus (monkey flower.)

Roses out, peonies about to flower, jungle to clear, grass to cut - I think I shall go away again. Oh! to garden in a window box? A bit small to sit out in though. 

THE SHRUB MONTH?

To start, a curiosity? The ability of willow, or in this case sallow, to regenerate itself is astonishing. After the sallow was cut back its branches were stripped and used as edging for the chipping path. There are no roots but it is sprouting.

The garden is very dry and bare cracked patches have appeared in the grass. I have watered but not excessively for that has been some dew in the morning. One exception is the sweet peas and they are still alive! This is most unusual for me, normally they are dead and eaten by now. The chives that line the path in the veg garden are, however, flowering profusely. Not what we really want as the flowering stems are stiff and hard, not pleasant to eat. (You can eat the flowers though.)

So, what is doing well?

The Kolkwitzia amabilis 'Pink Cloud', the beauty bush is a waterfall of pink next to the dark tumble of Physocarpus opulifolius 'Lady in Red'.

Other shrubs in flower include R's Daisy Bush near the cattle grid.

and our white lilac - the other lilacs are now their disappointing post blossoming brown.

We do have flowers too - the yellow climbing rose and many geraniums, my favourite is this white one.

There are also successful partnerships - catmint and the cultivated alchemilla. The colours enhance one another.

More shrubs, the hebe which I thought had been killed by The Beast from the East is covered. At the top banking the Rosa rugosa hedge has finally grown enough for its purpose.

 

Elsewhere the woodland still is full of red campion and the rather unsuccessful wild flower meadow has, at least, some yellow rattle. It will take a few years I think. I could have used weed killer to get rid of all the grass but having seen that done by local farmers to create a monoculture of silage grass (and the disappearance of the curlews) I will not. 

This is the plant my mother loved and grew in Coniston is wonderful - the Crambe, now divided and in two sites.

Time to get out the hosepipe, watering can and try and counteract the drought. Have just done the veg beds and, yes, we have one flower on one of the sweet peas!

MAY IN JUNE?

 White is still important in the garden - the Sweet Cicely (beware of its ability as a wild flower to invade and spread), camassias and hesperis.

R has removed most of the over forget-me-nots and put them up in the wood where they will self sow a bit. This leaves spaces to fill. I must think about that.

 

Up in the wood, when the sun shines on the campion and pignut it is a delight.

The may is in full blast (now it is June)

A friend came for lunch and I took him round and down to the pond. We have newts in the pond I said, and there was one right below us! Water lilies and yellow flag iris are out - I like the variegated leaf flag iris most of all.

The weather has been dry so a little judicious topping up is needed - it is a good thing we have our own borehole.

Elsewhere the aquilegias are at their best, the first roses are coming out and the oriental poppies are flowering. There is the first flower on the cosmos but we are inundated with weeds - creeping buttercups, bindweed, goosegrass by the handfuls, or is it handsful, or hands full? I received a phone call to ask why we had not yet had our second Covid jab which we had some time ago. I ignored it. 

Having watered a lot of the garden today (Wednesday) it has rained a bit, of course. Mind you it might be because J washed her car this morning.

One part of the garden that pleases me is the small stand of white birches -

And at the end of the day we have sunsets especially interesting as I had forgotten the interesting cloud forms jet contrails produce - we must be having more flights.

And then there is wild life in the garden - newts, frogs and toads with the water boatmen, damselflies and whirligigs in the pond, rabbits, grey squirrels, woodlice, bank voles and pheasants in the wood, and then visitors - badgers, foxes and -

 

SUMMER AT LAST

We went to Muncaster and missed the bluebells as they were over but the rhododendrons and shrubs were good.

After all the moaning about the cold weather it is Wednesday and 26C. We have been given some canna lilies and now I have to decide where to put them!

I have sown parsley and courgettes, some carrots and tied up the remaining straggly sweet peas - not given up quite yet.

Lawns mown and every time I walk about I pull up broad-leaved willowherb and goosegrass (cleavers).

The banking grass is growing apace and the farmers here are silaging hard.

The woodland floor is mostly red campion but where we have scattered forget-me-nots they mix with there wild pignut to give a different carpet.

The path back down to the house winds between the may and a camellia still out - June!

Over the last couple of years I scattered the ripe seed of the Allium purple sensation and they have now produced flowers.

The wild flower meadow area does have a few yellow rattle but so far little else - lot of work, not much return, keep hoping. The sorrel is flowering but that was there anyway. One plant that is looking good is the white camassia and I have several more in bud but I have forgotten what colour they are so will it be a surprise? Actually unlikely.

Elsewhere the white birches look good in the sun - now reaching maturity. 

We have two benches at the far end of the garden, well planks and such - 

And it is not only flowers that give colour - many new leaves have their own attractiveness whether the choisya or the rhododendrons.

One structural feature of a garden that is without massive structure detail is the curved path in from of the house, looking away or back.

I am now off to seaweed feed and water the sweet peas again - pray for them!

I leave you with the red campion in the wood.