Mid June in my Garden

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We are already half way through June and although the garden go off to an early start, I’m finding now we’ve reached June there is little difference in what’s flowering or getting ready to flower in comparison to recent years.

Some of you will know I’ve been suffering with a bad back recently and have been signed off work. Gosh, it’s difficult doing nothing, it’s painful doing nothing and although it eases to do a wee bit, it’s soon back to being painful! Having never suffered back pain before – I’m taking it ill out! I HATE BEING IDLE!

Join me for a wee hobble around the garden – thankfully it’s not the spring garden and requires me to crawl about on all fours just to get some decent pictures.

Let’s start out front – I already posted a picture of the Tropaeolum and Peony flowering right now in the front garden but want to include here for reference.

A close up of peony blooms – I’ve no label for this one as they were purchased before I got into gardening and obsessing over keeping note of the names of plants (i.e joining GOY) – I think they are P. Bowl of Beauty. The scent is amazing as you step out the front door.

As we step through the side gate, more peonies and aconitum are poised – but not quite blooming yet. Rhododendron Goldflimmer – I checked is a tad earlier than normal.

At the top corner before we turn into the back garden Physocarpus opulifolius Nugget peeks out from behind the extension wall. Bees love this except when I have my camera to hand, of course!

Directly opposite – the honeysuckle is starting to bloom. Lonicera periclymenum Scentsation. Now, please excuse the rather awful job of the expanding trellis. I had a fair struggle to get that up there and was done a couple of days before I did my back. I think this may have been the cause, what a heck of a struggle getting in there trying to do as little damage as I could to the plant. Of course, me being me, I had no patience to wait until someone was at home to give me a hand! It will be fixed properly in Autumn when I can get in. The Dicentra here gets quite plenty of shade at it’s roots and therefore flowers later but it does flower longer than those that get much more sun.

Over the other side of that trellis, which is a kind of divider between the side garden and the back garden proper, is my teeny weeny wildlife pond. No amphibians but plenty of insect activity. There is little to show growing in the pond as it’s way too small for most plants – Cardamine pratensis has gone over, an Acorus which does little and I always throw in a water hyacinth for luck. It never flowers but grows enough to provide surface cover.

On the trellis – Clematis Scartho Gem, is joined in bloom with Heuchera Marmalade, Geranium sanguineum, Aruncus aethusifolius and a few other. I like all these colour together.

Both areas, although individual, don’t look too bad when seen as a whole. I’m please with how the plants are filling out now.

Just out of shot, there are Astrantias flowering. Astrantia do well here in my garden and there are many insects and pollinators that seem to enjoy them too.

Astrantias Ruby Wedding and Snow Star, I’m sure I don’t need to tell you which is which. This part of the border having first been planted out 4 years ago, is in dire need of thinning out now.

At the far edge of this border, as it curves round to the arch, a pretty little Philadelphus is blooming. I picked this up in B&Q on the sale table for 50p autumn before last, worth every penny. It doesn’t have such a strong scent as some I’ve come across but I can’t get down there to confirm or deny!

Across the way, on the sunnier side of the gravelled area, is what I call the Bumble Bee bed. It’s always humming with activity. There has been a wee bit of a change here since back in May.

Here’s how it looks a few weeks back and although I do love the Physocarpus Lady in Red – she was doing absolutely nothing for me in this bed.

I’ve replace here with a pink flowering Hawthorn tree (C. rosea flore pleno) which I think will fit in better with my colour scheme. The ninebarks has been cut right down to the ground and a new home found round the front. Not an idea time to move but providing I keep to a strict watering regime, both should be fine.

Taking a close look at the back of this bed – the white oriental poppies are being held aloft by Astrantia Buckland – this kind of came about by accident last year but works extremely well. Sanguisorba and a Blue geranium will take over when I’ve chopped back the poppies. There is a P. Patty’s Plum in there (thanks Scotsgran) – it’s got a bud almost ready to open. Growing over the tall trellis, the Clematis I moved back in spring is romping away and is looking great. Not flowering yet, but I’m so glad I took the risk with such a mature plant. I do hope I don’t eat my words!

Tucked in at the back, growing to cover the fence is a young honeysuckle I planted last year. It’s reaching up to the trellis now but a single flower is just about visible. The Escallonia, which only looks good for around 2 months of the year also needs removing (autumn for that too).

I was amazed at just how much space was being taken up by the Physocarpus – the surrounding perennials will also need a bit of a reshuffle but that can wait.

I’ve completely fallen for the Nepeta this year (it’s only taken me 4 years to appreciate it) and how it mingles with the geranium. I’ll be keen to reproduce this when I move things around.

A few shots of what else is in flower right now in this area.

In the miniature garden, I think I’ve managed to achieve something flowering in this every month of the year, except January – I’m pleased with that too.

As we step through the arch – yes, yes, I know – I’ve promised you all a blog on this but please bear with me – I’d like to have some blooms on there first. They are coming, a bit too slow for my liking but that’s gardening isn’t it!

On the shadier side, it’s mainly foliage of all shapes and sizes right now. Flowering is Acontium Gletscheris – the first time it has flowered since it was the only 1 of 3 plants that recovered from the floods in 2012. It’s not a brilliant white, it has a tinge of green through it. Tiarella Spring Symphony has been flowering for a while and Primula vialii is currently at it’s scarlet stage. This border will eventually need widening but right now, nothing is outgrowing its spot.

A close up of the Aconitum flower. I’m rather attached to this plant. It was one of the first I ever bought when I started planting this garden out back in 2011 and would hate to loose it – I’ve never seen it for sale since.

On the sunny side again, the new Rowan tree is flowering

and Philadelphus Belle Etoile is just getting ready to strut her stuff. This pretty mock orange, I can confirm, has a wonderful scent and it catches you as you make your way up the garden.

As we move to the top end of the garden, the new border, as featured in my previous blog – has lots blooming. There are a few clashes going on and I’m even more peeved that none of the red lupins turned out to be read. In fact, they are all different colours! Still, do we ever get it right first time? I doubt it – I’m pleased that it’s filling out and everything is doing well apart from some new oriental poppies I planted. That Patty is a fussy lady I think! I’ve never had an oriental poppy struggle in this garden before. I don’t know what to make of it.

I like this lot together – even with the bright orange (you can just make it out) of R. Warm Welcome thrown in, it’s not uncomfortable to took at.

and I like this lot together

but throw in those blasted lupins, NO! I’m not even going to give them the pleasure of having their own picture!

Deutzia Strawberry Fields obviously likes it’s new home – it’s flowered the best it ever has.

This is an earlier picture of Clematis voluceau – the heavy rain the other night has ruined the flower now but there are lots more to come. The rose and clematis used to grow up the front of the shed (before it moved) and although it’s taken them a while to get going again, survived being chopped right back mid December and moved just as they were coming out of dormancy.

To finish the tour of this top part of the garden, I thought I’d share with you a close up of the peony flowers – possibly a bit too loud for some tastes but I like it and they don’t last too long. This was originally gifted to me by a friend of a friend, a few years ago, as a white flowering peony (P. lactiflora Alba Plena) but obviously wrongly labelled.

Last and certainly not least, Chip, resting in the shade beneath the canopy of Persicaria Red Dragon – don’t let the look of innocence fool you – the bird feeders aren’t too far away.

Speaking of birds, I’m off to sit outside and have lunch and be entertained by the 3 great tit fledglings that have been running their father/mother ragged for the past 2 days. It’s been comical to watch and who knew what a din 3 tiny wee birds could make. It’s difficult to get a good picture, the don’t sit still long enough.

Thanks for reading and please, if you’d care to cast a neutral eye over that new border, please do and share your thought – I won’t mind one little bit. I’ve way too much time on my hands to sit and stew it over right now.

• 17 Jun, 2014
• 18 likes

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