Spring bulbs all but over.

Love all the subjects in your blog. The branchs of the Beech look wonderful agains the fresh green foliage. Your beautiful Auriculas really deserve a better tub. Your Maianthemum are more advanced than mine, my shade is created from buildings. Amber Queen looks like a really good doer, and a pleasing colour.

I'm fascinated by your Shady Ladies as I know so little about them.
The beech is wonderful. Everything is the most gorgeous fresh green at the moment. My favourite transformation time.

I do love your beech tree Eileen and this is the very best time of year for them don't you agree? Interesting blog with some unusual plants - just wish I could count on remembering them! Is the Epimedium a late one or is it just because you are in the North? Our Epimediums finished ages ago but they are a different variety from your lovely orange one.

I was caught by the redness in the rose when I bought it must be a good 8 yrs ago now. I should think about re-potting it Meadow.

This Epimedium is always late Yorks, all my others are all but over too. I love the beech but we walk the little brown leaf stipules [bud cases] into the house and the 'snow' down and cover the pond too, that is the only draw back really.

All the hedgerows are bright green now and the hawthorn is out in 50% of them, again a bit slower this year or perhaps more in keeping with their normal flowering period. It as a great transformation as you say Ange.

I am surprised my Maianthemum are further on than yours Siris that is just weird with you being so far south well compared to me.

The last pic of the Rosa chinensis is beautiful.. love the 3 stage capture too.
The double pink tulip is gorgeous- very blousy.
I, too, love the shady lady collection.

Lovely blog. You have some very interesting plants Sb. I love the Beech trees that are in leaf now, though I don't have one in my garden, can just see them around, so no litter, only the leaves in Autumn.

Thanks Kate, it has a really strong perfume too. I must repot it this year.
Leaves, leaves and more leaves Feverfew, and they take at least 2 years to rot down, near 3 thinking about it but it is a wonderful mulch when it is ready.

You have some unusual plants and it's nice to see them :)

Thanks Hywel.

You have a lot of unusual plant in your garden Eileen. I really like the false spikenard. I planted my dalhias (the ones you told me start up in pots) next to my waning tulip foliage along with verbena so one replaces the other.

My dahlia's in pots aren't ready to go out yet. we will get frosts until the end of the month. I usually leave them in the pot and bury the pot; makes lifting them easier in the autumn. At the moment I have lilies [in pots] to bury when they finish flowering the dahlias will go in instead.

The false spikenard smells wonderful at the moment.
which verbena is it? I have several but really like V bonariensis for its height and airy growth. The butterflies and moths love it too.

That's the one I'm growing, V bonariensis - started them in pots about 4 weeks ago and have a couple dozen decent size plants ready. I thought they would look nice around the dalhias. I prefer to plant my tubers straight into the ground. That way the roots aren't restricted. I don't dig mine up either. I'll buy new ones next year - maybe. They are very inexpensive and I can try other varieties.