Winter CAN be interesting! part 4.

Lovely pics Spritz....the seedheads have a beauty all of their own. I've missed your other blogs in this "series" so will have to go and catch-up....but I agree, winter can be very interesting....:)

Thank you Spritz I was rubbish but still enjoyed it.

You're welcome, Denise. :-)) Maybe it's helped a bit so you can recognise a seedhead next time you spot one! lol.

Thanks, Di - I hope you enjoy them! You'll see the answers as you read them, but you can still challenge yourself. :-)))

being a competetive bunny is garnet a synonym for georgeV. in which case I was right. gosh i sound just like a kid at school ... but miss ! miss! miss was i right.

I had thought semiaqueligia with it being so sculptural.
great series of gardening blogs. and kept me on my botanical toes.

thanks spritz. a real gem. you and the blogs! :o)

Thanks for the lovely comments, Sbg! No - 'Garnet' is a much darker red, I'm afraid. :-(

but thats not fair miss! :o(

never mind I still enjoyed doing the guess work so much.

Well - I was just going to put it as 'Penstemon',so you would have been right then!

The differences between the nigellas is amazing - and I thought I did very well - along with Uma, lol.

really enjoyed the blogs barbara even though i matched them im not good on names :o( i really love that goose neck plant so pretty :o))

Thanks, Wagger and Sandra. Yes, you did, Wagger - and Sandra, I'm glad you enjoyed it. That Lysimachia is a bit of a thug - so beware of planting it in a small area. I'm sure I unmasked it as a 'thug' in a blog? It is pretty, though. :-)))

yes you did barbara but still pretty, wonder if in a pot would be ok? umm

No - I don't think so, with that one. It needs supporting - it's tall!

oh Doh! lol never mind , thanx barbara

I`ve enjoyed this series even though I`m not very good at matching flowers with seed heads. I agree that there are things of interest in the garden even in Winter. :o)

Sandra x

Thanks, Sandra, I'm glad you enjoyed the blogs. It doesn't matter if you couldn't do the matching - that was just a bit of fun to make it a bit different! :-))

Thanks for keeping us on our toes Barbara , it will make us much more aware of the seed heads in future ....... a lovely blog .....

I'm so pleased you enjoyed the series, Amy. :-)))

Oh, I've heard my name! :)
Spritzhenry, thank you VERY MUCH!
I've really enjoyed your task. Love these ones of naming "mystery" plants and flowers. It makes my brain moving! :) And I had so many mistakes...My Nigella sativa will be given a good scolding for unlikeness with your N.hispanica. Lol :)

I looked it up, Uma - I think it's very similar! What colour are the flowers?

I thought your answers were very good - and so did other members, so well done you! :-))

I'm glad you enjoyed it.

A lovely series of blogs Spritz....really enjoyed them....kept our brains "on our toes" even though we can't get out in the garden at the mo.......perhaps another series in the new year when we are al full of christmas pud etc.,????

The flowers of my one are very light blue, almost white.
Thanks, Spritzhenry!

Not yellow? I've been sent some yellow Nigella seeds - and I don't know the species, Uma!

Thanks Alice. :-)) And why not? I shall have to think hard, though. Ouch! My brain hurts already!

Oh, Nigella orientalis! Never seen it growing in gardens. Very beautiful plant and very attractive flowers and seedheads!

As for N.sativa - there are two var. of it - with light green-yellow and light blue flowers. I have the second one.

Ah-ha! Thanks, Uma. I must have seeds, then. I hope they germinate next spring!

Do thank you, for your beautiful blogs!

What a lovely thing to say! :-))))

Many thanks Barbara, I have really enjoyed these blogs. Same time next November ?

The seed heads can be as fascinating as the flowers themselves. Thank you for showing them.

I got all of the first parts right I think??, but missed out on most of the second part of the names LOL (well it was very early in the morning!!!!)
enjoyed that Spritz

That's really good to hear. Thanks, all. :-)))

Never mind, Grindle - as you say, you knew them. It was only a bit of fun, after all, not an exam. LOL.

your first pic looks like the seed head has a little face on it........lol

Brilliant series of blogs, Spritz! I didnt contribute, as I recognised so few of them! :~{
Ah well, I'm learning all the time on here!

Never mind, Marie, I'm just glad you read them and enjoyed them! We ALL have things to learn, don't we?

Holly - I think it's winking! LOL.

We do indeed! Thanks! I HAVE enjoyed them!
I recognised a few more than I would've when I joined, so its all good!

To be honest, Marie, if I'd been presented with a set of seedheads, I don't know how many I'd have got right - there are some obvious ones, but some unusual plants are followed by unusual shaped seedheads! :-))))

In that case, you'd have to have grown the plant to be sure, I suppose.

i think you'd have done very well as you are very knowledgable.
i have really enjoyed these series of blogs. and the photography has been stunning too.

Well, thanks, Ma'am! That's very complimentary, Sbg. I appreciate it. :-))

Didnt take part Spritz....but enjoyed the blog and the pics...I have learned quite a bit...thank you...:>)

Glad to hear that, Motinot! I only made it into a kind of 'quiz' to make it a bit different. :-))

Lol Spritz! I go to the Indy school of Botany!
All my plants are things like whaddyacallit & Ifiknewidtellya!

OK - when I have a 'senior moment' I get like that! LOL. You're not old enough to have those....yet. lol.

I've had them all my life, lol!

Now do I believe that, Marie? ;-)

Lol! My family & close friends all know what I'm talking about if I ask for a 'hoojie' (my catchall word) which is quite worrying!
They now expect my absent-mindedness, but also expect me to act intelligent!! Go figure!!

LOL. Difficult!

The difficult bit is that my lecturers expect me to actually BE intelligent! Hee hee!

Oh my Barbara..lol...I love your gardens and now I love your seed heads...I have been known to go out in the fall and collect seeds from all over the place..just marking the little paper bags I carry with me..a blue flower by the log by the water..lol...I do love seed heads and this was so much fun to read..I am glad I got here late...I would not have been able to even begin, I am afraid..what a wonderful series..thank you...~Cat

I'm glad you got here - however late it was, Cat! :-)))

It was interesting for me to take a closer look at the plants 'after' the flowers, and to look at the shapes of both! Seedheads can be beautiful - I've learned that from writing these blogs!

I think we all have, Spritz - something I'm sure we'll all look at with new eyes now.

Thanks, Wagger - maybe I'll stop chopping everything back from now on! :-)))

If they're standing upright I normally do leave them until about Feb/March particularly when the ground is as wet as now - daren't tread on it. I had to balance on a board to reach the hellebore leaves to cut them off.

I like to mulch the areas I clear, and normally do that in November - so that's when everything gets 'the chop'. This year, however, I used every scrap of compost in the new bed - so the second bin wasn't 'brewed' in time.

I shall do the mulching in the early spring, now. Yes, the soil is far too wet to get onto now! :-(((

Spritz - Thank you for all four lovely blogs. What I liked best about these blogs was that the time and thought you kindly devoted to their preparation combined with the high quality photos led to the fun challenge members so evidently enjoyed. I came to the blogs when the quizzes were over. This did not detract from the pleasure of the blogs because it was a series and there was another one to look forward to with me wondering how are they doing and what will the next one be like to look forward to. So I liked it when you varied the format of the quiz and members enthusiasm was evident and nice for me to read throughout. I really appreciated your efforts and then thought how can I contribute to the value of these blogs. I don't know whether a suggestion is welcome or not. I thought I would make one to find out. I like a few other members perhaps thought we were not knowledgeable enough to participate in the quiz itself. Perhaps a novices question or a challenge to novices with clues how to carry out research for the answer might encourage wider participation in future quizzes. Alternatively it might be fun for the novices to set quizzes for the experts. Anyway these are just a couple of ideas for discussion and in no way are they intended to detract from your enjoyable blogs read by a novice to this aspect of gardening.

That sounds like a good idea to me (a DEFINITE novice!!) Shakespeare!
Well, Spritz? You ready to teach us (more)?? Lol! :~)))

I believe Barbara is a Natural Teacher...she can do it..aye Spritz?

Back to school again, Spritz? lol.

Maybe Cat doesn't know that I WAS a teacher in my previous life?

I think that once a teacher, always a teacher.....perhaps that shows here....

I'd like to thank Gf very much for his lovely comments and also the suggestions. :-))) I could certainly create one with 'clues'....maybe later on, though, now.

I kinda thought so Spritz..lol..but I did not want to assume and you know I bet you were a very good one. You certainly made this fun!

Thanks Cat - I don't miss it, I assure you! Who wants to be a headteacher now, with all the paper work and new initiatives the Government throws at schools? It was bad enough before I retired! Much worse now, so I hear. :-(((

But where would we be without them ? You never forget your inspirational teachers. :~)

Spritz - Thank you for your reply. Your quiz was about identification. Your blogs demonstrated for me how weak my knowledge was to identify things as I would have been unable to identify some of the seeds even with the photos of the flowers present. When I prepare a blog I find my lack of knowledge provides a dilemma. I want to provide members with an interesting informative gardening blog. If I have reliable information on a label I obviously don't have any identification problem. I have adapted my Happy Valley blog to see how asking for members help with identification works to overcome the problem and in a way I suppose it is a form of quiz. The Happy Valley garden was not selected and the photos were not taken with a quiz for experts in mind it was to tell a different story. I did a blog on Bodnant which I recall you visited. In the blog I did not provide many close up photos of plants and flowers. This was not because I could not identify them. They are usually labelled at Bodnant. What I concentrated on was landscape views. I like that on blogs and photos best perhaps with a close up of an interesting or unusual element. The problem with landscape views is more often than not there is no label for identification or too many to include.You liked my blog I recall because you could compare it with Sid's blog in a different season. Your blog was a novel idea and enabled the flowers to be compared with the seeds and made for a most interesting contribution. This is another reason why I liked you blogs and again express my appreciation. Thank you.

Awww. Spritz they have forgotten what teaching is about and now it has become covered in red tape and politics here too..it is sad.

Gf - if all the blogs were similar, then we wouldn't have the diversity of some wide views and some close-ups, so I truly believe that both are needed. I haven't been out to visit any gardens recently, but if and when I do, I'll post a blog as well. It was good to have the 'twin' blogs from you and Sid - a fantastic coincidence, but very welcome!

I really am glad you enjoyed my series. They took quite a long time to create, tracking down when the flowers had been in bloom and where I'd filed the photos! Members' appreciation of them has meant a great deal to me. :-)

Cat - I had a vocation to teach - but that was way before the Government took a hand! 'My' children leamed to read and write etc without their intrusive intervention and inspection regimes! Such a shame. :-(((( Would I do it now? No - I don't think I would.