The vaguely green-fingered thoughts of a rambling rose.

Rose on a Ramble


It's about time I did another post about our friends' garden 


This is the end nearest the cottage, and the mouth of the stream.





The new arch has been installed and will be clothed in Wisteria in no time.







We spotted two late racemes of the Wisteria right at the top, the scent of which was still detectable from the ground.



So many varieties of heuchera, grasses and ferns trail along the stream.






This is a new part of the garden that bites into the large raised border. It's really opened up the space and is a lovely spot to have a cuppa in the sunshine.





It's stunning in the flesh, but unfortunately it was too hot on the day to sit in the top part for very long, and the midges were biting in the shady end beside the pond.

July's Peak...and plans.


This week has been HOT.  The beginning of the week saw temperatures in my garden in the high 30`s...and as we Brits are prone to complaining about the weather, now we're desperate for some rain again.  In an ideal world it would be warm and sunny by day, and rain in the wee small hours.



TMTC and I have spent an hour in the garden this morning tidying up. The climbing rose New Dawn that grows the full length now of both the Pink and Yen Gardens has had a thorough dead-heading, as has r. Tall Story in the front garden. 




 The Wisteria has had its long whips trimmed as per Monty Don,


 and TMTC has planted a new rose called Margaret Merrill in the front garden to replace the pink hardy geranium that was performing poorly (which has been planted in the pink garden now).


I had attempted to purchase another r. Tall Story for this end, but alas it was not meant to be (and I didn't want to buy online). Margaret Merrill has a very nice, strong perfume and similar flowers, although tinged pink rather than the yellow of Tall Story. I snipped off the three flowers to be enjoyed inside.  The plant will bud up again in no time as it's a repeat flowering floribunda.


My plan is to mirror image and flip the front garden....but most of it will be done in the autumn and spring as now is not the time to be digging up and splitting plants.

The plan will be to copy this grass and orange crocosmias with white scented roses as a starting point.


TMTC has also created a step for me to be able to reach the bird feeders from the gravel path beneath the lounge window as I struggle to get past the Stag Horn tree.



A further plan will be to revamp the dry bed. The Penstemons have taken over and are crowding the other plants out, including 3 eryngiums.  Not sure yet what the plan is from there, but there has to be some strong plants here as this is where the badger passes through. 





Tall Story. I think this is my favourite rose. It's a floribunda that just flowers for months on end with the most intoxicating perfume.



New Dawn 



Special Anniversary (second flush has 18 or so buds). There's a matching rose in the other planter, but still has no buds.




Clematis Princess Kate grows over the Yen arch. The stems are really brittle, but the flowers are cute.




We picked up a couple of bird boxes in a sale. I might pluck up the courage to paint the bottom shed, and add a few more cute bird boxes and bug hotels...maybe another job for the autumn.







The geraniums cut back last weekend have already leafed up again and beginning to flower.



Towards the end of this week I shall trim some of my summer bedding back to prevent them setting seed.  They should thicken up and extend the season.

Happy gardening!


It's trying to be summer


There has been less of the wet stuff this week.  This has provided more opportunities for the flowers around the garden to open fully and be tempted to show us what they're made of.








The fuchsias are beginning to flower, including this first one that we moved from one side of the garden to the other as it had outgrown it's space and did so even when cut back hard.






The clematis are still flowering strongly.



The one above was planted last year at the back of the pond. I think it's called Wisley Cream. I nearly missed the flowers!






The first crocosmias are coming into flower. I have orange ones too (and I must get some yellows).


The hydrangeas too are beginning show their colours.  I looks like after being planted, dug up, potted, planted, moved, repotted and replanted, this deep pinky red one is finally happy.

I think I need some new plants....