May - a foot each in winter and summer

"Don't knock the weather: nine-tenths of the people couldn't start a conversation if it didn't change once in a while."

-  Kin Hubbard

May is such a fickle month.  One day the garden is bathed in glorious warm sunshine reminiscent of halcyon days of our youth...

...the next, out come big coats and gloves, and we're scraping car windscreens!

There is much truth in the old wives' tale ...ne'er cast a clout till May be out.

This week we have had night time frosts; -5c is definitely enough to blacken fresh foliage and kill delicate bedding plants.

Most of the plants in our garden are either trees, shrubs, evergreens, herbaceous perennial or biennial like the foxglove above, which seeds itself around and we just weed out those we don't want. 

This beautiful blue ceanothus is c. Italian Skies which is just coming into flower now in the front garden, and is a magnet for bees.

Deliciously scented pink r. Gertrude Jekyll over the arch on the patio. 

And growing up over the other side of the arch is the peach coloured r. Shropshire Lad.

There are a couple of jobs that need attention this week.  The wisteria is growing at top speed and needs tying in, and the wishy washy aquilegias need removing before they set seed.

These ones however, can remain.

So watch out for those night time temperatures.  Anything below 10c, and I pop fleece over anything tender, or bring it inside.

Keep alert, stay safe and enjoy the flowers.

Battening down the hatches...

...in preparation for storm Ciara which is whipping up in the Atlantic ocean as I type.

We have 16 trees, most of which are still quite youthful and needed their stakes and ties checking, and the ground firming.  The roses were also firmed in and had a bit of a prune to help prevent wind rock.  We will check them again after the storm has passed, particularly as snow is predicted for next week. 

Since the sun was shining, it was a good day for a bit of a tidy up to allow the spring bulbs some room to show off.

We have removed the ivy from the boundary wall 

Pruned the clematis that intertwines r. Maigold.

Cleared the old foliage from around the pond, scrubbed the waterfall and removed some pond weed.

Given the Acer Crimson King a little trim to remove crossing branches and any growing in the wrong direction.  We also trimmed the staghorn branches.

Pruned all the later flowering clematis.  The Montana looks good.  We gave it a hard prune last summer/autumn as it was getting out of hand.  It won't take long before the fence is smothered again.

Juicy fat sedum buds are pushing through. 

And the hellebores are looking amazing. 

The Yen had a tiny spruce up, by vacuuming the fallen leaves.

Rhododendron Christmas Cheer about to burst open it's bright pink blooms. 

We spent 2 and a half hours in the garden, working together.  Good for the body and soul.  Time to get warm and wait for the storm to pass.

The final touches

It's the last few days of September and between showers the final touches take place in the Yen. 

The two hydrangeas, 'blueberry Cheesecake' have been planted and the euonymous elata has changed into its autumn attire. 

This gloriously tactile grass is a pennisetum and should link the colours in the opposite side of the Yen rather nicely.  It's considered a tender perennial in these parts so I'm not sure if it will delight again next year. I guess it will depend on how long and hard the winter is.

With the repositioned Buddha head and tsukubai water bowl, all that remains is replacing the setting stones "ishi wo tateru koto" which represent Buddha and his two attendants. 

The gravel has been evenly redistributed and the banana and cannas positioned in place to enjoy what is left of the frost-free weather.

As the weather is about to turn much cooler, the rattan companion seat has taken up its winter position again behind the terrace seat and is now enveloped in its waterproof jacket.

The two Viburnums are placed either side of the patio arch and the washing line has come down. 

The garden is being prepared for the quieter months.

But wait...here and there, the plants and trees are making adjustments for their exit party.  They're not done just yet.

Cotinus in Mugwort's Retreat. 

Acer and euonymous elata in the Yen. 

Old papery birch bark peels in Mugwort's Retreat. 

And the staghorn tree in the front garden. 

There is so much interest in the autumn months yet to be revealed, all it needs is the temperatures to drop a little more. 

But summer is not going down without a fight. 

Scented white phlox and blue hardy geraniums peek through the glowing weigela Wings of Fire foliage in the corner of the patio border/ Long Border 

A pretty fuchsia scrambling through fading peony leaves in the Long Border. 

And in the front garden, r. Tall Story and a magenta hardy geranium, along with the final blooms of crocosmias hang on to every last moment of summer.

An anniversary.

Not much has happened this week due to the appalling weather. In fact there have been warmer days in winter than during the early part of this week!

I thought a glimpse of what we've managed to achieve in the time we've been here might be of interest, particularly since this week saw our 6th anniversary of moving into this house. Each will have a before and after photo.

Front garden 

Pond

Terrace 

Terrace Border 

Patio

Patio

Long Border 

Yen Garden 

Mugwort's Retreat 

Mugwort's Retreat 

Of course most of these areas have had multiple alterations during the last 6 years and I'm sure the next 6 years will reveal a few more.

Earlier in the week, The Man That Can tidied up the workspace as it had become cluttered with pots and bits of old wood, which were taken to the city refuse tip.



And finally, before the next downpour, a couple of floral shots of mid June's irises beside the pond and r. Shropshire Lad.