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All the bloggersphere seems cold and grey just now.
Snow, frost and ice.
So, being an awkward old bugger,
I thought that today, I would do something completely different.
Twenty five years ago, I lived here.
.
.
I know it looks huge, but it was wide and thin.
It was only one room deep, you see.
But it did have 1/3 acre gardens and I was in my element.
.
.
Mind you, the gardening took up nearly all my time.
Twenty years ago I moved here.
.
.
Here, I have almost 1/4 acre to maintain,
but once again, I spent hours,
trying to keep it looking nice.
All tiring, and time consuming.
Now I am retired and with an aching back,
I started to look for 'low maintenance' plants and borders.
Some time ago, Foody asked me to suggest some easy,
hardy plants.
So here are a few of the ones I now grow.
I defy any of you to kill these!
.
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"Day Lily" - Hemerocallis
The flowers may only last a day,
but they keep coming for several weeks.
.
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"Devil's Toenails" - Corydalis lutea
This gets its name from the fact that it can
cling on to any small crack.
.
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"Elephant's Ears" - Bergenia
Need cuttings? Just snap a bit off.
And stick it in a pot!
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Hardy Fushia
I may exclude this from the 'un-killables'.
A very hard frost will knobble them.
It will be interesting to see if mine
have survived these recent very cold nights?
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Hebe buchananii
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Lavender
Like it dry and sunny.
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Three here.
"Golden Marjoram",
"Pink Mullein" or "Rose Campion" - Lychnis coronaria
"Coneflower" - Rudbeckia
I used to have a white Lychnis, but it didn't
seem quite as hardy.
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Two very hardy favourites.
"Red Valerian" - Centranthus ruber
"Crane's Bill - Hardy Geranium
Not to confused with the not so hardy Pelargonium!
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A white version of Valerian - Centranthus albiflorus
and a nice "Mock Orange".
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There I hope that has brightened up your day
and given you some ideas for next year.
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Summer?
ReplyDeleteI have heard of that isn't it supposed to happen between winter and winter?
Your garden is a delight. Lovely old roller, too. Yes, you have brightened up the day absolutely beautifully.
ReplyDeleteKate
Indeed, I can't wait to get started. I would add to the list Montbretia, un-killable and spreads enthusiastically, so you always have some to give to friends. The flowers make good natural dye (not for hair, for fabric LOL) :-D
ReplyDeleteI envy your devotion and skills as a gardener.
ReplyDeleteYour garden is beautiful and I could quite easily live in a house (with a couple of more rooms for my family) with such an outlook as long as some other bugger did the gardening as I simply loathe having to dig, prune, mow and weed the bloody thing!
Thank you so much for brightening my day Uncle B! Your house and garden both look fantastic!
ReplyDeleteWhat a delight your garden Bernard. You keep it beautifully too. Do you have to mow the grass very often? Here when it rains like it is now we have to mow the lawn twice a week. Our lawn grass is called couch and it seeds very quickly in the growing season.
ReplyDeleteOf course most people don't mow it twice a week so by the time they get to it on the weekend it is quite long and very thick and quite a job and if they are busy and let it go till the next weekend it can be 6 to 8 inches high.
I think you will have inspired quite a few people with these photos
Cheers
Helen
It looks absolutely charming! You have wonderful gardening skills! Your homes are beautiful as well!!
ReplyDeleteYour garden is (was) magnificient, as is (was) your taste, Bernard. What a treat. xx
ReplyDeleteYes Angus, but it only happened when we were children. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Kate. You say “is“, but those top three pictures are over twenty years old.
You should see it now! (it looks so sad). :(
Ah, Kath. Montbretia, or as some call it Crocosmia. I do have loads. There it is, surrounding that hardy fushia - but mine never flowers! I’ve dug it up, split it, given to friends but it never (or hardly ever) flowers. :(
Hello CJ.
Well, I think gardening is a hobby for most people. People round these parts who hate it, move into those ‘gated estates’ with ‘managed’ gardens. Don’t think it would suit me. Why don’t you just have a big lawn and get a bloke in to mow it? :)
Molly: The garden does not look anything like that this morning. All a bit ‘tatty’, I’m afraid. I haven’t even got round to cutting out all the dead bits yet.
Hi Helen,
I have never had to mow twice a week. Our summers have been a bit dry lately and I have got away with mowing every two weeks or longer. Foody was asking for hardy, easy plants for her patch. This was to give her a few ideas.
Hello Donna,
Nice of you to drop in and thanks for the compliments. As I have said to the others - those were old photos and as I have got older the garden has gone downhill.
Thank you Mrs S. “Was”, I’m afraid was the correct word. I had more energy in those days.
Thank you all, cheers for now….Bernard
Easy? Huh. I have killed crocosmia, red Valerian, Hebe and others, fuchsia included. I think I've killed some of my new ones that I bought this year too. Forgot they were there under the snow and went out with a fork to stab deep holes in the bed to kill slugs. Oops!
ReplyDeleteHi Foody,
ReplyDeleteOh dear, you do sound as if you have had a run of bad luck there. :(
I don't know what else to suggest, sorry. :)
I did my best. :)
Cheers....Bernard.
Ah those halcion days Bernard, endless balmy/barmy sunshine, rickets, polio, TB and Bananas.
ReplyDeleteThings don't change much do they:)