The garden is slowly cranking into action. I can hear the starter motor begin to whirr. Things are mostly still grey but expect a colour explosion on the pages of this blog in the coming weeks. But first, here are the six things that have been the spark plugs for my tired brain this week.
Orange snowdrop – Galanthus ‘Anglesey Orange Tip’
Last week’s snowdrop special featured this pretty apricot blushed snowdrop and I mused on whether the colouring would remain as the flower matured. Yesterday was a warm day and the first of my two buds opened up. You can see that the intensity of the orange is slightly less than in the bud but significantly more than the white snowdrops in the background. They do sort of glow.
Snowdrops in the lawn
My father died five years ago last weekend and the snowdrops in his garden looked annoyingly perky the day he died. I hated them for a while but just weeks later that feeling had gone and I started planting some snowdrops in the grass alongside the track driveway to our house.
I add to them each year and now the display looks better than ever, with a combination of the standard Galanthus nivalis and some taller Galanthus elwesii for an undulating display. It’s best at night as the car headlights pick out each flower like cat’s eyes on a road. I have nowhere to go at the moment but it’s tempting to drive up and down the track in the evenings – just to enjoy the spectacle.
Acacia dealbata – Silver Wattle
By rights the greenhouse should be filled with a heady honeyed scent as the puffy pompom flowers of this acacia dealbata are bursting open. I admired the blooms of a huge specimen of this in the Princess of Wales Greenhouse at Kew three years ago and I’m sure it had scent but this one has no fragrance at all. I don’t know why and it’s a bit disappointing. **Stop Press** Saturday lunchtime – I just went to the greenhouse to check again and stuffed my nose right in an open flower and wow – the scent was there. I’m very happy!
New wormery
This is a smart addition to the garden, bought using Christmas money. I have a compost heap of course but most of my family have lost use of their legs and don’t seem able to walk into the garden with kitchen scraps and fruit cores. This wormery from Wiggly Wigglers will be positioned by the back door and no-one will have an excuse not to use it.
For now it’s in the greenhouse to protect its new wriggly tenants. I feel a duty of care towards them and since they arrived in a snowstorm I felt it was acceptable to cosset them until the wormery ecosystem gets established. A second layer can be added once it really gets going and I can use the compost they produce and the liquid worm tea on my plants.
Bulb pans coming alive
I bought several new bulbs to plant last autumn in pots and shallow pans for a great spring display. A few are close to flowering, others have lots of leaves but no sign of buds for now.
Included in my selection were a few miniature tulips but they’ve all been dug up by squirrels.
Rock garden bulbs
I’m so glad I took the time last autumn to select a few miniature bulbs from Pottertons nursery to plant in the rock garden too. I didn’t plan out where to plant them but just moved about randomly trying to find spaces to plant little groups of them. Most are sprouting now and I can’t wait to see the little pops of colour after the dreary winter we’ve had. Crocus, narcissi, ipheon, chinodoxa and olsynium are all waiting in the wings of the rock stage.
This seasonal diary is part of a weekly link-up of garden bloggers from around the world, called Six on Saturday. For more information and links to other blogs crammed with gardening activity, check the blog of host The Propagator.
Snowdrops in grass are wonderful, a beautiful naturalistic effect. We are in mid-snowdrop-season here with lots opening this past week. I have posted a good number of photographs in this week’s blog.
I’m popping over to your blog now to look at your snowdrops – I love your collection. You’ll be pleased to hear I’ve put a few more out in the garden down in the woodland walk – some Helen Tomlinson, some Mrs Macnamara and some Wasp. I think they’ll enjoy it there.
The wormery looks very stylish. Your snowdrops are a show and I suspect your rock garden bulbs will be soon too.
Hi Graeme – I took another look at the rock garden bulbs today and was very excited to see some of the miniature tulips on their way up – the same variety that the squirrels dug out of the bulb pans. So it’s a 1-1 draw with the squirrels so far!
Very smart wormery. I have a compost bucket a couple of metres from the back door which I only have to take down the garden once a fortnight, but I will be very interested to hear how you find yours works. Beautiful acacia and snowdrops in your lawn.
Hi Granny, I’m filling a compost caddy every day or two at the moment as we’ve got six people at home during lockdown easting allot of fruit and veg. It always makes it to the compost heap but it’s mostly me that does it. Hopefully this way the worms will get a good feed and it won’t always be on me! Once the snow and rain forecasts ease up I’ll bring it to near the back door. The lid has tiny airholes that can let in the rain so the manufacturers advise keeping it somewhere sheltered.
That snowdrop is simply amazing! And the wormery – hopefully they will appreciate your cossetting and give their best for the garden. (I shall imagine you driving up and down the drive tonight admiring those fine snowdrops!)
Hi Cathy – yes I’m very taken with the snowdrop. I really like the pure white ones but there’s something very appealing about the apricot tones of the Anglesey Orange Tip.
I love all the pots on their display shelves. I can’t wait to see them come out in all their glory. I hope your mimosa does start to release some perfume, once it gets a little warmer. I have a dianthus in the greenhouse. It has flowers but no discernible scent at the moment. I put this down to the air temperature being too cold to release the fragrant oils.
Hi Hortus – I think you’re spot on about the air temp releasing the perfumes. The good news is that yesterday I went to give the mimosa a another sniff and I could smell it. I think when more flowers open and the weather warms it’ll be dreamy in there!
Full of pretty interesting things this week again Katharine, I really enjoyed your mimosa in bloom. You will see mine which is higher but not yet open …
Concerning the bulbs pans , you have a lot of them and this is the kind of shelf behind that I would need here in my greenhouse.
Finally, this wormery is very interesting because it’s both aesthetic and small in size. I don’t know if it exists here in France but it seems interesting to me. How often do you plan to empty it?
Hi Fred – the wormery is sold in the UK by Wiggly Wigglers but is made I think by a German company. Maybe there is a French supplier too. The brand name is Urbalive if you want to search for it. I’m new to it so I’m not sure how often it’ll need emptying. The good thing is the two layers for the worms to live in (I’ve only got one on at the moment). I guess once the worms move up to the upper layer I’ll be able to empty the lower one. I’ll keep you informed! The shelves holding my bulb pans are sold through a company in the UK called Sarah Raven but I don’t know where they’re made. They’re great for seasonal displays and would look wonderful in a greenhouse.
Found on Amazon France, thanks !
That’s great – we can compare notes!
What a lovely way to remember your Dad, your snowdrops are very beautiful. I’ve never tried a wormery, but have been tempted. Perhaps in our new house. I will be watching your every move!
I promise to keep reporting back on the wormery. I’m very optimistic for it!
The silver wattle is delightful and the possibility of a pleasing scent makes it downright irresistable. I love the thought of you taking a mini-road trip to view your snowdrops gleaming in the headlights.
I can think of no better way to while away the evening than driving up and down the drive. Lockdown delights!