Flowers and plants Ideas, Tips & Guides

Clematis is one of the worlds favourite flowers for climbing over fences and trellis.

I am hoping for some coloured Heucheras for Fathers day later this year – well hope is free!

My book de Jour is ‘Fifty Favourite Roses’ Michael Gibson. A second reading has given me some new insights and some varieties to look out for: 5 petalled Tea Roses Dainty Bess,  Mrs Oakley Fisher (golden) and Ellen Willmott (white) rugarosa Robusta and colour changing Mutabilis

Repeat flowering old Rose varieties do what it says in their name however the first 5 in my Top Ten only flower once per year but still inspire.

What is a Patio Rose if it isn’t a rose grown on a patio? Patio roses grow bigger and bushier than miniatures and are about 14 -24 inch high, yet they are perfectly formed. H.T. Bush and Floribunda roses grow bigger but Patio roses are easy and decorative.

Genetic purity cannot be guaranteed with a species that has been bred and cultivated for centuries. The above Aquilegia flabellata is an alpine species found in Japan and the Kurile Islands. (Flabellata means fan-shaped)

I was caught by the headline ‘On the Eighth day God Created Allotments

Further information on Grow healthy hydrangeas Tips for Growing Hydrangeas and Hydrangea Aspera

Daffodil Blindness occurs when daffodils fail to flower, i.e the green leaves appear, but no flowers. I am updating this post formerly released in 2014 as I have just experienced  annoying blind daffodils.

Iris sibirica is a clump forming member or the Iris family. In this walled garden the clump has been left undivided for several years and looks good in early summer with its blue flowers held above the foliage.

The Iris family contains over 200 species and all Iris flowers have 3 outer and 3 inner petals with 3 stamens. The outer petals protect the inner petals as sepals do on other flowers. An inner petal is called the ‘Standard’ and the outer is called the ‘Fall’ which bends backward and hangs down. The fall is normally patterned with distinctive markings and a bearded iris has central line of pollen bearing hairs. The Standard is often a different colour to the Fall, in the example a mauve with a deep purple fall. Buds are protected by insignificant papery bracts.

Credits

The bright neon like colours of these daisies make every garden brighter. The ground hugging plants will spread about 4 inches then be covered in masses of flowers that close up slightly in the late afternoon.

A native of China, tea leaves  were delivered around the world in Clipper ships, created the furore at the Boston Tea Party during the American war of independence and still provides badly paid work for workers in India, Sri Lanka, Kenya and China.

For that ‘light bulb moment’ consider the two main species of Iris that will grow from bulbs. Bulbs are generally cheap and easy to grow. The bulbs are often packed in 10’s or 50’s so you can grow a group of Iris together or grow extra for cutting. The main sorts are Iris reticulata and Dutch Iris but there are also some other bulb species to look out for.

Iris flowers are named after the Greek Goddess of the rainbow, which is appropriate for their extensive range of colours.

2023 has been a top year for Dahlias The garden was disrupted by an impending downsizing house move but the quantity of flowers was excellent even after some neglect. A second plus was the plants I gave away to friends who seemed to appreciate the performance in pots or direct in the ground.

One of the most interesting aspects of gardening is the combination of colours that can be achieved by accident or design. Leaves and bark can play their part but it is the bold colours of some of our favourite flowers that take centre stage.

True blue flowers are hard to find in many gardens although Purple, Lavender, Lilac, Mauve and Violet exist in many shades. Since there are no true blue Roses, Peonies, Dahlias, Daffodils or even Tulips these showy flowers are out. So if you find a good strong blue then stick to it and use it with great abandon.

It is a regular debate whether you should leave your tomato leaves on the plant or snap them off. For intermediate varieties I am strongly in the ‘get them off camp!’

How do you chose the best flowers to grow for scent? Well if you want good scent in the home I recommend some flowers below that cut and last in a vase and provide nice scent.

The colour of this young Knapweed is dark almost purple. As it opens fully it will become blue and then fade as the flower ages. The colour helps Centaurea montana earn its nickname of Mountain Cornflower or perennial cornflower.

Once established hardy Fuchsias need little maintenance. Growing outdoors they lose their foliage after frost and branches may or may not die back. However in spring they will send up fresh strong growing branches from the base or existing branch frameworks. A big advantage of growing in the ground is that the unrestricted root run can produce an extremely  floriferous plant.

Perennials are a huge group of plants that should survive year after year. The majority of perennial plants discussed here are herbaceous in that the leaves and stems die back and new growth restarts from the buried roots in the new year.

Notes

Georgia O’Keefee painted some brilliant portraits of red Poppies some times upto 3 feet wide and high, even bigger than the real thing in my garden.The last photo shows how Red and Green work well together on a canvas or in a garden setting. Oriental poppies are perennial and most Poppy species are easy to grow from seed of which 50 varieties are available from Thompson & Morgan

Snapdragons or better known as Antirrhinum are an easy flower to grow and they provide lots of colour with a distinctive scent. Good F1 plants can grow more than 2′ tall and if pinched out they bush out quite well. Available in a wide range of colours I try and grow the same colours together to enhance the effect.

What is purple and where do you draw the line between dark pink and dirty red? How much blue should be included to make a purple plant? Does it really matter anyway?

This is a popular variety of Fritllaria grown in wet meadows. It is often found in Oxfordshire.

Overwintering as the name suggests is the treatment of a fuchsia to protect it during winter so that it will survive to perform again next year. All Fuchsias can be overwintered as cuttings and I recommend that as a belt and braces approach.

Members of the Buttercup family are called Ranunculaceae. To grow the plants successfully beware the seeds tend to have a short period of viability and need planting straight away.

Mulch mulch and more mulch is a must for getting humus into clay soil.

I coum early to Cyclamen (in the same way I came late to Chrysanthemums). Sorry, good gardening is no laughing matter but I like to plant a pun or two to see how they grow!

This fleshy leaved Sedum Telephium Matrona is just colouring and clumping up in my garden. It is not as vigorous as Sedum spectabile Autumn Joy which can be come a bit of a thug if left unchecked.

Originally entitled ‘Why do white flowers smell best?’ I have revised this article.

Growing good roses is not difficult and plants are reasonable and long lasting. Plant them in good soil feed and care for them and they will reward you with magnificent blooms, scent, cut flowers and a great summer show. As a guide to growing roses there is a list on monthly tips and actions to help get the best from your plants.