ROSE EXTRAVAGANZA

Dawn chorus from my bedroom window in early June to listen to whilst enjoying my June roses.

The only thing missing is the heady perfume of the roses.

Sir Edward Elgar

Aviateur Bleriot

Goldfinch changes colour from salmon/gold to pale yellow

Cornelia

Cottage Rose

Charles de Mills

Sweet Juliet

Mayor of Casterbridge

Unknown rose with no perfume but always flowers profusely.

Sophie's Rose

Jayne Austin

Unknown rose a cutting from my mother in law.

New Dawn

Vielchenblau

Unknown rose

Rosa Galica Officinalis

Cecile Brunner

Rosemoor

Hermosa

Francine Austin

White Flower Carpet

Rosa Mundi

Francis E Lester

Mayor of Casterbridge

Blush Rambler

Falstaff

Rambling Rector

New Dawn cutting.

The Garland

Rambling Rector from the other side next to the compost heap. Rather a nice way to hide the compost and the perfume from the rose and the Honeysuckle is wonderful.

A sideways view of the vegetable area which is actually where most of my roses are, looking across to the backdrop of the woods.

BIRDSONG IN THE WILD WOODS

If you turn the volume right up and start the video you can listen to the bird song as you scroll through the photos below.

The photos are of my and Beth's walk in the Wild Woods, near the end of the walk I felt that photographs alone just didn't catch the magic of a walk through these woods and so decided to take a video, not for their pictures but so I could capture the bird song. I forgot that we were nearing the road and so there is a whooshing sound from the cars near the end. Nevertheless the bird song was such a delight.

Down the track from the road.

This area used to be a lake but is down to just a trickle these days.

Another magnificent Oak tree. There are several around this area.

Beyond this fallen tree is a track which leads to the road, between two fields it would be a wonderful place to walk if only it were not so overgrown.

Beth leading the way while I decided to take the video with the bird song.

BEHIND IN BLOGGING AS USUAL

These photos were taken in May but as usual I am behind with blogging and gardening for that matter. It is once again stinking hot and so again I have been busy hose piping. The problem is I see so many jobs that need doing whilst hose piping and often they are still waiting to be done the next time I need to hose pipe.

The Passion flower plant that was growing on the trellis by the back of the house did not survive our cold snowy winter so once again I reverted to colourful hanging basket plants to adorn it until I get something else to grow. In fact Rebecca brought me a Montana clematis and so that was where I decided to plant it. Yes I know it really needs much more space but it will be nice for a few years and pretty near the back door. I really do not have room anywhere else for a Montana.


Hostas always look great and grown in old wash tubs works really well, but this hosta really must be divided up next year.

A quick look at my alpine sinks and the lettuce that can be picked leaf by leaf very useful for a sandwich or salad lunch.

This area Mike called the GAID Garden for the Aged, Infirm and Disabled. It stemmed back to the time when my Arthrits and Muscle weakness from Lyme Disease meant I could not garden. Mike thought it was a good idea having things in pots because you could lift them up on your knee to garden. Great theory but infact that was something else I could not do even lifting a magazine was painful, now recovered I can do all sorts of gardening jobs again.

When Beth was younger she liked to play ball along this area, but now it is a job to walk through all the pots at times.

Cerastium tormentosum is a wonderful plant with masses of lovely perfumed sprays of white flowers it is rather rampant and needs keeping under control.

Just one flower on this group of Flag Iris but the ones in the front garden are flowering better this year. I do like Flag Iris but it is difficult finding the space for them in my crowded garden

The Gleditsias are just coming into leaf either side of the arch. They are such wonderful trees.

I never used to like these big blousey poppies but grew some paler ones from seed which have been flowering this year for the first time somehow they help dilute the brighter ones so the effect has been much more pleasing. I also grew some white ones from seed last year but they don't seem to be big enough yet so doubt I will have flowers this year.

If these poppies are cut back after flowering they often flower again in late summer.

The Lupins I grew from seed and planted out last year are beginning to flower and add extra flowers and colours to this already busy bed. Since taking this photo I have weeded all around the edges removed the wallflowers and planted out dahlias in any spaces found. It seemed to work well last year, but I only stood the pots out, this year having run out of large pots I decided they could go in the soil once the frost was passed and they had already grown 20-40 cms.

Finally my Ginka tree in a pot, thankfully it survived the snowy winter. I am not sure what I will do with it when it outgrows all my large pots but I will worry about that then.