Six on Saturday – Life is Better in the Garden

I’m going to have to start this weeks SOS (as I’m an NHS worker), reiterating the plea to follow instructions and stay at home – our safety and the safety of our emergency services depends on our co-operation. That said, I cannot imagine any gardener (being instinctive nurturers), acting in any way other than in the interests of us all. If there’s a plus side at all during these unprecedented times, we certainly can’t complain that there aren’t enough hours in the day to get our gardens in shape, but one thing is for certain – our green spaces are a welcome distraction from the outside world. My six this week are from our sunny spring garden, albeit rather cold and windy today!

My first this week is a collection of wallflowers – I blogged about these last year. Having sown them late, they simply didn’t flower and so I sought help from the RHS Twitter clinic – it was suggested that the extreme cold may also have been a factor and I was advised to leave them in the ground for flowering this year. As there were too many to leave them all in situ I dug some up and put them in pots. I then cut them back and used some of the stems for cuttings. They’re all in flower now, I’m so pleased I didn’t just discard them!

I absolutely love anemone blanda and this one is a lovely shade of blue. Low growing with a height and spread of 10cm by 15cm, it looks great at the front of the border and despite its size, it really stands out amongst the spring daffodils. Also known as the windflower, it needs well drained soil and a position in sun or partial shade.

I prefer white daffodils and this one doesn’t disappoint!

Pulmonaria seeds itself all over the garden, however this blue and pink one is quite tame (unlike a pale pink variety that is a complete thug!). I haven’t planted any myself, they’ve just appeared over the years and I welcome their pretty presence in spring..

Primulas are such a joy! With so many colours to brighten our days, this herbaceous semi-evergreen perennial is an essential plant in the spring garden and is so easy to grow. Although personally I prefer the pastels and blues, there’s a myriad to choose from.

And finally, there’s never been a better moment to acknowledge that life is better in the garden – stay safe and well all.

That’s my six for this week; I’d recommend a visit to the home of SoS for more at: https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/six-on-saturday-a-participant-guide/

15 thoughts on “Six on Saturday – Life is Better in the Garden”

  2. sedumsdahliasandhayfever says:

    First of all thank you for all the work you do especially during this crisis. My mum was a nurse and I know all stressful times you must have went through before this crisis and this must now be ramped up to the hilt. I also know the sense of pride and satisfaction that she had. Anemone blada is a a new one to me and it looks like a fantastic plants. The white daffodils look so pretty and dainty even though it is the colour of my skin after winter. Stay safe.

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    • Phao Hewitson says:

      Thank you and stay safe too. I’m a nurse, but no longer on the front line – our daughter is is ICU trained and has volunteered to go back, she’s at Guy’s in London and it is so worrying..thank goodness for our gardens – sanctuary!

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  5. Hortus Baileyana says:

    Lovely selection of flowers in your six this week. It’s hard to pick one out to mention, but the anemone is a stunning blue. I’ve been able to spend most of the week in the garden, but i still have a never ending to do list!

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  6. Lora Hughes says:

    Well, thank your daughter then, & yourself for raising another medical professional. Like plants, we can never have too many of those. Those white daffs are striking, I must say. Is your very top header photo Japanese anemone? What an unusual angle, if they are – it changes their shape for me, so I’m not sure if I know them or not. Love those anemone. I did a white anemone bed for this spring w/both blanda & coronaria, but none of the blanda came up & about half the coronaria didn’t either. Looking at yours, I wonder if I might prefer that colour blanda when I replace them. They are certainly a wind of flowers 😉

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  8. susurrus says:

    A heartfelt thank you for all you, your daughter and your colleagues are and have been doing. I’m glad you have a beautiful garden to spend time in and that the wallflowers repaid your patience. I particularly like the anemone picture and the pulmonarias are another favourite.

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