Wednesday 6 April 2011

Spring in my garden

All of a sudden, my tulips have grown and are almost in flower! Things are certainly changing quickly now and are 'going up a gear'. In fact, blink and you miss something!
Here is a lovely delicate erythronium (dog's tooth violet) called 'Pagoda' which is remarkably tenacious especially as every year I forget it is there, so it is constantly living with the threat of me inadvertantly digging it up or squashing it. However, it regularly manages to surprise and delight me by returning with its deeply veined leaves and delicate pale yellow flowers. A real little beauty!

This is Magnolia 'Susan' which is in flower a month before it flowered in 2010. I love this for the brilliant pink elongated petals and for the gorgeous fragrance which is just at nose height as I planted it in a tub. It is also remarkably hardy and survived this last winter very well, as you can see. I did wrap the tub in bubble wrap for insulation, but even so, I wasn't sure it could cope with the intense cold and consistent freezing temperatures we had last November and December. I am so pleased it did.

And finally, another Magnolia, this time 'Stellata' which has lovely white star shaped flowers. I bought this last year from a well known cut price supermarket and it has put on lots of growth and given me about ten flowers, so I think it was a bargain. Again, it is in a bubble wrap insulated pot and survived the winter well. Both the magnolias prefer acid soil, which the garden doesn't have, so they are in pots.
I love the Spring; it is a wonderful time of year for us gardeners!

No comments:

Post a Comment