May is all about the three A's - Aquilegia, Allium and Astrantia - and I love to see them. Above is an aquilegia (Columbine or Granny's Bonnet). They have moved themselves about and self seeded in various places too, so it is a surprise to see where they will appear next.
My alliums in the border are not doing so well and I assume it is because they are getting too hot and dry in the summer months. With this in mind, last autumn I planted some in the big pots with the roses, as I thought that roses and alliums always look good together. These are some of the ones in pots and so far, are looking good.
Some of my roses are almost in flower too, which is quite early, but probably caused by the very dry Spring/early summer we had/continue to have.
I don't know Astrantia and must investigate. The others I love and grow in a range of colours. Grannies Bonnets were one of the earliest flowers I recognised and I loved supping the honey from those spurs...
ReplyDeleteThanks, EC. Astrantia are also known as Hattie's Pincushion or masterwort, and come in a range of colours from whites, through pinks to deep reds. They are happier in a little bit of shade and are quick to wilt if they are too dry. I have found them very easy going perennials. According to Google, they can grow in Australia.
DeleteBest wishes
Ellie
Just gorgeous Ellie. I love Grannys bonnets so much - I used to just have pink ones but now I have some deep purple & also cream ones. I love how they merrily self seed everywhere. xx
ReplyDeleteThanks, Julie. I also love these plants and this time of year in the UK. I also had some different coloured ones once, but the ones I have now all seem to be purple, but they work very well with all the other purples in the garden. We are enjoying lots of sun at the moment, but the temperatures are higher than usual for the time of year and we could do with some rain!
DeleteBest wishes
Ellie
Flowers here are starting to pop, but it's still pretty early to put things in pots, as we're not yet passed the danger of frost. Your 3 A's are very pretty. I noticed the lady across the street put out several pots and hanging baskets, but we had a frost warning the other night so she gathered them all together on her porch and covered them up to protect them.
ReplyDeleteSandy's Space
Thanks, Sandy. We have hopefully passed having frosts at night, but it still can get cold. I am growing some cosmos and am putting them out each day to harden off before they are planted out in June.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes
Ellie