Roses and Peonies

 So far, 2018 has been a wonderful year for roses.  Everywhere you look, roses have been blooming brilliantly.  I have been really enjoying mine and above is a collage (created by using picmonkey) showing some of the beautiful flowers.
Left column: top, Darcey Bussell; middle, Jacques Cartier; bottom, Ferdinand Pichard
Middle column: top, Rosa Mundi, bottom, Pride and Prejudice (that was a birthday present this February)
Right column: top, Winchester Cathedral; middle, For Your Eyes Only; bottom, a vase of Gertrude Jekyll, Cottage Rose, Mary Rose and Ferdinand Pichard.

The peonies were a bit slow this year, probably due to the cold snap in February and March, but they were worth waiting for.  They may only flower for a short time but they do provide a 'wow'.  These are patio peonies, Rome, Athens and Madrid (not necessarily in that order!)

Other roses have started to flower too and the clematis are also making their presence felt, so there may well be more photos to come.

Happy things in mid April

As I usually do, I have made some lemon curd - I associate the sunny yellow and slightly sharp taste with Spring.  I made a cake (the thought of lemon curd and buttercream was too much to resist) and to avoid the usual problem I have of the layers of buttercream and lemon curd fighting against each other and causing slippage of the top layer of cake, I mixed the lemon curd into the buttercream. Success!

 The cake stays intact, no slippage of the layers and the delicious lemon flavour comes through the buttercream.

 Other things making me happy are in the garden.  My Lathyrus vernus Alboroseus is flowering again...

 ...and the patio peony I bought last year - Madrid I think, or it could be Athens - has six buds.

It's the start of my tulip season and these Ballerina tulips (my favourite) were from last year or the year before as I planted them in the border after taking them out of their pots.  They are also earlier to flower than the ones I bought this year.

 Muscari latifolium which is my favourite grape hyacinth, due to the lovely shading.

New patio peonies, bought as bare roots last month.  This is 'Rome'.

 Another patio peony just nosing out of the ground.  Rome again (as I received two small and separate plants in the order, rather than one larger one.)

 An epimedium which I bought many years ago and thought was lost, has just made its presence known and is flowering beautifully.

 Erythronium Pagoda is also doing well.

 Clematis Alpina Rosy Pagoda has some buds...

...and one open flower.  I hope there will be lost more to enjoy for the next couple of weeks of April.

In the Garden

 I spent a very happy couple of hours in the garden on Sunday, making the most of the sunny weather.  I did some cutting back and a little tidying of wayward stems.  I also had a good look round to see what was progressing.  Above is Lathyrus Vernus which I always look forward to seeing in Spring.  This one has pink and white flowers, rather than the usual purple and blue.

 One of my patio peonies from last year is budding up nicely.  I have recently bought two more bare root patio peonies which I potted up so I hope they will do well.

 Tulips are just starting to nose out of the soil.

 A little further down the garden, in a bit more sun, more tulips.

 The crocuses were very pleased to see the sun too.

 A few flowers from Prunus Kojo-no-Mai have opened too.

 White phlox plants are just starting to grow.

 White crocus 'Jeanne D'Arc' are looking lovely - you can just make out a pale lilac line inside the flower leading to the stigma and stamens.

 You might be able to see the lilac line better in this close up.

 I still have some snowdrops in flower in this rather full pot.  Some dividing may be required I think.

 The other hellebores are in flower now too.

 They needed a bit of support in order to see into the flowers.

 An erythronium 'Rose Queen' (Dog's Tooth Violet) is also starting to grow.   This was rather dry when I planted it in the Autumn, so I wasn't sure it would grow at all.

A hyacinth providing a splash of deep blue.  I think this plant may need to be located in the sun, rather than the shady spot I planted it in.  Another job to do in a few weeks' time...