SoS 14/8/21
I think we’re really moving very swiftly into Spring. So much that the Dwarf Iris Reticulata flowered and finished in five days. I don’t think I will bother with them again – a floral disappointment.
But onto better things and my Six on Saturday:
Firstly the bed under the front willow which is largely made up of whatever I throw there. There’s spare Hellebores, Erigeron (which I hope will spread everywhere) Bluebells, Nerines, miniature Agapanthus, Honesty and Nasturtiums. I let everything seed and I’m happy for it to be ‘wild-ish’. It’s a difficult position – very shady in summer and very exposed in winter. It’s also at the end of a westerly wind tunnel, which requires forgiveness and hardiness (you can see some windburned leaves on the hellebores). Tomorrow, we’re due to have winds of up to 100km an hour in some parts of the region.
Next is the Honesty – Lunaria Annua. I have both mauve and white but more of the white which is fine by me. I collect the mother-of-pearl discs in late summer and open them to scatter the seed. I also love a vase of honesty seedcases with bare contorted willow or Robinia.
Then, a bog plant in the damp microclimate created by the tree-ferns. This wonderful little plant was given a name by Jim which I duly wrote down. But I can’t find the list and so, Jim, if you see this post, can you name the plant again, please? With many thanks and apologies. The plant is like a cross between a fly-catcher and an orchid and I love its dark colouring and sturdy nature.
Next are more of the white crocus, Ard Schenk, which are popping up in the tubs now. The beauty, like the reticulata, is very short-lived but I love the elegance.
Our standard old aggies (Agapanthus) are sending up the odd bud. We have dozens of blues and whites naturalised around the house. This was to be the year we dug them up, divided them and started again. Thus far, no time or energy as it’s a BIG job. In Australia, the common aggie has been declared a noxious weed and we are encouraged to grub them out and replace with non-seeding varieties. I take care of the issue by cutting back the flowers and stems well before they get to seeding stage.
And finally: the common little forget-me-knot, Myosotis, is just beginning to flower through the whole garden. Sometimes, the plants choke other things and I’ll pull out wheelbarrow-loads of them to allow other things to breathe. But it’s a beautiful blue in the garden and seems to add depth to a floral planting.
And that’s it for me. Please have a look at all the other gardens on https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2021/08/14/six-on-saturday-14-08-2021/ Click on the link and there’s much to see.
That plant comes into the burgeoning category of things I once new. Never mind, I’ve found a name; it seems to be Arisarum vulgare. It’s rather splendid that a plant such as that, coming from the Mediterranean Basin, has made its way to Tasmania. Roughly on a par with me growing Pterostylis curta. I also grow Arisarum proboscideum, which hides its flowers under the not very interesting foliage.
Thank you so much, Jim. I knew you’d come up trumps for me. The plant was here when we took the place over from the original owners. There are a couple of plants that like the wet and I suspect old Mr. and Mrs. R chose them for that very reason. Once upon a time, this whole area was subject to floods as it exists on top of coastal springs and is called Spring Bay. It was Mr. R that divided the garden up with deep wide trenches to act as water conduits. We’ve left the trenches there as we can still get huge dumps and they’re readymade drains.
The Arisarum dies down through the autumn and winter and then returns to grace the understory of the ferns quite majestically. I love the mottled leaves – a little like my pulmonaria leaves. And of course the flower is remarkable.
I looked up the pterostylis curta – it’s beautiful!
Interesting selection, crocus flowering the same time as agapanthus! My agapanthus are flowering at the moment in the northern hemisphere, is yours a special variety?
Not a special variety. As mentioned in the post, just a common aggie that is right across Australia, and is consider a noxious weed.