Everything is back to normal, everything is in their rightful place. The persistent rain returns, the water butts are overflowing and I am back on the early shift. Apparently we still need more rain, which is just as well as more is forecast. Faithful waterproofs prepare for the onslaught! Our leader Jim at Garden Ruminations will guide you to other SoSers and also the rules of the Six on Saturday game, should you choose to participate. You should give it a go, the more the merrier. Best get on, I’ve a busy day ahead, meeting up with a tree surgeon at Peggy’s and getting my flu jab, variety is the spice of life.
A faithful auricula is delicately flowering, but looks almost ghost-like in its pastelness. Years ago, when I returned from the big bad city to Cornwall, someone called me “pale but interesting”. I took it to mean “ill looking”.
There is fashionably late and there is embarrassingly so. The first flower on Dahlia ‘Bishop of York’ is erring towards the latter.
A warm, Off the Edge welcome to Fuchsia ‘Jasper’s Lightening’. I’m not sure it envokes stormy weather to me, but it is a very pretty flower. “Pretty” is not always my thing, but in this case it is just that.
Plectranthus argentatus did not thrive as well as you would imagine a silver leaf would have in the almost forgotten drought. It has picked up beautifully now and the fabulous flowers deserve close inspection.
I love the incurved petals of Dahlia ‘Verone’s Obsidian’. I also love the name, straight out of Game of Thrones, which I’ve never actually seen so don’t take my word for it.
Going out to meet a friend last weekend I grabbed a coat that I hadn’t worn since last year. My train was a little earlier than hers so I sat in a cafe waiting, one of those trendy places with digital order stations and the staff calls your name out when it is ready and the urge for devilment is strong. The cafe was packed and I was jammed between students on laptops and business men on iphones. My name (Tinkerbell) was called and I leapt up to get my coffee. Returning I sat on my folded coat, milliseconds later leaping up with a “arrggh”. I had sat on two pine cones that I had collected last autumn/winter and forgotten to transplant to the garden. In the meantime they had dried to a quite painful degree. I tried to explain to my puzzled neighbours, I shouldn’t have bothered, I only made it worse.
Have a good day everyone, see you next time.
I often don’t think that dahlia’s are worth the effort, and then I see pictures like that Verone’s Obsidian and I have to concede that they most definitely are.
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Why don’t you try some from seed, then if necessary you can treat them like annuals. They are so easy from seed, like cress!
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I’ve never considered trying from seed. Perhaps I’ll give them a try next year.
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I can send you some. 😊
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I can easily picture the pine cone scene in the bar! 😂
Speaking of dahlias, I also grow the ‘Verone’s Obsidian’ variety; it bloomed beautifully this summer, and I manage to overwinter it in my garage for the following year.
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It is a really striking dahlia, that is why I love them so much, there is such variety. And variety is the spice of life!
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yes, I do think Fuchsia ‘Jasper’s Lightening’ has a pretty flower….unusual, but pretty. Bless you for making me laugh with your cafe regale. I wouldn’t dare such devilry as using another name for I would surely forget and never get my coffee…..Tinkerbell was a great moniker.
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Now that could be a problem ….. 😁
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I love single dahlias and Bishop of York and Verone’s Obsidian are both gorgeous. Is VO one of the honka series? Could I beg some seeds later if you have any? It is always such fun growing them from seed as everyone is different and they are all gorgeous.
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It is indeed a honka and I will collect some for you, I also love growing dahlia from seed, so exciting! Or is that just us?
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I remember years ago you sent me some Dahlia coccinea seeds which were a great success in my old garden. Growing dahlias from seed is one of the great joys in life. People who don’t do it are really missing out. The trouble is I no longer have room for 70 dahlias which is what I ended up with one year.
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Dahlias – so very tempting but I am still saying no. I have one clump that is mistreated and yet comes back every year. That will do me even though I look on with envy at Verone’s Obsidian. Lovely fuchsia too.
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Mine just stay in the ground with a mulch and seem to get on with it. Each year I do worry that I have pushed my luck though!
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Clever name selection. Perhaps, I will try Voldemort next time I am at Starbucks.
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Oh yes, you must!
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Tinkerbell! That fuchsia is very pretty indeed. Those forgotten cones certainly proved to be a “pine” in the.. err… derrière.
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😆
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