Lots of Colour Everywhere! (pic heavy)

I surprise myself with just how much colour there is in my garden. Baring in mind I go for the big leaved tropicals and the spiky arid bed.

Whilst sat eating dinner outside on the patio, hubby asked me why I was growing marijuana?

I said you daft bat thats not marijuana thats a Cleome and they have the most amazing flowers with a fabulous scent!

 I was trolling round the garden this evening after another beautiful day and took one or two photos!
Lots of Nicotiana  in varying colours.

Day Lily and Agapanthus just about to bloom.

A white Cleome, I do love white flowers, but 'him indoors' has banned me from having them!! Behind is a tree spinach, beautiful pink on the leaves!

Now here are some of my big leaves

Pink China, elephant ears, has proven quite hardy and has over wintered for 2 winters now think I may have to split it next year!

Now this is jungle

A bunch of Cleomes. I grew these from seed about 3 years ago, then last year I grew them from seed I had saved, but due to my mum having a fall last year I wasn't here to be able to collect the seed, so these have been bought in!
They are such a pretty flower, I highly recommend them.

Canna sending out a flower bud!

One of my Dahlias in flower

Phlox

I know some white flowers, I bought them as pink but I think some white where mixed in so I have got away with it!

An Alium, I thought I planted more of these, I love them sooo pretty, but sadly only one has bloomed.

Isn't tmy Zebra grass magnificent

I had no idea when I bought it just how tall it grew

A couple of years back I thought I had lost it so bought another, just in case!!

My globe thistle, can't decide whether I love this or not. I love the thistle heads but where it is planted it grows easily to 6ft and flops everywhere so is currently held upright with a bunjee rope!

Clematis who doesn't have at least one clematis in there garden?

Thalia Dealbeta flowering in the pond, these flower stalks are at least 6ft tall! Wish I had made the pond double its current size. When it was re-dug in 2011, we increased the pond by just over double its then size. I realise now, even if I dug up the whole of the bottom of the garden, it probably wouldn't be big enough!!

and we finish with Green Goddess, she is spectacular!

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Feeling Hot! Hot! Hot!

Yesterday to keep my mind occupied I decided to treat hubbies man shed! I am really pleased with how it has come up, but boy was it hot, it needs another couple of coats but they can wait till another day!

Meanwhile the garden is loving the warmth, you can practically see plants grow in front of you. According to the weather forecast, sadly, this isn't going to last!!!

So for a change starting at the bottom of the garden and yes the Gunnera has grown since I put it in, I am watering it religiously everyday.

Poor pond area has been badly neglected. I am waiting for the neighbours to put in their new fence, which in the spring they said they would do and we are still waiting. All of a sudden after 7 years, they are not talking to us, we have no idea what we have done, probably all my moaning about their flippin hedge, but hey ho!

Planted a few more 'exotics' in this part of the flower bed, should look really good when it gets going.

Looking up the garden from the archway. I really must get the trough filled with some soil and lots of gravel, it may have to wait till next year after 'The Wedding'. I am trying hard not to spend money in the garden, but its not easy!!!

My Hiniba, now looking a lot more healthier than earlier in the season, love the red stripe up the lime green leaves.

The top bed in the very bright sunshine this morning.

Kong Coleus, bottom right of this next photo, bought from Aldi!!! There should be another bottom left but the slugs have had a field day eating it!! I could use slug pellets but I worry about them, especially having the dog around.
The Maurelli leaves look amazing in the sun, again another slow grower this year, just wondering if the Trachy is taking all the goodness and nutrients out of this area?

Cardoon growing well, amazing thistle type flower heads

which as you can see all the insects love!

thetrachy in glorious sunshine, really loving the bromeliads.

the very top bed, some of the flowers are now beginning to bloom. The Maurelli in the sunshine looks amazing, but is struggling for some unknown reason, I will keep watering and feeding.

Stunning Canna, love this colour.

I love my garden, and get a lot of pleasure from it, I know its the same old, same old, every time you read my blog, but to me its everything. I know I should grow more from seed, but having the space to bring the seedlings on is what I lack. I just wish I could open it up for people to come and see as it is so unusual. Sadly that will not happen unless our neighbours start talking to us. We have no rear access, everything to do with gardening comes through my house, the only access we have is for 'coal' which as you know the Rayburn went 3 years ago. Hey ho! Off to do some sewing now!

A Rare Sunny Day!

When I am plagued by the dreaded 'Black Dog' the best thing for me is sunshine, garden and ALL phones left inside the house!! So that is exactly what I did today, I was outside by 7.30am and apart from a breakfast stop and a coffee break that is where I remained until 1.00pm. I wanted to plant the Gunnera in its new planned home and I also wanted to start work on the flower bed next to the Arid bed. I am not happy with it, si I had a look round the garden, as I have a number of plants still in pots which could possibly be planted in. The other day it looked like this

I know it doesn't look any different but I have dug out loads of old plants and weeds, added 1 Maureli, 1 Hiniba, a red leaved Canna, some Elephants Ears. I have ordered some more plants to fill in the gaps.

But I am very pleased with the start of this.

Further up the garden

mmmmm???I am very tempted to dig out that tree thingy after giving it a good weed I found loads of elephants ears coming through. I dug out a fern from the bottom of the garden and split it half, part of it is now in the top right corner of this bed.
I need to add loads more plants plus it needs loads of compost.
So an on going project!!

Meanwhile the bottom of the garden looked like this

I needed to do something. If you remember my neighbour has attached a trellis to my side of the fence and decided to grow a Clematis Montana up it. I wanted to disguise/hide it so I came up with the cunning plan.
After moving the sleeper, digging out the old plants I had to dig the grass over as I knew The Gunnera needs space, it was very compacted, I have added 2 large wheelbarrow loads of home made compost  and it now looks like this.

I have covered the bed with weed membrane as I dug the grass in.

I am thrilled, I think it will be amazing once it starts growing, it was definately ready to come out of its pot!

On A Great British Summers Day......... not!

So here we are, nearly the middle of July and the weather is miserable. We have had rain but not the sort that actually waters the ground. I didn't realise how dry the ground was until I planted some plants so I spent the rest of yesterday watering!!!

Today of course, it really rained!!!! So as you can see the garden is growing well.

I am being very good on the feeding front, this year. the tree spinach on the right of the stripy leafed banana is doing well, and yes you can eat it lol!

Its all coming along well, but we could do with some more 'heat'!!!

My Bromeliards  seem to be doing well, I am loving the colours of them up the trunk.

My Brahea Armata, is doing so well, two new spears coming up. I think I have been scared to over water it, but it seems to be enjoying the humidity!

The new jungle bed is romping away,

The marks I made to see if it was growing and as you can see, it most definitely is. This was always a very 'dry' bed so I must remember to water, water, water!

The Arid bed is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G

the next two photos where last year just after it was planted...

you can see just how much everything has grown

The Dasylirion Serratifolium is growing amazingly.
 

I hadn't realised just how much they have grown. I am just loving this.

the centre of this Yucca Rostrata is solid with fronds or whatever they are called!!

A great success, smiling now.

My Zebra Grass has excelled this year, I had planned to dig this bed out and plant my new Gunnera here, but I have changed my mind (again) lol!!

I have decided to plant it here, next to the brand new trellis, my neighbour built and attached it to MY  side of the fence, then planted a Montana Clematis to grow up it and assured me it wouldn't encroach as she would keep it trimmed back!!!!! Not sure how she intends to do that my side!!!
It gets very damp here and every year I lose the grass due to the damp, so I will move some of the ferns, arum lily, box and other bits and plant and feed like crazy!!!

So all in all the garden is looking great..................................

apart from............................................

here, I am at the end of my tether with this bed, which runs down the right hand side of the garden. next to a 6ft fence, which has an enormous beech hedge the other side, which tops the fence by 2 feet, and whilst it does that it grows over into my garden taking at least 2+ft of light from a garden that is only 13ft wide!!!!

I have added so many plants this year and it looks a flippin mess.

Serious thoughts as to what to do. I may dig the whole lot out, well, I won't, I may get 'the gardener again and build another raised bed and fill it with more arids unless you can come up with a better idea?