New growth appearing all over the place as temperatures crawl up; the nighttime low now hovers around 10 Celsius at night in the greenhouses – the all important point I wait for before moving really tender things around. The great greenhouse shuffle commences – overwintered stuff out, Summer crops in. A very grey day on Friday made for some rather flat photos. More to come in a Sunday post, where I hope to show things to better advantage. In the meantime, here are my six, and I wish everyone dry days, rainy nights and good gardening (oh for some rain though, please!!!!)
Finally, a childhood dream realised: I own a flowering wisteria. I don’t like to boast but honestly, look at these bad boys. Centre stage, delphiniums raised from seed, now two years old, and aren’t they majestic beasts? I diverted a drainpipe to feed rain water directly into this previously rather dry bed and it’s sent everything shooting skyward. Paeonies on the left there giving the delphs a run for their money. At last, a decent show of lily of the valley. I discovered these grow best when the pips are jammed in somewhere tight to a hard surface – they love to run along brick path edging, for example. I lifted them and replanted to the brick edge here and they’ve repaid me handsomely with enough blooms for a small pot on my desk – smells like heaven. An indecently healthy hosta. Sure to be ravaged by molluscs any day now. Candelabra primula. I love these crazy things, I just wish I knew what had happened to the orange and yellow ones that went in alongside these pinky-red ones last year. Do slugs recognise colour? Nothing would surprise me. The squirrels favour the purple crocuses… Path through damp shade garden (Soggy Bottom) rapidly getting obscured. This is becoming my favourite part of the garden in Spring.
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Published by Notes from the Under-Gardener
Keen amateur gardener, tending a large home garden growing flowers, fruit and veg, ably supported by husband and dog.
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13 thoughts on “Six on Saturday – 7th May 2022”
Your Lily-of-the-valley tip would explain why mine enjoy flowering in the edge of the border where they are tightly packed. Oh I’m sure slugs and snails have favourite colours, they munch through some of my violas more than others. Fingers crossed for your Hosta, it looks wonderful.
I have Lily o f the Valley envy, and primula envy too, is your soil on the acid side by the way. Mine is neutral but a little dry at the moment, and the Lily sulking without flowering.
The primula were a purchase from J Parker – growing from seed is largely doomed to failure as the seed needs to be fresh. The soil they’re in could well be slightly acid actually as it’s sub-soil from when our neighbours had their garden landscaped – it’s full of all sorts of builders’ waste and rubbish but I enrich it with garden compost and it manages to be free draining yet stay moist. The lily of the valley are almost certainly in alkali soil – I’m certain that jamming the pips tight against the bricks is what’s helped. Mine sulked without flowering for years until I did that! And being in wet Wales helps of course! Mulching to maintain moisture might help?
There was a beautiful Victorian welsh stone house near my childhood home that was drenched in blossoms every year and I thought it was the most glamorous, romantic thing to do to a house that I’d ever seen. I’m keeping mine on the pergola though, in the hope I can manage its thuggery better there! These days wisterias immediately remind me of Venice in Spring abs that’s never a bad thing (just add Aperol spritz!) 😊
Thank you! Yes it’s wisteria brachybotrys “ikoyama fuji”. I specifically wanted one that flowered late and didn’t have super long racemes, as our pergola is not that high. There are an awful lot of varieties to choose from, it’s quite overwhelming!
I had a wisteria for many years in a former garden before it flowered. And then I moved…
I also bought candelabra primulas from J Parker and they did well for about three years then disappeared altogether! They were pink and orange and very pretty. I might try your tip about the lily of the valley and move mine, the leaves come up but no flowers, they are very young plants though and I think I read that it can take a while for them to flower.
Thank you! I’ve diverted down pipes in a few places around the garden and it’s so effective. For the delphiniums I also drilled holes in the pipe, so when it rains it sort of sprinkles the water out right along the whole length of the pipe rather than all coming out at the end. This bed has been transformed!
Notes from the Under-Gardener 
Your Lily-of-the-valley tip would explain why mine enjoy flowering in the edge of the border where they are tightly packed. Oh I’m sure slugs and snails have favourite colours, they munch through some of my violas more than others. Fingers crossed for your Hosta, it looks wonderful.
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I have Lily o f the Valley envy, and primula envy too, is your soil on the acid side by the way. Mine is neutral but a little dry at the moment, and the Lily sulking without flowering.
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The primula were a purchase from J Parker – growing from seed is largely doomed to failure as the seed needs to be fresh. The soil they’re in could well be slightly acid actually as it’s sub-soil from when our neighbours had their garden landscaped – it’s full of all sorts of builders’ waste and rubbish but I enrich it with garden compost and it manages to be free draining yet stay moist. The lily of the valley are almost certainly in alkali soil – I’m certain that jamming the pips tight against the bricks is what’s helped. Mine sulked without flowering for years until I did that! And being in wet Wales helps of course! Mulching to maintain moisture might help?
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Wisteria is a childhood dream of mine too. Gorgeous!
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There was a beautiful Victorian welsh stone house near my childhood home that was drenched in blossoms every year and I thought it was the most glamorous, romantic thing to do to a house that I’d ever seen. I’m keeping mine on the pergola though, in the hope I can manage its thuggery better there! These days wisterias immediately remind me of Venice in Spring abs that’s never a bad thing (just add Aperol spritz!) 😊
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Do you know the variety of your new wisteria? That’s a very pretty, saturated purple color. Congrats on your garden dream come true!
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Thank you! Yes it’s wisteria brachybotrys “ikoyama fuji”. I specifically wanted one that flowered late and didn’t have super long racemes, as our pergola is not that high. There are an awful lot of varieties to choose from, it’s quite overwhelming!
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I had a wisteria for many years in a former garden before it flowered. And then I moved…
I also bought candelabra primulas from J Parker and they did well for about three years then disappeared altogether! They were pink and orange and very pretty. I might try your tip about the lily of the valley and move mine, the leaves come up but no flowers, they are very young plants though and I think I read that it can take a while for them to flower.
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I appreciate your creativity in meeting the needs of your plants. Everything looks so happy!
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Thank you! I’m an incurable over-planter but our rich soil and a few tonnes of manure every year seem to help me get away with it!
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That diverted downpipe is a genius idea, and your delphiniums are indeed looking really good.
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Thank you! I’ve diverted down pipes in a few places around the garden and it’s so effective. For the delphiniums I also drilled holes in the pipe, so when it rains it sort of sprinkles the water out right along the whole length of the pipe rather than all coming out at the end. This bed has been transformed!
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