Whenever it has been a bit drier (not often) I’ve gone out to take some photos of what’s flowering in my garden. Thankfully the primroses, primula, cowslips are always colourful and happily seed themselves around.
I tried to take a close up of the white snake’s head fritillary below with my phone, but I was just too close, if you look closely there’s a purple one which is closer to being ‘over’, to the left of the white flower’s stalk. These are also happy to multiply in any damp areas, and let’s face it, the whole garden is damp after the constant rain, there’s more moss than anything else.
More purple fritillaries at various stages of flowering. Sadly only one white flower has come up this year. Charles Rennie Mackintosh did a lovely painting of this type of fritillary, the chequerboard markings on the flower really suited his designs. The actual flowers look like they have been painted in reality.
I have no idea what these daffodils below are, possibly Paperwhite. I planted the bulbs ages ago in a pretty bowl, planning to give them away at Christmas, but by then nothing much was happening to them. They were supposed to be a miniature variety, but eventually they just grew and grew, then flopped all over the place with not much sign of ever flowering. I dug a home for them in the garden and they flowered as normal in the spring. Definitely not miniature, which thinking about it I should have realised because the bulbs weren’t small. I think that some plant nurseries must be quite chaotic because plants and bulbs are often wrongly named. Anyway, hopefully these ones will flower again next year, if all the rain doesn’t rot the bulbs!
The first tulips are appearing, but I’m sure I planted more than these ones below in that area.
The pulmonaria/lungwort with its spotted leaves below is always one of the first to flower, after the snowdrops, and it goes on for quite a long time, I think that’s why it’s one of my favourites. It was used as a cure for lung problems in days gone by, but I don’t think it was very effective.
I was watching Gardeners’ World on TV tonight and a tulip expert was explaining what you should do to tulips after they have flowered. Dig them up after feeding them, clean them, dry them and plant again next year. I’ve always just left them to get on with it on their own underground, maybe if I gave them some tlc they would respond better, they usually die out with me. I’m not planting them deep enough either, at least four inches apparently.
Anyway, that’s some of the flowers that are blooming in my garden in Fife, it has been a long wet summer, autumn and winter. It’s amazing how resilient plants can be. I don’t think any of my shrubs have actually died, and I know that other gardeners haven’t been as lucky.
The garden photos are beautiful as usual. I especially liked the white daffodils.
I have been very neglectful (plus there has been much more rain than usual) and I have too many weeds to be dealt with. There are some flowering plants but mostly among weeds.
tracybham,
Thanks. I’ve not been able to do much gardening at all, it’s difficult to cut the grass as it’s always wet, but the weeds keep growing all through the winter. I have loads of groundy ivy coming under the back fence and growing among plants, THEY say that if you have ground ivy you should move – as weeding it out just makes it worse!
You have lovely flowers! Here the fritillaries have not even come up from the ground yet – we’re still in snowdrop phase. It’s been a terribly cold spring here in Finland and as I write this it is actually snowing and the ground is white. And I’m in the south-west archipelago; the warmest area of the country. Sigh.
It’s terrible that at the same time there’s news on record high temperatures (I think it was February) worldwide. I just wish it would spread more evenly! The areas that are suffering from heat or drought could get our cold or your rain, and we’de get a few degrees more and millimetres less.
Saila,
I so agree, we had hardly any summer weather last year, and we’re having so much rain, five times the average rainfall. It’s also close to freezing overnight, and the east wind still keeps blowing!
Your flowers are lovely! I’ve always wanted to grow purple fritillary because of those checks but sadly they aren’t hardy here. Does your lungwort spread easily? I’ve been thinking of getting some for years but want to it cover some a larger area, so if it spreads nicely I will definitely move it up my list 🙂
Stefanie,
Yes the lungwort does spread in my garden anyway, I have mainly heavy clay soil and it’s not that free draining, so I don’t know how well it would grow in your hot summers. Geraniums (not pelargoniums) would be good spreaders I think and the flowers last for months. Oh and if you are still thinking about dyeing fabric you could use turmeric for yellow, it is just about impossible to shift!
Thanks for the lungwort information! I have wild geraniums in the garden, a native variety, but the last few summers have been so hot they make an early retreat of it and die back, waiting for late spring the next year. I have heard of using turmeric as a dye. Glad to know it has staying power! 🙂