Throughout July and August the blooms came and went in the garden giving ongoing and ever changing colourful displays to feast the eye. It truly was a treat.
Perrenial bulbs such as the lilly will give you endless pleasure year upon year and you can always add to them as the years go by. I have planted all of my favourites. Plant bulbs out in early spring for summer blooming. If you notice anything nibbling the leaves and flower buds it is more than likely the lily beetle, get some spray that will eradicate them otherwise the buds will never get to bloom.
Agapanthus
Summer blooming agapanthus
The african lilly (agapanthus) with it’s elegant long stalks and and large blooming heads, made up of many little flowers to give a spherical shape, enjoys semi shade and will bloom for six to eight weeks throughout the summer. You can buy plants with purple flowers or with white flowers. When the flowers die back they leave behind an interesting structural shape, giving stature and architectural form to the garden, for you to enjoy into autumn. Plant corms in early spring or if you have existing plants you can dig them up and separate them out after they have finished flowering to produce more plants for the following year
Tiger lillies blooming early summer
The tiger lilly usually blooms early on in June each year giving me a bright colourful display
The perfume of the oriential lilly fills the air
A smell you will want to remember and never forget
The oriential lilly blooms a little later giving a flouncy display with it’s blousey blooms and will fill the whole garden with the most amazing smelling perfume. The usually flower to two to three weeks. Keep them well watered if in pots.
The elegant white longiflorum lilly
Along with the longiflorum lilly which I love to grow for it’s long elegant shape and form with trumpet shaped blooms and subtle scent. Mine are really late this year but the blooms are just about to break forth – waiting patiently!
about to burst open lily blooming in late July
White Patio rose in a pot bringing blooms every summer
Roses are another great summer plant – they will die off in winter back to twiggy stalks and regenerate themselves in spring – I like to grow small patio roses in pots if you feed them they will give you a long summer blooming reward. You can prune them back in late autumn or winter.
White Hydrenga
Hydrengas will bloom prolifically throughout the summer and in to september adding colour and life to a shady corner. They will die back in winter and sprout back out again the following spring. A great low maintenance plant providing you with lots of summer blooms
Violas
Pretty Violas grown from last years seed head collected late autumn and planted early spring
Purple violas in terracotta window box planter
Violas are similar to pansies but produce smaller (and I think cuter) flowers in abundance, plant bedding each year or grow from seed yearly to give colourful displays of pots. They smell so sweet when the sun is shining on them and they will tolerate a semi shady area. Deadhead and feed on a regular basis for a long flowering period throughout the summer. Seeds will form on dead flower heads that are not removed, you can collect these and grow bedding plants for the following year.
Marigolds
Sunshine in a pot!
It’s truly summer
The bright summery colour of the marigold will herald summer whatever the weather – guaranteed to cheer you up on the gloomiest of summer days. They have a long blooming period and flower on for months on end throughout the summer and early autumn season. Feed them and deadhead them regularly to get the most from the plants. Plant bedding each year or collect seeds from the dead flower heads to grow plants for the following year. They love a sunny spot.
White Geranium
Geranium window planter – open up your windows and bring the summer inside!
Geraniums will bloom for months on end throughout the summer. Feed them now and again to keep the blooms going and take them inside in winter to protect from the frosts and they will gladly bloom for you again the following summer. They will happily bloom in a semi shady spot.
Geraniums to the front with pots of million bells to the back planted beneath the lemon tree
Million bells seen to the rear planted beneath the lemon tree produce blooms all summer long and are great all summer long bedding for pots or hanging baskets.
Buddleia in bloom brining in the butterflies
The Buddleia in bloom to the left of the picture blooming throughout late June and August attracting butterlies into the garden – they love this tree. It gets chopped right back each year and sprouts out again in early spring producing deep purple flowers. Staring into the distance I am already thinking about next spring! Now is a good time to get spring bulbs in.
Apples a plenty
If I say there are about one thousand apples on the tree this year it is probably an accurate calculation. Have started to harvest some and distributed amongst friends and neighbours. They are delicious to eat really juicy and quite sharp and leave an after sweetness lingering in your mouth. Great for cooking as well because you don’t have to add any sugar. Loads more left to pick – mustn’t grumble apple crumble. Apples anybody?
Home grown carrots
Home grown carrots – where else in the world would you get carrots that looked or tasted like this?
A Summer to remember
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