October's Plant of the Month!

Good Morning!
I know this is a little later than it should be, time is something I've had very little of recently!
Anyway without any further delay here it is!

The PLANT OF THE MONTH for October is ... Salvia greggii 'Royal Bumble'
I've chosen this plant for October even though it has been flowering for a couple of months beforehand for one simple reason ... it's been the main performer in my garden when everything else has took a step back. We haven't had the best growing season this year so it's shown which plants are the star performers!
Oh and do you want to know what makes them even better ... this plant and the one behind were actually grown from cuttings that I'd taken two years ago.

Salvia greggii 'Royal Bumble' is a Hardy Perennial which has a slightly scented green foliage and bright red flowers held on stems touched with purple.
This particular variety of Salvia is tolerant of coastal conditions which makes it a good plant if you garden in windy conditions. Once estabished this plant is also tolerant of drought conditions!
It does prefer a position in sun but it can cope with dappled shade, the other plant that I have of this variety in my back garden is in a slightly shady position and is doing just fine :)
One last thing that makes this plant even better ... it's also loved by Bee's!

Photos from the border in my front garden

CULTIVATION 

This particular variety is a Hardy Perennial, happy in well drained soil types and aspects in either full sun or partial shade.
This plant will grow approx 60x40cm tall which is great for a border, to prolong flowering dead head the faded flower stems throughout the summer months.
In Spring apply a generous mulch around the base of the plant approx 5-7cm deep of well - rotted garden compost or manure.

This plant can be propagated by cuttings which is a great way of giving yourself free plants!

Photo from Crocus

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

June's Plant of the Month!

Good Morning!

I know that we are technically in the month of July now so I am a tad late with this post, but as the saying goes better late than never! 

The PLANT OF THE MONTH for June is or should I say was ... Salvia nemorosa 'Caradonna'

Salvia nemorosa 'Caradonna' can also be known as the Balkan clary 'Caradonna' and this particular Salvia is a Hardy Perennial.
(Salvia's can be Annuals, Biennials, Herbaceous, Evergreen or even Shrubs!) 
As you can see from the photo of the plant that I have in my garden it has upright stems or 'racemes' of violet flowers which flower throughout the Summer months with a scented greyish green foliage.
If you are someone that loves Bee's then this plant is a must for your garden!

CULTIVATION 

This plant is happy in most soil types as long as it is well drained, facing any aspect although it may struggle a little in a North facing position. Happy in either Full Sun or Partial Shade it can also cope with exposure to windy weather. Once established this plant becomes drought tolerant in a sunny position.
The total height and width for this plant is 10-50cm which means it remains quite compact.
However this plant is deciduous which means it will lose it leaves over winter.

In regards to upkeep all you need to do is give it a little mulch of well - rotted compost or manure in Spring and prune away any faded flower stems to prolong flowering throughout the Summer months.

PROBLEMS

This plant is generally disease free but like most plants can suffer attacks from the usual culprits ... Slugs & Snails!

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Make A Feature ...

Good Morning!

Today I thought I'd share a few little jobs that I did this week and so could you. 

First up I wanted to make a little feature, nothing too fancy or fussy, just something to fill the gap where the patio table goes in summer otherwise I'm left with a massive empty space of patio! All I did was have a re-shuffle of some outdoor pots and placed some of various sizes in the spot. I will most likely change around what's here but for an instant effect it works well.

You can also spot a new addition which I couldn't resist on a Clearance table at the Garden Centre last week. It is called 'Salvia - Royal Bumble' it's hardy and has lovely flowers, although in windy weather they aren't the easiest to photograph! lol

I also treated myself to this 'Echeveria - Lilacina' which is a lovely shade of grey with a pink tint.

This week I also planted out the rest of my Autumn / Winter Bedding which includes trailing Viola's ...

Primroses & Bellis were also planted in my side border along with a couple of left over Wallflowers and the border was also given a mulch of compost.

More bedding was used around the edge of the Raised Bed just to help it to not look too bare.

TIP - As you can see here you don't have to always hang Hanging Baskets up. They make great containers too!

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Alpines & Newbies ...

Good Morning!

Today's post is a mix of things from last week that I hadn't had the chance to share with you all yet. 

The first is an Alpine Trough that I planted up for my parents. Apologies that the photo's aren't too great, the gravel around the trough in the background makes it a bit tricky to see it properly.

When making Alpine troughs you need to ensure that it has drainage holes and you use a mix of John Innes & Grit for drainage. I have also included some herbs in the display at the back of two different Thymes, which work well with Alpines. In the centre is a Dianthus and either side of that are Arabis & Aubrieta.

Once your trough is planted up cover the soil with more grit.

Last week I also bought myself a Winter flowering climber to go alongside the Summer flowering Clematis, which will give a year round display of flowers. This one is Clematis 'Napaulensis' which flowers November - March and is scented. Perfect for when there isn't much else in the garden! Don't panic if you are thinking it looks a sorry state in the picture, the clematis loses all it's leaves in the Summer then puts on it's growth in the Autumn. 

I also bought a Salvia to go in a pot at the back of the garden near the GH to add some height where there is a clump of Geums. I also couldn't resisted the two Dianthus's which caught my eye.

Lastly is the 'Lobelia Speciosa Fan Red', I bought this to fill a gap in the side border in the garden which will spread about 30cm with a height of 75cm, I love the shock of red the petals provide.

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX