Readers’ gardens
Sunny days have warmed up the soil nicely and hopefully we’ve seen the last of the frosts. The scent of wallflowers drifts through the garden, tulips are grouped together in clumps of orange, white and purple and look beautiful. Spiraea nipponica ‘Snowmound’ was chopped back hard last year and its arching branches are now smothered in tiny white flowers.
We’re trying to attract more butterflies into the garden and have planted lavender ‘Hidcote’, marjoram, hebe ‘Red Edge’ and Buddleja davidii ‘Snow White’. Already we’ve had a good range of butterflies in the garden, with a peacock being the first visitor in February. Our ceanothus has been replaced with Ceanothus repens; the original one had got top heavy and kept falling over. Behind the blue of the ceanothus, I’ve just planted clematis ‘Piilu’, which is a large-flowered, pink variety. I’ve planted up some honeysuckle cuttings, too. Another new addition in the border is a tiarella
– I love its foamy white flowers. Pretty heathers alongside the pond have been topped up with ericaceous compost. The compost bin has been emptied of its contents and scattered over the garden. Alliums are ready to burst into flower – the bees love them. Lilies are emerging from dormancy and no doubt so are the pesky red lily beetles – I’ll be watching out for them! Watering is a constant occupation, the ground is so dry, and between watering the garden and pots, there are lots of seedlings to look after, too. On the allotment I’ve been digging out unwanted clumps of grass that had taken root among the strawberries. I’ve sown carrots, spring onions, leeks and beetroot as well as some borage to attract pollinators.