I've been extravagant!
No matter how hard you try to nurture plants, predators abound. Snails, slugs, blackbirds, wood pigeons, magpies, even the neighbour’s cat, like to
trample and nibble them. I’ve had to replace at least six out of about 60 of the phlox and cephalophora that I’ve planted out.
Sometimes I can’t work fast enough to get all the jobs done! I’ve now planted out the zinnias, another free packet of seeds from Garden News, into two troughs on the front patio. Hopefully their double-crested blooms will give a colourful display.
I’ve been extravagant this month by treating the garden to two new delightful features: one is a straw cone filled with a variety of trailing plants, such as striped petunia ‘Pegasus Blue Star’ alongside a red calibrachoa (Million Bells series) and other foliage. The second is a pink argyranthemum (marguerite) in different shades of pink.
The ‘Globemaster’ alliums, which are about to explode into magnificent purple balls, look quite regal with their upright stature against the back fence. I’ve trimmed the large leaves off so they appear more prominent.
The rockery needed some attention so I’ve been trimming the bluebells and removing the excess. This has let the other plants breathe and created more light. After a good forking, the plants I set in autumn really show up now. I’ve planted two new plants, delosperma and nemesia ‘Aroma Rhubarb & Custard’ to add interest. The growth, colour, different species of plants and vegetables make it all worthwhile.