A look at dad's garden in winter

And the weekend we visited Norfolk it felt like the depths of winter, we were unusually unlucky with the weather experiencing sleet and snow and rain.  Not quite the Sunny Hunny weather we hoped for, or indeed experienced the year before but I guess that's how it goes sometimes. Braving the garden felt exactly that, brave, but as I looked it was clear there were starting to be signs of Spring.

I couldn't help but be drawn to these cheery primulas who'd pushed their way through a bed of mind your own business, a favourite "filler" plant which gives me hours of giggles as MOH calls it old nonsense when prompted for its name. No, I've no idea why either, and it still makes me smile.

The pink primulas clearly are a lot more sensible and aren't putting up with any "old nonsense" and sticking to soil and a few wisps of grass. There were bulbs-a-plenty in other parts of the garden. Some in tubs, which were stuffed full of leaves and others planted in raised beds in a more orderly fashion.

Both of these raised areas of bulbs are visible from the house and will no doubt bring a welcome blast of colour once they start to flower. In the photo below you can just see that some early crocuses are starting to flower and will bring a different layer of colour to the garden.

By the kitchen window the spring bulbs were already making their presence known, it's a sunnier part of the garden, so it's not surprising to see these daffodils more advanced. The white blobs in the photo below are a smattering of snowdrops, which if I'd have looked closely at before then maybe we wouldn't have gone on a snowdrop hunt to Blickling...

In the vegetable garden, the rhubarb is showing signs of life and dad's broad beans are doing much better than mine. That's mostly because mine are still in conservatory and not in the soil at all, but I've still some time to get them started.  I'm currently in that "shall I, shan't I" phase, and shan't is still winning, but I'll need to get going soon. My hesitation is that once I start I want to go full steam ahead and the weather isn't quite ready for that yet.

Close to where dad grows his vegetables I spotted these leaves. I think they have a simple white flower to them, but don't know what they're called, the leaves though seemed to be enjoying the weather and were growing well. Their lushness was refreshing to see, and at some point I'll try to remember to show you their flower, and try to work out what they are called.

On the porch the geranium was still going strong, and if anything a little parched from its sheltered position, but nothing a quick drink wouldn't solve. I'm sure this one, will still be going on our next visit.

So mostly green at the moment - but a lush green at that - and not too much colour yet. But with definite signs of spring, and blasts of colour, to come. Let's hope it doesn't take too long to arrive.

Are you seeing hints of spring yet in your garden?

Dad's garden one month on

Last week I shared pictures from dad's garden from a month ago and it was still full of colour. I was curious to see how much it had changed in a month, and how the dahlias, roses and fuchsias had fared. And the short answer is relatively well. The dahlias were still flowering but were in that faded beauty stage, which can be equally pretty.

The fuchsias were still going strong, although I suspect there won't be too many more of those bulbous buds opening, but I could be wrong.  It seems slightly strange to see them so late in the year, don't you think?

The roses had fared least well, and although there were many, many less flowers there were still a few buds, and some that won't make it.

In the greenhouse, the giant aloe veras still seem to be thriving and I'm sure, just like me, they were enjoying the warmth of the sun when it was out. The oxalis and the heucheras actually seemed to have deepened their colour.

But it goes to show that although there have been changes in a month, there hasn't been a dramatic change and there is still colour in dad's garden. And there was a new colour addition in the greenhouse too, these look to me to be begonias, I'm hesitating because it is November and they're flowering, so I could be wrong. Do you know?

Either way, I'm loving the colour against the terracotta pot.  

Dahlias, roses and fuchsias in Dad's autumn garden

At the end of last month we headed up to Norfolk and one of the things that struck me was how colourful Dad's garden was still. The dahlias, roses and fuchsias were putting on quite a show. They were the attention grabbers, but looking around more closely at the garden, there was more to it than these.

These fuchsias always remind me of dancers, not quite a ballerina but more a glitterless Strictly kind of ballgown, and it's easy to see why I needed to hold it up to get this shot. The leaves are starting to tarnish, but that just makes it more appealing. Like a dancer that's had a good time, or one that had done the rowing boat song. Yes, that's never a good idea is it?

In the greenhouse the Aloes were huge. Just look at them. I am the mum of these, all of them. Well apart from the babies at the front, Dad can be the mum of them as they arrived on his watch. But they're huge, clearly the Norfolk weather and the greenhouse work for them, I hope they've managed to survive the colder weather since then ok. 

Also in the greenhouse the purple oxalis was creeping out from under the staging. I regularly take cuttings for my greenhouse and it never does as well as this. I've a sneaky suspicion I'll be taking another cutting quite soon. And helping myself to some of the many burgundy heuchera's that have been potted on to see how they do.

The leeks were also thickening and no doubt there'll be a good crop. The beetroot Dad pulled up for me, I politely declined. The side you can see looks perfect, but underneath someone - or rather something - had got there first and it went straight onto the compost heap.

The mushrooms in the grass appeared overnight, and who knows what they might be. Knowing your mushrooms is a great skill to have, but not really something to take a chance on either. I think I'll stick to admiring the flowers. The nerines were still out and looking more swirly and curly than I remember.

And oops, this fuchsia came off in my hand. Thankfully there were plenty more, so I think I got away with it...

And just when you think the colour is done, you pop to the car and are reminded there's many more roses and dahlias in the front garden too.

We're in Norfolk soon for a couple of days and it'll be interesting to see how much difference a month makes. I'm hoping that some of the colour remains, but who knows. It's been feeling more wintery here and I know if I were a plant I'd be considering shutting down too. Heck, some days I feel like that as a human too!

Have a beautifully colourful day.