THE END OF AUGUST IN THE GARDEN
It's gone cold! Last week there were a few mentions of Autumn being in the air. I refused to believe it... but I do now.
Here's some photos of what's looking good in the garden this week - taken in the breaks between showers!
1. Helianthus 'Lemon Queen'
This is a perennial sunflower, bought last year, after admiring it in the garden at Norwell Nurseries
2. Rudbeckia laciniata 'Herbstsonne'
This is tall plant - taller than me. It has suffered in the storm this week, but enough of it remained upright for this photo. And I see there's another bee enjoying the nectar.
3. View of the Long Border
A general shot along the long border, with that tall Rudbeckia in the centre of the picture.
4. Amaranthus caudatus 'Love Lies Bleeding'
These plants always bring a smile to my face. They look so comical with their long elephants trunks, which keep on growing even when they have reached the ground.
I first saw these growing at Hanbury Hall in the recreated parterre, where they were very striking.
5. Dahlia 'Karma Naomi'
This is the healthiest dahlia I've grown. I lift the tubers each year, and they are huge: far too big to fit in any pot I own. They are never staked, despite growing 5ft tall, and they keep flowering all Summer. You can see it growing next to the Summer house in picture number 3.
6. Clematis Comtesse de Bouchard
I've been watching the buds forming for the last couple of weeks, and now she is ready to put on a show. Sadly though, the planter and obelisk she grows on is falling apart and I will have to find a replacement.
That's all from the garden this week. Fingers crossed for some dry days next week. Thank you to The Propagator for hosting Six on Saturday.
Lovely photo of the long border. It could be a painting.
ReplyDeleteThanks Linda. I might have a go with the oil paints some time.
DeleteThe Long Border is so very beautiful. And, as for cold, I had the first perishing fingers of the season this morning as I stood for over an hour shredding garden material - and I was wearing a jacket as well. Brrrrr!
ReplyDeleteEven with a warm coat and jumper on, I wasn't tempted to stay out for very long today.
DeleteI love red amaranthus caudatus and my elder son claims them every year. I therefore need to sow them at the end of winter to be able to have them and enjoy them in summer.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you've seen it on Twitter but I recently posted a sunflower with the same name 'Lemon Queen' as yours. Helianthus and Sunflowers are varieties that should not be very far from each other : https://twitter.com/frdvil/status/1297809729775898626?s=20
Your one is very pretty. The flowers on the one in my garden are much smaller than the annual sunflowers.
DeleteThe Long Border looks great. I'm intrigued by the beautiful perennial sunflower. I will have to look it up later. That clematis is a show.
ReplyDeleteI'm very pleased with the clematis as it looked half dead earlier in the year.
DeleteLots to lust over there! Five foot tall dahlia? Sounds wonderful, mine have all been so disappointing this year. Lovely helianthus. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Gill. Good to see you're back.
DeleteI love your late flowering clematis, which I also happened to have at my last garden, a real gem. Is this a second flush? Or are you in a cooler part of the Country?
ReplyDeleteIt got cut back rather late and then looked half dead. I gave it a bit of a feed and water and it got going again, but I was surprised when it started to flower.
DeleteOur temperatures are very much the same as they were through much of our summer, so it’s felt cool here for quite some time. Today was 15C, but warm in the sun as the wind had dropped, though much cooler in the shade. If this is autumn (or nearly), I’m fine with that as I can happily wear my fleece in the garden and not feel as ridiculous as I did wearing it in summer.
ReplyDeleteThe Long Border really works for me - I find it inspirational - the rudbeckia really makes a statement. The same goes for the dahlia, I wonder if it would withstand the winds in my garden.
Can I just ask how tall your obelisk is? I have an old and very tall rose that I’d like to replace with an existing clematis.
We've certainly had a right mixture of weather here. It's the sudden change from over 30 to 15C which has been odd. I started the week in shorts and shirt, and ended it with muddy wellies, jumper and coat.
DeleteI don't know whether the dahlia would take the wind in your garden, but the long border is west facing so gets the brunt of the winds we do have. To give you some idea, when I've grown the large headed sunflowers in that border the heads usually get broken in the wind.
The obelisk part of the planter is 125cm tall. The clematis would easily get to the top of that, so its sort of wrapped round it rather than being left to grow straight up. Hope that helps.
That helps a lot - thank you. I'll get John to build one for me, and I'll make a start on removing the rose once I've finished taking the remaining plants out of the border that's getting a facelift. Thanks for all the detail about the dahlia too. :)
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