When you’re smiling
Despite last years disappointing Summer I still found plenty to smile about in my garden. The Potager was obviously the right place for the Monarda ‘Cambridge Scarlet’ that I had grown from seed as it finally flowered, a very nice plant indeed. I was always admiring the Nerine Bowdeni in a neighbour’s garden and before long they were on my ‘must have’ plant list. After reading somewhere that they like the base of walls I’ve been planting bulbs here, there and everywhere for several years without success. Then in early October I looked out of the Kitchen window and three delicate pale pink flowers had emerged from the mass of Catmint surrounding my ‘Rosina’ statue, a real wow moment. Forget walls my Nerines just needed the right figurine!
There were other surprises too. The biggest shock was to discover that I am now a real Annual buff. When I started out on my Gardening Journey of Discovery I dismissed everything but shrubs and only gradually did perennials become worthy. I only ever appreciated Annuals in my role as Secretary of Lislevane Community Association where they were reliable, long-lasting and unbeatable for colour. I was adamant. Grow annuals in my garden? NO.
It took that little packet of Lottery Mixture seeds to change my outlook forever. As each plant flowered I found myself admiring Strawflowers, Stattice, Ageratum and many others. They were pretty, often striking, occasionally fragrant and a lot of them flowered right through to Christmas.
I also saw the light in regard to the humble Sunflower family, quite literally. The spectrum of colours available might not quite be a rainbow but it includes more than I had imagined. The obvious gaudy yellow variety comes straight to mind but even this, when it is over six foot tall and smiling down at you, it’s hard not to grin back at it. There are lots of others that are really quite handsome. Mottled tones, discreet orange highlights, subtle reddy browns and even creamy white ones. They also come in different shapes and sizes. I am now a total convert.
But the funniest incident came on a lazy Sunday, in early November. The family were relaxing in the Living room and I was sat on the window seat enjoying the Autumn colour in my new Pond garden. Suddenly a hound came hurtling through the hedge. Closely followed by another and another. The whole pack splashed through the pond like it was a puddle, trampling over the Penstemon ‘Sour Grapes’ which was showing off it’s second flush of flowers and disappeared down the side of the house, It was reminiscent of a scene from a Disney cartoon, within minutes they were gone and calm was restored. The one casualty made a rapid recovery, confirming its credentials for indestructibility in the plant world and I’m sure the Goldfish stopped having nightmares, eventually! None of us could agree how many dogs there’d been, it was either about fifteen or hundreds but we all laughed so much that we cried.
