The Infomaniac Garden Photos Event is proud to present Jon's and Madam Arcati's:
Garden Festival
at
D O L O R E S
D E L A R G O
T O W E R S
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Rosa "Veilchenblau"
After the horrors of the Great Freeze in December 2022, when we had more than a week of frosts down to -8C/-17.6F (during which we lost all the Pelargoniums, both Eucomis, all the upper growth on the Cordyline, some Fuchsias, some Aquilegias, some Dahlias, some ornamental Cyclamen and an Agapanthus), one might have hoped for an improvement - but hell, no. We had mizzly, grey, chilly weather for weeks and weeks, culminating in torrential rainstorms all through March and April, which meant that time spent in the garden was intermittent, but at least the Daffodils, Tulips, Ipheion, Snowdrops, Crocus, Violas, hardy Cyclamen, Forget-me-Nots and Aubretia were all there to cheer us up!
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Doronicum orientale "Leonardo" (Leopard's Bane) and
Narcissus (Daffodil) "Minnow"
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Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna "Purple Stem" and
Tulip "Paul Scherer" & Narcissus (Daffodil) "Starlight Sensation"
It stayed really cold until the end of May(!), but once things started to take off we had fluffy towers of Thalictrum, Hesperis and Foxgloves, and a sea of hardy Geraniums, Tradescantia, Auriculas, Dianthus and Lysimachia (all underpinned by ferns) - and these:
Campanula glomerata "Superba" and
Clematis "General Sikorski"
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Rosa "Gertrude Jekyll" and
Scilla peruviana (Portuguese Squill)
"High Summer" may have fallen back into endless wetness, but that never stopped the Roses (particularly Veilchenblau, at the top), Phlox, Veronica, Ipomoea, species Lobelia, Hemerocallis, yellow Aquielgia, Agapanthus, Nicotiana, Asarina and Perovskia! "Stars" of the summer:
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Fuchsia "Viva Ireland" and
Lilium orientalis "Muscadet" & Lilium (Tree Lily) "On Stage"
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Lobelia speciosa "Starship Blue", Phlox paniculata (pink) & the last of the Hesperis matronalis and
Phlox paniculata "Blue Paradise"
As we head towards autumn (after a rather nice couple of bouts of "Indian Summer" temperatures), the Fuchsias, Verbena bonariensis, Begonias, Thunbergias and Salvias (that all began flowering in early summer) and the creeping Campanula (which has been in flower every month since March) are all in full bloom, and despite everything, will hopefully continue to do so until the first frosts...
Begonia × tuberhybrida "Sangria" and
Salvia guaranatica "Amante"
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Salvia uliginosa (Bog Sage) and
Thunbergia (Black-Eyed Susan)
Special mention must, of course, go to our gigantic Colocasia esculenta (Taro), which has thrived despite everything (including its tuber being left on a shelf outside all last winter) - and flowered...
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Colocasia esculenta (Taro)
... and to the Cymbidium Orchid, which threw out forty flowers this year!
Cymbidium Orchid
And, finally - the monstrous "garden visitor"! We nicknamed her "Suella", after our own fearsome Home Secretary...
Suella
Roll on Spring!
☙❧
Jon and Madam A, thank you for letting us all invade your surprisingly capacious back passage - who would have thought you could squeeze so much in?! It is as gorgeous and colourful as ever.
The next garden on the tour is that of Devon's Ms Scarlet, so come back on Sunday to see what she has to offer.
I could definitely have a good dig there. 🐕
ReplyDeleteAs if the foxes and squirrels weren't bad enough - a hound as well?! Jx
DeleteI have a supply of poo bags should the need arise...
DeleteI am never NOT left in awe and wonder of Jon and Madame's back passages!!! Ever. I would love to have drink one day with them in their garden. They had me from the start with the Rosa "Veilchenblau" and I am very partial to all plants purple, so I enjoyed them all, especially the Campanula glomerata "Superba". Gorgeous!!!! I need to have them here to lend some tips.
ReplyDeleteThe Cymbidium Orchid is plainly- simply divine... I have no luck with orchids. Not sure what I'm doing but have murdered several dozen by now.
It's also nice to see where I can find an elephant ear big enough to cover my ass if I ever need to go to a Graden of Eden Party too!!!
I didn't even mind the Suella the spider. Bravo boys!!!!!!
Praise indeed, dear!
DeleteRosa "Veilchenblau" is available through David Austin nowadays (ours is from a cutting I took in 2014), and is well worth growing! Almost thornless and, although a rambler, never gets out of control. Tip: it's "bluer" in semi-shade. The Campanula is similarly trouble-free, and flowered for weeks!
The tip for Cymbidium orchids (and only that variety, at least in the UK) is to keep them outdoors from about May until there's a frost forecast. They need fresh air, and a drop in temperatures between day and night, to flower. Ours is still outside now.
The gin is chilling - clink, clink, sweetie! Jx
These Bitches do it up right every year. Bravo, fellas!
ReplyDeleteWhy thank you, kind Mistress! If I had known you were visiting, I'd have brought a duck. Jx
DeleteWow. Such marvelous color. Just beautiful. And I love the spooder.
ReplyDeleteSuella and her sisters were all over the garden this year. Hoverflies, honeybees, each other - they ate the lot! Jx
DeleteOnce again, I dips me lid to you. At present , I'm in the Homeland at brother-in-law's garden and wishing I could get some of his luscious things into my carry-on luggage.
ReplyDeleteWell done,gents.
Apart from possibly some begonias and pelargoniums, I doubt much of what we grow would particularly thrive in the Tropics. That said, every time you feature plants that you can grow in your conditions, I sigh with envy, having only ever seen such things under glass at Kew Gardens.
Delete"The grass is always greener on the other side", as the saying goes. Jx
How were we able to all fit back here with all of these amazing plants?!?!? It's true, you guys do not disappoint! I too love purple flowers especially when they're close to black. That taro leaf, wow! I love it! We seem to have roughly the same weather, I think because we share the same latitude. Of course, there is always that crazy polar jet stream to make things more interesting.
ReplyDeleteTa-ta for now!
It's amazing we even fit ourselves in - the garden's only around 36 Sq yards / 30 Sq meters (plus back passage!).
DeleteUnsurprisingly, given the fact we have so many of them, we love purple flowers too! And that Taro was the gift that kept on giving this year - if it survives the frost I can't imagine what it'll be like next year...
As for latitudes, London is (surprisingly) around the same as Calgary in Canada. If you're near Seattle, that's actually south of Paris... Jx
Indeed!
DeleteWe're north of Seattle, but south of Calgary. We also have a microclimate that can best be described as a "shallow bowl" surrounded by wetlands and trees. We tend to be 2 degrees cooler than most surrounding areas.
So pretty, from start to finish! Gorgeous. I would like a Tree Lily - it looks so exotic, does it small as lovely as it looks?
ReplyDeleteI need some advice regarding a poorly looking Orchid. It hasn’t flowered since 2017/18, but occasionally a new leaf appears to prove it isn’t dead. I shall photograph it and write a post. Maybe someone can help?
Sx
Those lilies were intoxicating! Both incredibly strong - and subtly different - we would catch the scent as soon as we opened the back door...
DeleteAs for the orchid - a lot depends what type. Most like warmth, good light (not full sun) and more misting than watering. Ours is rather different, and likes it a bit tougher (see my reply to Maddie). Jx
Very.
ReplyDeleteNice.
Thank.
DeleteYou.
Norma! Jx
Thank you, Mr DeVice! You've done us proud... Jx
ReplyDeleteNo, thank you, Jon! You made it so easy to put this post together - very organised and thorough.
Delete*And* gorgeous plants, too! I love the black tulips & white Narcissus, and Portuguese Squill in particular. And I've taken note of your Cymbidium orchid care guide...
These two never disappoint, I agree with others here. I love lots of color in a garden and these two have it. I love roses and daffodils especially, and that blackish tulip is stunning. Never heard of or seen a "Blue Paradise", but that could very well be a new favorite of mine. With the sale of the big house now behind and now living at the beach house permanently, my research has begun to see what will take in this very sandy soil. I venture to guess many of these beauties will not be good choices here.
ReplyDeleteThank you, kind lady. Of our range of plants, I would guess that the Salvia family, Pelargoniums, Agapanthus and maybe the Scilla might be the most likely candidates for a coastal garden, but with a totally free-draining soil you would be very unlikely to grow Phlox, Roses, Geraniums nor most herbaceous plants that like to get their roots into nutrient-rich compost. However, it's not just the soil, it's the salt-spray in the air that will kill most things that aren't adapted to it. Jx
DeleteI'm determined not to be envious. It's a good thing this is not a competition because who could possibly stack up against Jon's gorgeous specimen?
ReplyDeleteBless you, Peenee. You could always try a Cymbidium..? Jx
DeleteBeautiful, sweetpea! I have taken notes about orchid care and hopefully mine will be worthy of entering next year! I would love to try my hand at outdoor gardening and y'all are truly inspirational! xoxo
ReplyDeleteAny outdoor space can become a garden, Savvy! After all, everything you see here (apart from Veilchenblau) is growing in a pot... Jx
DeleteA year in one go !
ReplyDeleteLovely to see the results of our of our pottering about in the garden put all together like this.
Thank you both Mr De and Jon and thank you everyone for your kind words and compliments. So looking forward to seeing the rest of the gardens.
It was a pleasure putting it all together, and even more of a pleasure to see how your garden grows!
Delete...well holy snot. I missed the whole event, didn't I. Ah well. I pass my torch to Ms. Scarlett!
ReplyDeleteIt is not too late, Ms Nations. If you have some photos that you can email in by this time next week, I'll be sure to fit you in!
DeleteThe pelargoniums do turn to mush, don't they, instead of digging them out I snip them at ground level and they return the following year, I've had my Morrison's finest for 3 years now. Your Rosa Veilchenblau is exquisite makes me want to rip my wisteria out and plant that instead because it never flowers.
ReplyDeleteI have heard that Wisteria can take a decade or more before it deigns to flower [but, oh! - what a flower...].
DeleteFrom a 6" cutting to the festoon we see today took nine years, but I'd take Veilchenblau any day! Jx