Frogs And Flowers

With all the civil unrest going on around the UK the garden has turned into my little sanctuary from watching the rolling news coverage.The flowers are blooming away nicely now.There are all the colours of the rainbow dotted around the garden.I take pleasure in walking around and taking in the flowers and plants.I share the garden with all the wildlife that seems to be attracted to it.It is a little oasis,in a sea of turmoil. The Bees and hoverflys are oblivious to trouble in the other world.Their life is flying around feeding on the abundant nectar that the august garden offers.I have tended to each and every plant within the garden.This tending makes you proud of the garden,and makes you enjoy being in it.A lot of the trouble has come from disaffected people who have nothing to lose.There is so much good and beauty in the world if you can just see it.The Globe Thistle continues to draw the Bees in from miles.They must be attractive to them. I have noticed more juvenile birds or fledglings feeding in the garden.They have learnt from their parents where to feed,when to fly away from danger.This baby Goldfinch intrigued me because his beak seems huge compared to his size.He has the black and yellow wing bars.I love having a charm of Goldfinches.The sunflower hearts are nestled between two Teasels and they alight on the spiny stems.Goldfinches and Teasel go together like fish and chips.
Another of the adults was feeding on the hearts too.They show a communal spirit too like the clean up groups appearing in the city's after the riots.One bird watches all the time whilst the group feeds below.
The fence is a popular starting point for all the fledgling House Sparrows.They sit chirping away,and wing flapping like mad to get their parents to feed them.I had groups of about ten or twelve today on each fence top.They feel brave and fly down to the bird feeding station,or the bird table. The rain came today,and the wind has started to blow hard.The Margaret Merrill looks beautiful in the evening light soaked by the fresh rain drops.The scent is amazing on these flowers.A rose/citrus combination,good enough to eat!
Darcey Bussell continues to flower amazingly well.These Roses are part of the second flush.The dry hot weather meant all my roses flowered early and then stopped.The Roses with vigour have started to bloom again.These look jewel like in the late evening before the sun sets. The Bishop Of Llanduff still looks amazing.The red and gold coloured flower are like a priests robes.they contrast to the dark foliage below.These will need lifting before the first frosts and will over winter in the shed.I am happy I bought four plants at the Spring Flower Show. I watered the Tomatoes in the greenhouse tonight and saw a suprise guest on the concrete base near the opening.He had obviously hopped from the pond looking for some tasty slugs and insects to eat.He obliged in me taking his photo before he disappeared again.I love this photo of a Bee on the Echinops.His wing is like a stained glass window,with the lead lining.This was taken a few days ago when it was gloriously hot and sunny.This photo shows the globes floating above the sunken border.The flowers are electric blue and seem to stand out against the predominately green leaves below.Two Bees and a Fly are on the flowers. I found this big Frog sunbathing on the rocks.He was oblivious to me and quite content to be photographed.The water Lily leaves are below him floating on the pond surface.I have high hopes that we will get at least one Water Lily flower.The flower bud is floating in the middle of the pond.It has grown a dozen leaves and it is only supposed to be a small Pond Lily!The large number of Frogs and Newts means the water balance is right with fresh water and pond plants oxygenating it.I thought I would show the gardens Lily's.The Oriental Stargazer has nearly finished flowering.I love the gaudiness of this flower.The pink,red,and white, and the strong scent.This plant has bloomed for the past three years now.It dies back,but always grows new leaves in the spring.The virginal Lily Casa Blanca is like pure driven snow.The petals have slight bumps on them.This is one of the most fragrant Lily's.I can see why this is used in Bridal Bouquets.It has also bloomed for the past three years.Not to be outdone the newest Lily in the garden is two pots of Tiger Lily's.They look amazing with their tiger orange and burgundy spots.These do not appear to have a scent.They also had lots of black seed pods on the stem branches?I have never know a Lily to grow seeds on its branches before it flowers.They look like little black coffee beans but have been dropping onto the concrete path as it flowered.If anyone knows what they are I'd love to know.The Rose Wisley has three Roses blooming on it now.After a terrible start when the leaves went brown and it appeared to be diseased.These three pink Blooms have the most amazing scent.I love how delicate the flowers appear,in a light pink flush.This was an Xmas present from Mum a few years back.I hope that it regrows next year with more beautiful blooms like these.The Bishop Of Llanduff Dahlia in sunshine glows red hot in the heat.I love the Scarlet and gold colours.The Everlasting Flowers are blooming away nicely.I have two bunches in the greenhouse drying out ready to decorate the house in the winter.They are amazing flowers though.I would like more colours though so I will peruse catalogues for new seeds. The Barrel planters look good still with the combination of Asiatic Lily's and Gladiolus.I have ended up tying them together to keep their shape.It reminds me of the florist displays at the flower shows we visited. The Butterfly Flowers always impress me with how different the colours and shapes are expressed year on year.I let them set seed then at the end of summer collect the seeds for next years.The pollination creates new colours and combinations.The flowers are very reminiscent of Orchids.The Poor Mans Orchids is a good epitaph.These Purple ones remind me of Kiss,and they almost have their tongue poking out.The Purple and White is a new combination.Apart from all the flowers the two things I love to grow from seed are Tomatoes and Chili Peppers.These are Tomato Outdoor Girl.I have one ripening on the windowsill which I will photograph.These are growing in grow bags on the concrete path.They have grown big fruits and seem to be coping with the Yorkshire weather.The greenhouse ones are Red Cherry's and were free seeds from Hils.Amazingly they all germinated.The Cherry Tomatoes are productive but not all the same size.I hope they will grow more over the next few weeks.The Chili Cheyenne from the plant stall has been amazing and has ten fruits growing on the one plant.The Purple Tiger have one fruit growing,but lots of purple flowers.The Scotch Bonnett and Habanero have not flowered yet,so I'm worried they will run out of time before fruiting.I like buying new varieties of both each year,and then trying to grow them.I love cooking and eating with both!Another star performer in the garden has been the Rose Harlow Carr.This has the most old fashioned rose scent,and dainty pink flowers.It is flowering away madly,and has made even more Rose buds.This will flower for weeks more.The only decision is whether to get a cage to support the rose as the branches keep flopping over.It is very sharp too on the stems. The Rose Harlow Carr is so pretty.I would love these Roses pictured on plates and cups.I think the heavenly pink contrasts to the nice green leaves.It appears to be disease resistant and flowers freely across the summer.These masses of blooms are the second flush.
Gardening can help people reengage with life,with the seasons,and with the earth.I believe it can help with depression,and take people out of dark places.Gardening has the power to heal and make you aware of the beauty of life.some parts of the UK could do with some of that healing.