Six-on-Saturday 11-02-2023

Good morning. It was Christmas eve I last did a post but we have been rather busy and the garden has been neglected, I’m afraid. This will be the last Granny’s garden because we are moving near Mr and Mrs Propagator this Thursday to a two bedroomed apartment on the first floor with no garden! 😱

However, I am being allowed to take over Mr Propagator’s front garden once we get settled. 😊👩‍🌾🌹🦋🐈‍⬛ Our resident cat is going to learn to be an indoor cat. 🐈‍⬛🏠 If he doesn’t settle, Mrs Propagator is very happy to have him at their house.

Here we go for this week’s Six-on-Saturday.

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We have quite a few of these crocuses around the front garden among those perennial geraniums .

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The Stonecrop has become much darker over the last couple of weeks.

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Indoors this money plant is flowering madly.

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I think these were the pink, orange and yellow tulips. Looking promising.

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Snowdrops and forget-me-nots all around the flowerbeds in the back garden.

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“Oh well. This is as close as I will get to the outside soon!”

I googled “How to turn an outdoor cat into an indoor cat” and, apparently, most settle very quickly. At least he won’t appear with scratches and other evidence of fights with the local bullies.

So, you will be pleased to know that the wife of the young couple buying our house is a very keen gardener. She will turn a nice garden into a lovely garden, I am sure.

A big “thank you” to Jim for taking over this blog from the lovely Mr Propagator. Also, thank you to all you friendly, talented participants who have taken the time to read and, perhaps, comment on my posts.

This is “Au revoir” and probably “See you soon” but in a different place. I must get on, the new owners are coming to take measurements in a couple of hours. Have a good weekend in your garden. 👩‍🌾 🌹🦋🍅🥕🐛🐦🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️

Six-on-Saturday 24-12-2022

It’s another Single-on-Saturday and will be for the next few weeks. I admire those of you who are managing the full half-dozen. Anyway, thank you for the concern shown by many of you about my unsuccessful and unplanned skating attempt last week but I am absolutely fine.

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I can hear you saying “What? Not even a real tree!” That’s as may be, but it sheds the occasional needle so it’s fine by me. 🙄😉🤭

Have a lovely Christmas. We are lucky, as usual, being fed and looked after by Mr and Mrs Propagator and their delightful family. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐛🐦🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️🥂🍷🍽🍗🥕🥕🥔🥦🎂🥴😁🎅🧑‍🎄

Six-on-Saturday 17-12-2022

Silly me…forgot the date so will rewrite it. I have changed to Single-on-Saturday, although I could do : 1) snow on the tamarisk tree, 2) snow on the robin, 3) snow on the greenhouse, 4) snow on the wheelbarrow, 5) snow on the herb garden, 6) mushy pelargoniums. 😯🌬☃️

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SNOW! I will not venture out unless it thaws. I went for a short walk on Tuesday and was fine until I passed where someone had cleared their drive and the pavement, but didn’t salt the pavement!! Falling down wasn’t so bad but can YOU get up when your wellies have no purchase on the ground? Anyway, with the help of TWO people, I regained the vertical with only my dignity dented. 🤬🤬😠🤭 Nothing to do with old age, of course.

Have a good weekend, maybe not in your garden. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐛🐦🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️ ( I’m sure he is still out running!)

Six-on-Saturday 17-12-2022

Sorry, this should be Single-on-Saturday. 🤭😉 Well, I could do: 1) snow on the tamarisk tree, 2) snow on the wheelbarrow, 3) snow on the rose bushes, 4) snow on the greenhouse, 5) snow on the herb garden and finish with 6) mushy pelargoniums…….but I won’t.

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SNOW! I am not going out unless it thaws, I’m afraid. I went for a short walk on Tuesday and was so careful until someone had cleared their path and pavement but not gritted/salted the pavement! 😱☃️ Falling over wasn’t so bad, but have you tried standing up when you can get no purchase under your wellies? So with the assistance of TWO people I achieved vertical with only my dignity dented. 🤬🤬😠…….nothing to do with old age. 🙄🤔😁

Have a good weekend, possibly not in your garden. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐛🐦🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️ ( I bet he is still out running.)

Six-on-Saturday 10-12-2022

Right, I will be more careful this week and do the correct link on the correct day. Beautiful frosty mornings but nearly all flowers brown and drooping. 🥀☹ Never mind, on to this week’s Six-on-Saturday.

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That was a beautiful, mauve penstemon last week.

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……and now the hydrangea doesn’t have the deep red flowerheads of last week.

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However, the frost on the edge of the euonymous leaves looks nice.

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Those were in the front garden, but in the back, the black rudbeckia seed heads look rather different when frosted.

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Last night wasn’t as cold as the previous nights here but the lawn, flowerbeds and wheelbarrow are frosted over.

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We see fewer birds in the garden these days but this pretty much stays put.

That’s it again. Have a good weekend in your garden, without too much snow. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐛🐦🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️🌬☃️

Six-on-Saturday 03-12-2022

Well, I know, not really Saturday but surely it’s still Saturday somewhere in the world. I was too cold and grumpy yesterday to make the effort, but was more grumpy yesterday evening having not made the effort. ☹

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The white cyclamen are just as good in close-up as the purple ones.

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The berries are darkening slowly. I think this euonymous keeps its leaves over the winter…..we shall see.

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The clematis will lose its leaves but I think it looks quite pretty just now.

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In the back garden, the spirea is quite a pale shade and the Rhapsody in Blue has one last bloom.

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I noticed these golden leaves a couple of days ago when there were more of them.

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Yes, the roses 🌹 keep on and on…….so do the dandelions and the Cerinthe Major seedlings.

That’s it. I feel much better now. 😁 Have a good rest of the weekend. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐛🐦🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️

Six-on-Saturday 26-11-2022

Anyone else wondering how they can keep on finding items for Six-on-Saturday over the next few weeks? I may have a rest in a few week’s time, we shall see. The trouble is that I don’t have a huge range of different varieties. I don’t remember such difficulties in the last 4 or 5 years though. Here we go then.

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This is one of two surviving cuttings from a rubber plant we bought about 45 years ago. It is quite healthy but…….

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……….removing it from its container, I think it is a bit pot bound!

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The crabapple tree is a lovely splash of colour. A couple of years ago, I made crabapple jelly which was quite labour intensive and time-consuming to get a jar and a half of sweet jelly with very little flavour. Last year I left the fruit for the birds but I don’t think they were overly impressed with the flavour either. Meanwhile, you may notice I have cut back the huge gaura stems. They last for a long time but they had exhausted all the flowers so time for its winter rest for at least it’s 10th season.

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A different penstemon close up. The roses and penstemons keep colour going in the garden nearly all year.

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Talking of roses, another bud on the Rhapsody in Blue.

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The Christmas (?) Cactus has been lovely but is just starting to “turn”.

Have a good weekend in your garden. I don’t think the forecast is too bad. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐛🐦🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️

Six-on-Saturday 19-11-2022

It’s “Close-up” week this week. 🤔 Yes, I’m getting a bit desperate trying to find something new. Let’s start.

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The pelargoniums are now providing the majority of the colour in the garden. I put the trough and the hanging baskets into the greenhouse after hearing the warnings of frost last night. I don’t think it was too heavy though.

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The penstemon in the front garden has started flowering again.

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The hydrangea gets darker and darker. In fact this isn’t a true indication of its “darkness”.

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This Salvia Hot Lips has been beautiful all summer and is showing no signs of stopping.

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The colours of these cyclamen are so intense. The leaves are beautiful too.

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I was concerned that the Cerinthe Major over the other side of the garden had been cut back too soon and wouldn’t seed itself down again…….I was wrong. 🙄 Last time I mowed the lawn, I noticed several seedlings actually in the grass, not to mention this one in the pot with the penstemon!

Another week closer to Christmas 🎄 😱 , so time to start buying presents. Meanwhile, have a good weekend, I hope none of you are badly affected by the heavy rain. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐦🐛🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️

Six-on-Saturday 12-11-2022

Another busy weekend but we mustn’t miss Six-on-Saturday. Mostly indoor activity since outside is getting rather uninteresting.

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Usually by this time of year there is a flower stem appearing on this mostly ignored orchid. There is a new leaf and plenty of roots, but is it the end for this 10 year old plant?

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Just when outside plants are giving up flowering, the “Money plant” is about to burst forth!

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The Ficus Benjamina seems to be quietly getting on with being an attractive, slow-growing plant that needs little attention. Should I remove the non-variegated leaves?

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…….and still the roses produce a good display.

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Not open yet but looking good.

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Which is the better gardening helper?

Well, another week goes by and another one of our lovely grandsons has graduated 🎓. Our daughter from Dubai and her husband came over to watch the ceremony in Bristol. We are very lucky and it is good to see them all doing so well.

Have a good weekend in your garden. 👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐦🐛🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️

Six-on-Saturday 05-11-2022

We have our daughter from Dubai staying with us, plus a grandson and our son is coming today to mend a broken, concrete step. So no more preamble, on with this week’s Six-on-Saturday.

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The Apple of Peru plant is quietly showing the occasional flower. None of them have grown to shrub size this year, but a couple are providing a bit of pale purple in the garden.

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This was in a hanging basket a couple of years ago. I plonked in a bare spot in the flowerbed and it has been quite happy all year. It shows the occasional pale yellow flower but the foliage is far more attractive.

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It was only a couple of months ago that we removed all the ivy that was trying to work it’s way into the house. Up the stepladder again this week then.

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I noticed a Christmas cactus in last week’s Six-on-Saturday, so went to check mine……very exciting!

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The “hedge” fuchsia whose leaves were a sad, light brown colour during the summer, is now looking a lovely, healthy green. 😁

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This time last year there were just a few hollyhock leaves and we all know how they developed!! Something is doing its best to thwart their progress but we shall see what happens. 🤔😯

That’s it again for another week. I’m off to make mushroom soup for lunch, (very easy recipe) so enjoy the weekend and keep your pets inside tonight. 💥🎊👩‍🌾🌹🍅🦋🐦🐛🐈‍⬛🏃‍♂️