Six on Saturday 16-06-2018

Watering watering and more watering. I would really not object greatly to some persistent rain. There, I said it. Six on Saturday then. Six things, in the garden, on a Saturday. Could be anything – a flower, a job to do, a success, a failure, a completed project, a favourite tool, a weed, anything at all. Join in!

Here are my Six for this week…

1 – Rambling rose. A refugee from next doors somewhat unkempt garden. Who can blame it for wanting to join the party in my garden? The rose is a bit of a pain, sending out as it does long shoots throughout the spring and summer, ready to catch out the unwary. I lop it back periodically. All this nonsense is forgiven when it flowers profusely for a few weeks at this time of year. I just wish it wouldn’t bring the bindweed with it. ..

2 – Hypericum × hidcoteense ‘Hidcote’. Or at least that’s what I think it is. This is a large shrub in my front garden, a good 6 or 7 feet high and fairly spherical in shape. I don’t do much with it normally, but this year I did give it a tickle with the shears, just taking perhaps 6 inches off all round to tidy up and shape. I’m not sure if that was the cause, or if the conditions have just suited it, but there are now bajillions of flowers on it, with many many more to come.

3 – Supports. And lack of supports. We have had pretty steady weather the last few weeks, but in the last day or two there have been some high-ish winds, the tail end of a summer storm that swept through up north at the end of the week. It is very noticeable that the perennials that I shored up with my home-made plant supports are still standing tall, some very tall indeed, whereas those I did not have been flattened to varying degrees. I shall definitely make more of these supports next year, clearly they do the job intended.

with…

without…

4 – Bluntness. I was getting annoyed with my lawn mower last weekend as it seemed to have ‘broken’ – it was just pushing the grass over rather than cutting it. After cursing it loudly a few times, I concluded that perhaps it was merely in need of a sharpening up. I didn’t pay a lot for the mower in the first place so was leary of shelling out for a full servicing. Instead I bought a sharpening kit that I can allegedly use to achieve a nice sharp edge. A job for this weekend.

5 – Geranium ‘nimbus’. Bought at a plant fair recently, still languishing in a pot. I have in mind a planter along the side alley, but haven’t yet built the planter. The foliage is described as ‘deeply divided’. If that’s not a metaphor for the times, I don’t know what is.

6 – Clematis ‘not-sure-whatii’. I have a bunch of clematis that aren’t quite flowering yet, along with several roses. This one is out, clearly, and it’s quite blue in tone. The label is long disintegrated, so I am not sure of the moniker.

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That’s my Six for the week, what are yours? Don’t be shy, join in! Dead simple, just write your post, twit your tweet, face your book, insta your gram, whatever, and just pop a link to it below in the comments. Maybe mention this blog in your thang, that would be fab. That’s it! Simples. Go on, you know you want to. You can find more information in the brief participants guide.

Have a fabulous gardening weekend, but don’t forget to check back in as more links will be added over the next day or two.

I’ll be back next week with another Six on Saturday.