Six on Saturday 22-09-2018

It has been what we here in understatementland call “a bit blowy”.  High winds have been causing havoc across the country. I am fortunate to have suffered merely from a few toppled perennials, so have got off lightly compared to some.  Today I will be transporting #1 Child off to University in the wilds of Up North. Well, North-ish.  North of here at any rate. I will try hard not to begrudge too much the time away from the garden. The whole day though!  Couldn’t he have chosen somewhere closer? Typical.

I was reflecting this week on repetition in the garden.  That’s what gardens do – repeat.  From one year to the next, shrubs do their thing; perennials emerge, flower then fade; veg grows and gets harvested. This is the natural rhythm we are accustomed to as gardeners. Few of us are lucky enough to have gardens large enough, or the energy or time to maintain them, to generate a never ending stream of debut Six on Saturday entries.  This is true from one year to the next, and also true within a given year.  I am aware now of plants and flowers making encore appearances in my own Six posts, and that’s totally fine. To be expected, even.

Time for Six on Saturday then. Six things, in the garden, on a Saturday. Could be anything – a flower, a leaf, a tool, a plan, a completed project, a job to do, anything at all. Join in!

Here are my Six for this week.

1 – Fatsia japonica leaf.  The zombie hands of earlier this year turned into a good 30cm of new growth this year, with plenty of lush green leaves. I’m pleased with this shrub, bought on the recommendation of the fella in the garden centre. I wanted a good size shrub that would work well in a shady corner. He was bang on, I think.

2 – Geranium ‘Bloom time’.  In an act of horticultural mercy which I know in my bones you’ll both support and applaud, I rescued a number of perfectly good plants from the bargain shelf at my local garden centre.  I don’t currently have anywhere to plant them, but really, should that stop me?  No, didn’t think so.

3 – Dahlia ‘Otto’s Thrill’. Well finally, some dahlia action. They seem to be very late getting going this year. I bought this one as a cutting rather than as a tuber. It ought to be developing a tuber as we speak. I’m not going to bother lifting any dahlias this year, it’s more trouble than it’s worth given my soil and conditions.  I’ll give them a mulch duvet once the frost has finished them off.

4 – Aster ‘Little Carlow’.  Yes, Aster I say. Aster aster aster. I’ll have none of your symphyotrichum nonsense here thanks ever so much. These have grown much taller in their second year, a good 3 feet I’d say.  They aren’t fully out yet, but some sporadic flowering has commenced.

5 – Athyrium niponicum, Japanese painted fern.  This one lives in my living wall, built from scrap wood earlier this year. It has filled out pretty well, and should be even better next year. This fern is a good do-er for a shady spot, bright enough to be noticed and interesting in its fernyness.

6 – Aster ‘Tonga’.  A pity bench rescue last winter that I only got around to planting this summer. It is flowering like mad now, a welcome drift of late summer colour. What, I hear you say? Is it still summer?  Affirmative.  Just.

Those are my rainy Six, what are yours?  If you feel strangely drawn to taking part, don’t worry, happens a lot. Couldn’t be easier – just write and publish your post and pop a link to it in the comments below. If you also mention my blog in yours, that would be super-duper. For more details and other ways to join in, you can read the brief participant’s guide.

Have a fabulous gardening weekend, don’t forget to check back in as links get added during the day.

I’ll be back next weekend with another #SixOnSaturday