Thursday 7 June 2012

Cheshire Wife's flower show

My mission for this year is to get on top of our garden, which means that because our English weather is erratic and unpredictable I need to spend as much time as I can working in the garden when the weather is good, as it was until about a week ago. Then having spent all of that time out in the garden, I have to spend time catching up with the housework in the cottage. I wish that I could say that I am up to date on that score but there always seems to be something that needs doing. However, I feel that I have spent enough time on the cottage recently to be able to justify spending some time on my blog.

Here are the rewards of time spent working in the garden.These photographs were taken about two weeks ago when the weather was hot and sunny.

An azalea to the right of the front door

and an aquilegia to the left.


Then there is this weigela which is flowering for the first time since it was planted about six or seven years ago.


On the other side of the front garden bearded iris are in bud about to open .


A few days later they are open.


Next if we move around to the back garden we have allium

a rose

and a clematis.

Then moving on down the right side of the garden we have the first of the oriental poppies in flower.


Behind them is a rhododendron which we grow in a pot because our soil is too alkaline for its acidic taste.


Finally of the left side of the garden these lupins are holding centre stage.


Lastly, no flower show would be complete without a flower arrangement. Here is the most recent arrangement from my flower arranging class. My mother used to keep umbrellas in this pot by the front door.


Not all of my arrangements are worthy of being photographed and displayed on my blog.

23 comments:

GaynorB said...

Beautiful. I know that I don't spend enough time in the garden, but yours looks superb!

Rob-bear said...

You not only have beautiful flowers, but
1. you know their names,
2. you know how to care for them, and
3. you know how to display them, outside and in.

You area woman of considerable talent, CW. Thank you for the lovely show.

You may rest now. The housework will still be there tomorrow. And the day after that. Whenever you decide to get to it.

Maggie May said...

Loved that flower show!
You have some mazing photos in that collection of your lovely garden.
All we want now is some good weather to enjoy our gardens...... don't you agree and I hope the storm we had last night here, hasn't ruined your garden. I have yet to check on mine. Too rainy & blustery just yet to go out.
Maggie X

Nuts in May

Tim Atkinson said...

This year Cheshire, next year Chelsea I'd have thought. And if you'd like a challenge (and a holiday in Lincolnshire) I have a modest plot in need of bucketfuls of TLC...!

Jennytc said...

That is lovely and, even on rainy, dull days, you still have those blooms to look at - very cheering.

cheshire wife said...

Gaynor - I do not think that you can spend too much time in the garden.

Rob - the flowers are the stars of the show.

Maggie May - luckily we had the rain and no wind.

Tim - thank you for the offer but I have more than enough to do here.

Jennyta - it is looking very green today after all the rain.

Akelamalu said...

You must be very proud of your garden, all your hard work has paid off! :)

Diane said...

The flower arrangement is lovely and those lupins are just wonderful. My garden is way behind this year. I had planned on time in the garden today, but the wind was bitterly cold with intermittent showers so I quickly lost interest!! Diane

cheshire wife said...

Akelamalu - there are still some wild areas of our garden that I would not want anyone to see.

Food,Fun & Life - the lupins have done amazingly well considering that we moved them last Autumn.

Gilly said...

I love your flowers - especially that white aquilegia! I am trying to grow some from seed that my daughter gave me, but I don't think I will know until next year whether I have succeeded.

I hope our awful weather hasn't made a mess of your lovely flowers!

the fly in the web said...

A lovely flower show!
These photographs are delighting friends here...nearly all are plants new to them.

Jennyff said...

Good work. Your garden is much more advanced than mine, just waiting for the lupins to open. Now the trick will be to keep on top of things but for now you should sit back and admire.

Catharine Withenay said...

Your flowers are so beautiful - I am so jealous. Gardening is a steep learning curve for us and we seem to be lacking any colour between the apple-tree blossom and now. (Now we have one blue lily. She's beautiful, if lonely!) Enjoy the fruits of your colourful garden!

LindyLouMac said...

Lovely photos, good to read you are enjoying the garden. It can certainly be a full time job and make you wonder how you ever found the time to go to work.

cheshire wife said...

Gilly - this aquilegia has taken a year or two to flower.

Fly - I imagine that most of what grows in Costa Rica won't grow here.

Jenny - no chance of sitting back at present after at that rain. There are weeds everywhere!

Catharine - it has taken eight years and a lot of mistakes to get our garden to this stage.

LindyLouMac - work is becoming a distant memory.

LindyLouMac said...

Me again, thanks for the alert in your recent comment about the river Mole I had not heard!

Grumpy Old Ken said...

Very classy! Perhaps summers here , no?

cheshire wife said...

LindyLouMac - I'll let you know if I hear any more.

GOK - well I thought that it was summer when I took the photos. I'm not so sure now.

Midlife Roadtripper said...

Wow, your flowers are beautiful. Seems like the unpredictable weather provides most well. We are still battling drought. I hand water a great deal. Not as pretty are yours.

Hope all is well.

Maalai said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Thud said...

I have a good crop of moss! I'm jealous.

cheshire wife said...

Midlife Jobhunter - the unpredictable weather is now destroying what is has helped to produce with 24 hours of wind and rain, with more to come.

Thud - we have moss too.

Thank you for all of your kind comments.

imbeingheldhostage said...

awesome :-) Your garden must be stunning. You've helped me with this post since I have no idea what the owners of our let had planted and you've named at least five of them in this one post-thank you!