A thought for you...from the Garden

The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another.

The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month. ~Henry Van Dyke 

Wow, hasn't that been the case this year. Here we are, more than half way through September, and we finally have some gorgeous Spring weather.

I thought I'd take some time today to do some quick snaps of the garden to show you.

My Bay tree is coming along fine. The herb garden isn't very big, so I'm trying to make it in to a topiary so I can under plant with something else.

Both curly and flat leaf parsley always do well here and I use it so much in salads and cooking. I have so much though, maybe a salsa verde is on the cards.

The Schwarzkopf are stunning. These are a succulent and have many varieties. This variety is 'Aeonium Arborium' and is sometimes called 'Black tree'. It can get a bit spindly, but when the warmer weather arrives it has a growth spurt. The colour is remarkable and it always looks so 'glossy'. Beautiful!

One of the azaleas is completely covered in blooms. The others have been spot flowering for a little while now and are looking a bit sad, but they usually have second flowering.

In the corner there is a weeping maple. The colours of the leaves go from red to purple to green. It's been there for about 10 years now and doesn't get much taller as it is a standard. Also, because it's a weeping maple all the new branches tend to grow up, then gradually weeps.

I wish I could remember what this succulent was. It wasn't looking too healthy a while ago, but like the Schwarzkopf it seems to have found new life.

The magnolia has grown so tall. A deciduous variety would have taken over the area. Although this variety is still magnificent, the flowers are a creamy white, but only last for a day or two.

Propagating plants has become a necessity at the moment as there is such a huge area to be planted at the holiday house. Where the new boardwalk is being built under the house, we will have to plant it out extensively to keep the dust and dirt down.

Out of the 3 Yukkas that were purchased about seven years ago, I think there has been up to 20 more that have been propagated from off cuts and from the trunk of the largest one recently taken out of the garden.

Time has not been kind to the Bonsai collection. Having plants like these takes such dedication and time and unfortunately, there is not a lot of either at the moment. It hasn't stopped the wisteria from flowering though. Treat 'em mean, keep 'em keen...maybe.

Thank goodness for some warm Spring days to be able to enjoy the garden.