A milder and definitely more Spring like feel to this week’ s Six after another white out last Saturday. Not a promising start to my Farmers Market year, travelling there through snow and ice. Today there is rain so the almond blossom won’t have a blue sky to intensify it. So here then are my garden related Six. There will be many other fine Sixes to enjoy if you follow the links at The Propagator.
So first is the early and delicate pink of the almond blossom which is simply beautiful even in the grey of today.
Next are forget me nots the first among the selfseeders which are allowed too much of their own way in my garden, but there are times when they are just right despite their unruliness. And that time is coming soon. There is a narrow window between the forget me nots being a dreamlike blue haze covering up all the garden’s inadequacies before turning into a smothering carpet. A gardening friend cannot stand them, but I can forgive them anything for the week or two when they are perfect.
Another beautiful Spring plant which is choosing to multiply enthusiastically in the back corner of the garden is lunaria corfu blue grown from seed bought from Special Plants. Usually it teams up with the lovely cow parsley-like chaerophyllum, but this year they are going to miss each other I think.
The last self seeder for today is the angelica which went and now has come back. Still making up my mind whether I want it to stay.
Fifth are the germinating cucumber seeds – the diva variety which are small, tasty and prolific if the sun shines on them.
Last of all, is a problem: the yew which was a greedy buy last year when it somehow popped itself into the van as I was helping a friend pick up her larger and grander yews from the beautiful Waterperry. Had no plan for it, though was vaguely hoping for the organic soft mounded effect much admired in a Malvern Show garden a few years ago where it seemed to fit in so well. So far it hasn’t moved from the big pot it was placed in when I got it home. Desperate to give it a purpose, it was dressed in tiny sparkling lights at Christmas, but can’t think where to put it in my ramshackle, informal (aka messy) garden and certainly have no idea or skill to help turn it into piece of topiary. But it can’t stay in its pot forever.
A green Six this week, but the small splashes of colour are promises of brighter days.
thedevelopingplot 
A lot of my Corfu Blue are hanging their heads after the cold, I hope they recover, I love their colour. The yew story, oh so familiar!
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I love the homeless yew. For a long term project you could maybe take loads of cuttings from it then in a few years you could have a little hedge! OK, maybe life’s too short.
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Sounds a good plan – I like taking cuttings!
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Almond blossom is gorgeous! I’m with you with angelica. I grew it from seed one year, and removed it even before it flowered because it was annoying me by taking up so much space and taking so long to flower. That sounds so intolerant, doesn’t it?!
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No completely agree!
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So enjoyed your blog packed full of my favourite plants most of which are in my garden, though not looking as healthy. My only reservation is the Jan Bos hyacinth which I bought for the first time and has shocked me with its kind of pink.
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Yes, I was alarmed by ‘Jan Bos’ too. We’ll see if it mellows!
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I did a hard cut of my yews a few years ago (certainly, they are not in pots). New shoots appeared and I was able to give them a better shape in topiary. Just need time….
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What have you got to lose with the topiary idea? Use it as practice. Yew is such a forgiving plant…
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You are right. Always good to have a new project, even if it is a bit daunting initially.
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I love seeing how the self seeders fit (or not) in my garden. It makes it seem more of a cooperative effort, than my garden being in total control of things. Hope to hear about that yew in the future.
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Almond blossoms! How ‘Santa Clara Valley’! . . . but pink?
What is that yew? It looks like a spruce or fir of some sort. Yews are very uncommon here.
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I agree that you should have a go at topiary – I think I can see some sort of bird in there, maybe a peacock?
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So much to look forward to, inspite or despite the weather!
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