The weather has been pretty miserable all week but at last it has brightened up and a trip around the garden was called for to see if I could find anything new that has come into flower.
The lilac is blooming its socks off, it didn't flower last year for some obscure reason, so the blossom is all the more welcome.
There is a lilac bush on the verge outside the house and everytime I get out of the car and brush against it I almost faint with delight as the fragrance overpowers me.
If you grow Clematis Montana you need to give it plenty of room to grow - it has created a hedge all along the front fence and looks stunning - it has reached its maximum now and I don't have to prune it or anything - this is as good as it gets.
Glorious - isn't it.
The Dianthus are looking pretty good too
Earlier this week I went for a walk around the village to see what I could find in the hedgerows - it was mostly cow parsley, but it does look pretty spectacular at the moment
All this week I have been reading a book called 'Waterlog' by Roger Deakin. Inspired by John Cheever's classic short story 'The Swimmer', Roger Deakin set out from his moat in Suffolk to swim through the British Isles. The result of his journey is a maverick work of observation and imagination, a uniquely personal view of an island race and a people with a deep, instinctive affinity with water. Encompassing cultural history, autobiography, travel writing and natural history, Waterlog is a personal journey, a bold assertion of the native swimmer's right to roam and an unforgettable celebration of the magic of water.
If you go over to my blog A Single Moment I have quoted a passage from the book. I love the thought of swimming in rivers and hidden secret places - I have been to quite a few of the places where he swims and he describes them perfectly.
And finally, if you are interested in what I have been up to in the veg garden check it out here
Your clematis is just marvelous. Love the live fence it made. Dianthus is also wonderful. I remember my mum always had them in the garden, we even bought some 2 years ago but don't know what happened to them. They didn't survive this winter.
ReplyDeleteMy old patch of Dianthus became very straggly over winter so I had to replace them - I love the fragrance.
DeleteYou have some lovely blooms in flower Elaine. I had a walk round our garden today with a view to picking some to display indoors but we havent got much out just yet. There's lots ready to come out but a couple days more sun is probably whats needed.
ReplyDeleteIt's a funny sort of time in the garden the bulbs have gone and everything is just about to flower but not quite.
DeleteLots of perfume there. Your posy should scent the room beautifully containing wallflowers. Is the montana the one that has an almondy smell. And the dianthus too are they a perfumed variety.
ReplyDeleteYes the Montana does smell almondy and the dianthus smell of cloves although you have to bend down a helluva long way to get your nose in.
DeleteBeautiful pictures Elaine. I can almost smell the lilac!
ReplyDeleteYour montana looks to have found itself a perfect position, naturally contained. And it does indeed look glorious!
I almost tend to overlook the montana as it has been there forever but the lilac won't let itself get overlooked, not this year anyway.
DeleteYour Clem. montana hedge is wonderful!! Your bouquet of flowers is lovely I also like wallflowers and their delicious fragrance.
ReplyDeleteIt is actually growing over a fence - that is what is holding it all together.
DeleteLots of things for me to look up from this post. Wallflowers, the clematis (I'd like a flowering hedge, also thinking about honeysuckle), and the intriguing book. The posy was exquisite.
ReplyDeleteHoneysuckle would make a great hedge, it might take a few years to get there though.
DeleteI love the clematis - my neighbour has one growing all over her wall and a bit 'found' its way over on to my side a few days ago - I was very disappointed this morning when I realised she had pinched it back!
ReplyDeleteIt is pretty vigorous I must admit - my neighbour feels the same way about her honeysuckle that grows mainly in my garden.
DeleteA most beautiful post Elaine.
ReplyDeleteYour flower bouquets are so lovely.. your garden must be full of all sorts of flowers that grow in an English country garden.
The booksounds interesting.
Elaine.. i have had to start a new blog.. lost all my work on blogger yesterday. I have joined bloglovin as friend connect ends at the end of july. you will find me on bloglovin or my blog http://valrosa59.blogspot
wishing you a wonderful weekend.. hope that i see you and dont loose you.
I love reading your posts.
I still have a lot to do on the new post .. i made 2 test ones today.
val x
The garden is coming along very nicely with lots to look at when having a stroll round. I am following your new blog by email, don't worry all your followers will find you.
DeleteLovely photos, Elaine, the countryside looks stunning just now. Today's sunshine promising some growth in the veg garden, although the weeds need no encouragement!
ReplyDeleteDon't you just love this time of year with everything looking so fresh and green, the weeds are getting away with murder whilst I am concentrating on planting out etc.
DeleteSuch beautiful flowers! You have found so many lovely colors to add to your vase. And that clematis is amazing...just full of so many beautiful blooms.
ReplyDeleteTrying to find flowers for the post makes me look really hard at what is in the garden - plants that I would otherwise possibly overlook.
DeleteTerrific photos. It's nice to see so much colour, and it seems to be a good year for clematis and lilac.
ReplyDeleteOn good thing about rain is how it makes everything look so lush. Flighty xx
Thanks Flighty. A bit of rain and a bit of warmth and everything is taking off - at last.
DeleteYour clematis is amazing, mine has struggled this year for some reason. We have loads of cow parsley in the verges here too, makes seeing over them on the lanes tricky at times, but I can forgive it as it's so pretty!
ReplyDeleteI'll say one thing for my Montana, it never lets me down, I probably shouldn't have said that should I - curses!
DeleteI LOVE that lush post-rain green. There's nothing quite like it is there? I love going on nature hikes the day after a few heavy rains. Also, the blooms in your pictures are more beautiful than ever!!
ReplyDeleteI agree - green is definitely the colour of the month.
DeleteI love your bouquets...so pretty. As to that Clematis...WOW!
ReplyDeleteThanks Bridget. It certainly is a stunner.
DeleteThe flowers are beautiful. I love to see the wallflowers in the gorgeous posy. The clematis montana looks stunning too. I have one spreading over a pergola outside the front door; so far it's been reliable every year and looked wonderful there. And I love the thought of swimming in wild/hidden places, too - water can seem magical.
ReplyDeleteI have quite a few clematis flowering at different times of the year - I love 'em.
DeleteWhat a delightfully fragrant post! I also love the scent of wallflowers...and of course lilac. Your bouquet is lovely. I would love a wander through those lush fields (need wellies probably with the tall moist grass!) Sounds like you really are enjoying that book, and it does make it extra special when you have been to places mentioned.
ReplyDeleteAs I walked round the garden this evening the scent from all the different flowers kept on hitting me - funny how they smell their best in the evening.
DeleteYour little posies are always so gorgeous. I too have a soft spot for wall flowers, I LOVE the scent of them. Your lilac is delightful too!
ReplyDeleteI am MOST envious of your Clematis Montana hedge, I have it growing up a trellis and it smells gorgeous, so I can imagine how glorious it must be to walk past a hedge of it.
I loved the village pics, and the countryside looks so peaceful.
A wonderful post, I really enjoyed it.xxxx
Thanks Snowbird - everything is so lush at the moment and all the rain has brought the garden on no end - love this time of year.
DeleteHow SWEET are those posies?!? Shows off the variety and beauty of your garden one handful at a time.
ReplyDeleteIt is a good way for me to look closely at what is growing - sometimes when you see things everyday you fail to notice what is going on in the garden.
DeleteStunning clematis - what a wonderful reward for your care and attention.
ReplyDeleteThis is the only Montana I have had any success with - I must have just struck lucky.
DeleteI'm always so in awe of your cut flowers. Beautiful....just beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jane.
DeleteSuch a pretty bouquet Elaine!
ReplyDeleteMy lilacs are behaving just the same. There were no booms to speak of last summer and this year they are fabulous. I wonder if it has anything to do with the weird false start we had to spring last year in March? My traditional lilacs are done and now the Korean lilacs are in flower. The scent is amazing!
I am so impressed with your Clematis Montana. I have never seen a clematis quite like this before.
I'm not sure what Korean lilacs are - will have to check it out. I agree about the lilacs not blooming last year - I have never known it happen before - can only think the awful spring weather confused them. Thank goodness they are back on track this year. I trained the Clematis along the picket fence and it just did its own thing from there on in - what I call 'fuss-free' gardening.
DeleteBliss! Your bouquet is astounding! I have a few clematis but may have to add one more! I love yours covering the fence!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jayne - I love little posies in jam jars rather than grand flower arrangements perhaps that says a lot about my personality!
DeleteSuch a pretty posy Elaine, but wow, that montana! I'd been steering clear of it because of the lack of height available for it, but seeing it growing like that, low but long, makes me wonder. I'd been thinking about trying it along the trellis at the back of our garden but decided against because it is only 6' high, if that.
ReplyDeletePlanting the Montana to twine round the picket fence was one of my better ideas!
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