The months seem to be racing by through 2024. It is hard to believe that it is already the end of July and our garden plants remain confused. The weather varies so much as it has all year. We have plants in flower several weeks too early.
I wrote, “July takes us into the second half of the year. Our garden seems full of fledgling birds, robin, wren, blackbird, and blue tit. Their parents are busy feeding these youngsters often devouring the aphids who cover fresh growth on roses. But roses just carry on flowering.”
The two photos above show a tiny rose bush called, “Rosa alpina ‘Cutie Pie’ which grows to just 4 inches tall and 12 inches across.”
Turning over to the next double page spread I consider flowers with scent especially roses and lilies.
Concerning our roses I noted that, “Over the years we have accumulated lots of roses in so many colours, shapes and scents. We grow several for pollinating insects to enjoy not just us!”
So next I shared eight photos of all sorts of lilies after writing that, “Another family of strongly scented plants is the lilies, asiatics, martigans and the more delicate callas. Lilies enjoy transferring their bright orange pollen on to our clothing!”
Over the page I looked at some of the gardening jobs we tackled early in the month. I wrote, “Whatever the month we always have jobs in the garden or glasshouse to keep us busy. July is no exception. Ian, our Monday garden helper, tackled the two large topiary hollies – always a long job!”
Jude sorted out the field edge meadow planting. She then moved on to potting on over 200 succulent cuttings I had taken last autumn.
Next I looked at the tw0 main types of Lychnis we grow in our garden. Lychnis coronaria and Lychnis chalcidonica. Here I noted that, “We grow two different sorts of Lychnis around our garden, L. coronaria and L. chalcidonica.”
Currently we have just two different coloured L. chalcidonica but throughout the flowering period we can appreciate several more.
The many shades of Lychnis coronaria.
Over the page onto the last page for July I took a look at a few more garden tasks. I wrote, “And the work goes on ………..”
“Checking seephose and repairing leaks.”
“Remaking a whole border and cloud pruning an Osmanthus.”
“Replanting a border.”
We leave my garden journal for July with us working away reworking a border and giving it a fresh new look. We will return to visit the journal at the end of August.
greenbenchramblings 