Category Archives: foliage

In the garden in May 2026.

29/05/2026colour, flowers, foliage, stumperyJackie

Thundery storms, hailstones /rain – then sweltering heat! But soon there will be some respite from the heat with a little rain. So far this year the majority of butterflies I have seen have been the orange tips and speckled woods and one small copper (I think) and one red damselfly. Lots of little bumble bees and a few large bumble bees. The tadpoles have grown bigger and I have spotted a few newts. Thankfully I have noticed far fewer slugs this year.

The Jock Tamson’s Gairden (JTG) plants sale went well and most of the plants were sold. I had propagated too many bronze fennel but that is ok as any unsold will be used at JTG. At the sale I got talking to a lovely lady, Naomi, who, after blethering about our mutual love of gardening and plants gave me a few plants from her own garden to try. Thank you Naomi.

At the beginning of May we found more blanket weed in the pond so gave the pond a treatment of Aquaplancton which made it all look a bit cloudy. The tadpoles, frogs and newts didn’t mind at all although we did get some on some lily pads so they look a bit grey. I am still waiting for signs of the Typha I planted a couple of years ago and I planted a variegated iris just at the beginning of the year so I hope they will appear and flower this year.

Amy, my garden help, re-located a huge cyclamen from behind the garage to underneath the spirea where is should do well as it doesn’t get too moist there. We took out a couple of old limbs of the viburnam as it was quite congested and was resting over the purple acer so that some of it’s branches had died off.

Also re-located is the hardy geranium Mavis Simpson which hadn’t really got going in the stumpery so it is now beside the heuchera in the middle bed where it will get a bit more sunshine.

I noticed that there are flowers for the first time on the acer Shirasawanum aureum and they are so tiny but really show up against the bright, golden-green of the leaves. The flowers are produced in small cymes. Soon they will turn into a pair of winged samara (keys). A samara is a winged achene which is one dried, seeded, fruit encased in one wing.

Small clusters of red flowers on a golden green acer shrub. — Acer shirasawanum aureum flowers.

My purple acer, acer palmatum Dissectum Garnet (which is much older) has never flowered whereas next door there is a purple/red acer peaking over the top of the garage which already has the purple/red samaras . I have never seen the flowers on it, and it is getting pretty wide now, growing over both sides of the front of the raised bed and growing down to and along the ground now.

purple acer shrub in the corner of a raised bed with f=green shrubs and a fern in the background. — Purple acer palmatum disectum Garnet in the raised bed.

The clematis montana is doing well but has now started to pull off the support at the top. We are soon to start work on the garage roof so it isn’t the right time to do anything about it.

Pink flowers on the climbing plant clematis montana. — Clematis montana on the garage wall.

Below the clematis along the back of the garage wall is only a narrow border so it can be tricky to get it to look good. I am trying out nepeta Junior Walker, hardy geranium Vision light pink and silene coronaria on the left hand side just to see how they do. So far the cats have been stomping all over the nepeta so I have had to put an upturned basket on it for protection and this has done the job.

The middle bed is coming on nicely just now with the hebe in flower and the other plants are looking colourful. There are are a few different colours of foliage in the middle bed with silvery white, dark green, bright golden-green, bronzes and purples which can make a lovely palette.

Different colours of foliage in a plant bed. Silver, bronze, purple, dark green and bright green. — Colourful foliage in the middle bed.

When viewed from another angle.

Layers of colour of plants. Purple at the front, golden-green then darker green, then pink flowers at the top. — Layers of colour.

The new fronds of the athyrium otophorum var. okanum fern look like a right old tangle but they always open up perfectly.

Tangled looking new bronze fern fronds. — Athyrium atophorum var. okanum tangled looking fronds.

I am so happy that I finally bought some geum Mai Tai as they look so pretty next to the rose and fill up that gap nicely. I did spot another geum right in front of the rose which was looking huge and healthy and wondered what I had planted but it turned out to be a weed (wild geum urbanum) so it was pulled out but now there is a bit of a gap in front of Gertrude Jekyll.

A variety of plants in a damp corner under the down pipe. — The damp corner where the geums are thriving.

Peach, frilly petals of Geum Mai Tai flower. — Geum Mai Tai.

I bought and planted three verbascum Peach champagne last year and only one was in flower at the time (buttery-yellow colour with purple in the centre). However I was not prepared for the colour of the emerging flowers this year. The first two to start flowering started a deep dusky pink, then went peach and finally to the buttery-yellow colour. The last one to flower bypassed the pink stage – it started out peach. Hey ho.

dusky pink verbascum along with pink flowers on a hebe and green japanese anemone foliage. Bright green foliage of spirea in the top right hand corner. — I thought I had bought the wrong verbascum. Pink instead of yellow.

Peach coloured verbascum flowers next to pink hebe, green Japanese anemone and bright green spirea foliage. — Verbascum Peach Champagne changing from dusky-pink to peach colour.

Verbascum Peach Champagne yellow flowers with purple centres. — Finally the right colour on the Verbascum Peach Champagne.

The red peony is looking good right now. Normally when they are looking their best we get a deluge of rain which knocks all the petals off.

Deep red peony flowwers next to variegated holy and pink aquilegia flowers. — Red peony (unknown variety).

The poor old witch hazel had to be taken out as it was indeed totally dead. It didn’t take much pulling and it was very wet at the base. I am now looking for another large shrub or small tree for that gap. There are a few more gaps I could fill in the stumpery but otherwise it is looking fine.

Path through a woodland garden. — Stumpery at the end of May.

It is so nice to work in the garden just now with the warmth of the sun and the gorgeous scent of the syringia that fills the air.

Pink flowers on syringia with beautiful scent. — Syringa Josiflexa Belleicent

The view from the patio right now. Over the grey winters we have in Scotland I really miss seeing all this glorious, lush colour. Of course it will all change over the next month.

A colourful view of the back garden from the patio. Flowers and shrubs in bloom. — Colourful view from the patio.

Mid May 2024 Colour in the garden.

19/05/2024foliage, Uncategorized, wildlifeJackie

Hooray – the sun is finally shining and it is warm! The plants (and weeds) are romping away. There are lots of colourful flowers open now, the aquilegias with all their different pinks, purples and whites, and the foliage colours are just as amazing. I do love the bronze foliage of some of the younger leaves especially some of the ferns and the rodgersia.

bronze foliage on Osmunda regalis 'Purpurascens' fern. — Osmunda regalis ‘Purpurascens’

Bronze leaves of Rodgersia podophylla — Rodgersia podophylla

There are different green and purples in some other ferns and browns in the ones with ‘hairy’ fronds. I think the hairs are actually called scales although they don’t look like scales.

green and purple foliage of Athyrium otophorum var. okanum fern — Athyrium otophorum var. okanum

Green fronds of Asplenium scolopendrium 'Cristata' — Asplenium scolopendrium ‘Cristata’

Close croziers of Dryopteris crispa congesta fern. — Dryopteris crispa congesta

Bushy green croziers of Polystichum setiferum Cristato pinnulum fern. — Polystichum setiferum Cristato pinnulum

'Hairy' fronds of Polystichum polyblepharum fern. — Polystichum polyblepharum

Silvery and purple fronds of Athyrium niponicum 'silver falls' fern. — Athyrium niponicum ‘silver falls’

The tree heath Erica arborea is flowering it’s heart out and the bees love the tiny flowers the centre of which a purple. It has come back very well after it got big chop in 2021. The rowan was covered in blossom last year but this year is very disappointing. You can just about see a few clusters at the top of it in the left side of the next pic.

White and purple flowers of Erica arborea alongside the pink flowers if the Hebe Pink paradise. — Erica arborea and Hebe ‘Pink paradise’.

White flowers with purple centre of Erica arborea. — Erica arborea close up

The amazing purple (garnet) foliage of the Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum Garnet’ is looking gorgeous just now contrasting well with the bright greens around it. Although it looks very purple, the closer you get to it you can see a green tinge to it.

Deep garnet foliage of the Acer palmatum 'Dissectum Garnet' — Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum Garnet’.

The stumpery has plenty of colour with the white primula Snowflake which has a pink tinge to it, blue ajugas mixed in with white galium odoratus, purple honesty, pale blue forget-me-nots, a few pulmonarias and the pale blue Veronica Gentionoides Blue streak and more dark purple foliage of the huecheras. We have borrowed the dark foliage of next doors tree. The lime green of the Acer shirasawanum aureum really shines.

Colourful plants in the stumpery mid May 2024. — The stumpery in mid May 2024.

Blue Ajuga reptans bugle mixed with white Galium odoratum in the stumpery. — Ajuga reptans mixed with Galium odoratum.

A few beasties that I found this month were a Rosemary beetle (Chrysolina Americana) which looks absolutely beautiful. The RHS says just to live with them unless they become a problem.

Purple and green shiny Rosemary beetle (Chrysolina americana). — Rosemary beetle (Chrysolina Americana).

A rather lovely white-legged snake millipede (Tachypodoiulus niger).

We are always told that slugs and snails don’t like moving over sharp objects but I have found slugs and snails going up the very sharp prickles of my moss roses. This slug doesn’t look bothered at all. I have found the tell-tale slime trails all over a very prickly cactus in the conservatory before too.

Slug going up prickly moss rose stem. — Slug on the very prickly moss rose stem.

And lastly for now the heather beetle (Lochmaea suturalis). Apparently it wasn’t just my garden they were swarming into but even on beaches elsewhere. It isn’t a great photo. They have been quite a problem in the moorlands so I am hoping they are not going to be a problem here too.

I have seen plenty orange tip butterflies and holly blues and a few speckled wood butterflies so far. And the usual bees, wasps and flies are around, but so far, no more wasp nests in the raised bed. Our next-door neighbour had a lovely garden visitor the other day. Our gardens back onto a golf course where the is a small herd of deer, and one of them got through her broken gate. On the one hand, I would love to have them visit our garden, but on the other hand, they may cause a lot of damage. I have no idea what plants they would eat. It is back to chilly weather and overcast skies now. It was nice to see the sun while it lasted.

Noticing what is around you.

21/06/2020flowers, foliage, foxgloves, plantsJackie Elwin

I have found that most of the time while working in the garden or doing slug patrols, you tend to be so focused on the job in hand that you may not notice what else is going on in the garden. It is a good idea just to wander around and really see what is happening around you. Our rhododendron is flowering quite happily after it’s move last November so it never went in a sulk after all. Mind you, I did keep it well watered just to make sure, then gave it a wee feed just before flowering. We planted a couple of new shrubs (Enkianthus companulatus and Sambucus nigra f. porphyrophyla ‘Eva’). And to fill in a bit of space, added all the foxgloves that were found in the wrong place (just till I figure out what should go in there long term).

Rhododendron Gomer Waterer

Just along from the corner is arch that I have been trying to grow a rose over (Rose Generous gardener), in place of the Clematis montana alba that died. It is not an ideal place for them as they can only get the sun in the morning, and they are under the sycamore trees of the golf course. I need to keep them well watered and that has meant watering them almost every day this year. They are looking good so far, and once the elder is bigger I think the contrasting colours will look even better.

Rose, geranium and elder.

The foxgloves are the tallest they have ever been in this garden. Harry is a about 6′ 1” and he is standing next to one that looks about 7′ tall. There is one in the middle of the stumpery which is even taller. Although I read (Guiness world records) that the tallest ever foxglove was grown by Lydia Foy in Ireland in 1997 – 10’10” (3.29m) WOW!

Harry and the tall foxgloves.

In the conservatory there were a few nice colour combinations or just nice colours that I liked. I had a vase of roses and honeysuckle together and the buds of the honeysuckle were a bright deep red colour before they opened to release their exquisite scent. Little things catch my eye, like the purple foliage of the axalis against the pale green velvet cushion. Dangling roots of the sempervivums, and the little tufts of hair at the points of some of them. Others have web-like hairs across them, and some go through a colour change from green through to a mahogany brown. The tips of other sempervivums are very pointed and look like they have been dipped in ink.
It is always worth taking a few moments to do nothing but look and be aware of what is around you.

Purple oxalis leaves against pale green cushion.

Purple oxalis leaves against purple cushion.

Honeysuckle buds beside purple rose in vase.

Honeysuckle buds.

Seedling against purple rose.

Sempervivums (mixed).

Sempervivums.

Sempervivum with hairy tips..

Sempervivum roots and web/hairs.

Still cold…

14/04/2019crow, flowers, foliage, plantsJackie Elwin

but the weather is supposed to warm up starting from Wednesday. I went into the garden this morning with great intentions of feeding and mulching the roses but I was just feeling too cold so I just took a few quick snaps. A couple I took a few days go when the sun came out. A few plants are going over now like the cherry and the pink corydalis. Even some of the hellebores are looking a bit ropey. Some of the narcissi are flowering away, like Cheerfulness, whilst others are not up yet, like Erlicheer and Pipit. Some of the brunnera and forget-me-nots are flowering but the brunnera ‘Jack frost’ is very nearly in flower, (the foliage look fabulous though). The cowslips are looking cheery but I had thought they would have self-seeded a bit but looks like I will have to divide it to get another clump.
My friendly crow followed me round the garden again so I blathered to him while he was pecking away at the old log.

Crow

Astilbe leaves

Brunnera ‘Jack frost’

Prunus Shirota Mount Fuji

Corydalis solida pink

Primula veris (cowslip)

Corylus avellana Contorta

Narcissus Cheerfulness

Who needs flowers…

23/05/2018foliage, plantsJackie Elwin

when you can have fabulous colour from foliage? Young leaves especially can be quite bright, but don’t forget the stem colours and buds too. My little Acer shirasawanum ‘Auereum’ has fabulous pink and green colouration when the leaves first burst through, which turn bright golden/lime green later, and the dark green nettles behind provides a good contrast. The Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum Garnet’ has beautifully dark garnet foliage, and when planted next to Thymus lanuginosus (which has lovely deep pink bud and tiny hairy leaves), Saxifraga umbrosa (with it’s succulent bright green leaves, pink stems and pale pink flowers) that not only contrasts the colours but also the textures and leaf shapes. The golden oregano is looking splendid just now and the leaves of the Pieris Japonica ‘Forest flame’ have now faded from bright orange/red to golden. The young foliage on some roses can look very pretty too. ‘The Generous gardener’ has very bright young red/bronze leaves, while the red flowered rose (could be ‘Erotica’) has deep purple leaves. Astilbe ‘Fanal’ red has bright red stems, some green leaves and some bronze/purple leaves just before the red flower spikes appear. The Hebe’Pink paradise’ picks up the purple colour of the Heuchera (Rachel) in it’s stems and the pinks buds go well with it too. Another combination that I love for both colour and texture is in the corner by my ramp: The huge bronze leaves of the Rogersia podophylla along with young bronze of it’s neighbour, Osmunda regalis ‘Purpurascens’, and the green of the Polygonataum multiflorum. The pond too has a variety of leaf colours and forms. I would have liked to show you my Cotinus ‘Royal purple’ and Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack frost’ but they have only just been planted and they don’t look great yet. I would have loved to show you the ferny bronze foliage of my Foeniculum vulgare ‘Purpureum’ (bronze fennel, but something has been eating it!! I have never had this problem before but this year the fronds have not been allowed to grow bigger than an inch or two (showing my age now). Snails, slugs, mice, I don’t know but I have been getting rid of all slugs that I find on my morning slug patrols, and the black birds and thrushes are dealing with the snails. Do mice like fennel?