Sorrel and lentil soup
This is a simple recipe, and a nice light soup for a windy and wet summers day. Serves 4 25g butter 5-6 garlic cloves 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 150g red lentils 1 litre vegetable stock 200g sorrel, coarse …
Hardy Perennial
Iris chrysographes
This beauty is Iris chrysographes, the gold-marked iris. Isn’t she splendid?! I mean, wow. You can also see what look like tiny white crystals on the petals at the top, leading down to where the pollen is found. I think …
Crocus tommasinianus ‘Whitewell Purple’ and Iris ‘Cantab’
Now we’ve had some proper Spring weather, with warmer temperatures and sunny days, the colour is taking off. First up is my favourite crocus, C. tommasinianus ‘Whitewell Purple’. In the sun it shimmers, and attracts the bees who feast on …
Voilà Violas!
By good fortune, whether from wind or birds, these violas self-seeded in my garden. As if to say, Voilà! They are very pretty. This one is my favourite. I plan on letting them self-seed and will then choose the best …
Cracking Crocosmia
Late summer and the Crocosmia is cracking hot in my front garden. Crocosmia are one our favourite summer plants and we have several cultivars. First up is everybody’s favourite, Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’. This always flowers before any other Crocosmia in my …
In praise of… Allium ‘Millenium’
There are a lot of Alliums out there, and one of my favourites is this one, Allium ‘Millenium’. It’s around 30-40cms tall and is one of the latest season flowering alliums that I’ve come across, flowering late July and into …
Florespondence: Helle-not-so-boring
Hellebores, they aren’t so boring. I’m sure that’s been said a lot, but look at them – such beauty! The yellow ones are in the front garden, and the pinks and purples in the back garden. Helleborus x hybridus Harvington …
Autumn: Salvia ‘Amistad’
I thought it was time to show some flowering plants in my Autumn series. This is Salvia ‘Amistad’, which yes, does start flowering in late Spring, but continues on through Summer and into Autumn. I’m enjoying it so much in …
I got sunshine, on a cloudy day: Rudbeckia fulgida var sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’
Rudbeckia fulgida var sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ Truly, if there was ever a flower to give you sunshine on a cloudy day, Rudbeckia fulgida var sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ must be it. This flower glows even through the night; I can see it through …