Colourful pots

 My pots and tubs are really colourful this year.

Olympic gold

 Matt and I collected some seeds from the Olympic Park when we went to the Paralympics. This is a selection of the flowers. I will let them self seed so we can continue the "Olympic legacy"

Sunshine in the shade

My Telekia Speciosa seedling has now reached fruition. I have one of these in my semi-shade and full shade beds and both have flowered and should continue flowering until the first frosts. At last, something to punctuate the green in my late season shady areas.

Yellow Shell

I found this beautiful Yellow Shell on my Bergenias this morning.

Washing Up

Being at my kitchen sink is a happy occasion at the moment because my Yucca and 'Skip' Palm (rescued from a skip) are both in full flower along with my annual show of poppies.

Garden update

 After the slug and snail saga of last year this year has been a big improvement. I think I must have collected over 1000 slugs and snails during last year's wet Summer.
The garden has matured really well now and I finally finished my planting this weekend, filling in spaces with some nice perennials from Smedleys.
Ruby loves the garden and is great company. She is never more than a few yards from where I am working. She has taken a liking for paddling in the pond filters and can be seen on frog watch!
The seeds that Matt and I collected at the Olympic Park have grown well and I am expecting the first blooms any time now. I am hoping that they will self seed so that the Olympic Legacy will continue in Kimberley Road.
The veg plot is producing well  with plenty of spinach in the freezer and the promise of the first courgettes and beetroots within the next couple of weeks.
There are lots of ups and downs in gardening. Despite this years low temperatures everything seems to be doing well so I am looking forward to a productive and successful year.

Back garden

Having had a bit of a fiddle with my plant layout this year I was grateful for the cold spring and my plants have all responded well.

I've moved the banana that was at the end of my deck because it obscured the view of my main bed from the house. My neighbour has planted an Ivy that is very happy to grow on my side of the fence and I'm very happy for it to be there. It will hopefully meet up with my happy grape vine and together finally cover my unhappy fence. My wild area has reached a new level of maturity this year, almost completely engulfing my pond and looking good for it. 

Front of house

Our Echium 'Snow Tower' lost all it's foliage in the extended winter but it soldiered through to give us (and the bees) this gallant effort. Our plan for a traditional climbing rose by the front door is a step closer. This is a 'Mme Alfred Carriere' and seems happy so far. Not sure it will flower this year though.

Great tit

 Just fledged and waiting for a feed.

Hyde Hall

The extended cold weather made for an interesting visit to Hyde Hall. With less plants to look at it allowed us to appreciate the one's we did see more deeply and to appreciate some of the other things that would usually go unnoticed. Here's what took our eye:

An excellent moving Sycamore seed sculpture

Scarecrows

Huggable rocks

A Koala

Pubici Seventiesi

Potato Roots

How to tie a rose

How to wrap a banana properly

And some plants too