Sunday, June 21, 2015

SUMMER SOLSTICE ...SIGNS OF SPRING

Summer Solstice -It’s a sort of cool muggy-ish type of day with rain, the  temperature varying between 10.5-12-5 Deg C.   I think we shall have to resign ourselves to a lack of a summer this year, again. 

 My self-seeded Calendulas are nowhere near flowering, they are just at the fourth leaf stage. The Mimulas are doing their best; the Bluebells, also late, are nearly at the end of their flowering. 

These hibernated last winter with the first frosts. I don't blame them

One Viola flower, (self-seeded) which has been sheltering at the edge of the path kerb stone and which, is also protected by car wheels, was pert and happy till yesterday. I think another bloom will take its place.  Half of the blooming Pansies I planted last month, for want of a bit of colour, have survived quite well. 



Slugs are thriving according to the distinct signs on my Primulas and the podgy slug I picked up yesterday. Alliums have poked their leaves above ground this year and I have seen some flower buds growing on a few. 

Primula Candelabra just starting to grow flower branches
Both my Primula Candelabras seem quite well, though one stem has curled over and another is not sure what it wants to do. Having cleared the ground around and about the Primulas I found two more  leafy Primula sprouts, one quite close to the Candelabras, so, maybe....


Three Candelabras and growing more.

I was given some incubated Livingston Daisy plants. I wondered if  they were worth planting as they were so leggy and also they had not been hardened off. Nonetheless, I put some in the ground and a few in a plant pot: nothing ventured, nothing gained. There are some positive signs of recovery. I wonder though, if they will have any time to flower. 


I am hoping I will have some pleasure out of a few Hollyhock seedlings, which originate from a healthy plant, which grew up to two metres tall.  I have planted a couple of the seedlings in a sunny spot, (for when we have sun) either side of a tree trunk. The thinking is, that if they do grow, there will be some protection and support for them.  The remainder are amongst other plants.

The three clusters of Lupin leaves I now have, look as if they  may produce flowers. This was my only Lupin last year and it flowered in early November!    It would be great to get a bigger show this year from the Crocosomia. 'Hope springs eternal'.

From this one  flower three more Lupin clusters have grown.
 

6 comments:

zalandeau said...

Chez moi, la température varie entre 10 et 13° le matin et 17 à 20° l'après-midi...

Have a good day !

ZACL said...

Salu Zalandeau,

Ca Va?

L'apre-midi ici la temperature restee a 13Deg C pour deux heures, donc il pleut. Je voudrais sent le chaleur de 17-20 comme chez vous. :)

Anonymous said...

It's not really that much better here. Let's hope that we get a good late summer and a nice autumn. Flighty xx

ZACL said...

I guess the feeling of warmth is relative Mr F. We were some distance south for a couple of days last week and it was seven degrees warmer than at home. The locals found it chilly, we felt warmth!.

Snowbird said...

Gosh, your spring is really behind this year isn't it? I really do hope you get a little sunshine to get some growth on your plants.....and a curse on the slugs, you can certainly do without them! How odd the weather is this year, I don't recognize the seasons as such any more, it seems anything goes, anytime!xxx

ZACL said...

Hi Snowbird,

Seasons like spring and summer and autumn don't really seem differentiated anymore, certainly not here where I live. You wait and wonder what will come. The main consideration for planting is whether the ambient temperature is warm enough rather than thinking about seasonal advantage.

xxx