May Garden Colour

Now the flowering season really starts to motor in my clay garden in middle england.



Iris Sibirca Blue - very different from the bearded iris. Clump forming with narrow leaves and this spectacular flower, comes in white too.Great for a herbacious border, and so far has done well for three years. Needs to be kept moist, but will do in dappled shade



Meconopsis Cambrica - the welsh poppy, not to be confused with other poppies whether oriental, or field. Same family as the lovely blue of the Hymalayan poppy. Seed was given to me by a friend and it took a couple of years to establish - but now its self seeding happily. Some have proved to be perrennial on occassions, but treat as an annual, and let it self seed. I got yellow and orange, both I love. It may be better starting in ericaceous compost, but is doing fine now in my clay - prefers full sun



Aquilegia - the most promiscuous of plants.Mostly the flowers hang down - UK wild flower variety is "granny's bonnet" a blue flower with spurs from the back of the flower. But the range is large as is the colour. These are sports/crosses that grew from self seed in my garden, but not unusual. Well worth garden room - not fussy about its soil - and will do in partial shade and sun



This lilac was here close to the house when I moved in - and each May I get this display. Come autumn, its alive with blue tits harvesting the seed. Loved by wildlife (including thos nesting in the ivy round its base) lilac again has a range of colours, and if you keep on top of its tendancy to sucker - wonderful. Not fussy about its soil etc.

Now lets see our other members May bloomers.

 

Ooooh! Fran - what spectacular pics! I quite gasped when I saw the iris. I've been trying to grow iris for ages but always put their failure down to that heavy clay soil I have. How do you manage to get them so vibrant?

 

Osteospermum of the hardier type.

Laburnum

California poppy. (Eschscholtzia)

 

Beautiful pictures Pete,

Michaelmas Daisy - glad you like them, iris grow fine in clay especially the bearded iris. Prefer the sunny sites, especially the bearded ones that need sun on the rhyzomme.

[ 16. September 2005, 09:04 PM: Message edited by: Fran ]

 

Here's a few around my garden taken in May this year. I don't know the varieties of the clematis but they were real showstoppers. As with all the bobby dazzlers they were fleeting so I'm pleased I have the pictures as memories of their glory.
The hawthorn flower is really pretty and I had to take a picture. Hawthorn is a real bonus shrub, excellent for hedging if you have room. It is ideal for encouraging birds to the garden - they feast on the berries and love the dense foliage for nesting. A real native joy.