What's looking Good In August 2024

@Plantminded If you don't mind, I just saved DSC01752.jpeg. Not only that this is a dream of picture and garden view, but also as reminder if I speak later about this particular picture.

Every couple of months, I do an overview of the garden just for myself to keep record what I changed.
You rarely get that corner to see because there is not much change - apart from the Acer on the very left upper side, which is now for 3 years in our garden. The problem is that this Acer is one of those that are so sensitive to sunburn, and I kept it two years in a pot. Last year, I said, enough is enough, and I had literally to squeeze it into the corner, much too close to the fence, but better than living in a pot or being burned and have no leaves at all.
The Acer is so happy that is has grown tremendously this year.



The tree fern is still in the barrel pot. I will change that next year. Underneath is our cat and I wanted to make sure that no fox can get her out of the grave.
My new foxgloves are doing well.



Finally my panorama, which I also take twice a year.
That shrub in the front was ruined by me. What ever I did, it was wrong (probably the fishbone). If it doesn't recover until next year Spring time, I will remove it.

 

Thank you @Perki and @On the Levels. Luckily, I’ve never had bindweed here, just that tiny Euphorbia like weed which keeps popping up!

You are very welcome to save that photo @simone_in_wiltshire, I’m glad you like it! Your garden looks great, that bark mulch really sets off your plants .

 

Fuchsia name has got lost some where and I've only had it a few years

Fuchsia campos portoi

Digitalis: from seed sown last year and the label got lost over winter, somewhat dwarfed by spending too much time in a seed tray.


Liriope muscari

Hedychium coronarium planted in early June so still settling in.

Hedychium densiflorum "Schilling" planted out June 23 and flowering for the first time, wonderful scent.

 

Thank you for the kind offer @cactus_girl but having moved house a month ago, I'm not ready to plant yet. In fact the area I would like to plant those I've just started clearing.

 

@NigelJ that first fuchsia looks like microphylla. I had it some years ago - it was more shrubby than most hardy ones. But I think I killed it.
Do you find hedychium coronarium hardy? My Tara and densiflora (thanks @pete) are still just in bud.

 

My hedichium, ginger lily, is also looking wonderful and smelling devine. The cream one isn't in flower yet, mine is always 3/4 weeks behind the orange one.
I planted mine several years ago, it is now a huge clump, threatening to become invasive. The tubers are really thick and difficult to dislodge. The flower stems are 5ft tall so not for a small garden.

 

@CarolineL

I'm hoping it is in my garden, however it will get a mulch over winter and I may well lift part of it and pot up over winter in the greenhouse. This is the first year I've had it and before I got it had been in a tunnel/greenhouse which may be why it's earlier than some peoples.

It could well be F microphylla as I have that elsewhere in the garden; where it has formed a little thicket in drier poorer soil. That would explain the absence of a label.

 

Interesting @Goldenlily26 , @NigelJ - my densiflorum and Tara are unscented. But "Schilling" looks a bit hybrid so maybe got scent from another species.

 

@CarolineL Apparently Hedychium densiflorum Schilling is one of three large flowered varieties of H densiflorum along with Stephen and Sorung all were found in Nepal Sorung was found by Edward Needham in 1924 and the other two by Tony Schilling in 1965/6. I found this on the internet http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~drc/hedychium_densiflorum_stephen.htm and http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~drc/hedychium_densiflorum_a_d_schilling_582.htm in these you can see that a Kew expert did say Stephen could be a hybrid, Tony Schilling considers them to be a distinct form of H densiflorum. They are supposed to be hardy enough for outdoor growth in Cornwall and Somerset.

 

I have detected just a slight scent on my Tara this year when it warm and in full sun.
But the densiflorum I have I grew from seed some years ago which was wild collected, not by me I might add.

The only one that has any real scent that I have is gardnerianum.

There was a lot fuss locally on TV when the bloke that owns Lillingstone Castle managed to flower a yellow one that looks very similar to the one @NigelJ shows, but I think it was a different species.

 

Lullingstone: 'Unusual' ginger flowers for first time at garden

 

I am inordinately chuffed with this little Chamaecyparis Lawsoniana Ellwood's Gold. Had one in the ground that was past its best and browning, so I harvested the teensiest cutting (about 2cms of twig and 1 cm of green top growth) from a side shoot. This was in autumn 2020. It took till the following spring to root ... but, hey presto, look at it now. Oozing health and vitality.

I don't know why creating a fresh plant from a cutting is so enormously satisfying ... but it is!

 

@pete thank you for the link, interesting that the article mentions the night time scent. They are supposed to smell stronger at night, mine certainly does.