end of August 2018

cleomes and Polly Pocket

the sedum just below the cleomes is in bloom now, I thought it was called something like "rhubarb and custard" but on googling I can only find "Stewed Rhubarb"

and just below that, a perlargonium - best value from the garden centre - free for loyalty card holders, been going strong for months

There were lots of chicory flowers in St Pancras Old Church churchyard and lots of bees enjoying them. Difficult to get a photo in focus but on the left is a bee with white pollen baskets either side.

also lots of bristly ox-tongue with bees

I usually just hack away at the ivy as it usually seems to grow pretty fast but the other day I just pruned the stems without buds and was careful to leave the buds to produce flowers for the bees.

If only the fruits of the passionflower were nice. They aren't.

My early borage died in the drought and heatwave, then I had a couple small plants, now I have a lot of borage buds and flowers. I just wish I had bees enjoying them. I don't have many bees this year, sadly. There's been a huge construction site nearby (and a number of smaller but still large ones, as well) and I do wonder if it's disturbed the environment to such an extent that I have fewer bees in my garden.

my neighbour's squash is spreading over another neighbour's garden and into mine (vine on the left)

it's the only thing they grow in their garden and they built that monstrosity (with the posts sticking up) just for it, it's growing up that olive tree

and down the other side

my mint started to bloom, see more about mint at my Lamiaceae page

This salvia was blooming when I bought it earlier this year, then the slugs got to it and it was a bare stick, then I moved it inside and it recovered but no flowers, not until next year I imagine. I think it was something like "Salvia Blue and Black" but I'll have to see if I can find the label.

a delphinium I thought was too slug-damaged has new buds

the heat has brought out the water lily flowers

I always have honesty self-seeding around the garden but last year I planted the seed myself and had spectacular results. This was one of them. I'm going to plant some of those seeds again.

a lone viola has appeared in the sea holly trough, the agapanthus to the left have not bloomed this year and there's no time to now, that sea holly in the foreground hasn't sprouted flowering stem - hopefully next year, I didn't notice the slug in the flowerbed to the right when I was taking this photo

Please don't use cut plastic bottles as cloches in the garden. Animals can get them stuck on their head. I mentioned this before but it's worth repeating.