Hot and sticky.......

The garden is dry.......so very dry.......

I try not to water beds and borders........

unless the plants are beginning to wilt......

Mr P and I went to the Mushroom Farm today.......we took the trailer.......and collected some compost. It smells of woodland.....I am a compost sort of girl.....

When it rains I shall add it to the garden......

I am hoping one day my heavy clay soil will be a little lighter.......

Well I can dream, can't I?

Some of the plants that you see, I grew from seed in the greenhouse.....

I really love corn marigolds...... they seem to bloom forever......

I shall grow even more next year........it is the cheaper option and such a lot of fun......

Poppi is going to have her own little border........she will choose the plants......

She has a lot of thinking to do........I have a feeling there will be a lot of pink in my garden next year!!

Sunday safari

It is hot......the temperature is rising......

We have a heatwave on the way.........

The bugs are busy...........

Hoverflies are enjoying the daisies.....

There are dozens of ladybirds.........I am not sure if this one is a native species......

Scorpion flies are active in the copse.......they are harmless......

So many insects.....but it is way too hot to stay out with them......

A dip would be nice........

but we have already made arrangements......we are going to an outdoor concert.......time to sit and chat and listen to some jazz and all in aid of charity. Pimms anyone??

White....just perfect for me......

The best time in the garden, for me, is dawn and dusk.

The world seems hushed.......and life seems to slow down a little.......

White blooms, for me, bring a sense of peace and serenity.........

Sometimes, just sometimes, I wish I had planted a white garden........
in a quiet corner......
I often wonder why we are attracted to certain colours........

I love to wear white....I have tried to change, and go for vibrant colour......

but I always go back to white. If you could only have one colour in your garden....tell me what would it be???

Sunday safari.......Magpie.......

A handsome bird with boldly pied pumage,

and a long tapered tail,

the magpie is unmistakable.

In sunlight it has an iridescent sheen of blue, purple and green.

One for sorrow, two for joy.......

I've been very lazy today......how about you???

I love the month of June.......

June is such a lovely month. Somehow, everything comes together. All the hard work has been worthwhile.

I have landscaped around the pond. The front edge has been left clear....so that you can sit, sip a cup of tea and watch pond life.......

This image shows it more clearly.......

The hard work during winter and spring was all worthwhile.....

it isn't exactly as I'd imagined.......but I like it.

Another Dahlia has just opened ......I am so pleased my father talked me into planting them.

I do love Arabian Knight....such a deep red ......it is planted with white roses and looks stunning......

And here they are.......very difficult for me as rabbits love them. I have planted them in the middle of a bed and surrounded them with plants that rabbits dislike. I hold my breath each day, as I walk the garden, in case a tiny bunny has got in there and gobbled them all up. So far, so good.

Calendula 'art shades' and Helipterum Pierrot.....I grew them in the greenhouse from seed. They are dotted around the garden in small drifts.....I am pleased, nice, very nice.

Pelargonium Graffiti Happy Violet........I don't usually bother with pelargoniums, but I like this one.....it really stands out in a crowd, very upright.

I have an old pear tree in the front garden........I love the way this clematis scrambles up it's old trunk and branches. I love to look at it from the bedroom window.....the blooms always reach the top of the tree......

As many of you will know from my posts last year my hanging baskets have always been a problem here. An exposed site.... strong winds......and south facing, the conditions are not good. This year I decided to plant them with native wildflowers and ivy.....and do you know, I like them. I only have to water them every other day and they have been blooming for six weeks. I shall be doing this next year.

While stolling the garden I noticed this beautiful butterfly.

The small tortoiseshell.....I havn't seen one for quite a while.....so this was very much a bonus. I love the blue edging to her wings.

The weather is warm....pleasantly warm......and it should last for the rest of the week. I love June.......how about you??

Sunday safari...

Extract from A Secret Garden by Annie Bullen.

Each garden has a secret of its own.

Underneath the water in your pond, in tree branches,

in the shrubs and in the climbers on the wall, scurrying along the soil

and hidden in cracks and crevices are legs and fins and beaks and wings.

Heartbeats and wing beats, murder and new life.

Creatures that crawl, scurry and creep,

creatures that fly burrow and swim.

We see only a tiny part of what goes on and,
if we are able to act the part of silent watchers, we will find our own lives enriched by the daily drama of other creatures........

I've had a great Sunday, how about you??