Not sure how it happened, but this is my 50th Six on Saturday post. 300 “things”, most of them plants. This weeks six is not the one where I shoot off in a different direction, not when we have some decent weather and flowers and shoots bursting out all over. I love a bit of warm sunny weather but it does speed things up including how quickly flowers fade. A plant in full splendour one week is all over the next.
One.
Epimedium grandiflora ‘Lilafee’ has just about managed to open one flower, but it was the foliage that was shouting “me! me! put me in”. I don’t remember it being this dark before, but there’s a lot I don’t remember.
Two.
Magnolia ‘Ann’. I once had five magnolias and now I’m down to two, with a very real possibility that one more will go before long. This one will be the last one standing. It is one of a series raised at the U.S. National Arboretum from crossing M. stellata ‘Rosea’ with M. liliiflora ‘Nigra’. The eight hybrids released are known as the “Eight Little Girls” and were named after secretaries, wives and daughters of Arboretum staff. I’ve never been forgiven for planting ‘Ann’ as there is a ‘Susan’, which is the OH’s moniker. I chose it because it was described as more upright growing, which turned out to be wrong.
Three.
Camellia of the week is ‘Charles Colbert’. This is a williamsii hybrid raised by E.G. Waterhouse in Australia as a chance seedling of C. saluenensis. C. saluenensis has smallish single pink trumpet shaped flowers and so in my experience do almost all of its all too numerous seedlings. Chance was well disposed to Professor Waterhouse to gift him this beauty. The flowers shatter before going brown so the display on the ground can surpass that on the bush. And yes, that is Polygonatum x hybridum ‘Betberg’ in the middle of the pink carpet.
Four.
Lysichiton camtschatcensis. We used to have a pond and this used to be a marginal. We filled in the pond and it is now a bog plant. Seems happy, it has a carpet of seedlings around it. I thought we’d lost the yellow one but it is flowering again for the first time in years. I prefer the white, the yellow is more thuggish and somewhat malodorous. Look closely and you’ll see Chrysoplenium macrophyllum and Impatiens omeiana jostling for the same space.
Five.
Erythronium ‘Pagoda’. I find this a robust, easy and reliable plant in sun or shade. I think some of the buds got frosted as there are some deformed flowers this year, but it still looks good.
Six.
Chrysoplenium davidianum. This has spread in about three years to be as many feet across. It looks miserable in dry spells, but seems to recover with no ill effects. It’s only a couple of inches high and good ground cover in moist shade.
So another Saturday, another six. Since it is number fifty I will indulge in a reprise for last weeks tulips and wood anemones. The tulips are ‘Ballerina’, ‘Synaeda King’ and clusiana ‘Cynthia’, plus a mongrel lot. I see that meme host The Propagator has indulged his tulipomania this week so I need to take notes for the autumn’s orders. There’ll be links to many other sixes, some with not a tulip in sight possibly.
garden ruminations 
I really like the camelia. I’m trying to work out which ones I really like for a spot in a north facing border. The choice is coming down to a single cup variety but shld it be pink or red. Your pink one is going on the shortlist! Also loving the pink wood anemones. Is there a nursery supplier? Amazing how the sixes add up.
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My blogging alter ego is https://jimscamellias.com/ where there are several pictures of camellias. Trehane Camellias probably have the best range of varieties. There are many thousands of them, most not in commerce. In singles have a look at ‘Jamie’ or ‘Adeyaka’ for a red; ‘Sunny Side’ or ‘Nicky Crisp’ perhaps for pinks, to pick four out of hundreds. The wood anemone is closer to blue than pink, ‘Robinsoniana’ is fairly widely available. Alpine specialists like Edrom Nurseries have loads of varieties.
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A beautiful selection! The magnolia especially has a delightful colour. Is it scented too?
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Very little scent and you have to stick your nose in. Should have planted ‘Merrill’, or ‘Charles Coates’. When I get my next 100 acres……
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That must mean it’s our first birthday soon!
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If it hasn’t already passed. I think you did two or three before I joined in, I don’t really remember.
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It was in May some time I think. I think you jumped on board in the first week actually. 2nd maybe.
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6th of may was the first one, and you jumped straight in on day 1.
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Really! That was uncharacteristically incautious of me. Backed a winner while the odds were still long, probably a first.
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Inspiring and uplifting to see those gorgeous spring blooms. We are in the opposite season here, preparing to plant bulbs very shortly. Interesting reference to Professor Waterhouse- a magnificent camellia garden bearing his name is located in Sydney.
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One day I will do Australia, and New Zealand, in Camellia season. Your spring equates to our high summer (such as it is) which is a difficult time to leave it untended for several weeks. We’ve always come between October and January.
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If you’re interested I did a blog post on the EG Waterhouse Camellia Garden a couple of months ago. The 3 different types of camellia (sasanqua, japonica and reticulata) bloom more or less sequentially so if you’re here between June and October it’s definitely worth a visit.
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I’ll certainly take a look at that, thanks.
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Your magnolia is beautiful, a new one to me. Happy anniversary!
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What a beautiful Erythronium – my wish list is getting very long this Saturday.
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Mine too, mostly bulbs. Hope I remember them in the autumn.
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Congratulations on your half-century, number one. I’ve never thought of Erythroniums as being OK in sun. So now I’m further down the “I’ll get some” route. This Six on Saturday thing is proving very expensive! Oh, and “Yuletide” has moved into the front garden. Which will get bigger by next year as I’m removing a Leylandii hedge and replacing it with a tall fence (to hide what’s behind it) to gain about 12 square metres of planting space.
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Ah, Leylandii hedges, remind me again why anyone ever thought they were a good idea. Like lawn, the removal of ours was an early chapter in the garden story. I have a small plant of Yuletide but it’ll have to stay as a pot plant until something dies or is murdered.
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A wonderful selection. Congratulations on your 300 things! The bonus shots are very welcome, especially the one of Anemone nemorosa ‘Robinsoniana'(?). It is hard to catch that soft lilac colour in full sunshine.
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It could well be ‘Robinsoniana’ but I have planted a few forms and they all look identical. One day I’ll get the plain wild white one, definitely one of my favourite wild flowers.
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Nice Six! The pink carpet reminds me of the cherry blossoms in the spring …. I also liked the flower of Lysichiton camtschatcensis … beautiful!
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Liking your tulip pot arrangement and that Lysichiton is a stunner.
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You clearly need to buy more magnolias–make atleast one a ‘Susan’ this time!
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Buying more Magnolias is the easy bit, finding somewhere to put them is the problem I have, whatever their names.
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