I’ve rarely been so pleased to have rain; a good drop too, enough to fill the water tanks and give the garden a good watering. Knowing it was coming on Friday, my usual day for taking SoS pictures, I had decided on Wednesday that I would focus on the things we grow in pots and get some pictures taken early. That’s not how it worked out of course.
One.
Last Saturday saw oldhouseintheshires first out of the blocks and at number six was their lovely seating area, described as their “favourite spot in the garden at the moment”. I thought about our little bench, plonked down just outside the back door on the decking, its back to the conservatory and as often as not enjoying a close up view of my undercrackers and socks. I put down my iPad and went straight out and moved it. It is now backed by a highly aromatic Trachelospermum asiaticum on the fence and has the sweet pea obelisk in front of it. We get a reasonable view of most of the garden and it’s not overlooked at all.
Two.
I put up this archway nearly four years ago and planted various things around it. I’m fairly sure this is Clematis ‘Etoile Violet’ which seems to come out looking less purple and more red in photos than it is in real life. There are three clematis planted on the arch but this is the only one that is really performing so far.
Three.
Fuchsia of the week is ‘Eruption’. I’ve seen this grown well in a hanging basket and this plant is so far a pretty pathetic specimen. Just wait until next year, it will be truly amazing. While I’m on Fuchsias I’m going to sneak in another picture of the one I featured a fortnight ago, ‘Auntie Jinks’. It’s come on a bit since then.
Four.
OK, the Fuchsias are growing in pots, but that wasn’t really what I was meaning. We have a few places where we group pots of things together as a display. Like out the front of the house where the concrete drive meets the rendered wall. It faces south so it has to be populated with things that will be happy in the conditions.
Five.
I was going to do groups of pots and individual plants in pots but you’re only going to get one of each. The individual specimen is Alstroemeria ‘Indian Summer’, which has been in this pot for around five years now. I split it in half earlier this year and the other half is in the group picture above. This is one of those plants that clashes with everything: we used to have Berberis ‘Orange King’, that did the same. Actually, looking at the picture above, it goes well enough with the Gazanias.
Six.
Hemerocallis ‘Bela Lugosi’.
Actually, the Hemerocallis is not the real story. I bought a new cable to connect camera to computer. With one I already have it means I can set up the camera on a tripod in the conservatory and control it from my computer upstairs. Next week’s six may be all focus stacked images. The Hemerocallis is really 32 images, you can’t do that outdoors in Cornwall with things that move in a breeze.
I need to get out and see what has flopped with the rain. Empty the drip trays under the Fuchsias. Probably stake some Dahlias. The usual story of shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted no doubt.
Plenty of popping back in for coffee and a quick look at other tales from the gardens of people around the planet: check out the links from The Propagator’s missive. See you next week.
garden ruminations 
Trachelospermum asiaticum was available here for only a short time in the early 1990s, and then never seen again. I don’t know why it is not popular here. The common Trachelospermum jasminoides is almost too common. I happen to like it anyway, and prefer the white flowers to the pale yellow. However, I can’t help but wonder what the Trachelospermum asiaticum is like.
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Your Fuchias look great. I bought an Alstroemeria at Malvern this year but am rather under-whelmed so far. Maybe next year. I was wondering if it was possible to grow it in a pot as I feel it will be slug bait in the ground. Looking at yours the answer is obviously yes.
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I’m joining the chorus of approval for the alstroemeria. I’d never thought of growing them in a pot and it’s a good strong colour. I may have to exceed my spending limit! The photo of the day Lilly is a stunner. Clearly all your technical stuff worked. And the bench looks so at home in its new place.
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If it’s a flowery garden you’re after it’s a great help to have a few things that just keep on going, like Geranium Rozanne and Indian Summer. It’s the bedding plant effect in a post bedding plant world (possibly).
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Like that Alstomeria
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It’s a very good variety IMO, one of most floriferous plants we have.
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M hoping my alstroemeria Indian Summer will look as good as yours next year, its very small at the moment.
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I hope so too; ours gets a liquid feed every week or so, just to help it along.
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Your alstroemeria is a stunner, Jim! I’m pleased that you didn’t delay and moved your bench u=immediately — and that you’re happy with the results. Blogs cam move us to action!
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By far the commonest action prompted by SoS is to go looking for things that I get reminded I had but have forgotten/not seen for a while. Sometimes that ends well and I find it, usually not.
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Love the new position for your bench…we pick up so much from sharing through SOS. Thanks for showing those fabulous fuchsias…so very well grown. Where do you place the Alstromeria during the winter?
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Fuchsias well grown? If only you knew! The Alstroemeria goes nowhere, just stays where it is.
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Your Trachelospermum seems much nicer than my ordinary Jasmine which I pretty much hacked down to the ground last year – it’s a lot less rambling and about to flower, but I have noticed some very yellow leaves on it! Such a lot of time and energy spent on this one plant and I shall never be able to get rid of it! I love your daylily – that is a gorgeous colour. As too, the bench. My son knocked up a bench from bits of wood taken off the old conservatory roof joists, needs a sand and a paint. You may have inspired me to get on with it!
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Great result of your stacked pictures ! I do like to create them ( I’m using Zerene Stacker App : and you?)
Congratulations on your pots, I love ‘Indian Summer’ but also all the set succulent, eucomis etc …
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I use Zerene too, been doing fuchsias today, most of which will need a lot of editing to be any good.
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Granny’sGardenHimIndoors was perfectly happy sitting on the garden bench outside the conservatory, but it does look good in its new position! I like the alstromeria, very healthy and a vibrant colour. Lovely Six again!
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The bench move has been approved by the cats, to whom we are but servants. That Alstroemeria is a top notch plant, dead easy and flowers June to October. They don’t do well in the ground with us though.
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Jim, you are the latest in a long line of people that have shown off Indian summer. It is bold but i like it. Must add to list.
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You must, I cannot imagine you’d ever regret it.
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Looks like the perfect spot to survey your garden and inhale the scent of the trachelospermum (which is a lovely colour by the way).
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If I remember rightly, when I planted the Trachelospermum, the now much more commonly grown T. jasminoides was hardly available and not regarded as very hardy or very likely to succeed.
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Jim, you are the latest in a long line of people that have shown off Indian summer. It is bold but i like it. Must add to list.
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You must, I cannot imagine you’d ever regret it.
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I love the trachelospermum. I have a white one in The Fortnight Garden and the scent is wonderful.
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I love the fragrance from the Trachelospermum but a big one in a confined area can be too much. This is the best ours has been, it loves a bit of hot weather.
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