Six on Saturday – 23/3/2024

Categories six on saturday, , , , 55 Comments on Six on Saturday – 23/3/2024

At long last I am beginning to be able to put together a six without a sense of struggle. A milder and somewhat drier week has seen things moving along quite nicely and there has been a noticeable greening up accompanied by several things new into flower. Six on Saturday, where gardeners around the world share a quick snapshot of what’s going on in their patch each week. We’d love you to join in, it’s very simple and explained in full in the participant’s guide.

Without further ado then:

One.
Araiostegia parvipinnata BSWJ1608. I have a plant of this in the ground but you don’t get to see the rhizomes at all, so I potted a piece up and it’s grown over the sides and down below the level of the pot such that it needs a pedestal of sorts to stand on. With the new fronds now coming up, I cut out all of last year’s dead stalks and took its picture. It’s in a 10 litre pot, 11 inches across the top.


Two.
Erythronium ‘Susannah’ has had a good year and has bulked up quite a bit from last year. I also remembered it was there and have been keeping the molluscs at bay for a few weeks. It was my intention to get more Erythroniums in autumn, but it didn’t happen.


Three.
Camellia ‘Fairy Wand’. Not to be confused with ‘Fairy Blush’, which has made a couple of appearances in these posts. This one is not scented, but unlike many of the small flowered types, nor is it white or white with a pink blush. This one is pink verging on red and the number of flowers has been slowly increasing over the last three weeks. It has been excruciatingly slow growing but at long last is beginning to make a bit of an impact. It’s another from Os Blumhardt, from New Zealand and I’ve just looked at a picture of a much bigger plant of it on the ICS Register and I can’t wait.


Four.
Cyclamen repandum. Growing in seriously challenging conditions beneath the deep shade of Euonymus and a Daphne, and seemingly perfectly happy, self sowing generously. I would cover the entire garden with Cyclamen repandum, it flowers when the crocus are done and the tulips haven’t arrived, not that I have many tulips. In particular it seems very unfussy about growing conditions and the corms can be buried six inches down, so are far less vulnerable than those of most other species.


Five.
Euphorbia mellifera. In about six weeks this will get razed to the ground, as it is every two years. It will regrow strongly but not flower next year. But it will stay compact and manageable, and be off the path when the garden is open.


Six.
Hostas, many and various. When the hostas get ragged in summer they get hidden away at the back of borders and in odd corners and largely forgotten about. The trick is to retrieve them and get them away from the mollusc hotspots before the new growth is far enough on to come under attack. It’s also easier to monitor them if they’re all together. It’s a work in progress, there are more. Some need repotting, the pots need cleaning, they need feeding. A good start has been made.


I wonder when I last did a six with just six pictures. Actually, I wonder if I ever have. One more for the header.

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Published by Jim Stephens

Gardener, no-dig allotmenteer, camellia enthusiast. I love colour, it cheers me up. Retired nurseryman.

55 thoughts on “Six on Saturday – 23/3/2024”

  2. I used to have a macramé pot holder that looked just like that fern 😉 What a curiosity! I’ve been admiring yellow spring flowers that are enhanced by green flushes to the outside of their petals, so it was interesting to see that Erythronium ‘Susannah’ is another example. Sadly I I’ve not managed to grow them successfully as something always digs them up and eats them when I try. Here are my six: https://wp.me/pM8Y1-95J

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    1. The foliage dies down in a few weeks time and comes back at the end of the year. The corms though are much deeper than C. coum will survive at. I can only grow Hostas in pots and even then they come under attack if my vigilance slips.

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  7. Jim, I try not to lose my heart to any of your camellias, as they would be most unhappy here. But ‘Fairy Blush’ is making that rather difficult! The Erythronium also… just gorgeous.

    Here are my Six, showing some of the more umkempt aspects of the garden-in-progress as well as the blooms of a good late March showing. Thanks for hosting!

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  8. Six on Saturday: Coop Colour

    I am very intrigued by that fern – what a curiosity! And very interested to know if those wire stands really do deter slugs and snails – I can imagine slithering up the wire legs mightn’t be easy for them, although I am sure we should not underestimate their determination! I shall look out for something similar, albeit less ornate looking perhaps… Thanks for hosting Jim; my six are all from the greenhouse today: https://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com/2024/03/23/six-on-saturday-coop-colour/

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    1. The pot stands are primarily to get the pots off the decking so it lasts a bit longer. I don’t think it slows the s & s down much. Slug patrols with secateurs in hand works better.

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      1. That’s a shame, Jim… Here, I tend to cross my fingers and hope the local hedghogs and birds have good appetites – I don’t fancy going down the secateur line!

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  9. Pingback: Six on Saturday: Coop Colour | Rambling in the Garden

  11. Jim, your Araiostegia parvipinnata is just amazing. I immediately searched for the species online and found a link right back to your 2019 post about six of your favorite ferns! Do you happen to know how frost tender this beauty may be? I keep all of my footed ferns indoors over winter, but haven’t yet come across this genus available in my area. What an absolute beauty! All of your six are smashing, as usual. I like your trick of pulling all of the pots of Hostas together in the spring for care. I haven’t tried that, but have been treating them to keep the deer away. Mine just sent up the first few leaves in the past week or so and still need that spring feeding you mentioned. Best wishes for a great last week of March ahead, here are my six for the week, a bit tardy, but still at least on a Saturday: https://woodlandgnome.wordpress.com/2024/03/23/six-on-saturday-follow-through/

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  12. Pingback: Six on Saturday: Follow-Through – Our Forest Garden
  14. Pingback: Six on Saturday – An exciting plant delivery | Frogend dweller's Blog
  15. Pingback: SoS: What’s Happening on Piglet’s Plot 23rd March? – Piglet in Portugal

  16. Jealous of all the growth and flowering! My Daffs are holding tight. Muscari slowly pushing up, and everything else buried under a couple inches of snow. The fern is very fun! I love plants that grow and overflow. Reminds me of visiting the Hoh Rainforest when I lived in Washington state. Ferns growing everywhere, trees growing on fallen trees, everything in a constant state of renewal and decay. And if you think YOU have slimy friends, you should see the gentle giants of the Pacific Northwest rain forest, banana slugs. They can be in excess of 10 inches long and eat whatever they want! Never saw a huge one in the garden, but I think they are not so interested in cultivated plants as long as they have forest detritus to eat.

    Here are my stale pictures. Soon I will begin to have fresh images to share

    !https://wisconsingarden.wordpress.com/2024/03/23/march-23-six-on-saturday/

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  17. Pingback: March 23, Six on Saturday – Gardening in the Prairie

  18. The euphorbia caught my eye. I am looking for a species to grow in my garden. Erythronium has a native species here americanum which is known as Trout Lily. It grows in patches and is spring ephemeral – very beautiful.
    Here is my six for the week. Like you, it is getting easier to find six but more difficult to choose six.

    Spring! At last! 22 Mar 2024

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    1. Have you looked at Euphorbia cyathophora “Fire on the mountain”? I just discovered it on the Prairie Moon sight and I think it is stunning. My grandma also loved Euphorbia marginata “Snow on the mountain”.

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    2. Your substack post wants me to jump through hoops to post a comment, so I’ll put it here.
      Clockwise; ‘Debbie’, probably ‘Yours Truly’, probably ‘Donation’, probably ‘Adolphe Audusson’ and maybe ‘Donation’ again. By all means send me more pictures, preferably with a few leaves in them too, and I’ll try to give you a more definite answer.

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      1. Oh sorry. Yes, it wants everyone to sign up in order to contribute. I’m so sorry. Thank you so much for looking at these. The ‘Donation’ I thought was likely, the others I had no clue, so thank you very much.

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  23. Aah yes, we are getting back to the SOS that we enjoy. There are things to share again. I lost my mellifera over the winter but I see that I have new seedlings under the apple tree – I can only think that they come from the birds (?). I’m going to leave them there are will try your method of cutting to the ground – if they survive and if they get to big. The hostas are looking good. I dug up one last year as it was definitely in a hot spot. It fell in to two clumps so now there are two pots waiting to be dealt with. Here’s my link for the week https://n20gardener.com/2024/03/23/six-on-saturday-nearly-there/

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  25. Pingback: Six On Saturday: Nearly there | n20gardener
  26. Pingback: Six on Saturday: 23 March 2024 – My Tiny Welsh Garden
  29. Pingback: Six on Saturday. 23.03.24 | Lead up the Garden Path

  30. The fern has adopted a very curious shape. I wonder what it will look like when the fronds open. Will you be putting it in the ground, Jim? The Camellia ‘Fairy Wand’ has been worth waiting for, it’s developing into a lovely plant. I rather like the pot pedestals for the Hostas. Mine haven’t even made an attempt to break through the soil yet.

    Here are my six:

    https://notesfrommygarden.co.uk/2024/03/23/a-tantalising-glimpse-of-spring/

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  32. I always enjoy reading on your blog about plants I’ve never heard of, and probably couldn’t pronounce if I were to try to say them out loud. I wouldn’t be able to spell Araiostegia parvipinnata without copy and paste either, but I think it’s fascinating and rather prehistoric-looking.
    Anyway, here’s my six for this week, mediocre photos but the weather and work have conspired against me this week: https://mysanctuarygarden.wordpress.com/2024/03/23/six-on-saturday-23-03-24/

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  34. I like your hostas trick, monitoring them in a group. I’m reconciled to the fact that “shed corner,” which used to be a sunny spot that was good for certain annuals, is now too shady thanks to a neighbour’s overgrown leylandii. I think I may make a feature of hostas there. Thanks for the inspiration.

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  36. Pingback: Six on Saturday | Spring is Sprung! – Cornwall in Colours

  37. Euphorbia mellifera is a great favourite of mine (and the insects) such a wonderful plant but you do need space to grow it. I like the idea of your giving it the Chelsea Chop. I was looking at my very leggy Ascot Rainbow yesterday, twitching with my secateurs. I’ll do it today. I love it when the pristine hostas begin to come through, all is forgiven. That fern!!!! Amazing. Great six, Jim, here are mine https://offtheedgegardening.com/2024/03/23/six-on-saturday-fussing/

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  39. https://tonytomeo.com/2024/03/23/six-on-saturday-6-x/

    Here are my six.

    Oh, it is hosta season already, or at least the season when the start growing again. I have not been out to see ours in quite a while. I hope they are doing as well.

    Araiostegia parvipinnata is an odd one. I almost brought a piece of something like it back from Los Angeles, but thought it to be too weird. Yes, I know we are supposed to appreciate the weird, but it really was a bit too weird. I do not know what species it was.

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    1. I was initially drawn to Araiostegia because of the fineness of its quadripinnate foliage, I didn’t know about the rhizomes. I can imagine it growing over wet rocks, or epiphytically. It would perhaps be less weird growing in conditions that seemed right for it, not over the sides of a plastic pot.

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      1. That might be right for it though, except for the plastic. I mean, it seems to prefer to climb over ‘things’. That is what appealed to me more than the foliage. I know it is weird, but I thought that its weirdness might be compelling on the rocks along Zayante Creek. After I return from the Pacific Northwest, I will go to the Los Angeles region where I last saw it, although I will not likely return with a piece of it. I will be overwhelmed with so much other material.

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