One of these weeks I shall be able to begin by saying what a glorious week it has been. Not this week, although to be fair we have had much more sunshine and much less rain than previously, however yet again the weekend is marred by another, yet to be named, storm. So far it is only the wind that has arrived, the sky above is cloudy with a bit of pale blue. Of course the storm that is affecting everyone is the news about the horrid coronavirus (COVID-19) which is on every news report you watch. I try not to let it concern me too much, but it does seem to be a nasty virus.

Although it has been another windy week I have managed at last to spend some time out in the garden, mainly tidying up some shrubs and removing old dead vines that were killed in the Beast from the East, two years ago! I also discovered that was where a lot of snails were overwintering! Old blackened fern leaves have also been removed and yet more bittercress dug out of the raised beds. An hour and a half in the wind was enough and I decided to move into the conservatory to pot on the tiny hellebore seedlings that have survived the winter outdoors. With the sun shining and out of the wind it was actually a very pleasant place to be.

So let’s get on to six in the garden on a Saturday:

First off is Hyacinth ‘Woodstock’ which I showed last week and strictly speaking is not in the garden but hiding away in the conservatory and which has an exquisite smell. It deserves another viewing now that all the bulbs are in flower.

My white Camellia is beginning to flower. Unfortunately the white flowers do suffer from wind and hail with the edges of the blooms turning brown. I really should keep this inside the conservatory, but the pot is too heavy now for me to keep moving it.

Under the twisted hazel I noticed that the Brunnera macrophylla is beginning to flower. The pretty heart-shaped leaves have wonderful markings and the tiny sprays of blue flowers are opening.

At the tail end of winter, fuzzy nubs start to appear along the branches of pussy willows. These soft silver tufts—as well as the plant itself—are named for their resemblance to tiny cats’ paws. They’re actually flowers just before they fully bloom. The soft hairs protecting them from the cold.  Only male plants produce the fuzzy flowers. These are on my Salix Caprea Pendula (Kilmarnock Willow tree)

In my Belfast sink things are starting to put on some growth, especially the moss! But I noticed that the Pulsatilla or Pasque flower is producing new shoots. I have a red and a purple one so I hope they both flower nicely this year, hopefully in time for Easter. I need to buy some more succulents to put in this sink as a couple of plants have died.

My final offering this week is this Hebe (Shrubby Veronica) shrub which is native to New Zealand and does very well down here in the south-west. I have several different varieties and this one is from a cutting and has put on a lot of growth very quickly. If I come across one of the ones with  deep purple foliage then I shall have to buy it. They come in various sizes and the colour of the flowers range from purest white, through pale pink to deep pink, pale blues and deep blues to violet-purples. And nothing seems to damage it!

I have yet to get to visit a Cornish garden, but I am hopeful that there will be an opportunity this week. If only for lunch! As always, if you want a peek over other people’s garden walls then please pop over to our host, the lovely Jon, AKA ‘The Propagator’ where you find links to many more wonderful garden enthusiasts from all over the world.

See here for the participant’s guide.

Six on Saturday