Irises - Bringing More Colour Into The Garden

After the Rain ....

We had a few cold and damp days last week which resulted in the ground being covered in fungi. These beauties I came across were the size of dinner plates. Not confident in picking poisonous from non-poisonous wild mushrooms, I only eat those that come from the supermarket!

Flowering in the Garden Today - A Million Bells

The sun peeked out for five minutes today. Long enough for a snap of this prolific bloomer, Calibrachoa Million Bells Apricot Eye. Its flowers resemble mini petunias; hence its common name of trailing petunia.

Marguerite Daisy - Another Plant for My Wish List

 

Visiting a neighbour's garden recently this plant caught my eye. I love the colour of this Marguerite Daisy. Its full name, according to the tag conveniently left for me to read, is Argyranthemum Bonmadmerlo Madeira Daisy, Double Red. Sounds like it should be in a bottle!!!

Wattles in Flower

You know winter is on the way when the wattles begin to flower. I don't know the name of this one, with its feathery leaves and little balls of wattle flower, but it is very pretty. If you're walking past it or the wind is from the right direction you get a lovely whiff of aniseed. It is the first of the wattles in our garden to bloom.

Today's Garden Visitor

This pluver or masked lapwing, together with its mate, was taking advantage of the early morning sun. The pair are regular visitors to the garden and often spend all day here. Magpies swoop them regularly, but the pluvers refuse to be intimidated.

Cucumber Calamity!

This small stunted cucumber is the only one harvested from four plants. There were lots of little yellow flowers, but unfortunately they didn't develop into big juicy cucumbers. I'm not sure what went wrong - not enough or too much water, too hot a position or a lack of the right insects to pollinate the flowers. Does this mean I've given up on cucumbers? No, I'll try again next season, but I'll grow them on a climbing frame instead of allowing them to meander across the raised garden bed. Regular feeding won't go amiss and perhaps a little more attention  to watering, especially when the plants are in flower.