Desperate to see a flower, any flower!
I went into the garden to see if there were any flowers remaining after the few light frosts we have had. Frankly any flower would be good. At this time of the year I’m desperate for some cheer. Colour, colour – I want colour and I don’t mean green or brown! In the event I found four hardy souls, the last surviving flowering plants of 2008.
This Potentilla started flowering in June and has kept going till now. In the summer it is a bright lemon yellow but it’s now lost some of its vibrancy, and who wouldn’t feel the same after standing in the rain on a cold December day
Potentilla recta var. sulphurea
This is my climbing rose ‘Pompon De Paris’. Interestingly it too is much paler than it would be in the height of the summer. I wonder if the cold affects a flower’s ability to reproduce the rich colours of summer. This is a very tough Rose which never suffers from any disease and produces masses of small, double deep pink flowers in June and then sporadically through the next few months.
Rosa 'Pompon De Paris'
Lurking under a shrub is a lovely hardy Viola which seeds freely around my garden. The flowers are purple and the glossy foliage also has a dark purple tinge. It’s a beautiful plant which usually flowers in April and May but occasionally flowers later on. It has been renamed Viola riviniana ‘Purpurea Group’ but I’m sticking with the old name in the caption below. It’s much more attractive.
Viola labradorica purpurea
That was it for garden flowers so I cheated with the last flower which is actually a miniature Pelargonium overwintering in my greenhouse. In summer the very pale green leaves turn almost yellow which accounts for the name. He may be short but he’s still going strong and putting on a show. Hang on in there Pierre!
Miniature Pelargonium 'Golden Petit Pierre'
So there we have it. I will now take a short flower break……….Come on you snowdrops, crocuses and daffodils. I’m waiting for you.
11 comments
Not many, but oh so much more worthy and valuable as a result. I would have thought all but the Viola would have gone by now under normal circumstances – were they in quite sheltered spots that Mr Frosty hasn’t reached yet?
Treasure greater than gold are these few flowers at this time of year. The yellow in particular was very cheering. I have searched under things here, but am finding nothing, unusual for us, but the cold has been searing and steady for many weeks now. Thanks for showing us there is hope in the garden.
Frances
Wow! That’s a lot more flowers than I have this time of year… though last year I did find a pansy blooming about this time!
Oh, those are lovely! I especially like the potentilla. with its buttery cheer.
Wow! All the blooms are gorgeous! I especially like the viola.
That’s how I feel at this time of the year too EG. Hopefully we’ll have early spring blooms to look forward to in the next month or so. Your last diehards are lovely.
Small pockets of summer in winter – lovely.
Waiting for forced hyacinths and paperwhites myself and WISHING I had got them started earlier. Why did I imagine I wouldn’t want them till Christmas??? Shucks…
They all look so delicate to have survived.
You still have flowers! Their colours look so soft like they have adapted to winter and its muted colours. My roses change colour in in the hot season and the flowers are much smaller. I have put Pompon de
Paris in my wish list. I am always on the look out for “easy” to grow roses. Thank you for that.
For winter colour you could grow in pots, Hippeastrums, I could send you seed. The seedpods are heavy and nearly ready to harvest. Or, the Poinsettias are always pretty in pots and now they are sold in different colours. You can also make cuttings from those if they do not last in the pots.
VP – They are not particularly sheltered so it’s a mystery why they have survived.
Frances – We have been lucky to avoid the longer cold spells you have suffered!
Monica – Even a single flower is welcome at this time of year :-)
Susan – Yes, it is a cheery colour!
Kanak – This viola is one of my favourites.
Racquel – Roll on spring!
HappyMouffetard – tiny short lived pockets :-)
Emma – What gardener ever gets the timing right!
Anna – That’s what makes their survival so surprising.
Titania – Good luck with the Rose – it is a tough one. As it happens I’m thinking about getting a red Poinsettia. Will email you about seed.
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