A Grey Day. SoS, November 13, 2021.

It’s a grey and windy day. Large amounts of rain have fallen in the last week or so, over 100 mm, the garden is saturated and today is a day to stay indoors. It’s much more like a winter’s day than a sunshiny spring one. The temperature was 10 degrees mid morning, when with the wind cutting through my jacket, I rushed to take a few photos for Six on Saturday.

Number one, above, the Prunus nigra which is in its second year in the garden, is being whipped back and forth in the brisk wind. It has been growing with a lovely straight trunk, but the wind is bending it so much and the ground is so wet, it might need staking now.

Two: Our clever new weather station can tell us wind velocity and direction, temperature and humidity without us having to go outside! Excellent for a day like today.

Three: My beloved Rosa ‘Pierre de Ronsard’ has been an absolute picture, studded with large and gloriously frilled blooms for weeks, but has now succumbed to the inclement weather. Time to get outside with the secateurs for a bit of dead-heading.

Four: In a more sheltered part of the garden, a foxglove (thank you Frank), accompanied by Heuchera ‘Marmalade’ creates a pastel polonaise.

Five: Tall Alliums are getting ready to flower. I’ve discovered that these ones self seed rather dramatically and I’ll have to remove the flower heads earlier if I don’t want them to take over the garden. I have quite a few clumps already, and whilst they make a nice sculptural statement, I don’t want them everywhere.

Six: Salvia clevelandii ‘Celestial Blue’ has been looking magnificent and is still lovely even though slightly flattened and wan on such a grey day. I like the way it tones in with the dark blue salvia next to it.

Don’t forget to check out what other Sixers are up to on The Propagator’s blog to see what’s happening in gardens in other parts of the world.

Weather today: Grey and windy, a few light showers. 3 – 13 (for about five minutes) degrees C.

Happy gardening everyone!

33 Comments Add yours

  1. Prue Batten says:

    Isn’t this rain and wind awful? We’ve had litres of the stuff down here in Tassie and have developed webbed feet. My gardens are trying so hard to cope but the veggie garden is in a bad way – all the calls to ABC Garden Talk this morning were about surviving the big wet.
    I think your garden looks lovely. Really love the pastel polonaise!

    1. Jane says:

      Hi Prue, yes, I always feel I shouldn’t complain about rain just in case we’re short of it again, but we’ve had more than enough. It has been cold as well and this weather seems as though it’s going to stay for a while longer. It’s great for those further west though, as long as they don’t suffer from floods.

  2. Graeme says:

    You did well to take such good and in focus pictures and despite the battering it all looks lovely. That weather station looks and sounds rather good.

    1. Jane says:

      Thank you Graeme. There has been more battering since I took the photos and a rescue mission had to take place as the Prunus urgently needed staking!

  3. Pierre de Ronsard looks magnificent, despite it’s battering by the weather!

    I also like your rather smart looking weather station. I have a rain gauge and a max/min thermometer which I rather obsessively record the temperatures from – perhaps I should invest in something more hi-tech!

    1. Jane says:

      I’m wishing I’d posted a pic of Pierre when he was in his prime last week! I’m not sure how accurate the weather station is (I hope reasonably so) but it’s a lot of fun keeping an eye on everything that’s happening weather wise.

  4. Fred says:

    Very aesthetic tall Alliums and these ‘Celestial Blue’ flowers are really stunning. I always wanted to add a weather station like yours. A futur order for my Christmas?

    1. Jane says:

      You should put your order in Fred! I bought Mr MG the weather station for his birthday, but we’re both enjoying it.

  5. Noelle says:

    That is a rose display to be proud of and I am sure you will be able to spruce it up and in a few days, it will be fine.

    1. Jane says:

      Thank you, Noelle. I’m hoping for some more flowers soon. Pierre has been especially prolific this spring but I rather wish I’d posted a picture of it last week when it was looking splendid. I think the flowers have been much bigger this year, I guess because the season has been cool with plenty of rain. Plus I did quite a lot of feeding over winter.

  6. Rowena says:

    Thanks for sharing Jane, your garden is beautiful despite the battering it is getting. In Ipswich we are very soggy, and I am very grateful for my callistemons, they cope with every kind of weather!

    1. Jane says:

      Thank you Rowena. I have a few Callistemons and they haven’t been bothered by the weather at all. Wonderful plants that don’t even mind having wet feet. Fortunately!

  7. Gerrie Mackey says:

    Your garden is looking very pretty, regardless of the rain…even the foxgloves are standing up straight and tall! I never thought I would say it, but I’m sick of rain!!
    Best wishes, and cross fingers for a few sunny days.

    1. Jane says:

      We are often cautious about saying we’re sick of rain in case we don’t get any more for ages! It’s brilliantly sunny here this morning (Sunday) and a nice change, The foxglove was given to me by a friend and looked a bit unhappy upon its arrival in my garden, so I’m really thrilled to see it flowering now.

  8. Jude says:

    Strangely our weather is warmer than yours! It has been a mild November so far and here in the south-west the day time temps are around 14 C and even mild during the night. It has been grey and damp though, not gardening weather. And I love that weather station!
    (Having to enter my name and email again, I’m sure I wasn’t having to do this recently)

    1. Jane says:

      Thanks for the heads up on entering details, Jude. I’ve fixed it, I hope. Our weather has been a bit strange for November: last year we had 40 degrees! That wasn’t at all welcome, of course, and fortunately last summer didn’t continue in that pattern. We have been told there’s the possibility of another La Niña event this summer.

  9. Kris P says:

    I’m sorry your garden is sodden, Jane. It looks lovely nonetheless. The combination of the foxglove and the Heuchera is wonderful – I wish I could emulate it but I’ve been forced to confine my foxgloves to the raised planters in my cutting garden as it’s the only spot that gets sufficient water to keep them happy.

    1. Jane says:

      Thank you Kris. I’m not sure how well the foxglove will do if the weather gets very hot… so far I guess it’s been perfect for a northern hemisphere plant. I’m thrilled with the heuchera which is a cutting from another plant. I’m just realising how beautiful heuchera are and have dotted some around the garden hoping they’ll survive the summer.

  10. Amelia Grant says:

    I wish we could trade a bit of soil, my sand like Saudi Arabia garden does not really retain water! I think you are going to need a stake on the new tree and wish I had the weather station in my garden. Looking forward to seeing the Alliums (I love Alliums!) and that Marmalade Huechera is cool. I could not figure out what it was and the combination is fabulous.

  11. Jane says:

    The alliums are so tall, nearly two metres, I’m surprised they haven’t blown over. I guess they have shelter from the birches. I’ve recently become acquainted with heucheras and I’m loving their delicious colours. I hope they survive our hot summers. I’d gladly trade some clay for a bit of sand!

  12. Wow Jane, despite all that rain your garden is looking beautiful! As for the rose, it is magnificent and I’m definitely envious! I will keep an eye out for the Salvia, which as you say looks grea next to the dark one. I have plenty of the latter, and I am slowly adding different varieties of Salvia to the garden. Salvias seem to be able to tolerate the heated humidity here.

  13. janesmudgeegarden says:

    Hi Megan, I think the garden is looking good because of the rain even though we’ve had a bit too much. Not as much as you though! I sent away for the Salvia clevelandii and I’ve never seen it in a nursery, so I don’t think it’s all that easy to find. Salvias seem to be able to stand almost anything, and if they look dodgy it’s really easy to do cuttings. Such an obliging plant!

  14. Pauline says:

    Your foxglove and heuchera combo is stunning and your rose is doing really well, it looks gorgeous! I’m very impressed with your weather station, good that you can check the results without going outside. It’s amazing how much rain plants can cope with, hope yours stops soon.

  15. Granny says:

    Your climbing rose looks lovely. How do you persuade it to flower all the way down to the base? Mine has been good again this year, but only flowers from the middle up.

  16. I’m impressed that you managed to get some good photos in the all the wind. That poor tree! The Rose looks gorgeous despite its battering.

  17. Cathy says:

    Lovely to see that fabulous rose flowering on a grey November day! We have also had very high winds today… a bit cooler here though! 😉

  18. That’s wild, Jane. The rose petals scattered everywhere are beautiful but a little heartbreaking at the same time.

  19. shoreacres says:

    I’m dying of curiosity. One gift I received this Christmas was Manuka Honey. When I read the label, it said it was manufactured/distributed from Mudgee, and I thought of you immediately. It has to be the same location as your garden, more or less. I amused myself by thinking about the possibility that bees visiting your flowers contributed to my Christmas honey!

    1. Jane says:

      I can’t believe I didn’t reply to this comment. Many apologies. Yes, you’re correct, Mudgee is quite well known for its honey, although Manuka doesn’t grow here much. I do have three ornamental Manuka plants in my garden and they flower prolifically in spring. It’s interesting to think that a drop of your honey could have come form my garden.

      1. shoreacres says:

        I’m glad I’m not the only one who misses comments from time to time. No apologies needed! Since commenting, I’ve opened the honey, and it’s delicious!

  20. annamadeit says:

    That is a fantastic rose bush! Magnificent… Sorry the rain was keeping you inside – I trust it let up eventually.

    1. Jane says:

      Hello Anna, I’m sorry I didn’t reply earlier. We’ve had a lot of rain – more than a year’s worth in six months. But everything has survived so far, despite the ground being quite boggy

      1. annamadeit says:

        No worries, Jane. We’ve had a lot of rain too. And this weekend, it was warmer in Sweden than it was in Portland. The climate is out of whack. So far, I’m just grateful that we don’t have a 122 degrees F like in Pakistan. So scary – I’m enjoying our comparatively benevolent situation for as long as it lasts.

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