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Until 2.30 p.m. when Jackie drove us to Brockenhurst to collect our friend Sheila who is staying with us for a few days, she continued sterling maintenance in the garden while Aaron and Robin continued with the fencing.
The erigeron outside the French windows featured as part of yesterday’s kitchen door shot. Here is a close-up of some of them.
Walking down the back drive to open the gate for our two marvellous garden maintenance men, I admired, on the bordering beds,
snapdragons;
wallflowers and valerian;
and rose Féliticé Perpetué, now draping the dead stumps.
The heucheras in the Rose Garden provide stiff competition for the roses themselves.
Here, the geranium palmatums lead us in,
and aquilegias front Schoolgirl and Golden Showers.
Ballerina dances with honeysuckle alongside the entrance arch.
The rose Hot Chocolate in the front garden is, however, just ahead of that in the back.
Festooning the front trellis are two different depths of pink roses.
Here is a view across the Cryptomeria Bed to Elizabeth’s Bed.
The peach coloured rose photographed yesterday is further open today.
The smallest hoverfly I have ever seen landed on For Your Eyes Only.
I have striven for a long time to capture a bee in flight. Today my perseverance was rewarded.
This evening we all dined on Jackie’s lemon chicken, mashed potatoes, peas, and carrots. Jackie drank Hoegaarden, I drank more of the Fleurie, and Sheila drank water.
Beautiful photos, as usual, and congratulations on capturing the bee in flight. 😉
Thank you, Merril 🙂
Fleuri – great choice but when do you make a BAD choice? Are you even capable of it? 😉 Does Jackie have a clone who she can send me to make exquisite dishes of similar excellence? I feel terribly ordinary and dull over here my friend! 😉
Never ordinary and dull, Candice. Thanks
My meals look like cardboard compared to Jackies feasts. xoxoxoxo
Another wonderful day in the Knight neighborhood!!
Thank you, GP
Lovely post. The bee in flight cracked me up 🙂 For once I believe I may actually know the name of a rose. I think you might have meant to write Félicité Perpétue
Yes. You are right. I got the accents wrong. Thanks, Geetha
Welcome. I find it amazing how Jackie and you are able to maintain the roses completely insect free aside from the bees
‘Rose clear’ is added to the water, and does the trick
Hoo hoo… You must have got a great Buzz from that shot
I did, Geoffle. Oh, I did. Thanks
Derrick, your garden is a delight for the soul!
In my small garden – I live in an apartment complex – in drought-ridden Southern California where we have to ration our water use, I’ve started growing succulent plants in small pots. [http://www.california-cactus-succulents.com/]
Thank you, Rosaliene. Our granddaughter lives in Lugoff
I love the owl keeping watch over the bed, Derrick. I’m curious do any of your neighbors have a garden as beautiful as yours? Wonderful shots today!
Thank you, Jill. Our Western neighbour has a large garden covered in gravel at the front. At the back it was lawn and decking. The decking has been taken down and is now being paved over. The Eastern side is the North Breeze jungle which was once a beautiful garden. The south is very large, mostly lawn and shrubs. Across the road to the North is a large field.
Sounds like yours is the best!
Definitely 🙂
Derrick, your photos are lovely, and after visiting your blog, feel that I have taken a walk through your lovely garden
That’s good Laurie. Thank you
An excellent photograph of the bee! Don’t underestimate Valerian, by the way. Friends have told me it is extremely poisonous.
Thanks, John. Valerian is so prolific down here, and I didn’t know about the poison
Your garden is beautiful – and so are your photos. Gardening is something I leave up to my better half – I do NOT have a green thumb.
Thank you, Hiker
Derrick: what a gorgeous garden you and Jackie have created!!
I bow to your wonderful gardening talents!
Many thanks, Cynthia. The talent is all Jackie’s
Bees are so hard to capture in flight – you did well, it must be all those years of experience with the camera!
Many thanks, Pauline
Well done capture the bee – O snap-dragon! And have another Fleurie!.
Cheers, Bruce
Great capture of the bee in flight! 😀 I’m curious – what comes after the final comma??? ,
Thank you, Mek. Typo. Now corrected. You are hereby granted membership of my exclusive poof redders’ club
Haha okra.
How does one join the poofters club? I can poof reed.
You’re in, Bruce
Thanks for the pic of ‘Hot Chocolate’. I bought it a month or so back but haven’t seen it yet. She has fat buds though 🙂
Thank you, Jessica. You will be pleased
Gorgeous garden. Love the bee. Thanks for sharing a bit of summer on my wintry day.
Thank you, Peggy
Your bee in flight cracked me up, Derrick.
The rose garden has so much to look at! While the geranium are so brightly capturing my eyes and attention today. Sorry, I realize I fell behind. . .
Thank you, Robin. I am so pleased you read and comment so well. Please don’t worry about the time
Love those beautiful Snapdragons Derrick.
Your garden is a flower lovers dream.
Thank you, Ian
Your garden is a continual delight. I love your bee jumping off the flower. Good catch!
Thanks very much, Lisa
Adorable photos………..
Thank you, Vikey
A question ; considering all the many different flowers you have is there one special flower you don’t have (for any reason) that you would love to have. I’ll wait whilst you ask the head gardener.
Roaring with laughter. She says ‘Clematis Venosa Violacea’
If you find one, get me one too.
It is a most beautiful Clematis, So why don’t you get one. And don’t say ‘cos they get too big. You can prune them vigorously.
THG can’t find one
https://www.thorncroftclematis.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=%27Venosa+Violacea%27
Thanks, John. J is aware of RHS. Will pass on this one
I hope you don’t think I was being a bit patronising but by coincidence a friend had just returned from a wedding in Ireland and went to the Chelsea flower show and got a cattle dog from RHS and explained that instead of looking up RHS to look up the exact flower and the RHS site gave a list of all the nurseries that were actually stocking the plant. Anyway I could get you one here in Melbourne but you probably wouldn’t be allowed to import it.
Thanks, John. None are so knowledgeable that they can’t learn from a friend. And maybe you have prompted a further search
Or what about https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/Nurseries-Search-Result?query=99793
Love the bee! We have literally been ogling your floral photos.
Many thanks, Mostly
That bee is fabulous, Derrick :))
Thank you, Monica 🙂
A beautiful garden, and yes, perseverance works. And now maybe I’ll try some of that Fleurie. Happy trials, Harlon
Many thanks, Harlon
It must smell so sweet surrounded by all those beautiful flowers.
Thanks, Kim. It is amazing
Love your beautiful garden, Derrick! All your hard work paid off…
Great captures. 🙂
Many thanks, Amy
I prepared lemon chicken last Sunday 😀 The bee picture is a nice one… Wonderful post…
Many thanks, Maniparna