My Little Garden 6th July 2024
I’ve been reflecting on the state of the garden this week and have come to the conclusion that despite the trials and tribulations of the weather and the dire slug infestation, it’s looking ok.
The new mini border that I created by extending out from the stone circle into the gravel has matured really quickly. Calamintha ‘Blue Cloud’ does a great job spilling over at the front, the grasses provide movement, and the colours of Erysimum ‘Winter Orchid’ link to the perennials in the pots behind.
Elsewhere in the garden, the slugs' favourite plants such as echinacea, agastache, and salvia are gone, but the geraniums, stachys, and nepeta are thriving. I will grow echinacea again, but probably in a pot where I can protect them more easily.
So what shall I share with you for the first week in July:
- Stachys
This is Stachys macrantha ‘Rosea’ of which I have a couple of clumps. It’s a ‘good doer’ as they say, and I’m so pleased with it, that I bought a white one at Arley Hall Nursery earlier this week.
2. Rosa ‘Cutie Pie’
This is a really dinky little rose that works well at the front of the border.
3. Calamintha ‘Blue Cloud’
When I planted up my new mini border in spring, I deliberated between nepeta and calamintha to flop at the front. I’ve never grown calamintha before, but I knew it was bee friendly, and I thought I’d give it a try. It’s slightly understated, but from three 9cm pots bought from Bluebell Cottage Gardens, it has filled the space perfectly. Now I’m intrigued to see how long the flowers last.
4. Pots
I don’t plant many annuals, so these pots are filled with Saliva ‘Oestfriesland’, Achillea ‘something’ and Lavendula ‘Hidcote’.
And as I said earlier, Erysimum ‘Winter Orchid’ links the purple and orange.
5. Foxglove
This is a perennial one, apparently. Digitalis ‘Panther’.
6. Nepeta ‘Magic Carpet’
More purple! As this is in shade for part of the day, it is late to start flowering but just goes on for ages.
Have a great weekend, and thanks for reading.
