Lilac, blossom, camellia and yoda too – Six on Saturday – 2 May 2020

“Loveliest of trees, the cherry now
Is hung with bloom along the bough.” A. E. Housman, English Poet (1859-1936)

It’s been an up and down week here in Manchester, I’ve been keeping to a good routine, daily walks, cooking, gardening and some online learning too.  My arthritis pain has been very painful this week with all the wet weather, especially in my hands.  I’ve been documenting our lives as we live through the lockdown in the UK (www.viewsfrommygardenbench.com/life-in-lockdown) This time of year is tough for me mentally as it’s the anniversary of my former partner passing away five years ago far too young. He’s missed.  So I decided to do the things that help my self-care, help mental health and relax as much as a can.  It’s OK to not be OK – we are living in the strangest of times.

I spent time in my garden, really noticing and focusing on the flowers and plants, growing and changing- and taking photos.  It’s been a very long time since  ‘Six on Saturday’ so I joined Caversham John www.thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com today, who hosts this meme – it’s simple six things from your garden on a Saturday – flower, plant, project or bug whatever you like.  Today is the third birthday of the meme.  I often check on the post on the foot of his post and twitter #sixonsaturday. It always lifts my mood.  Well done John and Happy birthday #sixonsaturday.

1. Lilac

This tree is about four foot high and lives at the bottom of the garden by our arbour seat.  The lilac scent is intoxicating at the moment.

My mum gave me the lilac tree a few years ago – I’d love another one 🙂 Just need to convince My Chap that there’s room for another one – he loves the scent too so I think he’d be easy to convince.

2. Camellia

This was also a gift from my mum – it lives at the bottom of our garden by the lilac and another white camellia which is well over now.

It’s been flowering for over a month and more buds to go.

3. Apple blossom

We have two small dwarf apple trees bought from Aldi or Lidl about five years ago that live in big pots.  My Chap moved them to a much sunnier part of the garden and they are thriving at the moment.   Fingers crossed for apples.

Cheeky aquilegia in the background 😉

4. ‘Cherry’ blossom

Technically, this cherry blossom isn’t in our garden – it’s in our neighbours.  It a tree about 12 foot high and I have no idea what it is called. I love cherry blossom and notice every one as I walk or drive past at this time of year.  The drive home from work passes 32 trees in six miles 🙂 The local cherry blossom have been even more important to me on my daily walks.  I’ve been documenting their changes this year.

When all this is over, I am definitely buying a dwarf cherry blossom tree.

Any suggestions fellow gardeners? Needs to be up to eight foot high when mature – interesting leaves the rest of the year would be good too? 

5. Tulips

I was organised last year and took photos of all my tulip packets but have filed them somewhere.  So I’ve got no idea what these are called – oops.

I was very late with planting them February to exact so I’m gobsmacked they grew and flowered this year – bonus.  All my other tulips are over now – I love them especially Queen of the Night.

6. Azalea

Azalea ‘Thierry’ – a dwarf azalea.

This gorgeous azalea has been flowering for about a month. Its flowers are such a vivid pink it’s when they first open it’s really difficult to capture any definition on the petals.   I love it and we’ve been discussing getting some more azaleas.  Our camellias and azaleas live in pots as they need acid soil (not the brick fille rubbish soil we have here).

Yoda

Yoda lives next to this azalea surveying the garden.  I’ll write more on Monday about what he and Star Wars mean to me.  He’s appeared a few times on the blog and has his own tag (www.viewsfrommygardenbench.com/tag/yoda) I’m off to watch more of The Mandalorian – I’m loving it.

Have a good week, in these strangest of times – smell the flowers if everything is getting on top of you 😉

Carpe Diem,

Love Bec xx xx xx