Colours of the garden

No its not Kerri's blog, Ive just borrowed her title because my small garden is probably at its best right now. The bluebells and daffodils are over, but all the cool pink and white flowering shrubs are at their peak.

The white wisteria sinensis shows my careful twice yearly pruning (usually when the Man of the House is out and cant see me high up a ladder against the wall) I would dearly love an arbour over which to train it, so that the blossoms hang down and make a perfurmed chanderliered ceiling. But second best, I put a rug on the grass underneath, lean my back against the flint wall and inhale deeply as I look up at the blooms against a clear blue sky. Bliss.

This is a new bleeding heart dicentra spectabils which I have in front of the patio windows, so that I can enjoy its elegant wands of hearts. My old one just didnt show up this spring, probably the snow and cold soils were not to its liking.

The variegated wiegela is a mass of flowers. Every year I tell it that it may be its last year as it getting too big and tall (over six foot). I prune it down just to test it, and have even bought a new smaller one to replant next to it. It rises to the challenge so well that I havent the heart to take it out. Anyone want a year old variegated wiegela still in its pot?

An allium surfaced this year, I havent seen it for years. Normally (when not retired) I havent had the time to keep the area around it weed free. How lovely, now I shall have to buy it some friends!

My "hot" border, next to a warm wall. Hot in colour you understand. I cant put all the yellow day lilies in with the cool pinks and mauves of the other area. The red perenial oriental poppies have gradually increased over the years, and this spring I bought papaver orientale "Patty's Plum" a sort of faded elegant burgundy colour. She reminds me of an elderly lady of the manor somehow, I am sure her name is not Patty but Lady Patricia.

Now here is the view from the patio looking across the dappled grass (hardly a lawn, too many daises and dandelions) towards the front path/drive that leads down to the road - where the children would have walked up when it was a village school. You can see the entrance porch on the right, where the children would have hung their coats on pegs.

And the view back across from just in front of the big evergreen tree - that should really come down but the neighbours and I both like the way it screens walls and buildings. So difficult to prune as it is only green on the very edges. I have the umbrella up over the table where we tend to have meals if at all possible. It gets the very last sun of the day, but is shaded most of the day by a large ash tree (not mine) and a variegated holly that is taller than the house (mine!)

I am off on a 21 day Zen mindfulness retreat in the Dordogne area of France. I have never been before and am quite excited, but I am sorry to miss the delights of my cool garden in the lovely warm sun of an English summer. It will be quite a different three weeks I think!