Blogging is a whole new world to me but gardening has been a lifelong passion so I have combined the two for my first ever blog post for ‘Six on Saturday’. Many of your blogs have been inspirational to me so I hope that you will find some of my photos and information of interest.
1.Tulip ‘Mondial’: These tulips with large peony-like flowers produced by Taylors Bulbs have been blooming for several weeks now and are very impressive. It is a thumbs up from me!
2. DIY Alpine Pot: Pre-planted Alpine pots were an eyebrow raising price at the local garden centre so I created my own with a Saxifrage Pixie, a Hebe ‘Red Edge’ and Sempervivum at a fraction of the cost. Once these plants have become well established I will split them to make some more free plants!
3. Dahlias: I have not grown dahlias for some years but as a pack of three were only £1.39 from Aldi earlier in the year it would be rude not to give these Cactus Dahlia Cotton Candy Mix a go. The flower images on the packet were fairly psychedelic so may not coordinate well with the rest of the garden but will definitely add a bright splash of colour in the summer.
4. Agapanthus ‘White Umbrella’: This year I decided to spice things things up and grow some different plants to normal from seed. These Agapanthus praecox ssp orientalis (name on the packet not me) were planted early March and took six weeks to start germinating. The seedlings cannot be transplanted to pots until the second year and then may be moved to the garden or containers in the third year after the last frost. Patience is definitely a virtue here! This whole process is about as exciting as waiting for paint to dry so my advice is just buy the plants.
5. Climbing rose ‘Bright Ideas’: Be warned this rose has strange powers of seduction! I had only popped into the garden centre for a packet of seeds and some plant feed but came out with this climbing rose from Peter Beales growers in Norfolk. This fragrant rose has fully double, cerise pink and cream blooms with glossy foliage. Looking forward to seeing the flowers.
6. Alstroemeria: Okay so after the rose incident above I was determined to strengthened my resolve but no while out shopping in a hardware and gardening store later in the week I spotted this beautiful colourful flower………. Fail is such a harsh word so I prefer to use phrases like ‘could do better’ or ‘room for improvement’!
These plants are unable to withstand frost so I have repotted this one in a terracotta pot to stand on the patio so this may easily be moved inside when the weather becomes colder.
If you have made it to this point then thank you for sticking with me.
Six on Saturday was created by The Propagator. He seems like an around good bloke and you are able to follow him on his blog at The Propagator and on Twitter @cavershamjj His blog gives guidance on how to join in on a Saturday and if I am able to do it then trust me anyone can.
I look forward to reading about all your gardening adventures!
Happy Outdoors 
Thoroughly interesting read – really enjoyable to see your exploits in the garden and very inspiring. I look forward to reading more! Thanks!
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Thank you 😊
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An inspiring first blog if I get to grips with the technology I might try as well. I have noted the lovely tulip, do you keep it for next spring? Look forward to you next 6 on Saturday.
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Thank you. I’m hoping the tulips will still be good next year. 😊
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Good read and lovely photos
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Thank you 😊
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I love the blog title!
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Thank you 😊
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And now I know why my alstroemeria didn’t come back. I thought I’d misplaced it somewhere, left it in a pot, then recycled the compost. Nope, I killed the more things. Bright Ideas sounds irresistible. Look forward to seeing it in bloom. And welcome to SoS!
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Thank you 😊
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Alstroemerias are grown under glass for cut flower but most of the varieties on sale here are garden varieties that are hardy enough to stay outdoors. I’ve had the variety ‘Indian Summer’ outdoors in a pot for three winters now with no problems at all. Sorry Lora if I’ve shot holes in your defence.
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Brilliant that’s good to know. There wasn’t much information on the label and online I’d found something that said they needed protection from frost but it’s much easier if the plants can stay out. Thank you 😊
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Turns out I’m a serial plant killer. Lily of the valley, akstrieneria . . . will this carnage never end?
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Well done on your first post. This week was only my second post and I am still working out the details. Next week need to crack inserting the link back to The Propergator.
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Thank you. I love your colour choices in your blog. I’ve always liked whites, blues and purpled together. It’s taken me a bit of trial and error setting up my blog. I probably won’t be able to blog every week but hoping to join in with Six on Saturday sometimes. Thanks 😊
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Hello, welcome to the gang. I shed a little tear of envy at your rose. I have one (or had one) which has disappeared without trace, only planted a couple of years ago. Weird as it had company, there are 6 or 7 climbers on the same fence line. Hope you have better luck with yours! See you again soon.
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Hi, Thank you. Sorry to hear about your rose. It’s strange how some things survive and others don’t seem to thrive. I’ve had many disappointments in the garden over the years. Yes I’ll be joining in again. Thanks 😊
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First reading of your blog and a Six full of promises! Glad you’re part of the team ( and lovely alstroemeria..!)
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Thank you. Looking forward to joining in some Saturdays 😊
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Welcome to six on Saturday blogging. Nice start. I planted two new climbing roses last year and hoping for a good display. Good luck with the dahlias. My first year growing but seem to be coming up well.
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Thank you. I’ll probably be a part-time blogger for this when time permits. Hope your roses do well 😊
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