Garden Centre

Monday, May 12, 2008

Garden treasures in May

It’s very easy at this hectic time in the garden to forget to stop and look around – and also equally easy to miss the more subtle beauties of the garden in amongst all the showy ones.

Things to look out for that you can hardly miss because they are slapping you in the eye include: Solomon’s Seal with its white bell-shaped pendant flowers, the plum trees that are at their best just as the cherries ‘go over’ and the anemones and tulips. But the things you might miss include the Euphorbias, with their small green flowers on the end of erect, somewhat Dr Who looking stems, and the blossom of the Photinia, as shown in the photo. It’s really tiny, each blossom only half the size of my little fingernail at most, but utterly gorgeous.

Photinia is usually grown for its fantastic red spring foliage, and so it’s cut back hard in winter to force the bright new growth, but the flowers are like miniature tropical blooms and well worth seeking out.

Labels: may flowers, may plants, photinia, solomon's seal

The All Seasons Gardener at 3:35 AM

---