Awful weather - typical Brits talk

YoungBlueEyes

Gotcha.             

Also - the cloud factory is in full flow 😃

Dustyevsky

Everyone's right about the Erigeron karvinskianus, and there was also pink valerian (Centranthus ruber) in your first picture,Bluey. It's another spread-around-er.

The unknown flowers in picture 2 are Erigeron glaucus, a very common seaside plant, but it's flowering here, 25miles from the nearest beach.  I think GB is right about the plant in the hotel wall....they also seed around.

The very tall plant is Echium pinanina, or similar. It's from the Mediterranean. I'm growing some now, but they may never make handsome plants like that if we have a difficult winter....or they'll blow over!  The last picture also looks like another Echium. As you can see, the bees love 'em. They're mostly blue, but also come in pink and white.

Farway's peas do look lovely, unlike mine.   I've failed with them before in the deep bed, but other stuff grows fine. Different varieties too. 

Well, the rain finally ceased around lunchtime, so I sneaked out to the polytunnel for half an hour. With guests, I can't really do 'proper' work, though.  Never mind, next week looks good, and they say it'll get seriously warm from Wednesday. We'll see! Still waiting for that 'polar plunge' ...or was it an 'Arctic vortex?'   

Here's something equally irrelevant:

 

It's the Stone Garden; one of the oldest parts of Rosemoor....and that's a well-weathered stone lion on the plinth just in case you thought it might not be!   The camellia gives away the fact this was back in April, but why not? 

wort

I'm back too, a rather bouncy plane into Manchester due to the storm, very humid here though its waited to rain when I pegged out today. So had to do the hokikoki with it. Clear this afternoon and v. Windy.

Just spent an hour catching up, glad you enjoyed your hol YBE .
Maderia was humid too with a lot of cloud cover, quite glad as when the sun poked through it could flay your skin off.
Lots of photos but shan't bore you with them all. Just a couple !!🤣

wort

Monte Palace gardens

wort

Flamingo bums and Erigeron for Farway. Tbh it was everywhere which surprised me as I know it growing in the dry but the gardens were up the mountain, and very lush and verdant. Lots of ferns around.

-taff

That's weird Dusty, i saw one of those in my garden yesterday and one today and I'm sure I've never seen one round here before [ the bee fly] and it was huuge! easily an inch...that's still a beautiful stone courtyard though..

pp, beautiful bunny x 2  

ybe, wb, and yes, I can't grow hose either [ anya the garden fairy does have some good tips if you can get them going though] . That mares tail stuff is what my garden would look like unchecked...that's a pretty amazing cloud factory

wort, wb too, bouncy plane? ::shudder:: no thanks...I do love a spilled over on path and steps though, beautiul waterfall too, not your common or garden birds though

Talking of hypericum, saw these two today [oops, it's a cistus] which I like much more than the yellow, all photos from on the way to or from and open garden, one of my gardening friends looks after it.

and this sitooterie [ there were loads of them though...

and this sky with obligatory wind turbines...

bit over exposed but it's a phone camera that's been dropped a lot. 

pink_poppy

Brilliant ’bum’ pic, wort, I’m not sure that can ever be beaten *throws gauntlet down* 😂 I do wonder where this bum thing came from… I’m guessing it was YBE who started it 😉

Dusty, thanks for posting that info about Mrs Dusty.

I’ll post more tomorrow, but I’m going mad for some cake just now so must nip to the shop before it closes… 🧁🍰

YoungBlueEyes

Just spent a wee while going through all the posts, aren't the pics amazing when they're life size! I would've said shield bug and lacewing too. Thanks for the ID's on my pics - the yellowi carparkii had the longest stamens I ever seen on a plant, quite striking in real life  

They're some cracking pics wort, I love the lushness of it. I wouldn't thank you for the humidity though Flamingo Bum is deffo a first Did yous have a lovely time then? Good enough to go back..? 

It wasn't me that started The Bum pic thing pp, I reckon it was Farway even if he does deny it   Your bunny is very photogenic. Is they in your garden..? 

My garden would be Mare's Tail farm too taff. You wanna see the state of the place while they've had free run. Between them and thistles and bindweed and vetch I reckon that's about 1/3 of the greenery out there. Not even joking I should shift meself actually and get them beaten back into submission before it gets too hot.

Love that Stone Garden Dusty. Even though it's sunny it's got a cool feel to it

We didn't get to Fort Nelson Farway, it was late enough as it was by the time we got off the ferry, and with a 5 hour drive in front of us himself didn't wanna stop. I showed him your pics and he says we'll certainly do it at some point  

How you doing 2p? Did the tests come back with anything useful or have you a 6 month wait for that bit?

I hope whoever got the thunderstorms enjoyed them, we didn't get sight nor sound of one here. And I can state that for a fact cos we weren't in the door 10 minutes when The Oracle came over to 'check we were alright' ha haa! God love her, she's relentlessly reliable. 

OT warm but not ever so, yet. Currently 16'c with a high of 22' to come says the drunkards. The sobers agree mind. Breeze getting up this aft so that washing machine's holiday is very decidedly over.

wort

I would definitely revisit ,a lovely island but very hilly, luckily we were on the front but even that was hilly ,those further back were needing taxis. So as the leg was still gippy I didn’t go far, we took the bus to the cable car ( was not looking forward to that, but surprised myself) up to the gardens, got the toboggan back down which was great fun. Well worth doing.
I think There’s a flower festival one month and that would be lovely to go for.

Farway lovely pea flower. Dusty that is a good haul of strawberries 🍓 Taff nice sitooterie. I follow Anya on insta she has some easy tips to propagate doesn’t she. I love the huge pots of Erigeron she has.

Farway

Sunny & hot already, a bit of a breeze so not humid, but maybe we're too tropical down here for those used to Norvern Climes? 

YoungBlueEyes said:

It wasn't me that started The Bum pic thing pp, I reckon it was Farway even if he does deny it   

We didn't get to Fort Nelson Farway, it was late enough as it was by the time we got off the ferry, and with a 5 hour drive in front of us himself didn't wanna stop. I showed him your pics and he says we'll certainly do it at some point  

Bum pics Denied, not me Guv!

Fort Nelson, I did wonder if you would have time, but then thought perhaps you may have been stopping overnight somewhere on your way home

If you do add Fort Nelson to your list, get an overnight stay in and go to RHS Wisley on the same trip

It's about an hour from Fort Nelson, whoosh up, or down, the A3, seeing the Eighth Wonder of the world, AKA the Hindhead Tunnel.

Try the modern version of Pooh sticks, can you hold your breath from entering to exiting the tunnel at 60MPH? 

A bit like try hitting every green light at continuous 30MPH on Bath Road alongside Heathrow Airport

Both for amusement only, no prizes given.

Some great pics on here again, very varied. I have an urge to get to see some wind turbines, the nearest AFAIK are Brighton way, so unlikely to go there these days.

Bouncy planes, no, thanks. 

I was on one that nearly landed, then after a few bounces opened up the engines & went round again. 

I admit, I joined in the very heartfelt clapping when we finally landed & taxied to a stop.

Had to spray my tomatoes in the conservatory, they are looking a bit sickly but can't spot any whitefly yet. They usually do end the season as a whitefly infested mess, but it seems a bit early for this.

Just feed & water a couple of apples in pots for today, and maybe tie in some new canes on the Merton blackberry for next year, they have excellent strong new shoots this year, maybe the weather & recent rain?

Here are some of my plums, most have fallen off so not a lot left. Fingers crossed for at least a taste.