We were away for a few days in the frozen north (Sheffield!) looking after grandchildren over half term, and came back to a garden awash with colour and scent! This is my short rambler rose ‘Ghislaine de Feligonde’, almost thornless and very well behaved. She is not very smelly but looks gorgeous on the fence mingling with the wisteria.
Pulling the old carpet back on one of the compost heaps, I was very pleased to find a family of Slow Worms having a nap before venturing out this evening on slug patrol. They are not snakes but legless lizards, and completely harmless. They are long lived, so these could be the same ones I found last year and the year before.
It looks like it’s going to be another bumper grape harvest this year. The embryonic Pink Fox Grapes are forming well and I already have requests from some of my jam and jelly making friends. If there are enough to go round, I might even try my hand at making some wine this year!
The Sambucus nigra ‘Black Lace’ is also showing signs of producing a great crop of flowers and berries. I love the pretty pink flowers and dark, almost black foliage. It gets pruned hard every winter, but seems to thrive on it and comes back bigger and better every year.
The dainty little Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Lady in Red’ is in full flower but getting swamped by a huge Photinia on one side and an even bigger yellow Tree Peony on the other. However, I love the contrast of shapes and colours in this shrubbery border.
The majestic spires of Delphinium ‘Black Knight’ are now well over 2m tall and at risk of getting snapped if we get any strong winds, which is what normally happens! They are supported with hoops but these provide the perfect snapping point! In the meantime the bees are having a great time.
I have been picking my autumn sown sweet peas for two weeks and they are coming thick and fast so I am cutting a bunch every other day. The scent in the kitchen is overpowering! I suddenly remembered why I love gardening so much!
Have a great weekend
David
Davids Garden Diary 
another lovely collection, David. I am making a list of plants my garden needs, and it’s getting longer!
Wonderful collection of photos. I have a native Sambucus that I planted 2 years ago. It is blooming now and I should see some fruit soon.
The slow worms perform a very useful function. Wish we had them here. I did some web searching and found that they are rare to uncommon in Alabama and the Atlantic Coastal Region of NA. The variety in Alabama is known as the Eastern Glass Lizard.
Those delphinium are impressive! It is so windy where I live – it would be difficult to grow them without them snapping off in the wind. We had several nights last month with 50-80 mile per hour winds. Lots of trees down in some neighborhoods, though ours did not suffer.
I’ve never even tried to grow Delphiniums, it seems so certain to be futile in such a windy, sluggy garden as ours. I’m trying a very tall campanula this year in hopes of getting tall blue spires, so far so good.
I am impressed with your delphiniums. Mine always seem to get eaten by slugs. And sweet peas already, well done. I love ”Lady in Red’ with the dark leaves and pink flowers.