Six on Saturday - 16th October 2021

Repeat flowering and seed saving

Well, it's a dreich old Saturday morning here in south east London. The rain is soft and gentle, the best sort for watering the garden but not so great for ticking off my long list of things to do out there. There's nothing for it than to get on with my thirteenth #SixOnSaturday post, six things going on in the garden this week and inspired by The Propagator. I'm doing so from a seat looking out onto the garden where the annual comedy act that is the pigeons attempting to wrestle the berries from the virginia creeper is playing out. 

1) Geranium sanguineum var. striatum

This dainty geranium has produced another flush of pretty pink flowers. I like its slighly more compact habit, and the dark, grey-tinged leaves.   

2) Rosa "climbing iceberg"

This is possibly the third flush of flowers from this rose. It has responded well to pruning and tying in horizontally so I'll be doing more of that next year in the hope that it will finally cover the trellis behind it, giving me a scented wall of creamy white flowers in the process.

3) Cosmos

I have this cosmos courtesy of a plant swap session at one of our local gardening club meetings earlier in the year. It has taken absolutely ages to come into its own and now has a profusion of tight buds, a few of which are finally starting to open up. I'm hoping they all bloom before the frost comes. In case you are wondering, no, that isn't a cosmos leaf in the background, it is that of a Japanese anenome which is in the same pot. 

4) Geranium Rozanne ("Gerwat")

This is my first year growing Rozanne and it has delivered brilliantly on the promised "long flowering" front and is still going strong having first burst onto the scene in May. I have one plant growing alongside and through a Euphorbia characias "silver edge", just visible in the LHS of the image. The two work really well together highlighting a common bluey-grey tinge.    

5) Cucumber

I think my cucumber growing days are probably over, certainly if I don't end up getting a greenhouse. I grew two types this year and with seven plants I have had precicely five cucumbers. The one pictured here was one of two from some seeds from my next door neighbour - he'd ordered a self-polinating variety having had little success the previous year. Despite masses of flowers, only two have turned into fruit. This one was picked last weekend.  

6) Morning glory - seeds for next year

I grew Morning Glory for the first time last year as a result of a seed swap amongst our local gardening club members. I was thrilled with the results and saved lots of seeds which I planted up this year. They've done wonderfully again, so I'm harvesting the seeds for next year, and for friends. This is where I think those little dessicant packages that come with lateral flow testing kits might come in useful as I'm hoping they'll capture any moisture in the seeds. As well as the saved seeds, they actually also grew well self-seeded.    

The rain is easing now and I'm hoping to get out to put some wood preserver on the the wood that has been cut for the next pallet project - another planter.

That's all for this week. Check out the participant guide if you want to join in.