I can only apologise for reading that as ‘giggling live’ which, although I’m sure it happens, is hardly relevant here.
That said I’m a fan of using pedals as they serve as a quick, at a glance, visual summary of what’s going on. But I’m only at the stage of using simple effects.
How it looked before
…And after
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Finally finished the new seating area that replaced the old brick built barbecue.
Satisfaction rating: 11!
Just need to get the big dahlias planted in the barrels which have migrated from the front garden.
We have sorted out 4 areas of the garden we weren’t happy with this year!
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First flower of the year from #passiflora ‘Purple Passion’. It has the same parentage as the darker well known P. ‘Amethyst’.
It will flower profusely all summer & fill its support. It’s also the parent of our hardy hybrid, P. ‘GK2’ despite not being hardy itself.
A great one if you can find it!
That’s an amazing one. I really don’t know how to make sense of this winter. It make any hardiness tests a bit irrelevant!
It’s also really easy to grow. Seems to be appearing in a few nurseries and online providers.
One for the future!
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Another flower from the gorgeous #passiflora cocuyensis ‘Nova’ not just for its beautiful flowers but also for how well it has responded to being remounted (as a very big plant!) on to our new giant loop system. In just 2 weeks loads of healthy new growth
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Lovely surprise today: the season’s first flower on #passiflora cocuyensis ssp. Nova. This one is allegedly cold tolerant even half hardy. It’s been down to about +5C in the greenhouse. I reset it onto this large hoop shaped arrangement a week or so ago and it’s starting to romp away.
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Here are two of our new #passiflora (from John Vanderplank) that are getting going. P. sagasteguii, with its jewel like small flowers and the chunkier P. x violacea ‘Atropurpurea’. The P. holosericea he gave us should be flowering by June. Watch this space!
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This lovely but tricky #passiflora that we raised is an open pollinated hybrid of Maurizio Vecchia’s P. ‘La Morellina’ which, as a very sophisticated Italian gentleman, he named after his favourite wine. In the same spirit we named the hybrid after my dad’s favourite wine. This is P. ‘Blue Nun’.
This lovely but tricky #passiflora that we raised is an open pollinated hybrid of Maurizio Vecchia’s P. ‘La Morellina’ which, as a very sophisticated Italian gentleman, he named after his favourite wine. In the same spirit we named the hybrid after my dad’s favourite wine. This is P. ‘Blue Nun’.
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Every year I get a reminder of the importance of clear/correct/any labelling. Here is a plant I have been nurturing all winter as a spare #passiflora x allardii. Turns out it’s the similar x belotii (see last pic for x allardii from last year - pale centre!)
No harm done!
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If you’ve ever wondered what a garden that opens in August/September looks like in March then here’s one possible answer…
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And now for something completely different in the #passiflora world. We got this pretty little P. sagasteguii from John Vanderplank in September & its first flower opened today. It can take down to close to freezing &has grown on in the greenhouse.
It’s covered in buds & will flower all summer.
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We’ve got through a lot of soup* this winter which is convenient because these approx 500ml pots are pretty robust, semitransparent & are perfect for #passiflora seedlings & cuttings when they have outgrown their 3inch pots.
How impressed are you that I didn’t say ‘we’ve had a souper winter’?
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Update on the barbecue. All the bricks (about 700!) have been moved either to create a new path or to the front to be removed. The new bench and whisky barrel (there will be a second the other side once the daffodils currently in it have finished) in place. Some work still to do, but going well!
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The tacsonia supersection of #passiflora contains some superb plants. Naming is very complicated so just enjoy. These can take down to about freezing so need greenhouse over winter. From February they grow vigorously and take over! They also hate heat so we bed them out in a shady spot for summer
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#Passiflora ‘Monika Fischer’ is starting to flower on its new support system. We are moving over to these (video to follow) to encourage more flowering and fit even more plants in the greenhouse. The last photo is a more typical mid season flower from last summer.
Bought as P. antioquiensis but definitely not! This looks to have some P. mixta in its ancestry. Most of these tacsonias take down to almost zero Celsius
Although I’m calling this P. ‘Coral Seas’ it very likely isn’t. They are a complicated group but who cares when they are this amazing
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The tacsonia supersection of #passiflora are a brilliant group with spectacular hummingbird pollinated flowers. They also grow on through winter in a heated house. This form bought as P. antioquiensis (it’s not!) is quite similar to our P. ‘Coral Seas’ last pic & will be bedded out for summer
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A sunny morning meant we could lay out the recycled barbecue into its new place. Lots of cleaning, laying and grouting to go. It is amazing how many bricks are still in the pile. There may be another project incoming!
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We have now completed one big project (video of that to follow) and destruction phase of 2nd big project. Lovely brickwork on 30 year old barbecue but it had to go, really badly placed - blocking great space. Thanks to Lee for assistance!
Will post how we use bricks and what goes here next!
#FebMusicChallenge26
So many options for this theme!
So, because I guess that money has to come from somewhere:
The Clash
Bankrobber
youtu.be/ttJBdr6eBuo?...
#FebMusicChallenge26
Great theme today!
A timely reminder from a hero from another unsettled era…
plus ça change…
youtu.be/baOpR6IjxVI?...
#FebMusicChallenge26
My go to for songs about the cold…
youtu.be/6QrrMVXKQ0Y?...
Late starter this year. Hear’s a cheery thought:
Fairport Convention with Clear Water.
#FebMusicChallenge26
youtu.be/5Uo_cvRG1Ic?...
Amazing #aurora borealis scenes this far south last night. Thanks to Angie and Lee next door for getting us to go out!
And also pleased I didn’t let my recent rereading of ‘Day of the Triffids’* put me off!
*Naturally I was rooting for the plants.
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One of my horticultural heroes and an unexpectedly humane conquistador!
This was after we had trimmed it! It didn’t go much over the hour…
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We were a very short notice fill in for a cancelled speaker for the lovely people at Goodleigh Horticultural Society last night. Since we’d already done our general talk to them in September we dusted off a passionflower talk from 2years ago.
Great audience who laughed at all my terrible jokes!
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More winter #passiflora
Firstly P. x violacea ‘Atropurpurea’ that we acquired from the legendary John Vanderplank when he visited us this summer and a tacsonia hybrid, possibly P. x exoniensis, with its shockingly pink flowers. Both will have prominent greenhouse positions next year.
🌱 As we stampede towards the shortest day of the year greenhouse passionflowers are struggling. A couple that are thriving in cool &duller conditions are P. ‘Annette’ & the tacsonia supersection including this bright pink one we have been growing as P x exoniensis & first bud on a newly acquired one
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Coincidentally our night flowering (&day this time of year) #Passiflora ‘Annette’ has 2flowers open today just as I spotted that one of the open pollinated seeds from it has germinated in the propagator.
We don’t know which of our many other plants the pollen came from - should be interesting!
Today marks the 50th anniversary of the release of Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd. As part of this I took part in an online intro challenge.
Very scratchy and rushed but what the hell, how often do we get the chance to legitimately desecrate an all time classic?
youtu.be/7mGN1W2Ty-s?...
