Good morning and Happy Saturday! It’s time to charge headlong into another Six on Saturday, led by the fearless Propagator. Generally, I try to have a theme of sorts to tie the six things together. This is one of those weeks when there is no theme, just a big old splat of Garden Things. After a brief break over Easter, I’m back to working on Saturdays, so apologies if I’m a tad slow to respond. In no particular order, here are my six things:
1. Primrose ‘Belarina Valentine’
This little chappie is tucked away between two rather pushy neighbours, but is giving as good as he gets. I can’t remember when or where I picked him up, but I seem to remember not expecting much in the way of longevity. I was wrong on that count as he’s been reliably flowering away each spring for several years. Plucky little fellow!
2. Oxalis enneaphylla ‘Slacks Peacock’
I’m quite taken with this. The flowers are very intricate: purple with darker purple veins, lightly edged with white. The leaves are rather jolly as well.
3. Griffin update
Some of you asked for regular updates on Griffin, after his appearance in Easter weekend’s Six on Saturday special. I have refrained so far, for the same reason that I don’t want photos of me lying in bed on New Year’s Day posted online. He is seriously regretting waking up. With all the cold weather we’ve been having, he is burrowing into the earth by the fence. It’s a pillow-over-face sort of situation.
4. Great Big Pot
I don’t do much in the way of bedding plants, with the exception of a few pots on the patio. I acquired this pot a few years ago while working at a plant nursery and it’s had various different things in it over the years. Last autumn I thought I’d go all out and this is the result. It’s got pretty much every thing in it: pollys, violas, pansies, wallflowers, daffs. It’s pretty gaudy. I refuse to apologise.
5. Dicentra cucullaria and canadensis
Dicentra cucullaria 
Dicentra canadensis
Here’s a little compare and contrast. Both are tuberous spring flowers with very similar foliage. Cucullaria flowers have a sort of V-shape to the top of the flowers. Canadensis flowers have the more familiar ‘bleeding heart’ shape. For me, D. canadensis is a week or two earlier to flower. They’re both little charmers.
6. Lamprocapnos spectabilis
Talking of bleeding hearts, here’s Lamprocapnos spectabilis just about coming into flower. They’re not really enjoying the dry weather we’ve been having, but they’re managing. I wrote a post about Lamprocapnos earlier this week, with a few thoughts about growing from seed and such.
On a final note, Kind Hearts and Corydalis is now on Facebook, if that’s your thing. That’s all for this week. Don’t forgot to visit The Propagator to have a look at some other Six on Saturday posts. Enjoy your weekend!
Nice Six Andrew, and that little oxalis is a head turner. Is there a touch of pink on your cucullaria? Maybe it is just the light. It is rather appealing, mine has no blush at all.
Well spotted! It’s actually D. cucullaria ‘Pink Punk’.
No apology necessary for a bright pot of blooms as far as I can see. Who needs subtlety when there’s neon pink primrose? And thanks for the update on Griffin, he seems to be channeling the zeitgeist. 🙂
Yes indeed!
Griffin’s a bit like that. Wise old thing.
Love the Great Big Pot – such a lovely group of blooms.
Glad you like it!
I grow Dicentra cucullaria in a trough and am very fond of it, a beautiful plant.
It’s a very nice thing. It didn’t do so well for me when I first got it, but I changed it’s position and it’s much happier now.
Poor Griffin! Love the red of the Primrose ‘Belarina Valentine.’ I’m having another go at growing Bleeding Heart – it didn’t end well for a new plant last year.
Oh dear! Good luck this time round!
Poor old Griffin, I know just how he feels! Hopefully it will be warming up soon and he will be scooting about the garden like a good ‘un. Lovely primrose and the little oxalis is a treat. Have a good one.
It’s turned out to be pretty warm today! Let’s hope it’s setting a precedent.
Very nice Oxalis enneaphylla ‘Slacks Peacock’ (and the photo is also a success)
I read your article on bleeding hearts, very informative. I only have one variety and doing like you from seedlings must be interesting.
Thanks! They’re very straight forward from seed, and they germinate quite early in the year too.
Nice, colourful, varied Six-on-Saturday. The primrose has to be the star. I hope Griffin will enjoy the warmer weather forecast this week.
Thanks, the primrose is a nice one. I think we could all do with some warmer weather!
Poor Griffin, I sympathise! Interesting post , lovely oxalis and the primrose has impact especially with the lovely silvery-foliaged plant nearby, what is it? Artemisia maybe?
I think it is an Artemisia, but I can’t say for certain. It was a freebie from some one else’s garden. I usually refer to it as ‘Derbyshire Daisy’ as that’s where they got it from!
The oxalis is a thing of beauty. Such wonderful details made precious by their small scale. Lamprocapnos is lovely as well – particularly the tiara of new growth.
I admired a fierce red double primrose in a garden today and was told it was just a bedding type. So much for fairly pricey Barnhaven purchases thought I. Every year when they’re in flower I promise myself I will divide them when they’ve finished and I never have. Some have survived.
Yes, primroses are a bit of a lottery at times. Looking at the double red in my garden, it probably is just about big enough to divide, but it’s certainly a slow grower.
I see that some of the plants are still called Dicentra then and just the more commonly grown bleeding hearts was renamed Lamprocapnos. What an unattractive name for a pretty plant. The dry is affecting yours you say. Mine are looking very small and wasn’t sure if it was the cold or the lack of water that was the problem.
Beautiful little Oxalis you’ve chosen there.
That is the most gorgeous primula – wow what a colour! I also really like your pot of oxalis. I had some in a pot that never did very well. I’ve planted them out in the garden now but they are yet to appear…
At the moment the oxalis is kept in the greenhouse – but it’s still flowering despite the sub-zero temperatures every night this week. I suspect it doesn’t mind a bit of cold, just the damp.