There is no theme to my Six on Saturday today, although if I could post fragrances that is what you be experiencing instead of six fairly random photos. I cannot even post pictures of the six things given me the greatest pleasure in the garden as there are just far too many of them to rank in any order of preference. After a wet week (great for the soil and the water butts but not so good for roses laden with blooms), my six range from one of many paths strewn with rose petals (above) to near perfect hostas:
… a glorious grouping of heuchera:
…flamboyant herbaceous poppies (see Chloris’ post for more of these):
…the first of the summer clematis, C ‘The Vagabond’ (several C viticella are on the point of joining the party):
…and finally, the exquisite rose I showed on Wednesday, Gertrude Jekyll, now opened to show a perfect ‘quartered rosette’. Moved from the gallery fence to the shrub border in the autumn, she is looking much happier already and will hopefully go from strength to strength in future seasons. Having flowered below par in her previous location, you may appreciate why I am thrilled to see such perfection. She smells pretty good too…
With garden openings this coming week this of necessity is a brief post; rest assured, all is well and everything is in hand (excluding the weather, over which I have no control) bar a few more cakes and keeping up with deadheading. I may not have time to read all my favourite Saturday Sixes but don’t let it stop you popping over to Jon the Propagator’s blog yourselves and checking them out.
Rambling in the Garden 
All beautiful, but I was especially taken by the hosta. I live in the woods, and in my gardens, everything is coming up hostas. We’ll, maybe not everything. 😉
In the UK our hostas tend to be plagued by slugs and snails, Laurie – are they a problem for you?
They surely are! By the end of summer, the hostas are in ribbons. Doesn’t kill the plants, but they look woeful.
😐
I think I need to move my GJ to a better place. Good luck with the opening! I’m sure everyone will love your garden.
Oops! Forgot to say how much I like the Hosta – name?
Ah, Orange Marmalade (why?!)
In case I am nuts enough to buy another Hosta… 😂
Not why did you want the name, but why is it called Orange Marmalade!! 😁
Haha!! That’s true – but I love orange marmalade so I am happy 🙂
Win-win 🙂
All the roses I moved last year are doing well, although The Poet’s Wife and The Pilgrim are not in flower yet which they normally would be. Thanks for the good wishes
Sigh… the names of roses are so compelling regardless of suitability or colour.
Yes, and what a lovely job it would be naming them…
The BIG question is: how did you manage to keep the slugs away from the hosta?! 😉 Isn’t it sad in way how ephemeral everything is? The roses have been stunning this year and meanwhile I’ve done the first round of dead-heading. The paths are strewn with petals here too…well, at least some of them will flower again this summer. Just a bit worried as it’s been far too dry but fingers crossed, it may mean we get some rain this summer. Off for a few days of holidays tomorrow, looking forward to it. Love to you both x
That’s always a big question, and there are some that have been nobbled. Organic slug pellets early on and then I have used nematodes for the first time too
And the rose petals still look lovely on the ground, don’t they? Enjoy your break, and I hope you get some rain soon – no longer a problem here!!
All of this and cake too? What kind may I ask.
I love those heuchera…a touch of autumn- colourwise- in your spring garden. Best wishes for your open day, I hope the rain stays away.
Thanks Jane – these heuchera are at the vase of an acer griseum, so were chosen to reflect its flaking bark
Nice photos! Your Hosta and group of Heuchera look great!
Thank you 😊
That Gertrude Jekyll is stunning. I have a similar rose called Olivia Rose which I love for its scent. That hosta looks so healthy. Do you have problems with slugs and snails? I’ve given up with hostas for that reason but perhaps I should try again. Happy gardening
I nearly chose Olivia Rose Austin as one of the new roses I was adding – she’s lovely, isn’t she? Slugs and snails can be a problem, but I use organic slug pellets and this year nematodes too – it would be a shame not to have any hostas so it’s worth the small effort
Cathy I’m sure that the opening of the garden will be a success with these beauties. I love hostas. The Heucheras are spectacular. The Poppies are wonderful. The Clematis “The Vagabond” is fabulous. La Rosa Gertrude Jekyll is a jewel, I love it. Greetings and memories of Margarita. 🙂
Thank you Margarita, the garden is looking quite good now and is ready and waiting for visitors
Love your Clematis poppies and hosta and I also have a Gertrude Jekyll who is a great doer.
Thank you – GK certainly didn’t ‘do’ in its previous location, but I am more hopeful now
I always tend to group Heuchera of one type together. Your mixed display is beautiful and suggests I need to rethink my system.
Over winter I thiught I would need to add more but they have filled out nicely since then
I want to know how you achieve perfect hostas too. All lovely; I adore your heuchera collection. Good luck with the garden open day, I am sure they will love it, I wish I could come. Thanks for mentioning my poppies.
Sadly yhey are not all perfect, Chloris, but most are. My miniatures were nobbled really early on and look dreadful 😲 A few weeks ago I used nematodes for the first time and might try a garlic wash too – they are more than doubly gorgeous when they are pristine. Thanks for the good wishes – I am trying not to look at the weather forecast! Do you have any more visitors due?
Good luck for the weather this week and lots and lots of lovely visitors
Thank you Dorris, they will be welcomed whether they are lovely or not, especially if they come in the rain which they might need to… 😉
The skies will clear for you I hope
It’s looking OK for Weds now, which it definitely wasn’t before, but the forecast is changing all the time – that’s the downside of weather apps!!
Rose petals on the ground are so pretty. We had locust bloom on the ground back in spring. It was messy, but pretty too. It reminds me of the apricot bloom when it used to be on the ground and roadways in the Santa Clara Valley decades ago. It would swirl in the turbulence behind the occasional car that would go by. I can not imagine that there used to be so many vast apricot and other orchards there, or that San Tomas Aquino Road used to be a two lane suburban road with minimal traffic on it.
Yes, I imagine it must be very different from the ‘old days’, Tony
My great grandmother who lived here when there were less than 20,000 people in San Jose thought it was so nice that so many ‘more’ people could enjoy living in the region. I don’t want to sound mean, but I would not mind if everyone just went home and got out of mine.
I had to smile at this sentiment, Tony 😀
Now that’s a cracker of a hosta Cathy and fabulous poppies too. I imagine that somebody will be kept busy sweeping up those rose petals this week 🙂
Haha! That might well be the case, Anna! 🙂
Glad your gertie j has recovered her poise. I have a climbing version which is in its first summer and flowering, albeit low down. Low enough that I haven’t got my snout close enough to take a sniff. I’ll take your word for it! Your hosta looks great. My container planted hosta are still pristine but those in the border are looking a little battle scarred I’m afraid. 🐌
My ‘Gertie’ is a climber too but up to now hasn’t – I have high hopes for future years now she is happily placed. Wouldn’t risk hostas in the borders here…