Six on Saturday is a weekly diary hosted by The Propagator & contributed to by gardeners all over the world. For links to other SoS blogs, check out Mr P's comments & the Twitter hashtag, #SixOnSaturday.
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| At last, the shed's been re-felted. |
We used to go to the woods, but over winter, he's slowed down markedly, restricting us to nearby communal green areas.
The council does a great job with these spaces, & the neighbours've taken ownership of them.
Since the gardening week's been all about chores, I thought I'd show you six of the many things we see on our walk.
1. Plum tree.
Directly across from the house is what I think's a plum tree, but tell me if I'm wrong.
The footpath underneath is littered in petals. Over winter, it was slick with leaves until 2 neighbour women gathered them up in bags about a fortnight ago.
2. Forsythia.
Said path's quite shady, which doesn't bother the ivy. However, the viburnum growing there are always weakly scented, & the row of forsythia've been slower to bloom than others in the neighbourhood.
Even so, the forsythia do bring flecks of yellow to an otherwise dark spot. Mr BN is unimpressed.
3. Shrubs.
The path leads into a green area with a lovely collection of shrubs & trees, including a magnolia . . .
. . . and a standard cotoneaster.
Although the bottom half of the cotoneaster is heavy in berries, the top half has been totally stripped.
4. Council or guerilla gardeners?
There's a new bee box staked next to one of the trees.
Since it's inside the tree's fencing, I'd assume it'd been put up by the council. Then a precariously perched bird box appeared in another tree. Not sure it meets council safety codes.
The neighbours do add flowers to the council beds, so perhaps some non-council worker put up the boxes, too.
5. Plastic insulation.
One of the nearby front gardens has a large hydrangea in it that hosts a bird nest.
Various bits of plastic are woven with the sticks & moss. The structure looks like it's had at least 2 seasons, so their system must work.
6. Chaenomeles.
This flowering quince nearly covers the front of another house in the area. Its colour always stops me, even now when it's lost about half its blooms.
The old guy himself, Mr Big Nose Dog, curious to find me at eye level - be there treats? If I'd sat like this in front of the DoodleFace, she would've flattened me with Doodle kisses. Mr BN's reserve is greatly appreciated.
That's us for this week. Perhaps our chores will produce some SoS results for next time.
Until then, thanks for stopping by. Hope to see you again.
Beautiful walking paths. !
ReplyDeleteMy favorite shrub is Chaenomeles : A so beautiful and elegant flowering
We're lucky w/the council planting but also that the neighbours take care of the area, too. The flowering quince is such a unique colour, that I wish my photographic skills could capture it. And when it was in full bloom . . . just wow.
DeleteI have a small ornamental lum in my front garden - but it doesn't bloom as heavily as that one - it's beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThe plum is a mature tree, probably around 40' in height, based on comparison to the surrounding buildings. It gives us a fine show.
DeleteThere are some interesting plants on your walk. The standard cotoneaster has beautiful berries and the birdhouse tied on with string made me smile. I wonder if any bird will be tempted to try it out. I see how Mr Big Nose got his name - that's an impressive schnozzle.
ReplyDeleteThe council gardeners've done a great job. I hope the bird house doesn't fall on anyone's head. And yes, Mr BN is blessed w/those nostrils.
DeleteHe's lovely.
DeleteI'm always a bit envious of your glazed potting shed. Glad it's been fixed. The plum tree blossoms are beautiful. Not sure I'd want to nest in that box if I were a bird, though I suppose the nest inside would even out the slope.
ReplyDeleteI doubt the box'll get used but I've made up stories about parents & children setting the boxes up in that area. (Probably some crazy cat person, trying to lure in food for their pets.) I love my shed - a lot - but wish I could've afforded the next size up, there's so much stuff associated w/gardening. There's another shed on the property, stuffed to the gills, & I still wish I had more room.
DeleteI like the idea of a standard cotoneaster. They grow well here being super hardy, so I might give one a try. It’s nice to see Spring making its presence felt in your local park, and how lovely that neighbours are interested enough to add something to it as well.
ReplyDeleteThis one is stunning, but there's an even bigger one in a back garden that hasn't been pruned in a long time. It's glorious. I've always walked the dogs in the woods, so am getting an appreciation of a more urban walk. It's great the neighbours care for it.
DeleteThe plum must look spectacular with the petals on the path mirroring what’s above. I love the colour of the flowering pomegranate too, and like you I have only seen orange flowers. Love the insect box tucked in near the tree trunk. You certainly have an interesting walk!
ReplyDeleteI'm learning to appreciate an urban BN walk. It takes some doing, but there really is so much to see between the council planting & folks' front gardens. Yes, I do love that plum. I can see it from my bedroom window as well.
DeleteGoodness, what interesting stuff you get in the trees around your place! I had to laugh at the tied on bird house, even though I did something similar years ago on a tree I was too scared to hammer a nail into.
ReplyDelete