Viburnum ‘Aurora’ and ?

About two weeks ago, while we were still enjoying a warm spell, my Viburnum carlesii ‘Aurora’ in the Oval Bed came into flower.

I love this shrub and have another one at the front gate. I also grew it very successfully in my old garden. It has a wonderful fragrance, pretty pale pink flowers and shiny leaves.

As you may notice on these photos there is a bud next to the flower, tightly closed. I thought this was odd and had already noticed the foliage of part of the shrub was slightly different. But, I am embarrassed to admit, I never really took much notice of it.

A few days ago the second lot of buds opened, and some ugly white flowers, with no scent, appeared. Now, I took a closer look! All of the thicker and more textured foliage – which was a similar shape to Aurora – and the white flowers were on a second stem at the base of the shrub. This is the first time this part of the shrub has flowered.

I looked online for clues, but found nothing. I then remembered that the other Aurora shrub I have here also had another alien stem growing at its base which I lopped early on last year. On checking it, lo and behold! That lopped stem is also sprouting new leaves that look unmistakably like the native wild Viburnum opulus that grows in our hedges here.

So, my conclusion is that the rootstock of this hybrid decided – for whatever reason – to shoot and try and take over! I did not consider that this could happen. Did I perhaps plant them too deep, as can happen with grafted fruit trees?

I have removed the offending part of the shrub now (great material for starting off my new compost beds) and Aurora has been given breathing space again. The whole Oval Bed looks so much better! I hope she will now put on new growth and form buds for next year.

This will not deter me from planting another ‘Aurora’ in my new bed, which will focus on scented plants. I will, however, be more vigilant from now on. (By the way, work is resuming on the new bed this week as our rain has stopped and the wind is drying the garden up nicely. 😃)

I wonder if any of you gardeners have experienced the same with cultivated shrubs? I would love to hear if this is common or if it only occurs on particular plants.

Have a great Sunday

and

Happy Gardening!

 

 

In a Vase on Monday: Looking Up

Monday is the day I join Cathy at Rambling in the Garden with a vase of bits and bobs from my garden.

My funny little bird is looking up into the middle of a pink hellebore… I wish hellebores didn’t droop so much that you have to crawl on your hands and knees to see them properly! Still, in a vase (on Monday) they are much easier to see. So I picked another one – one that actually still has a label attached to it. (Where do all those plant labels disappear to???) It is called ‘Moondance’, which is such a lovely name reflecting its pearly cream colour. It was one of the few rather sad looking specimens at my local garden centre last week, completely pot-bound, but now happily stretching its toes into the cold moist soil in my Moon Bed and hopefully feeling at home there.

Talking of moons, have you been able to see the full moon the past few nights? It has been crystal clear (and frosty) here and the night sky has been extremely light. 🌝

The tiny little jug also contains some silvery Curry Plant (about the only foliage my garden can offer at the moment) and a couple of snowdrops.

In the background are some of the Forsythia and Pussy Willow branches I cut last week – both opened within a few days indoors. I should cut some more, as they will then flower as soon as these branches go over.

He has been named ‘Erdbeervogel’, which means strawberry bird. No, not a native here, but look at his markings more carefully and you will understand why! LOL!

So, the garden is slowly awakening and things are ‘looking up’… there is no rain in our forecast for the next ten days! (Like so many gardeners in northern Europe I have been lamenting the amount of rain we have had this winter. I just hope there’s a drop left for the summer.😉)

Thanks for visiting, and do go and see Cathy’s post here where other vase creators have once again linked in from around the world. 😄

In a Vase on Monday: A Conversation Piece

This week I was inspired by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden not only to find something in my winter garden for a Monday vase… Earlier this month Cathy shared a photo of her ammonite garden decoration. Well, it left quite an impression on me, and since I have been playing with yarn a lot on these chilly winter days I decided to try something out….

😁

The Forsythia was picked in bud last Monday and opened just in time for today’s vase. It doesn’t take long once the buds have fully formed.

The ammonite is crocheted in chunky acrylic wool – nice and stable for standing a glass in to show off some flowers. I couldn’t find a free pattern, so followed a video tutorial instead. (I had the choice of Turkish, Spanish or French, so I went for the French! )

It is an unusual object that I probably won’t use very often, but it was fun making it and I hope it will make you all smile! 😃

Do pop over to Cathy’s blog to see what she has found for a vase this week. And have a great week!

Thursday’s Feature: Philadelphus coronarius

A beautiful shrub is flowering in my garden right now: Philadelphus coronarius, also known as Mock-Orange, flowers in June here and is quite something…

Unfortunately this cultivar has practically no scent, unlike many other Philadelphus. So if you are planning on buying one, make sure it is fragranced. The flowers alone are, however, worthy of a spot in any garden.

This particular shrub is about 3 metres tall and about 3 metres wide. It was probably planted when this house was built, over 30 years ago. I have pruned it very cautiously a few times. This year it will need a lot of old wood removing, but even of it is not so spectacular next year it will help growth long-term.

The overhanging branches laden with flowers look lovely in the front garden as I come up our hill. Especially if there is some blue sky behind them.

Here are a few more images of it. Enjoy!

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Today I am joining Kimberley again at Cosmos and Cleome for her meme ‘Thursday’s Feature’. Please join us in featuring a plant each Thursday, so we can see what grows in other parts of the world too!