It’s a lovely sunny Mothering Sunday. I was reminded of a couple of plants that ‘found’ their way into my garden specifically to give colour in early spring.
The first is a flowering currant – Ribes sanguineum which I bought completely out of season. You know the way that garden centres tend to push those right-at-the-moment plants for sale, even knowing that when the flowers fade the magnificence will have passed!
Anyway this amazing early spring flowering plant has now rewarded mewith simply gorgeous clusters of drooping pink lantern-like flowers. The accompanying foliage is that bright lettuce-like green of a brand new leaf.
The only downside, regrettably there has to be one, is that the plant has a slight whiff of cat pee.
But I am prepared to put up with that as it continues to give me so much visual pleasure at this time of the year.
As soon as the flowering has finished, I shall get out my secateurs and give it a good haircut.
The second floral marvel is the flowering quince – Chaenomeles speciosa which has escaped from the garden next door.
We have lived here for almost 20 years, and I was aware that next door’s plant was on the move – there were quite a few stems creeping under the fence. However, this is the first year that it has flowered- and just look at it!
Again, I will wait until the flowering has finished before attempting to prune it. I think that I will keep it as an open shrub, although I have seen these trained very successfully as a wall shrub.
Don’t forget the golden rule that will keep you out of trouble. Prune immediately after a plant has flowered.Do it at the wrong time, and you could, in one single snip, remove all of the flowering potential for the year. So it’s less of what you do, and more of when you do it
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