Iris, Foxgloves and a Few More
A couple of weeks ago I noticed we had some Iris growing in the left border… I don’t remember planting any Iris, but assume they must’ve come in one of the bulb collections I bought.
The first to open were purple with a yellow streak on the beard… But these have since opened and oh my, they’re stunning!
And yet, I know if I’d seen them online or in a photo I still wouldn’t have bought them. Photos don’t seem to do them justice. 
Some Dianthus are dotted around the garden… They were there when we moved in… Numbers are gradually reducing as I pull them out. 
Foxgloves… Oh how I love Foxgloves. Memories of childhood when one year we had a border of Foxgloves, it was magic. Mum and I loved it.
Dad dug most of them out the next year. His idea of planting is:
Dad dug most of them out the next year. His idea of planting is:
Soil………..plant…………soil…………..plant…………soil
He pulls everything up, bulbs, perennials, the lot. Apparently they’re ‘woody’. I get angry on mum’s behalf, but she is unable to weed herself as she has cellulitis infection in her legs.
This year he dug up her Alliums, 3 survived when they should have had around 10. So I showed him my borders and what their garden ‘could’ve’ looked like if he’d left his in.
I consider doing their gardening/weeding for them. But I know I’d see the carnage first hand and it would upset me even more. He’d still rip out all the plants even if I kept it weed-free for them.
Tess of the d’Ubervilles… 
American Wistera beginning to flower. 
Clematis ‘Blue eyes’ 
Coreopsis ‘moonbeam’, so excited to see this flowering. 
Gwirrel's Garden 
Fabulous macro shots of fabulous flowers – that iris is a stunner! Your dad sounds a bit like my daughter – her idea of a tidy garden is one where all the plants have been removed 🙂
what is there to say – your photos are so beautiful. Love foxgloves and the Iris colour combo is wonderful. Glad you are not a 'tidy' gardener.Laura
lovely collection of flowers, nicely photographed. I love the lines on iris petals. they are so elaborate and perfect.Cheers, have a great weekend.~bangchik
Ooooh laaaa laaaa!xoxo
Gorgeous photos again Liz! That Iris is stunning, I love the colours and the patterning!Are you pulling the Dianthus out because you don't like them or because there are too many? I like their 'old fashionedness' but they never do well in my garden.Your Dad sounds a little…errm overly enthusiastic…! You could always send him over to me to dig up my weeds 🙂
Hi Cyndy,Thank you very much!Ha ha, dad seems to want plants, he just doesn’t quite understand what a perennial is and the fact they die away and come back each year!
Hi Laura,Thanks for visiting my blog, much appreciated :)Foxgloves are wonderful, I’m going to sow more in the front garden I think, they’ll add more colour to a much needed space!Tidy is definitely not my middle name, I like to leave things to nature. Yes I weed – but even then I leave the odd one or two because their flowers are rather pretty!
Hi Bangchik,Thanks – I love those Irises too! Such a nice surprise, I just wish I knew where I got them! ha ha.
Hi Alice,Ha ha, Oh la la indeed!
Hi Jan,Another Iris has opened and it’s a deeper shade! I’ll be posting photos of it soon! I’m not sure which I prefer now, hee hee. I’m pulling up the Dianthus, mainly because grass is growing around its roots and there’s no other way to deal with it. Another is because Aquilegia is growing over and smothering it. There are some in the front garden which I have left alone for now because otherwise there’s very little colour… I’m not sure if I’ll survive once I turn my attention to the front though…Dad is… Well… Crazy. He’s been known to also cut Gladioli stems claiming it was because they hadn’t flowered yet even though their buds were coming up!!!!!!!!!!!!!He did the same to the Alliums this year, their flowers were just coming out and he claimed they were dying off.Honestly, madness runs in the family.