GBFD – A beautiful garden is dependent on the foliage

This month I didn’t go out into the garden to look for foliage to photograph for this post but instead decided that I would look through the images I have taken so far this month and think about how the foliage relates to the whole garden experience.

This image taken on the first of May sums up my thoughts on foliage; even though the garden seemed full of flowers at the time (May 1^st) in this particular view there are only a couple of tail end tulips still blooming and yet to me it looks lovely.  The texture and form and the varying shades of green MAKE the garden.

Looking accross the small island to the circular rose bed

Looking across the large island there are flowers but without the foliage it would be a pretty poor show (May 5^th)

Under the mulberry the blue colour and texture of Festuca glauca contrasts with the deep plum colour Huechera. (May 5^th)

Under the Mulberry

Some plants have foliage almost more lovely than their flowers.

Crimson edged leaf of Allium Karataviense

Cotinus

Sedum with feathery silvery folage of an artemisia

One red poppy in the formal beds of Perovskia

Large island in the foreground

Looking across the large island there are flowers but without the foliage it would be a pretty poor show (May 5^th)

Again this month I wanted to show you that by changing your images to tones of grey (thank goodness for digital photography) you can see very clearly how textures and forms work together to make a pleasing tapestry that will form the background to the flowers you want to display to their best advantage.

Cistus,  Artemisia and Eleagnus with Allium Christophii

Same image in colour

A narrow path leading you further into the garden

The grey image emphasises how wriggly the path edge is, I must adjust this, as it is unnecessarily fussy

The same image in colour

What job is foliage doing in your garden?  Do you have a plant that you chose because it had lovely foliage rather than for the colour of its flowers?  If you are in the Southern Hemisphere it is autumn now, do you have some colourful autumn foliage to share with us?

To join in GBFD, simply post about foliage and leave a comment here with the link.

Blue Suede Shoes

No, not my preferred footwear when gardening but another Iris I bought from Cayeux while at the Courson plant fair last autumn.

For its first year it produced just one stem, nothing very special about that except that to begin it had 5 flowers open at the same time, spectacular, I was imagining future years when with more stems it would be amazing especially planted near the paler blue I. Jane Philips; the flowers dies back, again no surprise there but then and this, to me, was astounding it produced another 6 or seven flowers again all open at the same time!

Iris Blue Suede Shoes

Iris Blue Suede Shoes

Iris Blue Suede Shoes

Iris Blue Suede Shoes

Iris Blue Suede Shoes

Iris Blue Suede Shoes second flowers

Iris Blue Suede Shoes second flowers

I am so happy I bought this Iris.

Is there a purchase you’re particularly pleased with?

Don’t forget Garden Bloggers Foliage Day (GBFD) on the 22^nd.  I know you all have so many flowers at the moment you’re not thinking about the foliage but if you do, I think you might be surprised.

Alliums and …..

I love Alliums for their structure.  When some are dry, I save them to use as decorations at Christmas, sometimes I even spay them gold to add to garlands.

Alliums need more water than I had imagined so this year with winter and spring being so wet this year my alliums are thriving.

Most Alliums tend to lose their foliage before their flowers appear which can mean they look a little strange with just the flowering stem coming out of the earth.  For this reason I like to associate them with other plants, I especially like them growing through low growing ground cover.

Allium Christophii the first metalic flowers opening

The above still has its foliage but as the flower opens the foliage always dies back.

Allium Christophii with Cotinus, I like the way the flower appears to be part of the cotinus

Allium Christophii with Iris ‘Before the Storm’ and Cotinus

Allium Christophii with Allium Atropurpureum in the foreground

Allium Christophii with Cistus Silver Pink

Allium Christophii

Allium Christophii with visiting insect

Allium Christophii with foliage of Tulip Negrita

Just opening Allium Christophii with Dianthus and Iris Rustic Jewel Large Island

What do you plant with your Allium Christophii?

Allium Purple Sensation in a pot on the terrace

Just emerging Allium Karataviense

Allium Karataviense, the exception this has lovely purple edged foliage

Allium nectaroscordum, I didn’t notice the unwelcome visitor until I viewed the image!

Allium Roseum with Rose Scepter’d Isle

Allium Roseum are actually native here and people are surprised I bought them for the garden

I like the way Allium Roseum opens from its papery wrapping

Allium Schubertii

Allium Schubertii, just one from an origional 10 planted in autumn 2009 with Euphorbia myrsinites

Allium Schubertii

GBBD – May Profusion

I usually try to post every bloom there is in the garden for GBBD (for my own record of what is flowering if nothing else), but I’m beaten today!  There are just too many flowers and to be truthful even though I love every single bloom it is the overall effect of the garden that is giving me the most joy.

I will try to post about more of the flowers individually during the next month. Cistus, Eschscholzia californica (and not just orange), Roses, Iris – all deserve their own post.

Thanks to Carol for hosting.  You might want to peek over the garden wall at some blooms in other gardens so do visit Carol at MayDreamsgarden.

So here (grab a cup of tea maybe) is My Hesperides Garden on GBBD in May.  I hope your gardens are giving you as much pleasure as mine is to me, happy bloom day.

Rosa mutabilis on the wall that divides the vegetable garden from the drive

Large Island

Iris Kent Pride with white blotched with brown Cistus

Philadelpus scenting the garden

Iris Before the Storm with Eschscholzia californica

The slope

This cistus is one I took as a cutting

The slope

The slope

Eschscholzia californica, on the slope

Buddleia alternifolia, I am tryijng to train as a weeping tree

The pillars on the west facing side of the terrace with Rosa Clair Martin

My favourite rose

Rosa Rimosa, South facing Terrace

Large Island

Large Island

Large Island

Large Island

Large Island looking towards the formal beds

Large Island

Looking along the back border from under the fig

Looking from under Mulberry along the back bed

Left Hand Border

Under Mulberry

Left Hand Border

Left Hand Border

Left hand border

Rosa Stanwell’s perpetual, Triangular rose bed

Sambucus with lovely dark foliage, Triangular rose bed

Triangular rose bed

Triangular rose bed

Triangular rose bed

Triangular rose bed

The quality of the images isn’t as good as usual as today was very sunny but rain is forecast for tomorrow so I needed to get them today.

Luciana’s Irises

Another friend invited me to see the Irises in her garden.  She has an amazing collection; most have been pass-along plants so I’m afraid there are no names.

If I am lucky she will pass some of them along to me when she divides them.

New Iris purchases

Yesterday afternoon I went to visit an open garden!  For UK readers it  will seem strange that I put an explanation mark, but here in Italy visiting a private garden is unusual and even it a garden is open it is often a disappointment; yesterday was not a disappointment at all.  The garden was open for Charity (again UK readers will not think this exceptional); the garden is planted in English style but with the addition of many plants that are more adapted to the climate here in central Italy.

When they moved from England they bought many plants with them including some Irises, which have been added to over the years.  Many Irises were also for sale (again the proceeds going to support a dog rescue charity based in the area).

Did I succumb to buying more Irises?  Yes, of course I did!  Because they were lovely and because it was a good cause.

Here’s what I bought.

Iris ‘Hoist the Sails’

Iris ‘Fair Rosalind’

Iris ‘Brassero’ – I think this will be good cut in the sitting room.

unnamed peach, I’m not so sure where I will plant this one but it is so lovely I couldn’t resisit it.

I also bought a dwarf variety that I didn’t photograph because they were flowering in the pot, today the flowers have already dropped but the colour was similar to I. Rustic Jewel that I showed the other day. If it flowers again I’ll post it and ask for an ID.

White flowers in the garden, May

Although I don’t have a Sissinghurst-type white garden as part of my garden I do love white flowers.  They add pools of light in dark shady areas and are, for me, essential to have on the terrace or near it because they seem to be luminous in the evening as dust and then night arrives.

Here are the white flowers in the garden during the first week in May.

Iris ‘Immortality’, a lovely pure white

The above you’re seen in my post about Irises, but worth seeing again I feel.

Philadephus is filling the garden with its wonderful perfume

Allium Karataviense

Rosa Sally Holmes

Unknown name white Cistus

Aquilegea vulgaris alba

Aquilegea vulgaris alba with Allium Roseum

Convolvulus cneorum

cerastium tomentosum – snow in summer

Cistus

Solomon’s Seal

Photinia flowers, the bees love them

Allium Roseum are actually native here and people are surprised I bought them for the garden