Having read Pauline’s post at Lead me up the Garden Path about using some free software to make collages I thought I would quickly try. I have to say the site is brilliant and very, very easy to use. I haven’t made use of many of the options as I had very little time and some images are repeated plus I only used the 4 image options and there are many, many more.
So thank you Pauline, I’ve often wondered how others produced such lovely collages but never thought to ask.
So here is what was flowering on 31st December.
From top left: Rosa Westerland, Rosa Molineux, Rosa WesterlandHemerocallis Stella d’Oro
Bearded Iris, Teucrium, Achillea millefolium ‘Cassis’, Anemone Sylphide
Abutilon Salvia and Dwarf ornamental pomegranate
Erigeron karvinskianus, Aster ‘Monch’ , another Aster and Osteospermum
Arabis, Rosa Rimosa, Mahonia x media ‘Charity’, Hemerocallis Stella d’Oro,
Rosa ‘Gertrude Jekyll’, Rosa Tradescant, Rosa Stanwell Perpetual
Rosa Old Blush, Rosa mutabilis, Solanum jasminoides ‘Alba’, Rosa Sophie’s perpetual
Rosa ‘Clair Martin’, Rosa Old Blush, Viburnum tinus
Salvia, Rosemary, Abultilon, RosaOld Blush
Rosa Rimosa, Crab Apple and Nandina domestica, Verbena ground cover,
Eleagnus, Buddleia ‘Silver Anniversary’, Breaded Iris Teucrium,
Inventory of plant flowering on 31st December 2013
With the long mild autumn with sufficient rain many plants were flowering on 31st of December, almost every variety of rose that I grow had some or many flowers; Rosa Molineux certainly seemed to have as many flowers as at the end of May. I picked 8 perfect flowers for a table decoration for the New Year’s Eve dinner I hosted and I could have picked many more.
Here’s the list of what was flowering, I hope most are in the collages! Today Rosa Sally Holmes is also flowering but it wasn’t on the 31st, it was just buds then.
Achillea millefolium ‘Cassis’
Anemone Sylphide
Arabis
Abutilon
Aster ‘Monch’ plus another un-named variety
Hemerocallis Stella d’Oro
Iris Chelsea Blue, I think it is this but I’m not 100% sure it could be an unknown variety I was given by friends.
Buddleia ‘Silver Anniversary’
Dwarf ornamental pomegranate
Eleagnus
Erigeron karvinskianus
Mahonia x media ‘Charity’
Osteospermum
Rosa ‘Clair Martin’
Rosa ‘Gertrude Jekyll’
Rosa Molineux
Rosa mutabilis
Rosa Old Blush
Rosa Rimosa
Rosa Sophie’s perpetual
Rosa Stanwell Perpetual
Rosa Tradescant
Rosa Westerland
Rosa William Shakespeare
Rosemary prostrate and upright
Salvia Indigo Spires
Salvia 3 other varieties all unknown names
Solanum jasminoides ‘Alba’
Teucrium
Verbena ground cover variety
Viburnum tinus
I make that a grand total of 34! But without the roses it would be many less.
Creating my own garden of the Hesperides 
You have so many lovely things in bloom Christina. It is amazing having roses looking so good in January. I love your collages. I am very impressed with you and Pauline making these lovely collages.I am a technophobe but I am just going to have to give it a go.
I don’t usually have so many roses in January, I actually hope they stop soon so that I can prune them. Do try the collage site it was amazingly easy (and I’m not that good with these things usually.
Amazing! you have so many different flowers to show us, most of which stopped flowering ages ago here. So glad you have tried the collage website, but I have had a comment from Cathy at Rambling in the Garden saying that the site introduced spyware into her computer and it took a long time to get rid of it. I have checked and my security AVG, protects me from spyware so everything is fine here, I hope it is with you.
Thanks for the warning, I’ll check if my security is OK.
My goodness, I am jealous (and Iove your colour-themed collages; I do hope the software is OK).
Thank you, the software is so easy if it is safe, I just ran the anti virus and I’ve removed the software tool bare for now.
The collages are beautiful and it is wonderful to have so much in flower at this time of year. We having been having very dull wet weather again.
The weather here swings from sunny and warm to grey!
Incredible number of blooms you have! You do live in the northern hemisphere, don’t you? I think my favorite is the Rosa Rimosa.
Yes, Jason, I’m in the northern hemisphere but closer to the equator than you, so higher light levels, it’s why I love living here.
Beautiful collages Christina – putting them together can become addictive once you start 🙂
I think the collages will work well when there are lots of one kind of flower so I can show the variations, like Hemerocallis, roses etc.
I’m amazed at all those flowers, especially as you had some light frosts before Christmas! It seems that the shorter days haven’t slowed things down much – the warmth must be the main thing that keeps them going. Love the collages too.
The days aren’t so short here as further north and the sun is higher in the sky providing a lot more light. We have cold weather forecast for this week but if it isn’t grey, I won’t mind.
Winter jasmine…that’s it for me, but I can wallow in your beautiful flowers (and the lovely presentation).
Thanks, Ricki. Your weather means you can do some indoor things!
Beautiful collages. You have so much in bloom. Even with the warm temperatures in southern California, I have less in bloom at the moment. All my roses have been pruned back to sticks.
What kinds of roses do you have, many don’t need to be pruned too heavily. Species and modern English roses only need dead wood to be removed and some of the stems shortening.
That came out really nice! I’m going to have to look into it as well, I just need to find a couple decent pictures…. not as many blooms here.
Snow pictures would be nice too!
Thank you for mentioning Pauline’s post and the possibility of making collages. I look forward to trying it out.
I look forward to seeing your collages, do check about the spyware that Pauline mentions above, I’d hate to be the one to create problems for anyone.
I’m overwhelmed by the number of flowers…I thought I was doing quite well during my last count. But isn’t it odd to have Iris barbata flowering now? Does your pomegranate not loose its leaves? I have the same one and it is deciduous here. All I can say is: Enjoy!
Other people have told me that in recent years their Iris barbata flower in winter, this is a first for me, it is slow, just one flower at a time so the whole stem might take a month to open all its flowers! My pomegranate was diciduous last year, we’ve had light frosts but at present there is no sign its going to lose its leaves. The large version that fruits lost its leaves in December.
An impressive listing for the last day of the year! We still have errant annuals and odd perennials blooming alongside spring primroses, confused by our rather mild winter so far!
It is interesting that annuals often do survive a long time, are you meaning true annuals or half hardy annuals that would be perennials in another climate?
Ah, yes: the latter mostly. Calendula officinalis, Antirrhinum majus. And some of our true perennials that usually die down by now: fuchsias, penstemon, hardy geraniums, various scabious… The mild weather is encouraging long if sporadic flushes on plants that would usually be killed off or go dormant here!