There are two more Saturdays after today until Christmas. I am far from in the Christmas spirit, and it is hard to believe it is that time already. The weather this week at least shown signs of summer, with some glorious, warm sunshine after a rather stormy start to the week. This combination of rain and warmth, as I mentioned last week, is, of course, really making things grow, and every time I look outside, it feels more and more like the bush is taking over! Anyway, thanks once again to The Propagator for allowing us to share what is going on in our gardens. Check out the participant guide if you want to join in.
With all this growing going on, the two most useful tools just now are these. Branches are overhanging places we don’t want them to overhang, things are getting straggly or growing over one set of steps (there are three outside the house….).
Meanwhile, over at the herbs, we are enjoying mint, lemon balm, thyme, marjoram and oregano as well as the chocolate mint. The pineapple sage still has its stunning flowers, and I know the parsley has gone to seed, but it does look so pretty. In case you are wondering why there isn’t any basil this year, well, I still have a small pot inside, but haven’t gone for a basil overload this year after last year’s slightly disappointing efforts.
And so to that prettiest of weeds…the agapanthus. There are a few about to flower along the ‘down’ staircase, and there will be more pictures in the weeks to come.
Next up, the buds on the Peruvian lilies will soon be bursting forth and the bright, yellow flowers that often in the background of our Christmas Eve photos will soon be out. They seem to have gone a bit feral this year, so will need to get a little bit of a tidy up.
I was sitting at my computer, wondering what to include in this blog post, when I noticed nasturtium leaves where I wasn’t expecting them, twisted around the tecomanthe speciosa. On closer inspection, I could see a large plant that has sprung up (from seeds blown from other plants?), and is flowering and even spreading over the decking. I have no idea why I hadn’t noticed this before, but there we are. Oh and one final note on nasturtiums – some little leaves were used as garnish on the lamb dish I ate on Thursday when we were out.
And, definitely the last picture of 2020 of the camellia bush. I am sorry I couldn’t tell Pádraig of Grow Write Repeat which variety this is as it was there when we moved here almost 8 years ago. If anyone can guess or knows, please let us both know!
So that is my six for this week. As usual, I am looking forward to seeing everyone’s beautiful gardens in other parts of the world. Hope you are all well and enjoying your gardens in whatever the season is with you.
You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram@thistleandkiwis. As for Twitter….am totally inactive these days. If you want to get in touch, email me on thistlesandkiwis@gmail.com
Thistles and Kiwis 
This flower spike of Agapanthus with such a nice background… so pretty and exotic!
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Thanks!
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The flower of the pineapple sage is stunning.
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Your herbs are so impressive but what do you use the chocolate mint with? I can only think of mint/chocolate ice cream. Lovely camellia……as I always say.
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Yes ice-cream is the only thing I can think of too to be honest.
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You have some lovely contrasting foliage where those Agapanthus (weeds?!) are growing. A very pretty vignette. Mint can be beautiful too, as your photos show.
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It’s all looking lovely the lush. The peruvian lilies and agapanthus look about to burst into flower.
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Yes – any day now I hope!
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It is not easy to get into the Christmas spirit this year with all that is going. So looking forward to seeing the Peruvian lily. And, as always, the camellias are beautiful. Believe it or not, I have never actually seen one.
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I hope you can enjoy my camellias at least! It will be a usual Christmas for us, spent with friends and Skyping/Zooming with family, but it still doesn’t feel like that time of year.
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I love the fact your agapanthus is viewed as being a weed. Here in the UK I view them as prized possessions. Well done on your herb collection by the way. They all look in fine fettle. Happy gardening.
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I have to say that when we first moved here I got so excited about all the agapanthus, but now I realise that here they are almost invasive. Have a good week!
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nasturtium leaves will always show up in the most unlikely places if you don’t keep an eye on them.
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So true!
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As I was reading your post I realised that I haven’t growth nasturtiums in years and I really need to, if only in the vegetable plot! They are so cheerful and easy and tasty. And your herb photos are a great advert for growing those as well. I look forward to seeing your Christmas peruviana lilies.
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Yes do grow some nasturtiums! They look pretty and taste good.
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Your herbs look so healthy! Some of mine have wilted during the recent heatwave, but I think the past two cool days have allowed them to recover.
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