Hello and welcome to this weeks SOS.
Well what a difference a week mates. Record temperatures last week and back to Spring weather this week and more rain than you can shake a soggy stick at.
I have been working away from home this week and been staying around the Central Belt of Scotland for convenience. I didn’t check the weather properly before I left and have been worried about some of the tender plants I had left out. Luckily all seems to have survived with only a couple of near misses (first post).
The deluge had been very much welcome in some parts of the garden. All plants seem to be well advanced compared to last year but with the weather starting to take a more cooler route it will be interesting to see what happens.
Here is my SOS
1. Succulent Ice Lolly
As I said in my introduction I was away with with work this week and did not check the weather forecast properly. I foolishly put these succulents in a saucer before I went away. Imagine my cursing when I woke up on Friday morning and survey the garden for damage and came across this. Thankfully they all seem ok and are currently defrosting in my house. Needless to say saucers shall only be getting used in the house as they should be.
2. New Aeoniums
I mentioned last week that I had a mixed outcome to my Aeoniums over winter. I took delivery this week of a new batch of Aeoniums from Surreal Succulents and J have ordered a “Aeonium House” from Aldi so I do not make the. Same mistake twice. As always the plants I have got from Surreal Succulents are first class. Amongst them I have Aeonium Mardi Gras, Sunburst, Emerald Flame, Mariner L’Aposstle, Volkeri, Ron Dale, and Mascanaese
3. Saxifraga Winifred Bevington.
I thought I had planted this in the wrong place last year as all trace of it had disappeared. I thought where I had planted this was to wet. However having thought of it the strip of soil it is planted in is thin and it gets very dry during the summer. This variety has wonderful red, orange and green leaves. Hopefully it should start flowering in April.
4. Pulsatilla Vulgaritas White Swan
About to burst into flower. When this starts to flower you know Spring is here.
5. Tulip Polychroma
A wildflower tulip this is the first time I have grown it. Multi headed it is of course one of the earliest flowering tulips. I have planted this on a pot with another tulip Albion Star but I am going to plant these tulips direct in the garden later on in the year to naturalise.
6. 2019 Semperviums
I took delivery of some new Semps this year and planted them in one container. These include El Toro, Grey Ghost, Pacific Blue, Traffic Lights, Sioux, Devon Jewel and Brown Owl. This is the best time to plant Semps in my opinion as there is a good chance they will flower twice in a year. Of course as Sempervivums are monocarpic they will produce lots of new rosettes to replace the rosettes that flower die. This is why Semps are sometimes described as always living. I bought most of these plants from Sempervivums by Post and as always the plants sent out were top quality and healthy.
That is my SOS this week
It looks like this weekend is going to be wet and windy but I am sure there will be lots of opportunities to get in the garden.
As always to find out how six on Saturday works please follow the following link The Propagator. The don of Six on Saturday.
Until next week goodbye.
Sedums, Dahlias and Hayfever 
I’m happy to see that the thaw has started and your ice Lolly is slowly coming back to a normal liquid state. I visited the sempervivums website; there are interesting bargains! Just to know if they deliver to Europe …
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I don’t know if they send to the Continent Fred. When I have grown my collection I could send some offsets to you
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Eh ! why not, thanks Paul! Some swaps couls be nice, right
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Yep sounds like a plan it will be a gradual thing Fred but I am up for it.
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Tulip polychroma look more like a chaparral species than a relative of the tulip. It resembles our native Calocortus.
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Thanks Tony. I have never heard of Calcortus before will have to see if I can get them across her
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hmmmm. . . . They are probably not worth the bother. In the 1980s and 1990s, they were all the rage among those who like native specie here. I still do not understand the allure. There are prettier natives. Their flowers do not last long at all, and are not very colorful. Since they are pollinated by nocturnal moths, they are sort of grayish white (luminescent) and tend to open more at night. A few are pale blue or bright gold. They are difficult to grow in containers, and really prefer to be in rocky soil that gets quite dry in summer. I don’t meant to talk you out of it, but you have so many more specie that are much more interesting and fun.
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Thanks for the nursery links. You netted me in and now you’re booting me down the succulent road. The tulip is new to me and very attractive. Something else I must read up on ……
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Ah another one I have brought over to the dark side of succulent growing. :). Yes the Tulip is certainly an interest one.
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Be careful! He has already sucked me in!
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Echoing JohnK’s comments on the tulip, very lovely.
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Great post! I liked all the variegated ivy in the photos also! Quite the collection of succulents I must say! That White Swan got my attention! It was my favorite!
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Thanks very much. My succulent collection is becoming a bit of an obsession!
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I have been looking at the succulent nursery as well, all very tempting! I love the species tulips, very nice. And I agree with you about the pulsatilla, I do wonder what is best, the new leaves, the flower or the seed heads? All beautiful. 🙂
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Yes the pulsatilla has it all!
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I love the troughin the last photo. I visited Surreal Succulents a couple of weeks ago and showed great restraint I thought
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The background of ivy looks good with the Sedums. Always interesting sedums and sempervivums.
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Lucky escape with the lolly it seems, phew. I will see how my bargain semps get on before I invest in any more I think.
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You can order from Aldi? And they make an aeonium house? You learn something new every day. I want one too!
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Erm it’s not really Aeonium house lol.https://www.aldi.co.uk/gardenline-wooden-mini-greenhouse/p/075012127048600
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Ah I’ve already got one a bit like that. Don’t spoil it – Aldi Aeonium house sounds better 😉
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Pulsatilla are gorgeous, but I have only ever seen the purple and red ones (at RHS Wisley) look forward to your white one when it flowers. Must take a visit to Surreal Succulents, I fancy a few more Aeoniums myself 🙂 (All your fault…)
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Thanks….I seem to be brainwashing a no of people into liking succulents. You won’t be disappointed.
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