Hello and welcome to this weeks Sox on Saturday.

Well after last weeks brilliant warm sunshine this week has been warm but decidedly wet at times. The night are rapidly drawing in and garden opportunities are now limited when I get home after work. I am starting to miss the time I spend in the garden after work already but will just have to make it up by reading up I gardening and making plans for next year. I will also have to concentrate all my garden escapades for the weekend.

Here is my six.

1. Winter Succulent Bowl



Autumn is the time when people make up bowls or wreaths of small succulents that has been propagated this year. I have placed this bowl on the coffee table in the front room. Succulents can be propagated in many ways. Most succulents produce babies (offsets) that can be taken from the mother plant and after you slow the end to callous over you can plant in a gritty compost where it will produce roots and become a young plant. The other way is to pick off leaves as close to the stem as possible, allow the end to callous over, lay on a dry is gritty compost which you should moisten sparing and the leaf should produce roots and then small plants. This method takes longer and you need to have a bit of patience. I ha r just realised this post is a mini blog. I will write a proper blog of how to propagate succulents next spring.

2. New Clematis

I bought 3 small Clematis Montnas last year and only one of them has survived. I am not sure what variety it will be until it flowers. it is starting to grow quickly and I am positive it will flower next year. I put the trellis up last week when I was on holiday.

3. Sedum Atlantis

Voted plant of the year at Chelsea Flower she this year I took delivery of this last month and it really does dazzle. The flowers are a little different from other Sedums are hard to describe. This looks and acts like a semi hardy succulent but I have been assured that it is hard to -20 degrees C. I have planted it in a trough beside another new Sedum to my collection Jade Tuffet.

4. Sempervivum Tesoro

As you know I like my Semps. I have bought a lot of new varieties this year but I have lost a few due to the excessive rain in the summer. The rain was non stop and whilst they were puffed into a gritty compost some of them succumbed to the damp. At this time the Sempervivums start to shrink and go dormant. I guess the reason they shrink is to have less surface for the rain to drop in and drip down to the routes. Sempervivums do not like damp routes and this is the main thing that will kill them. This is one of the new ones I bought this year. It’s rosettes are starting to shrink but come the middle of March next year they will be large and healthy and will soon be producing babies.

5. New named Echeverias

I had a job in a pub next to Dobbies Melville near Edinburgh. There had been a power cut which had blown a computer and when I was on site there was another power cut so I went next door to have a look. Usually in Dobbies all succulents are name Misc or Ass. Imagine when I delight when I saw they had some large healthy Named Echeveria’s and only £5.99. Of course I had to buy some. I bought Echeveria Agavoides Miranda, Apus, Azul and Asante Sane. I also bought a cheeky Crassula Springtime.

6. Visit to Burghley House (they have a freaking Tie Fighter in the Garden)

When I was in Cambridgeshire last weekend we went to the gardens at Burghley House. They had an excellent water garden and a fantastic sculpture garden. Plant wise all the borders were struggling because of the heat. There was a couple off surprises though. They had a row of uniformed Sweet Chestnuts on the walk up to the entrance. This is the first time I had seen Sweet Chestnuts as you don’t really see them up North. They really are a bonnie tree and do look good at their time of the year. Another thing that stood out was a full size model of Kylo Ren Tai Fighter from Star Wars. As a certified Star Wars fan since 1977 I was like the proverbial kid in the sweet shop. I thought Christ that would look on my garden, then I realised it was bigger than my garden!

That is my six.

I am working this weekend so unfortunately garden opportunities will be limited. I am thinking in investing on a solar panel for the shed to power a light low voltage power sockets but I can’t make my mind up which one to get or if I should get it professionally installed.

That is my SOS. If you want to write one it is not that difficult. 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…..and May the Force be with you.