As the end of January nears, life seems to have stalled. Winter is mild yet grey, and feels endless, our country is now in an unrecognisable mess. Urgghhh. Some cheer is called for. I got outside before the storm hit and focused on flowers for this week’s #SixonSaturday.

As in most winters, snowdrops are lovely and fairly short-flowering, so they will probably feature each week now as the winter rolls on. Mine are just coming into proper bloom.

Viburnum is a winter stalwart, doing its thing quietly. When you close in and look the tiny flowers form a forest of blooms.

Now for some colour, I started by sneaking into the greenhouse, where a couple of spells of sunshine have spurred geranium on to get the flowers pumping out. This intense saturated pink did cheer me up.

Back outside, I’m never sure whether to keep wallflowers, or replace them regularly as they do tend to get leggy. This one wants to stay.

With the #BigGardenBirdwatch this weekend, it will soon be time to start looking for those early pollinating insects too. With that in mind, I was thrilled to see the first bloom has arrived on pulmonaria. No bumble bees yet, but when they come, nectar will be waiting.

This is the week that witch hazel burst into bloom too, so this intricate, gorgeous little scented delight, forms my finale this week. What a lovely, LOVELY plant to bring winter joy, whatever the climatic or political weather.

That’s my #SixonSaturday this week. In times where trust is short, you can trust that nature will absorb and engage. Don’t forget to follow the crowd on twitter and via the web from links to the originator of #SixonSaturday, the Propagator himself. And join in this weekend, get on and do some citizen science with the #BigGardenBirdwatch here: https://www.rspb.org.uk/get-involved/activities/birdwatch/

In January, bulbs start to poke up their noses and trees bud, signs of promise for the new season. Yet most of the gardening involves spreading mulch and shifting organic matter around the veg beds, not hugely photogenic. Before starting that, this week, I’ve taken the macro outside to zoom in on the little things that are going on. Here’s my #SixonSaturday

Although this has appeared recently, and it’s hard to miss with it’s pungent heavy sweet scent, the details of a sarcococcas are worthy of inspection.

In the greenhouse this season, I’m hoping to grow a fast crop of pak choi, before the slugs get going outdoors. After germination in the house on a warm windowsill, they are beginning to grow strongly in my unheated greenhouse.

It has been tricky to get those classic winter photos when there’s barely frost, but there was just enough gathered on tiny new phlomis leaves for a close-up, notice the geometric form on each particle of frost.

Most leaves in the garden now are old and rapidly turning into leaf mould for the new season. One or two are being carried away and upwards by new growth appearing.

One plant that plods ever on is evergreen ivy. Sometimes this plant is hard to love, every time I turn around it has grown through another flowerbed and into another tree. The greens it gives at this time of year are heartening though, here’s a miniture new leaf.

Snowdrops, they are still on their way, yet there are probably still only a dozen or so in flower. Trying to get close up and personal with them involves lying flat on the ground, but is worth it. Water droplets on these flowers reveal whole little worlds of interest.

That’s my #SixonSaturday this week. In times where trust is short, you can trust that nature will absorb and engage. Don’t forget to follow the crowd on twitter and via the web from links to the originator of #SixonSaturday, the Propagator himself.

My first week fully back at work since the end of year break, exhausting! Yet working mostly from home gives me time to notice the garden, and with oddly mild weather again, there are lots of things growing. Here’s my #SixonSaturday.

I’ve been taking the odd hour to do a spot of ground clearing, it really is time to do it, because when I do, little joys appear, right low down near the ground, like my very first snowdrop of the year.

Whilst the garden clearing is going on, I’ve been accompanied by a helper who gets a little more keen, and a little closer, every day. It’s now quite hard not to stand on him/her, although I think (s)he’s more vigilant than me, so probably won’t get squashed.

Whilst footling around in the earth and leaves, I found the promising buds of my favourite deep purple hellibore. Another week or two from flowering perhaps?

Moving into the 0 – 0.5m zone, sarcococcus are fruiting, and now flowering too, with the flowers producing the almost-too-rich, yet still-smells-in-cold-shade scent that I think I like.

Into the 2-3m zone for promising buds on my favourite shocking pink rhododendron. This won’t flower until May.

Look up to 3-4m, the apple trees are not yet in bud, it’s time to prune them. This one is a cooker, a tree that looks like it may have been planted when the house was built (about 210 years ago!). It’s trunks are variously cankered, yet most year’s it gives us month’s work of fruit for a sweet-sour juice. What a wonderful plant.

That’s my #SixonSaturday this week. Chin-up folks, take some time to explore what’s around you in the garden and do look up. Don’t forget to follow the crowd on twitter and via the web from links to the originator of #SixonSaturday, the Propagator himself.

Looking for genuine interest and enthusiasm in the garden in the first weeks of the year can be tough, but it was worth the effort this week…here are 6 promising things from the garden for our second January #SixonSaturday. The former Xmas-tree looks sad now, it was a great tree this year, a lovely cone shape, held its needles well. But all is not lost, it is awaiting it’s fate, soon to be chopped up and stored in a spare corner to be next winter’s ericaceous mulch (once I’ve spread this years and have some spare bags!).

Winter planting….a few tiny pansies didn’t take off in late Autumn, but here they come, and will be hastened in their journey by sitting on a south-facing step in the sunshine. A bit ragged, perhaps slightly nibbled, this is the start of many blooms to come.

In the greenhouse, a few winter edibles have shivered through the dark nights and now (thankfully) freezing days. With the morning light behind it, a red chard leaf looks luscious and luminous, maybe another month before it joins us for dinner.

There is promise too, in the soft and fluffy buds of a stellata magnolia. A slow growing shrub, worth the wait, as it is well established now, will produce a flush of flower in February.

This week’s prize for most surprising garden find are little clusters of flowers on a rather scraggy ceanothus. This one likes it hot, so not sure how long the flowers will last with a -3 deg C night predicted.

Last but not least this week, it’s worth looking up too, to see how lovely hazel catkins look, when set against a cold blue winter sky.

That’s my #SixonSaturday this week. Chin-up folks, lots of us feel a bit limp and sad in January, take some time to explore what’s around you in the garden. Don’t forget to follow the crowd on twitter and via the web from links to the originator of #SixonSaturday, the Propagator himself.

My first #SixonSaturday of the year is a little late as a software glitch wiped all trace of the blog I’d prepared on 31st…ah well, start a new year afresh. This week, I’m making the most of the crazy mild weather to show some late garden activity, and some early. First this week, hypericum is still looking green and lush and showing off it’s red berries.

I can’t remember a January with ferns still standing, but here we have one. I’m sure the January frosts will take it at some point, but for now, the colour blend from green to yellow and brown is working for me.

Perhaps a bit more seasonal, an array of tall grasses near the pond look good with fresh raindrops clothing them.

And now for new growth. A mild winter so far, and wet, provides optimal conditions for the lawn to grow a thick carpet of moss. The lawn is far too big to worry about ridding the place of moss, so we enjoy a springy green carpet for most of the year. Looks lush just now.

January is alwasy good for hellebore and the first few are pushing their flowers out cheerfully. I look forward to seeing more soon (though may need to clear the beds more to find them all).

Last…….something that should not be happening, a cute mini primula is going for it, pushing out a ring of flowers and another set of buds. A good omen for 2022? let’s hope so.

That’s it for me this week. Happy New Year. Wishing you all lush growth and lots of colour. Don’t forget to follow the crowd on twitter and via the web from links to the originator of #SixonSaturday, the Propagator himself.