The last #SixOnSaturday of the year. I often use this space to reflect on the year and show some highlights. This time I’m going to show what is happening in my garden right now. The changing climate is having such a huge influence now. We’ve had 2 nights frost this winter so far, resulting in strange happenings, and there being a shocking amount of colour for the season. Here are some examples for this week’s #SixOnSaturday.

The most surprising plant is the garden is autumn raspberry. These should be chopped back soon, yet we’re at the end of the year and they continue to flower, and fruit. Wow!

Another plant that now really does have a go all year, is ivy-leaved toadflax. This lives in my lime-mortared garden walls and hops into pots from time to time. Tiny flowers are out now.

Something more appropriate is the flowering of mahonia. I have several large mahonia shrubs in the garden. Most of the year I find them rather spiky and ugly. In the middle of winter, it is good to see them come into flower.

Skimmia Japonica is another shrub that is rather old fashioned, that I’m not sure I love, but that loves my garden. I now have one that is about 4m wide by 2m deep! Great colour to brighten up a seasonal flower arrangement.

And finally a crop I having been harvesting over the break. Last winter I didn’t make it into the garden as I was rehabbing a new hip. A patch of Oca (also called New Zealand yam, a type of oxalis) got left in the ground last winter. The foliage died back and I just left it all to grow up again in spring. Now I have a fabulous harvest, including plenty of the smaller tubers to sow again in spring. You can see the withered leaves and stem next to my harvest (well, part of it). And we had some of these beauties roasted with sprouts as part of our Boxing Day dinner yesterday.

Of course, all that digging around in the soil attracted a little helper. My robin friend got really close!

It’s been quite a year for me, coming back from illness and injury to enjoy my garden and contemplate the passing years. I hope you have time to sit back and look at your own (or someone else’s) garden at what is now the slow-time after the stress of the build to the Xmas events. I like this week of the year, despite the dark and drear feel.

Thanks to those leaving comments on the blog. Join in with our #SixOnSaturday thoughts and images. All you need to do is find 6 things in your garden to show us. Then post on social, or add a link at Jim’s blog below. For regulars, our organiser is Jim at https://gardenruminations.co.uk/. And I’m on mastodon @julie3dharris@mastodon.scot

Almost the shortest day. We are due for just under 7 hours of daylight on Sunday. Happy solstice all, when it comes. Let’s bring back the light!! For my #SixOnSaturday even I have got into the Xmas spirit a little, and enjoyed some of the colours of the season.

First up, a seasonal wreath to brighten our spirits and call back the light from this deep dark time.

Second, for years now, some of my mature hardy hebe have flowered all around the year. Like this one.

In a cleared flower-bed, I came across this tiny tree, just 20cm high. Not sure what kind of conifer, maybe a yew? It’ll be coming out soon and into a pot, and it’s far too close to the edge of the border.

At this time of year, it is good to get around the garden and admire the evergreens. Some of my shrubs are more ever-red. I don’t know this one’s name, in spring it will have tiny white flowers.

Sometimes, structure is even more interesting than colour. A clematis seeded caught my eye here. There is such delicacy to it’s feathery structure.

And to end my set of six on this darkest weekend of the year, here is a tiny rose,, hanging in there to bring us flowers in the deep midwinter.

I hope you have enjoyed this week’s #SixOnSaturday as much as I’ve enjoyed prepping it. I hope everyone gets some rest and relaxation over what can be a taxing time of year. Thanks to those leaving comments on the blog. Join in with our #SixOnSaturday thoughts and images. All you need to do is find 6 things in your garden to show us. Then post on social, or add a link at Jim’s blog below. For regulars, our organiser is Jim at https://gardenruminations.co.uk/. And I’m on mastodon @julie3dharris@mastodon.scot

Very mild, very stormy, this seems to be the new normal (for now) for Eastern Scotland in December. It’s a busy time, but I managed to pop into the garden before the rain started and picked a few lovely little things to show you for #SixonSaturday.

A very little, very seasonal plant, sarcoccocus has just come into bud in the darkest, saddest part of the garden. Those lime green buds are about to burst into tiny white winter blooms. If things stay mild there will be a strong scent from its blooms very soon.

A ghost from the summer time, plums seed heads stand strong against the winter wind.

WOW, some early colour from another winter-flowering plant. Wallflowers are starting to bloom. the rich orange-red blooms give a real colour boost in the winter garden.

I probably need to cut back budlija further, for now they hold their leaves and it seems as though they might be trying to grow more.

Another seed-head favourite for me is the local wildflower teasel. these plants tend to pop up not quite where wanted, but their tall flowers and wonderful seeds are worth holding onto. They look fantastic right now.

And last, southern European herbs can thrive though winter. this is the blue-green foliage of a wonderful sage that has keep going through thick and thin for at least a decade. Some will be picked for seasonal deliciousness soon.

Whatever the weather, however grim and dark, there is always beauty in a garden. Hope you have had the chance to inspect one this week. Thanks to those leaving comments on the blog. Join in with our #SixOnSaturday thoughts and images. All you need to do is find 6 things in your garden to show us. Then post on social, or add a link at Jim’s blog below. For regulars, our organiser is Jim at https://gardenruminations.co.uk/. And I’m on mastodon @julie3dharris@mastodon.scot

It’s SO nice to be home after almost 8 weeks away for work. I’d forgotten I had a garden that would need attending to very soon….that has come as a wet and muddy shock. But hopefully this weekend will offer the odd hour or two. Better than the -4 degC daytime high and blizzard I left behind in Canada on Thursday!

For this week’s #SixOnSaturday, I just ran round the garden before it got dark and collected a bit of garden love. First, what could be more appropriate than a wonderful rose, still trying to bloom in the darkest month.

Evergreen tree heather is looking bright and breezy with it’s lime green foliage.

I love a bit of honesty, don’t we all! Here in it’s plant form, its a wonderful structural addition to the garden in winter.

In the greenhouse, a few of the non-hardy geraniums are still in bloom. I’ll need to go through them all carefully to chop out any rot.

Last, WOW, garden veggies, I’ve missed those. It also looks like my partner, who has been here at home the whole time I was away, didn’t spot them either. Brightly coloured chard will be eaten very soon.

It’s so great to be home and fall immediately back in love with my garden. Now I just have to cope with darkening days for just a couple more weeks. Thanks to those leaving comments on the blog. Join in with our #SixOnSaturday thoughts and images. All you need to do is find 6 things in your garden to show us. Then post on social, or add a link at Jim’s blog below. For regulars, our organiser is Jim at https://gardenruminations.co.uk/. And I’m on mastodon @julie3dharris@mastodon.scot