RogWilko’s Garden

These very exotic looking annuals are Gazanias, which are regarded as an invasive weed in Australia. Here, they can easily be grown from seed as tender annuals. They are great sun lovers - the flowers tend to go to bed when the sun goes in.  

 Another lovely annual. A very easy plant to grow from seed. Germinates in about three days, grows very fast, and given a bit of warmth and rain it climbs fast and flowers nicely. Its common name is cup-and-saucer plant, it’s proper name is Cobaea scandens.

 There’s a lot happening here. There is that little creeping daisy, Erigeron kevinskianus growing through the beautiful Helichrysum petiolare, which means “having amazing flower stems”

 Many perennials in their first year manage very little in the way of flowers, but not this. Raised from seed this year this Sidalcea ‘Party Girl’ is making a great effort and producing some nice intensely coloured flowers. Strong red flowers of a Phlox in the background.

   This unusual plant, grown from seed this year, is a half-hardy perennial, so can only be grown as an annual unless it can be kept indoors in winter. Its origin is Curacao in the Caribbean and its name is Asclepias curassavica ‘Apollo Orange’

 Just reaching its best show, the purple flower seen here is Heliotropium arborescens ‘Marine’. It was grown from seed sown last winter indoors. It is very frost tender. Very attractive foliage and should last through the rest of summer. The exotic-looking white flower in the forground is Platycodon, which, surprisingly, seems to survive the winter.

 The view from our bedroom. Garden looking pretty good at this moment.

 Growing in one of the shadiest spots in the garden is this rather exotic perennial, Roscoea cautleyoides ‘Kew Beauty’. It’s rather a tease because it is around the longest day when it finally pushes up through the soil. Its ivory coloured flowers could be those of an orchid.  

 These exotic-looking blooms seem an unlikely gift from a modest little plant. Despite appearances, the plant is a hardy (H5) perennial, Platycodon grandiflorus (cultivar unknown). Each bloom lasts several days, but with diligent dead heading mor will appear.

 Lavatera trimestris ‘Silver Cup’ at its absolute zenith, before wilting blooms and seed pods set in to spoil its perfection.

 Ligularia have in the past suffered major attacks by slugs, but we’re having another go. This was planted in spring 2025 after the pond upgrade. It te remains to be seen how itcopes next spring as thefirst shoots appear. This cultivar is L. dentata ‘Midnight Lady’. Very vivid large flowers.

 Tithonia rotundifolia ‘Torch’ is a lovely tall (a metre+) tender (H2) annual, raised from seed sown indoors in winter. This year most have been attacked by aphids, which rather spoils the foliage. An easy plant to raise from seed, and a very impressive result.

 July is prime Hosta time, and this dwarf, even prostrate, species is my favourite. It doesn’t spread very fast, but if one were to lash out on a number of them they would make a lovely area of underplanting in a bush rose bed. It’s cultivar name is “Blue Mouse Ears”. The picture below zooms out to show its neighbour and family member, Hosta “Blue Cadet”, which grows to a massive size by comparison.

 Hydrangea paniculatum ‘Wim’s Red” is an attractive shrub with its dark red stems and light green foliage.  The flowers start off white but over time they become pink and then red. In the autumn the foliage develops a range of colours - amber, orange, red and shades of almost blue.  This is its second position pretty well full sun, where it seems happy. There isn’t much room for it, and branches are hanging over the path on one side and a strip of lawn on the other, but I’m hoping it will respond well to heavy pruning sometime over the winter half of the year, so it will remain quite a small shrub.

 This rather fine upright hardy perennial has flowers very similar to the Lavatera genus, which isn’t surprising as both are found in the family Malvaceae (mallow). The picture shows Sidalcea “Sussex Beauty”. I shall be interested to see if it’s behaviour last year is repeated - all the foliage turned brown whilst it was in full flower, not a good look.

 Variations on the theme of pink. Bottom left is the invaluable mid to late summer standby Astilbe, which has over 200 species. Bottom right is the wonderful Rodgersia “Bronze Peacock”, and the 2 metre tall plant in the background is a Filipendula magnifica, very aptly named. Grows in shade as long as it’s damp or even boggy, but can be quite invasive. Derived from the wayside meadowsweet. Last year it got so tall that it leaned out over the pond inna most picturesque manner.

 This another nice little corner at the moment. Climbing the arch on the left is Eccremocarpus scaber ‘Tresco Gold’ and on the right is Cobaea scandens, and, climbing more slowly the perennial Trachelospermum asiaticum ‘Summer Sunset’. Behind is a wall of Lavatera trimestris ‘Silver cup’, with a few Lychnis chalcedonica, and, above, the tops of Eupatorium maculatum ‘Riesenschirm’

 This is one ofthe best bits of the garden just now. Top left is Lavatera trimestris “Silver Cup”. Raised from seed this year and grownas a tender annual. Others from the left are Alstroemeria “Indian Summer”, common name Peruvian lily (despite appearances a hardy perennial); Anthemis ‘E.C. buxton’, Helenium ‘Sahin’s early flowerer’; Abutilon

  This little known plant, a hardy perennial, is Catananche caerulea. The species name means dark blue, but as the picture shows it’s nearer to purple. The flowers remind me of the wild flower chichory. It is about 2 feet tall and presents its flowers on very thin wiry stems and flowers for a long time if dead- headed. Its only drawback is that it’s a bit unruly and lax.