“Less than a month ago, all of August still stretched before us –

 long and golden and reassuring, like an endless period of delicious sleep.” ― Lauren Oliver

I am not responsible for all this rain, I stopped doing my rain dance weeks ago. I wont deny its a relief to not be constantly worrying about watering though. The nursery gardens are changing again, moving into late summer colours and there really are hints of autumn already! Some trees already have a tinge of yellow about them and some trees and shrubs are turning beautiful shades of orange and red. 

Agastache foeniculum

Highlights in the nursery gardens this week. Not even going to mention all that rain............. But thank you to the intrepid customers who braved the rain on the worst days last week to shop in the nursery.

Aster diplostephioides

Bean runner 'Scarlet Emperor'

Clematis terniflora var. Mandshurica

Echinacea pallida

Eryngium planum 

Monarda 'Marshall's Delight'

Oenothera biennis

Origanum vulgare 'Aurea'

Origanum vulgare

Tagetes 'Honeycomb' 

Tanacetum balsamita ssp balsamita

A quick and simple tulip. leaves ended up being over done trying to achieve good enough shadow

Fragrant Friday - Anise Hyssop. An aniseed-scented perennial, with downy leaves, whitish green beneath. Dense spikes of blue flowers in June to September. Plant in full sun and protect from frost. The bees love it and it happily self seeds, I never have to replant it. H 1.2m, S 40cm.

Flowers in a church window - hey what do ya know, this one turned out not bad wonky window buy can't have it all

After another wet and miserable day here are some lovelies from my greenhouse. August is going to be another busy month here at Quercus. Its peak propagating month before the weather cools and plant material isn't useable for cuttings and getting all the tasks done before we move into autumn.

We will also be having a stand at the Peebles Show which is on Sunday 13th August. So if you are visiting the show, come and say hi Maisie will also be with us at her first show.

On Sunday 20th we have our last charity open day for 2023. Raising money in memory of my sister for Breast Cancer now and Scotland's Gardens Scheme Peeblesshire & Tweeddale charities. We will have our table of garden books again and some indoor plants and succulents. We look forward to seeing you and would love to raise even more money for charity. The gardens look great at this time of year.

Remember 20% off water plants right through August too.

We'd love to see you on any of the dates above or on a normal nursery day, Wednesday to Sunday 10am to 5pm

Pelargonium 'Rimfire'

Pelargonium ardens

Pelargonium stellar 'Vectis Glitters'

Pelargonium trifidum

Pelargonium Voodoo

Pelargonium zonal 'Westdale Appleblossom'

The woodland garden, our new garden for 2023, is proving very popular with visitors and customers to the nursery and gardens. The plants are settling in well and growing already. It will be interesting to see how it develops over the next year or so. It is a garden of two halves, the first area as you enter is the cultivated woodland garden, planted with many shade plants in a garden setting. Once you cross the bridges you are on the wild side! Here we have left it completely natural, as it was with its mossy banks, twisted tree roots, fungi and native wild flowers. Here you will find harebells, fox and cubs, hawkweed, slippery jack fungi and many more before crossing back over into the garden again. Why not visit over the next three months and get your woodland garden fix. I am really looking forward to seeing how the woodland garden looks in autumn, my favourite season.

Into the woodland garden 

Another area planted up

Hydrangeas and Meconopsis

Geranium wlassovianum

Hosta 'Praying Hands'

Slippery jack fungi

Campanula rotundifolia, Harebells

Hawkbit

Filipendula purpurea 'Elegans'  

Still unpacking boxes a year after we moved in! All our books are still packed away along with lots of other stuff. Hopefully over winter we’ll get the second bedroom / Davids office / library (yes all one small room!) decorated and finally unpack the last of the boxes. Meanwhile it was great to see my fish and all the sea glass again and put it on the bath room window sill where the light can shine through it.

Today we walked from the house up the Cuddy to the new multi use path that takes you from Peebles to Eddleston. We enjoyed a lovely lunch in the Horseshoe at Eddleston before wandering back. The weather was lovely and interesting to see scenery we know well from a different perspective rather than from the road. Lots of butterflies, dragonflies and wild flowers. A round trip of just under 12 miles! A lazy evening me thinks

Storm over the river. A quick loose painting to use up the last small quarter page

small quarter page paintings have been fun to do

In the garden at home this week. Got the hedge cut today, Eileen next door has someone coming to do her side and hopefully they will do the top otherwise I'll need to get the ladders out The front garden is still an explosion of colour, it really is quite different from what I usually do but I love it, its so vibrant and really cheers the street up and me

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Find out more about the nursery here - our web site: www.quercusgardenplants.co.uk

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