179E - Colour: nature is the best designer!

 When I used a paintbrush last week, first time in yonks, I let myself be inspired by the colours of the tree spinach in my balcony garden.

Wonderful colours 

   You must admit, aren't those colours amazing?

   I am influenced by colour very much. You could state that the emotion directive part of my brain has been equipped with an extra neuronreceptor for colours. Thanks, Mum.

   That trend of a couple of years ago, of everything slick black, grey and white, especially in bathrooms and kitchens, it gives me the shivers. Showering, okay, I do that with my eyes closed, but cooking in a black kitchen? Not my idea of a cheerful pastime. It's because I think black and grey non-colours, they do not occur in the plantworld (basalt, granite, slate, marble - all 'rocks'). And 'thus' they are boring, and most of all depressing, to me.

Cheery, inspiring, vibrant

Ooooookay, now that I probably have offended more than half of you, sorry about that, I do not mean to.

My own kitchen (unfortunately) is broken white with a fake black marble worktop (nasty shiver down my back). I had no say in that and no funds to replace it. But, to counter it, I painted my cabinet Caribbean green with pink roses.

To counter the often depressing grey skies of our delta, I use as much colour in my gardens as possible. Hunky Dory has a pink/purple/blue/white bed, a crazy colours bed (where all visiting self-seeders can grow, whatever colour they are) and a red/orange/yellow/silver bed.

Echinacea and Japanese Anemones 

   If plants with gold leaves existed, they would go in there too!

   But, as I was grumbling about last week, that last mentioned South-American colours bed will not grow for me, so far. Especially the red leaved shrubs disappoint, when I had planted them for structure. Fail!

   Red sambucus, well  here in the delta it grows like a weed. Except in my garden. My two pinus though, meant to be a silver-green balance against all that (non-growing) red, are shooting up from my clay as if they want to reach at least 10m before 2030. Still, I give them a compliment every week, because when you are a moisture- loving forest floor plant and you take on my concrete clay and spit in its face, then you are a superhero, obviously.

This one has no troubles, lol!

Anyway. My mate Monique and I wanted to visit Seven Hills Nursery in Westvoorne to get some plants for her garden, so then I got some new red Heuchera 'palace purple' and the festive Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie' (see photo top right) - duh. Attempt number umpteen to find plants that will survive the soil in my 'hot' bed.

To be fair, they have it rough, because I do not buy expensive mulch, I do not buy expensive fertiliser and I do not water the beds, only the planters. What I do do, is sing to them. Who else can say that, right?

My home-grown Pelargonium

   We have been enjoying tropical temperatures last week!

   Puck and I are loving the early mornings, when it is still cool and quiet. We share our 6 a.m. morning walkies with birds, cats, hares and waterfowl. This morning got me all excited, because I thought I spotted a large predator on a traffic sign at the Langesingel. I thought it was an owl or a buzzerd, but when we got close enough to really see, it turned out to be a blue heron. And they are common as muck around here. Oh well.

Okay, enjoy your weekend!

Renée