Dahlia

I’ve planted two dahlias outside, “Arabian Night” (2/5) by the greenhouse and “Lucky number seven” (5/5) by the redcurrant. Just so I remember…

Arabian Night, but it's even darker when you see it in real life. I've never been able to capture the true color of it.

I think this is Lucky Number Seven, could be Thomas Edison too but... I know Lucky is pink.

I have been lazy...

I feel like I’m running behind and today I really need to get something done! There is so much too do. I have a lot of seeds that I need to sow and I think I'll do that today and I have to have a look in my diary and see when I planted the dahlias last year, is it too soon?

A few days ago

The dahlias started to peek up and today the sweet peas did too. I still have loads of seeds to sow… But hopefully it will be worth it.

Now we waiting to the poppies to grow, come on cuties, make mamma happy…

Check the dahlias in storage

Most of them (knock on wood) looked just fine but one thing is sure, the bigger they are the easier they are to store. Some of the smallest one, the ones I sewed last season, I doubt they will make it through the winter. This was the first time I check on them.

Arabian Night: 4 (all very nice)
Fantasia: 1 (very questionable due to size)
Unknown: 7 (five questionable)
Children of Oxford: (1 fine, 1 okay, 5 small and will most likely not make it)
Tomas A Edison: 2 (both looking nice)
Le Baron: 1(Nice)
My Love: 1 (ok) (There might be two, I put the one I think is a “My Love” in the same box and it looked nice too)
Lucky number seven: 1 (Nice)

I’m also trying to storage a small pot with tall verbena, looking questionable, gave them a little spray of water…

Soon it’s December

Which means, catalog time! It’s time to start looking for seeds! Even though I have loads of them at home already but… I might have missed a few good ones?

Wishlist (so far)
Sunflowers
Cornpoppy
English Marigold
Dahlia
Mallow
Cosmos/Mexican aster

Brought in some of the dahlias today

My dahlias doesn’t want to produce any seeds, at least not the once on the terrace I still have hope for the one by the greenhouse. Tucking them in for the winter now. A little baby feel off, he'll be big in no time.

I love poppies!

It’s very easy to become a collector of plants and I feel I’ll become an insane poppy collector (and maybe a dahlia one too) but I’m okay with that. According to Wikipedia there a 120-odd species of papaver (but according to my "bible" there's only about 50...)and I want them all! Trying to focus on the perennials first. So far…

Alpine Poppy (Papaver alpinum) (Seeds, sow spring 2009)
'Ladybird' (Papaver commutatum) (Annual)
Ice Poppy (Papaver croceum) (Seeds, sow spring 2009)
Oriental Poppy (Papaver orientale)
Corn Poppy (Papaver rhoeas) (Annual)
Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum) (Annual)
Spanish Poppy (Papaver rupifragum) (Seeds, sow spring 2009)

Perennial poppies available at Rara Växter: Papaver amurense, Atlas Poppy (Papaver atlanticum), (Papaver lateritium flora plena), Japanese Poppy (Papaver miyabeanum), Hairy Poppy (?)(Papaver pilosum), Papaver spicatum

Annual poppies available at Rara Växter: Tulip Poppy (Papaver glaucum), Long Pricklyhead Poppy (Papaver argemone) and Long-headed Poppy (Papaver dubium) (which I have a huge crush on base on the picture… drool. Have to get that one for next season)

Perennial poppies available at Impecta: Rooted Poppy (Papaver radicatum)

Looks like I have to make a big fat order early next year…

Today

I started cleaning up, making the garden ready for winter. Got all the dahlias I grew some seed this spring and cutting all the leaves off and putting them in labeled paper bags, hopefully some of them will live through the winter. Some are really big and it’s not THAT cold during the nights yet so they can stay in their pots or flowerbed but the babies got bagged. My favorite is an Oxford baby with really dark foliage; I hope the flowers are just as nice. And I hope I'll have some seeds of my own to sew next spring. (If I get any seeds I'm willing to share)

The raspberries are absolutely everywhere, must find something to prevent them from spreading but so far no luck. A plastic rain barrel is the best thing so far but it was way too expensive, especially since I plan to cut it. Anyway, trimmed them and some of the lavender, planted cuttings in individual pots and dug them down under the rhododendron (which I hope to edge with boxwood, love edging).

And took a picture of the last poppies for the season, I think...

Some kind of Papaver rhoeas but which I don’t know, I do have to get all the seeds since I want only blue and pink in The Backyard. Red is best up close so The Front Yard and/or The Slope