For a second year Cathy of Words and Herbs is hosting a Week of Flowers, inviting everyone to share some “extra colour and cheer” by posting one flowery photo a day, for a week.
Hydrangea (November 17 2021)
A great excuse for me to post some of the recent colour found in the sub-tropical gardens close to home.
August in Cornwall is the time for the Hydrangea to take centre stage. Everywhere you go you will see large shrubs of this pretty flower in gardens, roadsides and public spaces. This post is from 2019 when visiting gardens was a lot easier than it has been since!
Looking around the lanes and gardens in August you can’t fail to notice the number of Hydrangeas that are in flower. Here in Cornwall where the temperatures are mild all year round and where there is plenty of moisture they grow into enormous shrubs in colours ranging from the purest white to the darkest purple.
The one place to visit to see these flowers en masse is Trebah Garden on the Helford River. This is when they take centre stage. The plants here are hand pruned in early spring which helps promote the abundance of flowers that remain until long into the autumn. The majority of these were planted in 1949.
Included in the species are H. aspera which has soft velvety leaves. Bees collecting pollen from this plant accumulate a blue sac on each leg rather than the usual yellow.
H. quercifolia has large oak-like leaves which develop burnished tinges in autumn.
H. paniculata “Vanille Fraise” (Strawberry Vanilla) has large panicles of white flowers that turn pink as the summer progresses. This one I have in my own garden.
Hydrangea Valley is filled with plants of all shapes and colours. The pretty ‘Monet’ style bridge provides the perfect place to see them with reflections in the Mallard Pond.
If you want to see more of this lovely garden then please click on this link to my other blog: Cornwall in Colours
This post is a contribution to Fandango’s Flashback Friday. Have you got a post you wrote in the past on this particular day? The world might be glad to see it – either for the first time – or again if they’re long-time loyal readers.
Looking around the lanes and gardens in August you can’t fail to notice the number of Hydrangeas that are in flower. Here in Cornwall where the temperatures are mild all year round and where there is plenty of moisture they grow into enormous shrubs in colours ranging from the purest white to the darkest purple.
The one place to visit to see these flowers en masse is Trebah Garden on the Helford River. This is when they take centre stage. The plants here are hand pruned in early spring which helps promote the abundance of flowers that remain until long into the autumn. The majority of these were planted in 1949.
Included in the species are H. aspera which has soft velvety leaves. Bees collecting pollen from this plant accumulate a blue sac on each leg rather than the usual yellow.
H. quercifolia has large oak-like leaves which develop burnished tinges in autumn.
H. paniculata “Vanille Fraise” (Strawberry Vanilla) has large panicles of white flowers that turn pink as the summer progresses. This one I have in my own garden.
Hydrangea Valley is filled with plants of all shapes and colours. The pretty ‘Monet’ style bridge provides the perfect place to see them with reflections in the Mallard Pond.
If you want to see more of this lovely garden then please click on this link to my other blog: Cornwall in Colours
In the period leading to Christmas some people buy an Advent Calendar to check off each day before December 25. Usually intended for children, it appears that in recent years there has been a rise in the popularity of luxury ones aimed at indulgent adults who feel the necessity to treat themselves on the run-up to the big day itself – from expensive candles and perfume to miniature bottles of Prosecco or Whisky and even chunks of cheese.
So I thought to balance all this extravaganza I would offer you an alternative in the form of a flower a day from Sunday 3rd December until Sunday 24th December.
All images taken on a mid-November day along the George V Memorial Walk alongside Copperhouse Pool in Hayle using my Olympus OM-D E-M10 and 40-150mm lens
(click to enlarge to full size)
I found this tiny decaying flower / petal whilst tidying up the pots at the weekend. Only 0.5cm diameter it is tiny. As it was a windy day I brought it inside and placed it on a black cloth to photograph.
Pink or Blue? The colour of the flower depends on a variety of conditions, but mostly on the PH level of the soil (blue in acid soil, pink in alkaline). They are native to the Far East and America and the name comes from the Greek ‘hydra’ (water) and ‘aggeion’ (vessel or jug) which refers to the shape of the seed capsule. Hydrangeas like moisture and shade, but not too much of either, although a large one can absorb over ten gallons of water a day in very hot weather. The Chinese term for hydrangeas roughly translates as ’embroidered ball flower’ – rather suitable! (Text from a sign in the National Trust garden of Trengwainton in Cornwall)
White flowers remain white in any soil, though mine (#3) does go slightly pink over the season.
A return to one of my favourite challenges which only runs in the autumn months, but offers a chance to admire the beautiful leaf shapes and colours of this bountiful season.
Speckled Wood Butterfly on Hydrangea Leaves
Earth laughs in flowers 
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