First ‘Six’ of 2025

Published on by Catherine

Six on Saturday

For a few days at the end of January and beginning of February, it felt almost as though spring had arrived. My husband and I spent several days in the garden – our first opportunity to tidy up after Storm Eowyn. It was still bitterly cold, but calm and sunny. We were dressed for the cold and it turned out to be quite pleasant in the sunshine. Unlike many in our area, the garden escaped the worst of last month’s storm. The blown-out glass in the greenhouse has been replaced and the one tile that had slipped on the roof of the house is back in place. I will never forget the roar of the wind that night. It was incredibly loud and sounded much like the hurricanes or tornadoes in movies. Scary.

That’s behind us now, new shoots are emerging everywhere and I’m feeling excited as spring approaches. I’m busy with gardening tasks like cutting back the last of the perennials and removing old or damaged shrubs when the weather is nice.

But now it’s time for my first 2025 Six on Saturday.

Snowdrops. After the storm, the earlier-flowering snowdrops were on their faces in the muddy soil – it was a sad sight. But since then, a few more, living in a slightly more sheltered spot, have started to open.

  • Snowdrops
  • and a few more

Hellebore Harvington Double Yellow. This lovely yellow is a young plant that’s in a pot on the patio. It’s a lovely sunshiny yellow – so cheery on a dreich winter day. The leaves are burnt by the wind, the frost, or both. Buds too are damaged but most of the flowers’ sepals are fine when they open. It didn’t produce many flowers last year, but I expect that will improve as the plant matures. I have to let you know that the new leaves were really beautiful last summer and the flowerless plant was often admired.

  • Hellebore Harvington Double Yellow
  • Winter damaged leaves

Skimmia japonica ‘Rubella’. This is the only evergreen shrub in the garden that looks good enough for a photograph. For a few years, a large lavender has been growing over it, and this week we decided to remove the lavender. I was surprised to see that the Skimmia, even the part covered by the bush, looked healthy, even without flower buds. I’ll feed and mulch it soon to help it recover fully.

  • Skimmia japonica ‘Rubella’.
  • The buds will open in April/May

New Shoots: Narcissus Tete a Tete. Several pots of Tete a Tete are making an entrance and if left alone by whatever neighbourhood creatures are invading my pots, they’ll make a nice display.

Pushing upwards, Narcissus Tete a Tete

New Shoots: Lupinus Melody. I’m happy to see this lupin come back, especially since we removed all the other lupins recently. None of them did well last year and had to go. I’ve bought lupin seeds, and if there is good germination and healthy growth, I’ll plant them in various spots around the garden. Melody, because it’s a short variety, is in a pot.

Lupin ‘Melody’

Hellebore ‘Double Ellen Pink’. This usually pretty hellebore is also winter-damaged, but I’m hoping some of the more recent buds will open to reveal undamaged blooms. The featured image at the top of the post is also ‘Double Ellen Pink’.

Not looking her best – H. Double Ellen Pink
Closer, then a tight crop improves Double Ellen Pink’s appearance

This final image was photographed at a closer range than the one above it and cropped to remove less-than-perfect areas. I feel it makes a better-looking photo, though some might say we should show our plants and flowers as they are, lovely or not. I still see the hellebore as it is, but when I look at it close up, I can appreciate the flower’s true beauty and its intricate detail. It works for me.

Do you crop your photos?

If you’re new to Six on Saturday, it’s a meme hosted by Jim of Garden Ruminations. You can join in by posting six images on your blog and linking to Jim’s site. Why not give it a try!

I’ll be back for Six on Saturday next week – if I can find six subjects of any worth! Meantime, wherever you are in the world, enjoy your garden!

Catherine x

31 thoughts on “First ‘Six’ of 2025”

  1. Yellow hellebores are rare in my eyes, because I don’t see them often: very pretty! I’m going to check the lupins, but in my opinion I don’t have many because the self-seeding didn’t work well. I’ll have to add some. Very nice last photo, Catherine

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    1. Thanks, Fred. Nothing much self-seeds in this garden, Fred. Except perhaps the weeds and the occasional alien species from someone else’s garden! I like the colourful spikes of lupins in the borders, but so do the slugs & snails. 🐌

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      1. I am surprised you grow lupins. S&S love them! I do have one or two only because they were given to me free with a plant order. They do seem to be hardier as they get older, though I have removed a few. The flowers are lovely.

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        1. Yes, the slimy little horrors adore the lupins. I’ve picked them from the top of lupin spikes in recent years. They’re not smart enough to hide themselves in daylight – but even so, I’m going to try Jim’s yeast method. I pulled nine snails off the back of a 2 litre plant pot a few days back. Yuck!

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    1. Thanks, Graeme. It’s nice to get back to Six on Saturday, though I’m not sure there will be anything else in bloom by next weekend! Nice to hear that I’m not alone in cropping my images.

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  5. I try to frame my photos well, but often get too excited to take more pictures, so end up cropping. Mostly I want to crop out distractions and annoying junky looking stuff at the next door apartment. Nothing wrong with cropping!

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    2. My problem is the cold (though it’s nothing like the cold conditions you get!) that makes me hurry. When I get to the point where my hands are quivering as much as the plants are, I just shoot what I can and hurry back indoors.

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  7. To answer your question: I sometimes crop photos, depending on the subject and the view, as you describe. I find it fascinating to view blooms and shoots and foliage and many other objects up close, and from a distance! Your photos are always lovely, no matter how you present them. That Harvington Hellebore is gorgeous!

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    1. Thank you, Beth. It’s a different world that we see when we get in close to flowers and plants. Beautiful to look at, but extra special when we can see the fine detail.

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  8. Lovely to see your gorgeous photos again. You have some fabulous hellebores and yes, I crop too. Or even take macros if the weather is good (i.e. no wind). I am glad you avoided the worst of the storm. It was the worst we have ever experienced too, and we were not in the eye of it. I hope the storms are behind us now and we can look forward to a much calmer and warmer spring.

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    1. Thanks, Jude! I notice that one of my hellebores appears to be wilting. I’ve read that Hellebore Black Death disease is relatively rare in home gardens – and right now I”m hoping that the problem is due to something else. I’ll go back out tomorrow and check it carefully.

      You’re right about the wind – it’s the enemy of macro, or close-up photography. Like you, I’m hoping for good spring weather, followed by great summer weather…am I hoping for too much? 🤔

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    1. Thank you, Helen! It’s nice to be back blogging again. Though, I’m looking at the desolate garden and wondering if there will be anything new to photograph for next week.

      That’s not good re not being able to post a comment yesterday. I’ve checked the site but can’t see anything wrong. If you have any further problems with it I’d love to know. You can always pick up my email from your dashboard comments if you want to make contact. 😊

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Fingers crossed WordPress will let me comment – 4th try! I’m sure it’s a browser issue at my end, on sites that ask people to login.
        There’s not a lot going on in the garden, is there? I don’t know how Jim has kept going all winter! I’m really hoping spring isn’t too far aware.

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        1. I’m instantly logged into quite a few WordPress sites, but there are others that I have difficulty posting comments on…because apparently I need to log into WP…when I’m already logged in. Jim’s site is like that. I’ve found a workaround to be able to post comments though.

          After I’ve tried to login unsuccessfully, I enter a few letters into the comment box. Refresh the page. I’m then logged in and my gravatar is visible. If I try to post after writing the comment, I copy it before refreshing then paste it back in. It’s a nuisance, but it works for me. It’s odd though, that something prevents you from commenting on one single post but allows you to comment on another.

          I think Jim probably has more in his garden & multiple greenhouses than many of us! I couldn’t find subjects at any point in the winter – unless we have a good frost on seedheads and leaves etc!

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  11. What beautiful hellebores! I am sure I had the double Ellen one once, but am not sure if it is still there. I usually cut most of the leaves off mine as soon as they start flowering. And yes, I do crop my photos!

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    1. I cut most of the leaves from mine too, but I don’t like them looking too bare so always leave some. Sadly the damaged leaves are detracting from the flowers this winter. It seems most of us are comfortable using the art of cropping our pics! 😁

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