Hello there
We had a long, unusually dry spell in April, followed by a very wet May. Salt air rushing in on the back of a devastating storm late that month – 23 May, if my records are correct – "burnt" the tender leaves on trees up and down the West coast of Scotland. The countryside along the coast looks autumnal because the leaves have all turned brown.
Nature is resilient, however, and many trees seem to be recovering.
I've promised to quite a few people that I would post some photos, so here goes – May flowers. And the photos will show you that even in one of the wettest months of May on record, we had some sunshine.
What better way to start than with these May classics? Pure white primrose (3 May) and pink-blushed Apple blossom (11 May)
Sunset at 8:32pm, above, and sky at 8:40pm, below (1 May)
Pink-white rhododendron (1 May) – I'm not a great fan but these were lovely ...
... as were these very pale lemon azalea (?) blossoms (6 May)
The first blossoms on a crimson Japanese primrose with Marsh marigold and Honesty (3 May)
Purely ornamental: pink-flowering strawberries. Pretty but quite invasive, and the fruit is nothing to shout home about.
They'll have to go, to be replaced by proper, fruiting wild ones, I hope. (3 May)
Yes, I do love magenta – such a magnificent colour. Here it appeared in a beautiful, self-seeded tulip (3 May)
The sun has come up above Sron Mhor and now lights up my bedroom – summer's here!
And I wake to this splendid, golden symphony in the front garden: broom and yellow-flowering rhododendron (4 May)
The front garden looks fantastic almost all the time, but especially so when the different rhododendrons
– which I'm not that keen on but which look quite splendid when in bloom – are lit up by the morning sun (6 May)
Another view of the yellow flowers in the front garden: Welsh poppies, broom and yellow-flowering rhododendron (6 May)
The feel may be summery but the weather is definitely very unsettled this morning, thundery now (looking west) ...
... sunny again a few minutes later (and looking east towards the round top of Sron Mhor (Gaelic for "Big Nose") (6 May)
Looking at flowers in some detail, here's the Blue bugle or Bugleherb or Bugleweed or Carpetweed or Carpet bungleweed
or Common bugle or Burgundy lace (Ajuga reptans) – very much a weed, but quite pretty. Also, according to Wikipedia, it's a favourite nectar source of the Pearl-bordered fritillary, the High brown fritillary, the Small pearl-bordered fritillary and the Dark green fritillary. However, I have yet to see any of these stunning butterflies here. (6 May)
Broad-petaled geranium (Geranium platypetalum) – again, quite a weed but very pretty (6 May)
Staying with the blue-purple theme, one of the very first buds of what I expect to be a blue/purple iris (6 May)
And this is a last take on the blue/purple theme: the star-shaped flower of Camassia Quamash, or Quamash, peeking through the bright russet leaves of a small Japanese maple tree. Suddenly, there's Oregon in my garden!
According to Wikipedia, the Quamash was a food source for many native peoples in the western United States and Canada.
After being harvested in the autumn, once the flowers have withered, the bulbs were pit-roasted or boiled. A pit-cooked camas bulb looks and tastes something like baked sweet potato, but sweeter, and with more crystalline fibers due to the presence of inulin in the bulbs. When dried, the bulbs could be pounded into flour.
Native American tribes who ate camas include the Nez Percé, Cree, Coast Salish, Lummi and Blackfoot tribes, among many others.
Camas bulbs contributed to the survival of members of the Lewis and Clark expedition (1804-1806).
Perfect white "bluebells", probably a white form of the invasive Spanish bluebell (Hyacinthoides hispanica), which threatens our local Common bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) (6 May)
The days are lengthening apace: a fiery sky at just after 9pm (8 May)
Sunset at 8:32pm, above, and sky at 8:40pm, below (1 May)
Top end of garden in evening light (1 May)
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| Rowan blossom at sunset (1 May) |
Pink-white rhododendron (1 May) – I'm not a great fan but these were lovely ...
... as were these very pale lemon azalea (?) blossoms (6 May)
The first blossoms on a crimson Japanese primrose with Marsh marigold and Honesty (3 May)
Purely ornamental: pink-flowering strawberries. Pretty but quite invasive, and the fruit is nothing to shout home about.
They'll have to go, to be replaced by proper, fruiting wild ones, I hope. (3 May)
Yes, I do love magenta – such a magnificent colour. Here it appeared in a beautiful, self-seeded tulip (3 May)
The sun has come up above Sron Mhor and now lights up my bedroom – summer's here!
And I wake to this splendid, golden symphony in the front garden: broom and yellow-flowering rhododendron (4 May)
The front garden looks fantastic almost all the time, but especially so when the different rhododendrons
– which I'm not that keen on but which look quite splendid when in bloom – are lit up by the morning sun (6 May)
Another view of the yellow flowers in the front garden: Welsh poppies, broom and yellow-flowering rhododendron (6 May)
The feel may be summery but the weather is definitely very unsettled this morning, thundery now (looking west) ...
... sunny again a few minutes later (and looking east towards the round top of Sron Mhor (Gaelic for "Big Nose") (6 May)
Looking at flowers in some detail, here's the Blue bugle or Bugleherb or Bugleweed or Carpetweed or Carpet bungleweed
or Common bugle or Burgundy lace (Ajuga reptans) – very much a weed, but quite pretty. Also, according to Wikipedia, it's a favourite nectar source of the Pearl-bordered fritillary, the High brown fritillary, the Small pearl-bordered fritillary and the Dark green fritillary. However, I have yet to see any of these stunning butterflies here. (6 May)
Broad-petaled geranium (Geranium platypetalum) – again, quite a weed but very pretty (6 May)
Staying with the blue-purple theme, one of the very first buds of what I expect to be a blue/purple iris (6 May)
And this is a last take on the blue/purple theme: the star-shaped flower of Camassia Quamash, or Quamash, peeking through the bright russet leaves of a small Japanese maple tree. Suddenly, there's Oregon in my garden!
According to Wikipedia, the Quamash was a food source for many native peoples in the western United States and Canada.
After being harvested in the autumn, once the flowers have withered, the bulbs were pit-roasted or boiled. A pit-cooked camas bulb looks and tastes something like baked sweet potato, but sweeter, and with more crystalline fibers due to the presence of inulin in the bulbs. When dried, the bulbs could be pounded into flour.
Native American tribes who ate camas include the Nez Percé, Cree, Coast Salish, Lummi and Blackfoot tribes, among many others.
Camas bulbs contributed to the survival of members of the Lewis and Clark expedition (1804-1806).
Perfect white "bluebells", probably a white form of the invasive Spanish bluebell (Hyacinthoides hispanica), which threatens our local Common bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) (6 May)
The days are lengthening apace: a fiery sky at just after 9pm (8 May)
I had a wee glade of Bluebells (not sure if these are the native Common bluebells, or the more invasive Spanish variety)
and a few Welsh poppies (11 May)
and a few Welsh poppies (11 May)
In the sunnier part there were lots of clumps of Comfrey (Symphytum officinale) (11 May)
Blue iris by the wee pond – and in the front garden (11 May)
Pink Japanese primrose (Primula japonica) that flowers among some yellow irises by the burn (11 May)
Thrift (aka Sea pink, Armeria maritima) by the wee duckweed-infested pond (11 May)
Pure white lilac (Syringa vulgaris) delighted visitors in the front garden (11 May)
Sunny garden (13 May)
Burn in full flow (16 May)
Garden in the rain (17 May) ...
... and when the sun is out (18 May)
Pale pink lupins, lots of them, and purple ones and salmon pink ones, too (18 May)
Lovely Tiger lily (Lilium columbianum) (18 May)
Pure white Iris (18 May)
Burn still running quite high (22 May)
Evening garden with young apple tree (22 May)
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Jacob's Ladder (aka Greek valerian, Polemonium caeruleum) (22 May) The lovely, edible* Cuckoo flower aka Lady's Smock or Milkmaids (Cardamine pratensis) has been flowering for a while (30 May) *use tender leaves and flowers, which have a mildly peppery flavour, in salads or sprinkled onto a freshly-made soup  Granny's bonnet (Aquilegia) blossom (24 May)  A huge storm thundered through yesterday, ripping leaves and flowers off trees and shrubs, felling many trees – lots of people without power for hours, especially in more isolated areas. Oban was under lock-down for quite a long time due to trees across the access roads north and south. (24 May)  Here, the damage has been minimal – and I have been left with quite a colourful mound of plant debris (24 May)  Even on a rainy, foggy day, this place has its mysterious moments (27 May)  And the good weather seems to be returning: this is a view of the hill above the house, looking north-east. Just a hint of cumulus beyond the horizon. Lovely! (30 May)  Yes, the sunny weather seems to be here to stay – for now! (31 May)  And a pair of Mallard ducks has returned – and look very comfortable in my grass. They often sit on the pondy top bit of the burn, or in the pond proper. The quietest Mallards I've ever seen! He's very protective of her and always on the look-out. If he feels there's danger afoot, he'll raise himself and nod at her. If the threat persists, they take wing. (31 May – photo taken through my office window, hence the reflections) |
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