Kitchen Garden Forum

Not sure which it is. The Magnolia has some nice blossom on it, the blackfly have put in a first appearance of the year - on the runner beans - and yesterday was within 1/2F deg of being the hottest day of the year - just over 82F or 28C. The Roses, Sweet Peas, late sown Winter Squash, Peas and 2nd cropping potatoes certainly seem to appreciate it. And my 2 water butts are nearly empty!

Dear Colin, i totally agree with the Spring and Summer comment, but at the big house today their lawn was covered in Sycamore leaves, so making it look like Autumn.

Hi Colin

We have a shrub (forget the name, clusters of small pink flowers) which usually flowers on bare branches in the winter. It's been flowering all summer.

Interestingly it's also grown to around double the size in the past 18 months.

My clematis Tangutica has failed to flower at all this year.

Chantal, I expect the shrub you mean is Viburnum bodnantense 'Dawn' - all the ones down here are in flower too.

A lot of spring flowering shrubs will flower again in autumn (if unpruned in summer) - viburnum plicatum Mariesii, choisya and berberis darwinii, magnolia soulangeana and wisteria all regularly flower again in autumn down here. I've seen weigelas in flower again this week too.

Mole

I'd like to add philadelphus to that list.

Hi Mole, yes it is a Viburnam, thank you.

I've also had a Weigela in flower for the past 12 months. There is a big flush of flowers at the right time, but there's a small amount right the way through the year. Makes pruning difficult, I don't know when to do it now.

I've got a couple of deeply confused cordon apples that had few flowers and no fruit this year and have now produced a few sprigs of blossom

Chantal - your Weigela is not alone. I visited a wholesale nursery last week and they had whole batches in flower. Very pretty is was too if a little odd amongst the shrubs colouring up for autumn.

The general rule of thumb is that shrubs that flower before midsummer day are doing so on wood made the previous year, so if you prune too late, you do not leave them enough time to get flowering wood ready for the following spring. Those that flower after midsummer day are doing so on wood made that season.

I would leave your Weigela for this year and prune it after flowering next year. You should still get a second flush late summer.

Sue

I forgot to add that my mid-season Strawberries, which produced an extremely large and early crop, are flowering and fruiting again. If the weather continues for a couple more weeks they should ripen!