It’s been a rather wet and occasionally blustery week and this fair weather gardener hasn’t done a great deal gardening-wise, other than ponder (from indoors) where he will plant all his annuals once the foliage of the spring bulbs has died back. However, while all this plant positioning ponderage has been going on, the slimy plant assassins of the night have been making merry in the rain, attacking the Dahlias that I’d foolishly assumed were far too established and tough to interest the gourmet gastropods. How I wish they could remain as unmunched and hassle free as this week’s Six on Saturday.
1. Take the Sweet Williams for example. They may get slightly nibbled over the winter when pickings are slim, but they’re left untouched the rest of the year.

2. And though the slimy ones often partake of the flowers of Primulas in spring, they seem to eschew those of the Candelabra variety. Hmm, I don’t think I’ve ever used the word eschew before.

3. Violas are also just getting on with it with minimal pampering (although their flowers were feasted upon over the winter). The one on the left may be the offspring of a batch that started off life in a pot a few winters ago before going free range in the beds. The one on the right is a perennial variety called ‘Etain,’ acquired in 2020 and recently stuffed in a pot with the sweet peas.

4. This Oxalis somethingorotherus is another one that just gets on with things. It came from my mother-in-law’s garden and although I sometimes hear warnings about Oxalis, this one seems reasonably well behaved, growing on the edge of the curvy path border.

5. Geraniums up next, both of which started off in the garden of the former Ancestral home up in North East Wales. They’re gradually getting split and spread around a bit, filling in the gaps rather nicely. It’s another ‘untouchable.’

6. And finally… described as an “excellent carpeter” (which I suspect means “keep your eye on it otherwise it will take over”), Lamium maculatum ‘White Nancy’ has certainly spread since she was planted over a year ago but she’s looking rather splendid, brightening up a shady spot. I’ll chop her back after she’s finished and may try dividing her.

They were my Six on Saturday. For more Sixes on Saturday, from all around the world, take a look at the site of the chap who started it all over at https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com.