FLOWER FRIDAY

A few weeks ago, Mr. HCB and I went out to Hilliers, a local garden centre, with the express purpose of buying two or three hellebore plants.  I had seen several on Blip and asked Mr. HCB about the ones in our garden, which didn’t seem to be doing too well.  He confirmed that perhaps our soil was too “claggy” for them, so we had a good look round.

We found three and instead of putting them directly in the ground, Mr. HCB planted them in pots and they seem to be doing very well so far.  Despite working on our heavy clay soil for many years, we still find that certain plants don’t like living in that sort of soil, and since our garden makeover a couple of years ago, we are able to have more pots around.  

This one is called Hellebore “HGC Shooting Star” and is very pretty and full of flowers and buds at the moment.  I looked online to see what hellebores symbolised and found this:

“Hellebore symbolises serenity, tranquility and peace. On the other hand, it can represent a scandal or anxiety.”  

I think I will go with the first three!

Mr. HCB is a happy bunny today as he now has some dedicated reading glasses.  Since his cataract operations, he hasn’t been completely happy when reading, although his distance sight is amazing, so we decided that however much they cost, he needed some proper reading specs.  He collected them today and hasn’t stopped reading since!  We both agree that although it is fine sometimes to read on the iPad, nothing beats the “feel” of a real book in your hands and I’m sure many will agree with that sentiment.  He also has a "thingy" around his neck so he can take the glasses off and just let them hang - an early birthday gift from Kate at Leightons - she is so kind!

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

“No winter or spring garden is complete
     without hellebores.
They keep us cheerful in (January and) February
     and tempt us into the garden.”
Sarah Raven

P.S.  The words above in brackets are mine - and thought they should be added as it's still January!