I love surprises. This beautiful lilac flower suddenly appeared in amongst my clump of deep blue iris. I’ve grown this plant by the front door for 20 years. The colour has always been rich indigo blue.
It’s a bit of an untidy grower. Long strappy leaves splay everywhere, tripping us up. I’ve threatened to dig it out many times. But then, midwinter, it starts to flower, and what a joy it is. The flowers resemble silk. Surely, too delicate to cope with frost and snow. But no, it shrugs off the cold, providing a steady supply of blooms right through from November to March. Planted in front of a south facing wall, with its roots in rubble, it thrives.
And then something wonderful happens. A sport perhaps, or a seedling. I don’t have the answer. I’m just in amazement at the beauty and wonder of plants.
I hope it’s a stable sport and will repeat flower through the winter. Maybe it’s a completely new variety. We shall have to wait and see.
You can find out more about iris unguicularis or Algerian iris at : https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/24998/Iris-unguicularis/Details
Here’s some more flower photos from my garden today. We currently have 10C night-time temperatures. Unheard of for January. Consequently, all winter flowering shrubs are having a field day; the whole garden is suffused with a wonderful vanilla scent. It’s totally delicious.
Violets by the front gate. These came from my grandfather, Ted Foulds. They started off from one small pot. Now there are drifts of them under all the deciduous trees and shrubs.
Cyclamen Coum. These are seeding nicely in the woodland in a bed of leafmould.
There’s also various types of viburnum. Deep pink viburnum Dawn being my favourite.
What’s in flower in your garden today? Are you having a mild spell, like we are? Get in touch and let me know.
Links: Six on Saturday https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2020/01/11/six-on-saturday-11-01-2020/
Bramble Garden 
There is too much blooming now to list, but none of it is Cyclamen coum. I only recently discovered that a colleague has Cyclamen hederifolium in his garden. I intend to relocate some into our landscapes. I can only guess that they are dormant sometime after late summer like Cyclamen persicum is. Algerian iris sound intriguing. Algeria is not exactly known for horticultural interest. When I grew citrus a long time ago, the Algerian Mandarin orange was my favorite of the Mandarin Oranges . . . even if it was developed somewhere else and popularized in Algeria.
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Lovely to see your January flowers Karen! Any sign of colour is wonderful at this time of year. It has been so cold here, but today was a tropical (!)5°C so I went to see if anything was stirring in the garden (apart from the mice) and found two tiny primula flowers! 😃
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It’s amazingly mild here. Currently 11C at 8pm at night. Winter flowers are romping away. Ive got two patches of yellow aconite. They are looking really cheerful at the moment. Xx
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Superb Iris and Violets. Incidentally there was a Ted Foulds who had a timber yard at Thurmaston who built me a shed some 40 years ago, could this be the same Ted Foulds?
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Thank you Derek. Sadly not the same Ted Foulds. My grandfather was a farmer. Sending best wishes to you and your lovely wife Violet.
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I do hope it sticks around for you, Karen. I have noticed how active the birds are too – including in my pots of bulbs! Here I am monitoring flowering with a purpose – our Feb opening!
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Are you opening for spring bulbs Cathy? They are looking really good this year, and the primroses are in full flower here. Good luck with everything. My garden is such a mess. Haven’t been able to do much because it’s so wet.
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Snowdrops, crocus, hellebores, winter flowering shrubs and whatever else is flowering, Karen, on Feb 16th
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Thank you 😊 xx
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Lovely iris, and how fab to have it flower through the winter.
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Thank you
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How wonderful to get that odd ball iris after 20 years. Hopefully it’ll continue. Love all the other blooms as well. Such a nice cyclamen spread.
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Thank you Lora.
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The Iris flowers are stunning. I just wished the flowers lasted a little longer
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They last longer in a vase- about a week. So I bring them indoors to enjoy. Thanks for reading.
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I’ve a stunning white Christmas rose, in full flower, one of three ‘supermarket’ plants I bought last year and had in a pot by the door, I planted them in the garden, this one had a ‘cage’ over it as I thought it was in a spot the chickens would like to dig it up. Not sure if this has given it enough shelter to bring it to flower like this. The other two have no buds yet.
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Aren’t the winter flowers so cheerful. My white hellebores are also in flower. The pink ones are in bud. Thanks for reading
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Vibrant colours indeed. I notice that the colours of the flowers of your plants are all velvety purple or blue with a purple undertone, apart from the surprise one which, unfailingly, does have a purple glow with a subdued shade of white and a flash of quiet yellow.
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The new one has opened right up now, and it’s definitely different from the purple blue ones. I did just wonder if it was forced with the 13C temperatures and was just paler. But there’s a new flower coming and it’s the same. Aren’t plants amazing.
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Your iris is a beauty Karen and the unexpected flower a bonus. Very mild here but gardening activities are somewhat restricted as I have my dominant hand in a plaster cast. It hasn’t stopped me from indulging in some horticultural retail therapy though.
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Oh dear, so sorry to hear about your hand. That will slow you down for a while. Yes, I’ve been indulging in some horticultural therapy too! It’s the only thing to do when it’s so wet and windy. Thanks for reading. Hope your hand heals swiftly.
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That iris must be a real eye catcher for all callers.
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Just hope it doesn’t trip anyone up! It’s a sprawling messy plant. I wish I’d planted it the other side of the door and not on the main access path!
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We have irises and violas and several roses, and many bulbs are emerging. Even nasturtiums still bloom on the garage door trellis.
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Isn’t it wonderful. I bet those nasturtiums look pretty. I’ve got some growing in pots in the unheated poly tunnel. I throw them into winter salads to cheer us up. We haven’t really had much frost. Just masses of rain! Enjoy your week. Xx
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Same here, Karen. Many thanks
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Lovely irises again. I’ve got a good haze over the garden currently but it’s been so mild so far the fuschias close to the house haven’t dropped their leaves and still have flower buds threatening to open.
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Amazing temperatures for January. But still very wet here. Rained all night. 8mm.
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Beautiful iris!
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Thank you 😊
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A cold week is predicted for Vancouver Island, with northeast winds from the mainland and temperatures below freezing. This happened last year in February, when many plants were already sprouting and blooming. Some went into shock and took weeks to recover. I’ve lugged pots of pelargoniums into the garage, along with a couple of hellebores that are almost in bloom; I know they’re hardy but doubt if the buds would survive icy winds. I also have an Algerian iris near my front door. I cut the foliage down to 8 inches or so in late autumn, otherwise it obscures the flowers. Fresh foliage appears in spring and yes, I have to restrain it from flopping onto the front walk. The flowers are worth the trouble, though.
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It seems many of us have it growing by our front door. Lovely thing to find as we leave and arrive at the house. Do hope your plants survive the cold spell. It’s a really bizarre 10C again. We’ve had night temps of 13.5C stood outside in my dressing gown and it wasn’t cold. Very odd for January. Enjoy your Sunday.
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We can hardly see our garden today. We’ve had squalls of rain and terrific winds. Right now there is a severe thunderstorm warning, as well as a tornado watch. The wind whistles and moans around the corners of the house. The last thing on my mind was gardening! That’s why I enjoyed your photos so much. They are beautiful.
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Oh dear Anne, that doesn’t sound good. We had 40mph winds yesterday, but mild temperatures and it’s 10C again today. All the birds are singing as if it’s spring. I do hope they don’t start making nests too soon. Enjoy your Sunday. Xx
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It’s not daylight yet, but I don’t think anything was blown off the deck. There will be lots of branches on the ground.
We saw shoots of daffodils coming up next door.
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