Late to the party

We must have been late with the sowing of our Morning Glory seeds because they appear to be rather late developers and are only now coming into flower.  They’ve used their time well though - scrambling up the post normally reserved for the bird feeders and cascading out in all directions. 

Those transplanted as young seedlings against the south side of the cottage have scrambled up through the roses and made it to the gutters.  Others were planted up against the wire rabbit fence that surrounds our vegetable beds.  Though restricted in height the stems have simply headed off horizontally softening the fence and clothing it in the beautiful clear blue flowers.

Ipomoea, as this genus is known, comes in a wide range of colours from whites and baby blues to reds and dark purples.  We’ve grown ‘Heavenly Blue’ this year but love the look of ‘Grandpa Ott’ with his regal, dark purple flowers and pale eye.  Then there is Ipomoea lobata, also known as Spanish Flag.  The tiered flowers are very different and fade beautifully from red to pale cream only stopping when the first frosts cut them to the ground.

Our Morning Glories may be late to the party but  it’s a joy to have something vibrant and colourful while autumn is starting to knock on the door.