13 april 2008

In my Winter Garden

We are experiencing an unusually long and chilly Spring, here on the west coast of Sweden. But inside my Winter Garden it's already Summer. Last year we added a heater and extra isolation to the walls and floor plus thermopanes to the roof. It's the best investment we've done, I think - it prolongs the lighter seasons a lot.

So far, only four plants in there are in bloom but pretty soon there will be plenty more. The Passion fruit 'Caerulea' is spreading it's gorgeous scent all over the room.


As does my Angel's Trumpet 'Salmon Perfection'. It's a fascinating plant - the flowers are yellow at first, before they gradually change into salmon and finally - orange.



Two of my pelargoniums are in bloom. Both of them are my own crossings which I made a couple of years ago. My crossings are named for King Arthur and his knights, and the first one that I want to show you today is Sir Kay. It's a crossing between Great Blakenham and Natalie. The double flowers are orange and the foliage is golden.


The second one is Sir Gawaine. It's a crossing between Great Blakenham and Crystal Palace Gem. The flowers are pale pink and the foliage is golden.


Wishing you all a very nice day! /Katarina

12 kommentarer :

CanadianGardenJoy sa...

Katarina ... these are such lush beautiful plants ! .. yes .. it is well worth your while to invest for protection of them !
The Passionflower vine .. will always remind uf of Hlland and the wonderful house we lived in .. it is my hubby's favorite vine .. we can only grow it here as an annual though.
Brugmansia and in such a gorgeous colour ! .. I love all of your colours today !
Wonderful plants to see this Sunday : )
Thanks !
Joy

Jane O' sa...

I think what you are calling a Winter Garden, we call a greenhouse here in the United States. Is that correct? Is it attached to your house and an extension of a room, or is it a separate building?
How wonderful to have flowers and plants growing all year long.

Katarina sa...

Jane Marie: It used to be a verandah, so it is attached to the house. The reason I call it a winter garden, is because it is heated - I thought a green house would be unheated, but maybe I'm wrong? /Katarina

FO - 2 sa...

Beautiful! :)
The flowers, the colours, the shapes.
Lovely!
Wishing you a nice week.
I hope it will be warmer really soon! ;)

Anonym sa...

Katarina what lovely plants you have in your winter garden. I do love Geraniums and I think the blush pink is just exquisite. It is a good idea to invest in a winter garden so you can enjoy plants from the warmer regions as well.

Mireille sa...

Your photos and your plants are so beautiful...
Your title"in my winter garden" makes me think of a very nice french song "dans mon jardin d'hiver" by Henri Salvador.
You are lucky to have passion flowers and datura in april...
Thank you

Threadspider sa...

The angel's trumpets are so beautiful. Your winter garden must bring you great joy.

Catherine sa...

Beautiful Katarina...I have always wanted to grow the passion flower vine~can't find seeds! Yours is beautiful, and beautifully captured! As is your angels trumpet~what a gorgeous salmon color! I bet it smells heavenly in there! :)
Have a wonderful week!
Cat

joey sa...

Breathtaking photos, Katarina. Hold tight 'cause I'm blowing balmy weather your way ;)

Anonym sa...

Katarina, I've heard from my Swedish colleagues that winter returned for you all. Here spring is really arriving and nature is starting to explode. Soon my plants will find its way upstairs from the basement to get used to more light. Unfortunately, we don't own a winter garden, but I can continue dreaming about owning one one day. Greetings from Germany, Andrea

Yolanda Elizabet Heuzen sa...

I have a winter garden too and you are right, it really prolongs the growing and enjoying season. ;-)

I am wondering how you make your own varieties of pelargoniums. Have you done a post on it yet, if not, perhaps you could do one?

BTW I love it that you have chosen names from the King Arthur legend. I have named many of my Russian Blue kittens that way too.

Mary Beth sa...

kKatarina - What gorgeous blooms you have in your winter garden! They must be well worth the the added heater.