Paeony poppy
This had nothing to do with edible and useful, I just wanted to mention how much pleasure I am getting from the red flowers in my garden. Probably the most dramatic is the blood red paeony poppy. This one self sows around my garden, popping up in odd corners, often flowering where I don’t want it, but I try to leave it in place at least until it flowers. I then hoick it out leaving room to plant something else. At least one plant is left to set seed, and there are thousands. I sprinkle these around the garden, thus ensuring that the whole process will be repeated next year. Read more
Bright orange, edible nasturtium flowers
One of the most cheerful plants in my garden at present are the nasturtiums (Tropaeolum majus). The bright yellow, orange and red flowers are jewel-like highlights, scattered around the garden, in odd spots, tumbling over other plants. Nasturtiums grow easily from seed sown where they are to grow and once established they will grow, flower and set seed for months. Intense heat, or later cold and frost kill them off but in my garden they reappear every spring, colonizing waste spaces and protecting soil until I am ready to pull them out and plant something else. The only work involved in looking after them is to keep them under control. Any plants that you don’t want are simply pulled out and added to the compost where they rapidly break down. Read more
