I have to admit that spring is catching me a little unawares this year – normally I am eagerly hunting out signs of its arrival on a daily basis – noting every new sprout of bulb and hint of leaf. This year I have been making the most of winter, enjoying my hellebores and snowdrops and suddenly the garden has been overtaken by spring – it is everywhere I look. The first blossom is out, the magnolias I planted last spring are showing colour, my camellias are truly magnificent and there are swathes of daffodils bobbing in the wind – how did I miss all these lovely treats emerging from their winter slumber? Perhaps it is because I have spent so many hours with my head down in the borders declaring war on the weeds that are populating my beds. So now whilst I nurse my aching wrists and creaky back I have been taking time to look up and appreciate all the beauty that is around me – I just need to dig out my camera and try to capture a little slice of the joy that is spring!
You may remember that back in January I mentioned putting my rhubarb forcer in place – here we are 8 weeks later and the first crop of lovely tender pink stalks has been harvested. As I have no one at home to cook for right now the beauty of this pink crop has been preserved in a rhubarb cordial which will keep in the fridge for refreshing drinks mixed with sparkling water or prossecco – perfect for spring entertaining.
Just a few weeks ago my terrace pots were dominated by the tiny blue iris reticulata that I planted in bulk in the autumn. The blues have now all gone and been replaced by the white of a multitude of hyacinth L’Innocence – again planted back in the autumn. There are well over 100 bulbs planted in these pots and the scent is unmissable. The finale to the spring pot season will be the tulips which are growing well and should be in flower shortly after the hyacinths go over. That will be a full three months of beautiful flowers for an afternoons work in the autumn. The iris bulbs and hyacinth bulbs will be moved into my borders to flower there next year when I clear the pots out for the summer planting. The tulip bulbs I put on the compost as they never flower as well again when moved from the pots to the garden.
This rhubarb cordial is my favourite way of using the early spring rhubarb – simmer 1kg of chopped rhubarb and 150ml of water for about 30 minutes and then strain the liquid through a sieve. Put the liquid back in the pan and add 450g of caster sugar. After the sugar has dissolved bring the liquid to the boil for about 2 minutes and then pour into sterilised bottles and keep in the fridge. The cordial will keep for about 6-8 weeks, but for longer term storage freeze a batch.
Whilst I have so many hyacinths in flower in my pots I make a point of picking over the pots every few days and cutting any hyacinths that have fallen over to use inside. My greenhouse paperwhites are pretty much finished now, so to is lovely to have the scent of hyacinths in the house to remind me that winter really is over.
As ever I am linking up with Cathy at Rambling In The Garden. This week I am offering my congratulations to her as she is celebrating 5 years of writing her lovely garden blog – what an achievement! I have been following Cathy’s blog for at least 4 of those years and have loved reading about her daily rambles and watching her garden develop – her writing encapsulates her passion for her plot and she even shares her own poetry with her readers. If you are not already following Cathy do pop over to her blog and get on her email list.
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You will enjoy sipping that rhubarb cordial over the next few months Julie with the addition of whatever takes your fancy. I think that white hyacinths are my favourite and your photos capture their beauty. Good luck with tackling those wretched weeds!
Thank you Anna – I am just taking a quick break from the weeds to have a bite to eat & a cup of tea – after yesterdays rain they are coming out very easily!
There’s nothing quite like the sweet smell of hyacinths and I particularly like the white ones. Rhubarb is also a favorite of mine so so find your post here today on your lovely blog is, indeed, a treat!
CD
Thank you for your lovely comment – early rhubarb and hyacinths just shout spring to me – so full of promise!
100 hyacinths – wow, the fragrance must be astonishing! They really are such a pure and innocent white too, so lovely, and your ‘lasagne planting’ of bulbs seems to have worked really well for you. Thanks for sharing and for your kind commnets about the blog
You are very welcome Cathy! You are right – the fragrance is delicious and this weeks winds have been wafting the scent into the kitchen. I have been dubious about lasagne planting until recent years but I find it a great way to have successional colour and the emerging leaves of the iris reticulata both look very pretty with the later tulips and provide a little support for the long tulip stems so a win win.
Love the purity of your white hyacinths Julie, but I don’t know how you can stand the overpowering perfume indoors. I find it almost too much even outside! Glad that spring is coming to you at last.
It is funny how we react to different scents Christina. The only flower I really dislike in the house is the lily as I don’t like the scent. I also dislike hyacinths that are forced for winter flowering – the scent is too much when all the doors and windows are shut. At this time of year though, when the kitchen door stands open most of the day and windows are regularly opened I find the scent very pleasant. There is also the possibility that the scent of L’Innocence is not as strong as on other varieties as it is the only one I cut for the house – I have not tested this idea though. I also have Gypsy Queen and Woodstock in the garden so perhaps I should try then out inside – I might hate them!
What a wonderful idea to plant up a pot for a succession of delights like this. I have pots full of hyacinths and tulips but I have never done it on such a grand scale as this.100 white hyacinths must be wonderful.
Thanks for the rhubarb cordial recipe, I must try some as I have rather more rhubarb than I can eat at the moment.
I am glad that you are enjoying your garden, isn’ t spring magical?
Do try the cordial Chloris – it is a great way to use up a glut of rhubarb and is quick to make, although it works best early in the season when the stems are very juicy. Every autumn I question whether I can be bothered to order and plant up such a bulk of iris, hyacinths and tulips but I am never disappointed when spring arrives. Lovely to hear from you – I hope you are out enjoying today’s lovely weather! xx
Happy spring Julie. Your white hyacinths are just lovely and the idea of rhubarb cordial is intriguing.
Thank you Susie – do you grow rhubarb in your garden? I love to grow it as it is so easy but then I am always looking for ways to use it and this is one of the easiest I have come across.
Those Hyacinths you planted must have made a wonderful impact scent-wise too. Rhubarb cordial sounds delicious. Happy Spring Julie!
Julie, I’ve never been a fan of rhubarb, but your post intrigues me.
I pulled some forced rhubarb this week. I will have to see if ‘cook’ will try your cordial recipe.
I realised after posting that it was with my old website instead of the new one. brimfields.com
100+ hyacinths! I can only imagine the impact of their scent! I’ve never had a rhubarb cordial but I love that glass of glowing pink.