A busy winter garden

The early mornings may be cold enough for frost but when the sun shines the plants thrive, bringing flowers for colours and green vegetables to eat.  The masses of oxalis are thriving and I try to pull them out when I am in the garden.  The strangest plant in the garden is the blood lily, or haemanthus coccineus.  Its short-stemmed red flower graced the garden in March and when that died down the broad leaves of the lily began to grow.  At the moment the leaves are swamping the leaves of bulbs around it.

On the north facing front porch, enjoying the sunshine are the cyclamens and orchid.  The orchid has been with me for twenty-four years and I have divided them over the years.

The pink camellia is growing taller and I must remember to prune it down when the flowering is finished.  I can enjoy the flowers from the house.

The zygocactus is starting to flower and so is the lobelia and they are in hanging baskets.

Low down at ground level are the violets and the bergenia.

The lemons are beginning to ripen.

The leafy vegetables are doing well.