So, you’ll maybe remember that in spring, I made a few collages of seasonal flowers in a rainbow pattern, here and here. T’was fun. Well, the season has marched on, as is its wont. And now we have summer flowers, with green ones even harder to find. Fortunately my lovely, horticulturally-talented neighbour has some green flowers to complete my montage. Witness:-
Whilst I’m florally rambling like a wisteria on an ancient thatched cottage, let me tell you about the hollyhocks. I mention them now because in our Oxfordshire village in July, I sometimes fear that there’s a by-law compelling the growing of hollyhocks, which I’m clearly violating. Am I the only person who doesn’t grow them? I must get some.
Once, last year, we were relaxing in a pub garden beside the road in another Oxfordshire village. Suddenly, one of the Stoic Spouse’s colleagues screeched to a halt in her car beside us, with an alarming manic glint in her eye. Apparently she was circling the neighbourhood looking for hollyhocks from which to steal the seeds: people take their hollyhocks seriously round here. Right, some pictures, yes?
And finally….
They are pretty, but oh so brief.
Right, back to the knitted mandala.
Such a nice detour into the realm of colourful flowers. Maybe you could yarn-bomb some, then you would have them all year around?
I am vaguely working on some hanging baskets, so it may yet come to that.
Meanwhile, I’ve just been reading your blog, and HOW gorgeous is your cross-stitch?! I love, love, love it. Is that blackwork? Greenclogs, who often posts on here, has been doing amazing blackwork too. Stunning stuff.
I did fall for it and tried to grow holly hocks here but for dome reason they tribe with everyone else around here but not in my garden! Tried also lupine and delphiniums ,ever so many over the years but those pesky snails and slugs just munch their way through. Have given up on all three now !!!
Ugh, don’t even talk about slugs and snails. It’s sluggy heaven round here. The gits have eaten all my lovingly home-grown veg. Hope you’re surviving. I meant what I said about offering any practical help that’s needed.
Lovely summer montage. Hollyhocks are delightful but they don’t grow in my garden. 🙁
Stubborn blighters (the hollyhocks, I mean). I daren’t even try: my fingers aren’t very green.
Your fingers are rainbow yarn coloured. 🙂
Ha ha. 🙂
Hollyhocks are part of my UK memories – you are right everyone grows them! [Well apparently not everyone – What is wrong with you?] Go the mandala!! Here’s a secret, but promise not to tell – I’ve finally finished and sent the organiser giveaway prize, which means I can play around with some mandala-ing myself 🙂 Starting tomorrow [rubbing hands with glee…]
There is a great deal wrong with me and yes, that includes the non-growing of hollyhocks. But forget that, YAY to your forthcoming mandala adventures! Seriously. If your mandalas are anywhere near as amazing as your previous work, especially that incredible book that you made for your daughter, then I think I might die just looking at the photos. And when you blog about it, would you mind if I posted a link here please? (Can you tell that I’m secretly rather envious of your artistic talent?)
Pfffttt! I shall link to you when I make something – after all you are the inspiration!! [You may be sorry – I never know how anything will look when I start out – if it looks good finished it is always full credit to the muse!]
And I doubt that my mandala will be anything like the intricate perfection of yours.
I seriously think your ability with yarn and needle – and pattern making too lets not forget, is pure artistic talent. Stop putting yourself down – for goodness sake look at that balcony!!
Thank you for liking that book so much – I am still ambivalent about it! I think when you create things you never quite see them the way other people do – you see the pedestrian qualities and everything that could /should have been done differently 🙂
I reckon that it would be possible to crochet a hollyhock…
Nooooo! Stop it! 😉 You do realize that every time you say something like that I start thinking ‘Hmmmmm, if I just pick up this yarn and maybe a 5mm hook……’
Superlike! Are they sturdy? We have disaster on paws in our garden – an English cocker spaniël – who runs through our plant beds just as it were grasslands 🙂 We’ve tried higher plants before, but if they are not big bushes, they don’t seem to survive mr. fluffy ears 🙂
Nah, not really sturdy. They tend to flop. That’s probably not compatible with exuberant doggy paws?
Not really 😉
Hollyhocks are my single, number 1, most favorite flower so you can expect to see more pictures when mine get around to blooming! It was nice to see another rainbow flower montage!
Excellent – I’m looking forward to the photos. 🙂 And I might come round in the dead of night and steal some seeds.
I just love your blog. Such an absolute delight!
Thank you! And now I’ve discovered your blog, too. 🙂 Your photos of hiking are absolutely stunning. Not. That. I’m. Envious. At. All……..
One of my mountain neighbors has hollyhocks on the roadside in two colors. She is saving me seed this year. Yay.
Yay indeed! Hope you’ll be posting lots of photos of these beauties this time next year.
Beautiful flowers and awesome collage!
Thank you, as always. 🙂
found the post – we have grown hollyhocks for years and my neighbour now has them too from seeds that found their way over the fence. Annoyingly her hollyhocks are the most gorgeous colour ever!
Ah wish I could grow flowers like that. I have to make do with slug friendly ones! The foxgloves look pretty though and are no effort 😉
My Gran had hollyhocks at the bottom of the garden. One Halloween night, as a child, I dreamed I was out there in a thunderstorm, scared, and when I tried to run back to the house, the hollyhocks wrapped themselves around my legs so I couldn’t move. I wonder what Freud would make of that?
I miss hollyhocks!!!