More irises

Irises are now flowering in great profusion and in a gorgeous array of colours here in my Provence garden.  Is any plant more sumptuous than this, with its velvety texture and dramatic form? Luckily it has not been too hot, so the flowers have lasted a good amount of time. A star of the garden.

Japanese maples

I did not really expect these Acers to survive here, but they are doing OK despite losing some limbs over the winter, probably due to lack of water last summer.  But now they will be regularly fed by my automatic watering system, and they are in a (relatively) shady spot in my garden.

Strawberries and rhubarb

This evening I have picked my first strawberries of the year.  But my strawberry patch, now in its third year, is really getting going and there will be hundreds of fruits right through the summer.

And this morning I picked my first rhubarb since planting the crowns three years ago.  I was doubtful about growing rhubarb here, as it is meant to like damp conditions.  Here it benefits from the automatic watering system and is going like the clappers!  Plenty more meals to come yet this year....

Euphorbias

Euphorbias generally thrive in dry soils so do well in my Provence garden, seeding freely.  I want to collect many more varieties of this amazing species, but I have a few already, from the giant Euphorbia characias supsp. wulfenii, down to tiny, delicate ones that seed themselves in wood piles!

The terrace

At breakfast time - a wonderful start to the day! - and in the full glare of the afternoon sun

Dogtooth violet

Erythronium dens-canis, one of the loveliest of spring bulbs

Winter flowering cherry

My winter-flowering cherry (Prunus subhirtella autumnalis) is proving slow to get going but the clematis that grows up it is not so shy.

A real architectural plant...

The Cynara, or cardoon.  Really majestic!

Some other plants in London in April

The Pasque Flower

Pulsatillas are too delicate to fare well in Provence, but they are a gorgeous feature of my front garden in London.  A lovely sight to welcome one home.