A week or two ago, the last of the myriad bulbs that I ordered finally arrived through the post. It was the first time that I’ve ordered bulbs off the internet. I was a bit anxious as I ordered in September and had to wait over two months for the entire order to complete. I understand now that that is just the nature of it, while we’re used to delivery within a few days for items ordered from Amazon.co.uk, garden plants, seeds and bulbs have their seasons.

So right now, keeping cool in the porch are 30 lilium Stargazer (such a beautiful name for an incredibly beautiful flower) and about 20 lilium Regale (one of the most deliciously sweet smelling flowers). I really like lilies and I will be planting these next spring. There are already a small number of other various lilies in the garden and I wanted to get lots more. Although lilies can last as bulbs over the winter, they hate being cold and wet. We also have slightly alkaline soil whereas lilies prefer acidic conditions. However, despite this, I’m going to put them deep in the ground and see how they do over the next few years.