Our Withington garden has been looking very lush, rather overgrown, but colourful. We have had the usual disappointments and the slugs have been munching away as ever! But, we have also had some successes. I have been getting very despondent with a Tree Peony and early in the season I was about to dig up a Red Hot Poker which was taking up a lot of space. Just as I had the fork in the ground I decided to take pity on it and leave a bit of it. Both plants must have known they were under threat as they have bloomed for the first time this year. I painted the Red Hot Pokers to celebrate, and here they are.