Rudbeckia

A day of map drawing, requiring a lot of concentration and fine motor control! Consequently not a lot of time for anything else, so it's yet another garden flower - this time a cone-flower or Rudbeckia grown from seed. Previously I've not had a great deal of success with annual Rudbeckia, as the slugs and snails seem to find the young plants tasty, and any that do survive often succumb to late summer drought, which turns our heavy clay soil into something approaching concrete. But this year they've done rather well and add a welcome splash of  late-summer colour.

Tonight we took Alex and Ben to East, as they'd missed out on Lizzy's celebration meal. As usual, the food was superb and afterwards we sat outside next to the river, under trees wreathed in fairy-lights, listening to live music. I think it was an Open Mic night - some performers were decidedly flat (which made me wince), but the last couple that we listened too were really very good. A perfect way to spend a summer evening.