Today’s is not too tricky and, to help,  it is a hardy shrub that is probably flowering in your garden now. Answer tomorrow… and now the solution to yesterday’s puzzler.

Sunday Puzzler solution: Aug 21

Myrtus communis

Limnanthes

Eucryphia

Nepenthes

Lamium

aster – yes I know they are now symphyotrichum. I cheated!

atriplex

grevillea

Take the first letters and you get M  L  E  N  L  A  A  G

Rearrange them and you get

Glanleam on Valentia Island

The garden is most famous, apart from being very mild, for the variegated form of Luma apiculata – ‘Glanleam Gold’ (middle photo) that was found in the garden. The species is too tender to survive in most parts of the UK but can thrive in mild, westerly areas and in the west of Ireland where it can become a small tree with small evergreen leaves and masses of small, four-petalled flowers in summer (as opposed to the five-petalled flowers of Myrtus to which it is related – in fact Myrtus is an old world genus whereas Luma is South American). The bark of Luma apiculata is thin, cinnamon and peels beautifully. Although most gardeners may struggle to keep this alive in their gardens, where it does grow well it can be invasive, seeding freely from the fleshy, edible berries.

glan leam gardens, valentia island