A pot plant for the festive season

We have an ancient cymbidium, bought as a small plant from Swain's in the High Street maybe 10 years ago, or was it 15?  Anyway, it has been repotted a few times and has now grown into a large plant with many growing points.  It is so easy to please.  It spends the summer months under a tree in the garden and survives mostly on rain.  It comes inside in September and already has  flower spikes.  It gets a feed when I can remember of anything that's going.  But it is now a biennial flowerer, a sure sign that it needs more room so I plan to divide it in maybe 4 and repot in the Spring.

A Perfect Snowfall in the Garden - click the link

http://picasaweb.google.com/twrmelyn/10InchesOfSnowAtSiambraGwynion?authkey=Gv1sRgCLiW1PH1jrDSIQ#

Winkworth Arboretum

We took C, L and new grandaughter, E to the NT arboretum at Winkworth near Godalming.  Umbrellas were essential for the first bit but then the rainbow came out and made the view over the lake stunning with all the autumn colour. 

No matter how much you hate the ubiquitous monkey puzzle, this young specimen, Araucaria araucana, could not be ignored and was curiously attractive. The pushchair was hauled up and down the valley and little E was quite oblivious, being fast asleep most of the time.  The first frost had zapped the Gunneras but brought out the colour in the trees.  Some great trees included the NZ Notofagus N. dombeyi and Tolepo, Nissa sylvatica, planted by the lake.

The Sorbus in the foreground is 'Peaches and Cream'

We dropped into the Inn on the Lake for a pub lunch and showed off our little Eira.  She was good as gold and much admired.

Solar concentrator

That's our new eco installation. Dahlias to make you forget it's October.

The tower door has been hung at last
The tower door has been installed on powerful wrought iron hinges inside. The slate-paved area in front of the tower has been enlarged considerably, and a square of lawn put in behind. At some point this may be starred with crocus and other tiny flowers of early spring. We've removed the rose La Belle Sultane to another home--she didn't show to advantage or flower well in such a shady spot. The plan is to find a good white rose that doesn't object to shade and flowers all summer on the wall to the left of the tower.

Last of the old Wendy house, built ca 1960

This stood in a very retired location behind the old corrugated shed, in the top corner of the garden. It was an adventure getting there through the undergrowth, and the little house itself was nearly covered with ivy. Creepy is a word that comes to mind. The problem was that there'd been no children to play there for decades, and wind, rain and ivy roots were taking their toll.
There may be a playhouse there again, or maybe even a garden house. In the meantime, I've taken down the little 4 by 6 foot house, marvelling all the while at Vic Smith's ingenuity. The framework had once been parts of a  greenhouse made of heavy, dense wood. One side of the roof was a cottage door. All the rest was boarded with a mixture of floorboards 12" wide, drawer fronts, thin pine door panels and one inch thick hardwood slabs, some 4' long. All this was well covered with roofing felt all round, set on a concrete slab. I'm fairly sure Vic's main expense for the little house was the cost of nails.

I'm keeping the biggest slabs of hardwood, but the rest will be heating us this winter. So all will have been recycled twice.

Shaggy Dahlia Story

The new dahlias coming into flower are competing for our attention.  The latest crop in the photo include the cactus with a central boss "Star's Choice" and the vermilion Tara Tahi.

Bank Holiday Bodnant

This is an alstroemeria
Bomarea edulis

First sunny day in months so we decided to garden visit along the north coast.  We got to Bodnant in time for lunch and spent the next 3 hours inspecting their hebaceous plantings.  The new hot border was still looking good with things like Lobelia cardinalis stopping you in your tracks.  The Actotis Flame in the new parterre was still looking great.  Each quarter is planted with the Chinese Malus transitoria.  it is a neat little tree with trilobed leaves, white flowers and autumn berries and yellow leaves.

Gladiolus papilio

One border had Aster frickartii Monch with Sedum (reddish foliage) and Allium chistopheri - must get Monch.  See pix for other unusual stuff.

The Cedar terrace (below) was amazing, as ever, even with bank holiday visitors.  There were fewer of these than we had expected, maybe due to the storm yesterday which blew limbs off the trees and closed the gardens.

More Cosmos

I used to think that the coloured Cosmos was a bit loud and vulgar but I have changed by mind.  Here is another from a mixed batch of seedlings I found discarded at Henfaes.  What do you think? Worth a try?

More dahlias and fruit

The cactus 'Hillcrest Royal' is doing well and looks great in the conservatory in this rainy weather.  I brought some Cosmos flowers from Henfaes and the colours match the dahlia in an uncanny way.  Just had to take a photo and add in the Charantais melon that is ripening well in the tunnel at Henfaes.  It is cv. Alvaro, which came out tops in a recent RHS trial, according to Colin.

I went to a budding workshop at Tal Goed nursery and was shown how to bud apples.  I put buds of Egremont Russet  and Lord Lambourne onto a wild crab rootstock (not ideal).  Tape will be left on until November.

A Good Weekend

Yes, that's what you call a sunny and warm weekend when nothing stops you from spending two full days in the garden, catching up with all the stuff that didn't get done during the long rainy months of Summer 2010.
We planted Bouquet Tout Fait in the south facing border opposite the agapanthus bed. We carried out jungle-clearance by the new garden and have made a spot to plant Scharlachglut tomorrow. William Lobb has a home close to the Blush Noisette.  Alain Blanchard is moved to a big pot till flowering time next year, when we can see where he will look best.  We found a spot for Gloire de Dijon (£3 from Morrison's, but another session of jungle clearance will be needed.  This is all the result of that rose trip in June, where we let heart rule head and bought those mostly once-flowering but gorgeous old roses.

On the to-do list: repot Magenta and give lots of tlc. Move James Mason and Cardinal Hume to places where they will be happy. Pink Surprise (av 6 flowers per year) will have to find a new home. Also, where are the rooted cuttings of Tour de Malakoff and Andre Devoust going to go?
We potted up the Cretan rose cuttings (double pink climber/rambler) which were well rooted and put cuttings of the China from Pensychant into rooting compost.

We took tip cuttings of Arctotis 'Flame', Coreopsis 'Pink Lady' and Pelargonium 'Lord Bute' in plug trays of low-nutrient peat.

The dahlias by the shed have started. White Ballerina is hugely floriferous, and huge. Keith's Choice, it turns out, wouldn't be our choice.  We love Hillcrest Royal, an exciting purple cactus type. Eagerly awaiting Star's Favourite, a pink/gold/white cactus. The later-planted dahlias by the big hydrangea are budding up, so there's more excitement to come.
It was warm enough to eat out in new woodland garden - pork shoulder with Stovies (Anya and Annabelle).

Dinner by the woods

The last two nights have been humid and warm enough to eat out so we took our leftovers from the tower event up to a table in the new garden and enjoyed the late sunshine.  We finished off with a special treat - Gooseberry Fool.  What a great invention.  Note the old Cardoon and the hemerocallis - was it Golden Chimes?

Red Letter Day

Today the curved door of the tower is actually hanging on its hinges. The tower has a door!  It opens and closes smoothly and evenly, despite all the difficulties of working with hand-forged and asymmetrical black iron. It's well seen those gudgeon and pintle hinges are obsolete.  Though they are very very beautiful.

Touring in the Welsh Marches

In late June we set off to see some good old friends and some roses down towards the Cotswolds. We stayed with Piet and Kate van den Ende in Presteigne and had a leisurely visit to Bryan's Ground, our kind of garden almost on their doorstep. http://www.bryansground.co.uk/

Ispahan

Sometimes a plant just looks perfect in a perfect setting.  Usually it is not by design and many of our best associations are due to chance.  Ispahan is a Centifolia rose which is once flowering but over a longish period.  It is a lax shrub that looks best when lolling over a neighbour - here a scented rhododendron. 
The masterwort 'Shaggy' just happened to be there.  Note: we must plant more masterworts.

Is it a polecat?

Corby saw a mustelid walzing down the garden from the wood and disappear through the garage door.  Later we found it in the carport and took photos of it as it explored our feet and had a nibble at Corby's finger.  Now it is noshing some catfood.  It is so tame we think it must be a ferret.

What dahlias are just right for a 43rd wedding anniversary?

Well, this is what I've just planted by the shed, hoping they will delight us as much as last year's crop. Star's Favourite, which should be pink and god. White Ballerina. Hillcrest Royal, purple. Pam Howden, yellow and orange. Keith's Choice, red. There are waterlily, decorative and semi-cactus in that lot. We have another 4 plants to find a home for. A place where they can shine, but not detract from our other very tasteful plantings!

Today I started bedding in the new slate area in front of the tower.  It's an area about 2m by 3m,  dug out by Edgar in April, levelled by me in May. Then I put down half a ton of aggregate--really, it's not much--and figured out how the slates were to be fitted in, cutting the irregular ones as needed.  It was very satisfying to use some of the big slabs I exhumed from the old ty bach a year ago. I laid them down on the roughly levelled aggregate, and today's the day actual mortar got used. I hope to get it done in two more sessions.

The new lawn in the area that used to have the old hut needs to be mown again. This will be the third time. It is looking smooth and dark green.

SG OPEN FOR FRIENDS OF TREBORTH BOTANIC GARDEN

Here is our blurb we handed out to about 50 visitors on 29 May.  We have had about six weeks of dry weather then rain on the 29th but fortunately it dried up before we opened at 2pm and only drizzled from time to time in the  afternoon.  We had spent the morning laying the turf on the new garden with Dave G and Corbie at last managed to reclad the tunnel on the Friday so things were not looking too bad for THE DAY

Siambra Gwynion 2010

A Penrhyn farmhouse, it was probably built after 1850 on the site of a previous farm house. It was renovated in 1950s and again, by us in early 1970s. The Bangor by-pass arrived in 1984 making wall building essential to reduce noise. The garden is very exposed so we have allowed trees and shrubs to multiply to provide some shelter. The cottage garden of the 1950s has evolved but we have tried to retain its magic. We strive for low maintenance but are trying to give the garden a strong, underlying design. The less-thuggish, self-seeding perennials are tolerated and some are positively encouraged. We inherited some excellent fruit trees (Lord Lambourne, Lord Derby and Charles Ross apples and the local damson-plum) and have planted pear and Victoria plum.

The garden is managed using an integrated rather than an organic system with minimal use of chemicals. Wildlife is increasing, some is encouraged, some is tolerated and some is exterminated in the interests of food production. Wild birds are not fed. The biggest pest is the grey squirrel which takes all kinds of fruit and strips bark from beech, hornbeam and sycamore.

The drive Trees and shrubs, mostly native, have been planted in the last few years. It provides a home for banished garden plants. The wilder kind of rose gives lots of pleasure here (Rosa spinosissima Altaica - flowering now - R. macrantha Daisy Hill, R. glauca, R. californica plena, R. persetosa, R. polyantha grandiflora, Max Graf, Scintillation, Smarty).

Front of house Climbers on house are Clematis macropetala and rose Phyllis Bide, both good on a north wall. Rose on fence and scrambling into ash tree is Brenda Colvin, a seedling of Kiftsgate; Brenda is a big girl and, like her mother, needs space. Clematis montana Elizabeth uses Brenda as a host.

East side of house is often wind blasted. The box hedging with that weatherproof South African, agapanthus solves a problem here. The tougher roses are mainly rugosa crosses; Agnes, Roseraie de L'Hay, Sarah van Fleet with Paul Masson. On the rustic arch is an old French Boursault rose, Morletii, thornless and with scarlet leaves in autumn. Watch your head on the low arch crosspiece!

Rhododendron border - a jumble of species and hybrids flowering from February until July. Favorites are Rh. augustinii, Rh. davidsonianum, Rh. edgeworthii, Penjerrick and Lady Alice Fitzwilliam.

Woodland Wych Elm did not survive Dutch Elm Disease in the 1970s. Mainly sycamore has taken over but there are some nice old turkey oaks, beech and hornbeam. We planted Western Hemlock for shelter. Soon after we fenced out the cattle and sheep in the 1970s, the bluebells returned and also herbs like ground ivy, muscatel, navelwort, pig nut and sanicle. We planted snowdrops, daffs and natives, woodrush and anemone. These have increased well. Archangel, hellebores and arum cope with the dry shade. A small clearing has a few ancient blueberries and remaindered roses that we could not bear to part with. Birds include bullfinches, tree creepers, goldcrests, and buzzards that help keep the rabbits in check. Occasional visitors include badger, polecat, stoat, fox and once only, a roe deer.

Returning to garden, veer left, up towards hedge On the left is a patch under contruction. It was recently a derelict corrugated iron hut. The former ‘Wendy house’ survives, but not for long. The plan is to produce a sheltered, sunny garden with a spot for watching the sunset. Passing back through the bluebells, roses include Penelope, Windrush and Complicata. Apple buds have been badly damaged by birds this year. This area has spring bulbs and comfreys with Rh. pachysanthum showing silver indumentums soon turning to rust. The border along the back wall is north facing and is held together by woodruff and woodrush. Ferns, epimediums and hesperis grow up through the groundcover. Camellias are Magnoliflora and Glen’s Orbit. Tough climbing roses are Alberic Barbier, American Pillar and Albertine, all already long-time residents when we came in 1968.

"Island Bed" Dominated by ancient Viburnum plicatum Mariesii. Clematis Perle d'Azur gives summer colour. Roses include Blush Noisette (super-healthy) R. glauca and China rose Mutabilis that never fails to delight but likes warm weather. R. gallica Versicolor flowers once but is irresistible. Hemerocallis and kniphofia give continuity. An Iris sibirica seems happy here.

Take the path between the apple and the tree paeony (P. delavay ludlowii – seedlings for sale) past the old ty bach to new and improved Garden Shed with loud tulips in front. The polytunnel houses ‘everbearing’ raspberry Glen Moy and a few tomatoes. Potager has mainly salad veg and herbs. Propagation happens here in the shade of the hedge but in competition with mice.

Turn right through the hornbeam hedge to terrace lawn (a bit rough) with roses, primroses, geraniums, potted hostas, hydrangeas and clematis (Alba luxurians). Scented Rh. Fragrantissimum and lilies provide aromatherapy by the seat after grasscutting. Roses are Little White Pet, Cornelia, Phyllis Bide, Ispahan, François Juranville, old rose commemorating Joan Morgan, Madame Alfred Carrière, Tuscany Superb, Stanwell Perpetual and Celestial. By conservatory are Perle d’Or, Dainty Bess and Irene Watts. Potted plants of Old Blush China (the monthly rose) flower in the conservatory in winter

Conservatory - frost-free. Essential in this climate as a dining/sitting room. Cool-house vine, Chasselas, and tree tomato (Solanum betaceum) are highly productive fruits. Shade is provided by drought tolerant Leucaena.

Continue to back door of house to see “hot”, dry planting around patio with lavender, potentillas, borage (Borago. pygmea), Algerian iris, Gladiolus byzantinus and geraniums. January hellebores and white honesty with hydrangeas to follow brightens the view of the garden from the breakfast table.

Back to terrace lawn and turn right towards The Millenium Tower. This folly is still not quite finished. It started life as an anaerobic digester (tub of liquid muck) built on an old midden. Go up the stairs but Max Headroom is small so watch your head! Views from the top include mountains, Burger King, lilacs (Esther Staley, Michel Buchner, Souvenir de Louis Spaeth, and Firmament) and rose Violette (a kind of rambling Tuscany Superb).



Favourite Plants
Rose Tuscany Superb, rose Mutabilis, bluebells, lilac Esther Staley, Daffodil Mrs R 0 Backhouse, Welsh poppy, Iris unguicularis, common yellow azalea

So much to do

Corby is laying paving in the lilac garden and the sleepers arrived today for the levelling of the new wood garden - still lots to do there. Corinne came to help one day this week and tore around pulling dandelions and weeds until she nearly froze. What an effort!

Corby's shed is now decorated with a bed of stupendous tulips.  The bulbs went in in December - mixed pastels from Tesco, Antoinette, the spray flowered yellow etc.  We have a pot of Marilyn left over from last year which have been translocated to a bare spot near the conservatory, surrounded by the thuggish alkanet.  They have been blooming now for 4 weeks or so.

A Slice of May

We need rain.  We have not had a decent drop for four or five weeks.  Yes, we have had sun and blue skies but all this high pressure has given us north wind - oh, and volcanic ash.  So the garden is stuck in early Spring and some plants have remained in flower for ages instead of being over in a trice.  Polar Ice daffs out with all the rhodos.  The garden will be open for the Friends of Treborth on the 29th.  Will the primroses still be stunning and will the Viburnum plicatum be blooming with the tree paeony? And what about the bluebells in the woods - will they hold on long enough?

The rhododendrons are going full blast and are nicely framed by that thug, Euphorbia robbiae.  The old clump of scented Narcissus 'Polar Ice', Jean Shaw's favourite and transplanted from Lesmahagow make a great foreground.

The rhodos are tightly packed but their struggle to survive ensures they adjust their spread and always look good.  All we do is pull out brambles and water a bit if things get too dry.                                     The shady border along the top of the garden is beginning to gel.  The sweet woodruff took off a few years ago and suppresses most weeds.  It makes a calm green carpet with tiny wee accents of white flowers.  But will it prove to be a liability?  The ferns are erupting from the carpet in a most pleasing way, ditto solomon seal and Blethin's giant chrysosplenium.

Long trip home

It took us four days to get back, thanks to the volanic ash.  Sailing up the Adriatic past the Greek islands was not at all bad

As soon as we got back, it was Treborth early plant sale and all the veg seedlings that Corbie raised had to be ferried to Treborth, labelled and priced. it was all very worth while as we made £1300 (net).


It has been cold but dry here at SG for the last three weeks. It rained a bit for the first time in ages today. The grass was cut for the first time and weeding is a top priority (hairy rock cress is the worst at this time), followed by seeding dandelions. The Camellia "Magnoliflora" was frosted while we were gone.  We don't have long to go before we have the garden open to the Friends of Treboth Botanic Gardens at the end of May.  I wonder if the primroses and bluebells will last until then.

And it's the end of April already

We havn't had a chance to blog for ages.  Here's why.  We went to Crete en famille for a week to see the flowers but had an extra two days due to the volcano, then three more days to get home over sea and land via Athens, Patras, Ancona and Bologna where we were very lucky to get a flight to Gatwick.

The plants around Chania were fab then we moved to Enagron near Ancos in the Psiloritis mountains and found lots more amazing and delightful plants.  The weather got better and better and it got quite hot at midday, even in the mountains.

One of the most spectacular plants was Petromarula pinnata, ;eft, which is endemic (an endemic genus, no less) and to be found on cliffs and rocks all over the island.

Weather in Crete over the winter was unusually warm and many plants including orchids were over but we did find some nice ones.  We visited Mount Ida and found a neat little alpine on the calcareous cliffs.  But look at it more closely and you see it is woody and actually a dwarf tree.  It is Prunus prostrata, the Cretan wild cherry.

April at last

March went out like a lion, and it's still pretty cold, but the roses and viburnum are coming in to leaf at last. Plus, it's daffodil time! Plus, there are tulips sprouting in the borders from last year's display and the tulip bed by the shed is looking promising and the tulips Sue planted in a pot for us are elegantly budded up and we can't wait to see what they are.

Lots of plusses, then, plus a very very long list we made today of a few hundred things that need doing. Yesterday Edgar and Anastasija and I started filling in the area where the corrugated hut used to stand. After an hour, it was clear that I will have to find a lot of soil or compost from somewhere else to create a level garden patch in that north-sloping corner. Plus, there is the stump of that big beech tree to remove somehow.

Cherry on the drive

We have several cherries planted in the woods and one on the drive.  They are fastigiate with bronzy new growth and pale pink flowers with an amazing almond scent.  Noel Robertson, who became Dean of Science in Edinburgh U, gave me a handful of rooting cuttings when he came down here to see Nancy Carter who was one of his colleagues in Cambridge (or somewhere).  He said the variety was used as a rootstock.  Anyhoo, they have fat flower buds and these burst open a few days after bringing inside.  We must do this more often.

Struggling on

This February has continued the theme of the winter, with long spells of frozen ground, and occasional snow. Even the bergenia has been seen lying flat and apparently lifeless. However the wonderful hellebore from Ashworth nurseries is getting stronger every winter.

One or two days have been kinder. February always comes up with a pet day or two. We have been out on the drive cutting down overhanging branches and removing trees to give a bit more light and air to the roses. And to avoid complaints from the drivers of delivery lorries. It has taken some hardening of heart to cut down trees planted as babies 20 years ago.

A slow spring forward

Crocus tomassinianus used to be abundant in the north facing border around the lawn but the mice have been busy and now the only place they thrive is in the lawn itself.  They are gradually seeding themselves here and show the silver outer perianths in some seedlings; in others the perianths are a more unifrom fluorescent blue.  The general effect is very pleasing. 

The Christmas Box, Sarcococco confusa, by the back door has been blooming since Christmas.  It needs a good prune each year so we bring the pruning inside and wow, what a scent.  The scent is very similar to snowdrops en masse. The shiney black berries are still on the twigs from last year and are quite decorative.  You might like to know that it is really a kind of Box as it belongs to the Buxaceae.

I bought a small plant of the very early Rhododendron 'Emaculum' (syn x praecox) at the Plant Hunters' garden in Pitlochry.  I potted it on and it grew another flush of leaves.  I took it in at Christmas time and it is now flowering in the conservatory.  I will repot again after flowering and it will double in size for next year. 

Daffodil 'Tete a Tete' is blooming inside now and is very good value.  Small pots full of buds were on sale at a local nursery at a price cheaper than they could be bought as dry bulbs.  These will be planted out in the garden after flowering.

The tree tomato (Solanum betaceum) in the conservatory set a lot of fruit late last year that have ripened over the winter.  We are eating them now with our muesli.  They are an excellent resource and keep in good condition on the tree for several months.  I think some people find the flavour (mango-tomato-ish) a bit challenging.

Lengthening Days

Yes, everything is wakening up, including the gardeners who can now work on until five o'clock.  The snowdrops appeared just a couple of days after the snow went and have increased daily.  We have them scattered about the garden and lots and lots up the wood in great drifts.  We have two clones of snowdrop.  Both came from mother in Lesmahagow.  One is the common or garden Galanthus nivalis and the other, a taller one with broader leaves and darker green chevron on the inner perianth.  This, John Grimshaw says, is G. x valentinei but he does not rate this particular clone!  It does multiply well and is early.

We have them associated with the Arum italicum 'Pictum', now called A. i. 'Marmoratum', and the Setterwort, Helleborus foetidus which does well in the dry shade.

Hellebores are pushing up rapidly in the garden.  Our favourite is this picotee which we got at Ashworth Nurseries; it is particularly early and vigorous.

And of course the early clones of primroses have been out for some time now and don't seem to mind the bad weather.

Messing with catkins

There is not much new in the garden just now but as the thaw finishes we hope to start the roller-coaster.  The first lot of hazel catkins I brought in the house before Christmas did not flower - not enough accummulated cold perhaps - but the ones I brought in from Henfaes a couple of days ago are quite different.  On the tree they had developed well in spite of all the freezing weather.  There must have been enough sunshine to heat the catkin itself. 

Anyhoo, they were only in a vase in the back window for a couple of days for them to lengthen fully and open.  We had some fun tapping the twigs to watch the pollen swirl about and had partial success in photographing that event.  You can see the small female flowers with their tuft of stigmas too.