Flaming June - I don't think so!
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Sorry folks. Continuing problems with loading pics and I had
some good ones too. Will continue to try and resolve them. It's so
frustrating.
Weather
If there was ever a month to test the patience of the most
placid of gardeners, people like me for example - no don't
even think it - this was surely it. We have had weather from all 4
seasons with the exception of snow. Most "memorably" we had
thunder, lightning and large hailstones on June 11 when there were
in the Gardens 40 people on a trip from Holland with Garden Tours
NL. They took it in very good spirit and fortunately it did clear
up before they left. It was so cold that the ground was white
for an hour after the storm had passed and overnight we had a
minimum of 1C - as near as you can get to an air frost without
actually having one. Fortunately no serious damage was done but
some of the larger leaved plants showed the effects of the
hailstones especially the hostas which had until thenhad been
having their best ever year. Some look like they have been blasted
withy a shotgun! Digging potatoes has been "fun" trying to find the
them amongst all the mud!
In weather like this most flowering plants decided quite
reasonably not to flower but to wait for better times to come, and
those that did flower at the right time held onto their flowers for
much longer than usual. As for our native wildflowers they just got
on with it, especially a field of red poppies we saw in Bewdley,
Worcs and a massive stand of spotted orchids on the road verge near
Hay - on - Wye.
Garden update
In early June, we completed all the border re-planings and also
the bedding out of pot grown annuals from a fantastic range which
includes poppies of numerous kinds, three colours of cornflower
(blue, red and black), amaranthus cordatus (Love Lies Bleeding) in
a gorgeous red form called "Red Cathedral" , iberis umbellatum
"Giant Hyacinth Flowered" a very unusual canytuft, Bells of Ireland
with striking green flowers, nicotianas in a variety of forms,
convolvulus "Blue Ensign", sunflowers and my favourite of all
orlaya grandiflora, a truly classy and elegant umbellifer with
white flowers rather like a dainty serrata hydrangea but smaller
(to about 18").
So underrated true hardy annuals, many seed themselves year
after year. but as extra insurance and so that we can plant them
where we want to, we gather seed in the autumn and sow it in the
spring to flower June-September depending on the weather and the
type sown. The best value plants in the garden which will enliven
any border, create almost instant impact in a new garden or to
cover gaps in established borders.
We have a good collection of hemerocallis in the garden as
regular visitors will know. The gall midge which lays its eggs in
the forming flower buds totally devastates the flower and there is
so much in evidence this year that there is hardly a plant that
isn't affected. There is no cure apart from picking off all the
infected buds and destryoying them. Later flowers are usually OK
but the plant loses a lot of impact. Fortunately the plant itself
survives for another year.
The lawns were looking good but once again the lawn grubs of May
Bugs and Daddy Long Legs are doing their best to wreck them as they
munch their way through the grass roots causing parts of the
Padddock Garden lawn to turn brown. The magpies and crows do their
best to clear them for us but all they succeed in doing is to dig
up clumps of turf in their quest for the large and tasty grubs
(they don't look it!)
The sluice I completed in February to feed water into the
Paddock Pond from the stream is working very well and now keeps the
pond topped up and looking in fantastic condition. gently
intoducing well oxygenated water all the time from the stream that
rises on the hill behind us. The new fish look very healthy and the
waterlilies are growing and flowering well ( I was a little
concerned, without foundation, that as the stream water is cold it
would lower the pond temperature and slow down the rate of growth
of the lilies).
The nursery is always "work in progress" as there is a
continuous succession of new plants becoming available for sale to
find homes for, and gaps to fill as the result of sales to our many
June visitors. Best sellers have been violas, red astantias,
campanulas in particular a superb cultivar of takesimana called
"Elizabeth" with large pink bells and whilst on the superb theme,
rodgersia pinnata superba with lovely bronze foliage and deep
pink/red flowers - highly popular and already sold out.
What's looking good?
For once the humble veggies take pride of place! Most of them
(apart from then more tender forms) have enjoyed the weather
especially brassicas and spuds. Some huge ballhead cabbage Primo 2
coming in now, heading brocolli, purple cauliflowers almost ready
and later sown varieties growing strongly with no sign of root fly
thanks to the covering of horticultural fleece which for 18 years
we have have used every summer for protection. It has so many other
benefits too like keeping off rabbits that we strongly recommend it
even though it's not the most attractive thing you willl ever see
in the garden!
Arisaemas too have done wonderfully well, giving us great
pleasure and intriguing our visitors. We have over 40 in active
growth around the gardens in 15 species and our friend Tony owner
of the nursery shadyplants.com is positively purring with delight
(an overexagerration perhaps!) but it gives him confidence to
recommend them to customers knowing that they have survived and
thrive in a frost pocket garden in Mid Wales provided they are
planted in the right place (the arisaemas that is!).
Another success has been a large plant of the southern marsh
orchid , not wild collected I hasten to add to be politically
correct, but we were given it by Margaret a gardening acquaintance
from Llanelli who has them growing all over her garden, arising she
thinks from imported topsoil some years ago. It is a large and
native UK orchid liking as the name suggests ground that doesn't
dry out and a little shade. Large flowered 12" spikes in a nice
shade of purple /pink. We hope they seed around for us so
deadheading is definitely off the agenda!
Delphiniums have flowered earlier and for longer than usual
because of the colder nights and the lack of sunshine. One
particular cultivar has caught everyone's eye - "Finnsteraahorn"
with strong stems requiring no staking and intense midnight blue
flowers, a really good form from Cotswold Garden Flowers. Bob Brown
certainly has an eye for a special plant and whilst singing his
praises I must reiterate my delight at astrantia "Ruby Star" a real
stunner, bulking up quickly with dark flower stems and large very
deep red flowers. Bob wondered in his 2009 catalogue if this new
introduction would equal "Hadspen Blood" or "Ruby Wedding" - in our
experience it is off the radar compared with them!
Although many of our overwintered dahlias succumbed to the
winter, there have been some amazing successes that should never
have coped with -18c. Several overwintered salvias - darcyii,
grahamii, patens and involurata "Hadspen" are all growing away
strongly in well drained soil in the Paddock Garden, lobelia tupa
from the sea cliffs of Chile came through its 12th year under the
yew tree - again in very well drained soil, and our beloved and
much cherished impatiens tinctoria now an old friend, once again
survived its shady, damp position under a huge mound of beech
leaves close to its long term companion and another survivor,
cautlyea spicata.
One final mention of a special plant that is supposed to need at
least a min. of 10c, overwintered in the large polytunnel
where temperatures dropped to -5c but wrapped in its fleece blanket
and close to the gas heater it came through and is now delighting
everyone with its large trusses of pink flower racemes. As it
comes from Brazil you will understand why we are so pleased
at its survival - and so easy too from cuttings to ensure future
generations.
Wildlife
Baby frogs everywhere! Its amazing how far they will travel in a
short space of time and they can already be found at the top of the
House Garden, at least 100 yards from the Paddock Pond. These are
noticeably larger and more frog like in colour than the newer ones
nearer the pond. They can already jump for Wales!! The toadpoles
are much slower, blacker and more freeswimming in larger groups
than the frogpoles. At last there a few newts in the pond and
whilst clearing the blanketweed last week I found some dragonfly
larvae and some pond snails to prove that life is slowly returning
to the pond.
Although we see redstarts regularly we have not seen the pied
flycatchers for some time nor any fledgling birds-. This may be due
to the predation of magpies of which there are more this year than
I have seen for a long time. I counted 10 in the garden the other
day. Only the arrival of a red kite causes them to interrupt their
almost continuous menacing chatter. As you may guess they are not
my favourite birds.
We hear kingfishers regularly on the river with their
unmistakable high pitched whistle but all we ever see of them is
that brilliant blue flash as they hurtle up and down the river.
It's great to know they are around.
We have some rabbits in the garden and they have taken a liking
to achilleas but not much else and the fleece keeps them off the
vegetables. In the fields around us we see plenty more and are
happy as long as they stay there!
Visits
There have been 12 group visits this month and 324 visitors - a
record for this time of year. 3 from Holland and 1 from Hilliers
Garden Club. The day Hilliers came was a memorable one because the
group was accompanied by John Hillier and his wife. It was such an
honour to be able to welcome them to the gardens - John is of
course one of the great Hillier dyansty, an elder statesmen of his
generation and a very eminent horticulturalist and yet he was so
down to earth and easy to talk to. He and his wife bought many
plants from the nursery and said that it made a nice change for him
because he is first and foremost a "woody plant man". I can't tell
you what a thrill this was and so unexpected.
We have another 5 group visits before our 12th Open Day on
Sunday 24 July from 1 - 5.00pm. Please do come and see the gardens
if you can.
In between all the hard work in June we managed to fit in 2
visits ourselves; one to a Rare Plant Fair at High Glanau in
Monmouthshire, a beautiful Arts and Crafts house in a magical
setting, and the other to Stonehouse Cottage Garden and nursery
near Kidderminster. A plantsmans paradise with so many unusual and
rare plants. There are several brick towers built in the gardens,
mostly it seemed to us their purpose is to provide climbing frames
for the many climbing plants in the gardens. An unusual and
individual garden and well worth a visit. Take plenty of money for
the fabulous array in the well stocked nursery!