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Category: Garden Visits

Looking at other gardens. Suggestions of gardens to visit.

Kew a Year of Visits

Kew a Year of Visits

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Six DVD’s in a boxed set ‘A Year at Kew – The Collection’ (Series 1-3) with Alan Titchmarsh is available from Amazon  in time for a Christmas gift. Over 1000 minutes of gardening in a month-by-month journey via the BBC through the world’s greatest botanical garden.

I enjoyed a winter perusal of the BBC Book that accompanied the series. With monthly highlights and in sights into the inner workings of various specialist department there is enough to encourage return visits.

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Rather than punt the book for the negligible commission we get if you buy after clicking the cover or link above I will just post some seasonally coloured photos of plants taken at Kew.

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A Plantsman’s Nursery – Holden Clough

A Plantsman’s Nursery – Holden Clough

Heuchera
Heuchera

A nursery should grow there own or at least a good proportion of the plants they sell. Well you can’t complain at the sight of these Heuchera growing in Holden a small hamlet near Bolton by Bowland in Lancashire.

Auricula
Holden Clough nursery has a great reputation and tradition for alpines that survive the wet local conditions.

Unfortunately these glowing Auriculas were in a quarantine area having already been sold but awaiting collection. Still with an eagle eye I could look at the special varieties someone else had chosen and consider my needs for the next visit. (I got a 10% off voucher for registering for the newsletter that I can use with my next purchases.)

Heuchera

I was impressed with the amount of bark chippings used to mulch and trim the pots. At check out I was told is saved the staff weeding but that in this location watering was no real problem due to the amount of rain.
Thinking about grit or chippings I wondered if the former compacted the soil more than the chippings and I think I will run some tests when I get home.

Passion flower

For 95 years the nursery has nestled in a charming hillside spot growing alpines and it is still going strong! Now they not only grow alpines, but also a larger range of plants including many new and unusual perennials.
The one drawback was that the new young team are keen to show their plans for site development which include a tearoom. Welcome though tea may be they could leave that to the ubiquitous garden centres and keep the nursery focus.

Heucherella

Photo above is of Heucherella Tapestry a hybrid between Heucheras and Tiarellas with many of the best qualities of both parents. This and a limited display of plants in their own small garden area show how and where a good plant can grow.

Compared with my visit on the same day to my local Garden Centre  the range of plants at Holden Clough just what I wanted.

Grewelthorpe Himalayan Garden Images

Grewelthorpe Himalayan Garden Images

The Himalayan Garden at Grewlthorpe continues to mature and develop. It is great to see a wide range of trees allowed to grow their natural size without undue lopping or arbocultural work.
A new arboretum will opened at the end of May 2017 and the  autumn season is well  worth a special visit. The hydrangea and sculptures are also looking great.

As ever the sculptures are excellently located and seem to breed in number every time I visit.

Rhododendrons are the key feature for me that makes return spring visits a must.

Landscape views from the many well located paths are set to delight.


The artist Subodh Kerkar has several new installations at the Himalayan garden in North Yorkshire, many miles from his home in Goa.  I couldn’t say what type of tree trunks these 18 carefully and vertically  place ‘logs’ were!

Even walking through the gap I was still stumped. The message on these ‘Logs of Dialogue’ is that ‘terrorism is a product of non-communication between  nations, groups, regions religions and ideologies’.

Take a leaf out of another sculptural installation. Or take another leaf from my inspiration and visit these Grewelthorpe gardens, infant arboretum and sculpture trail during April or May or October for autumn colour.

Gardeners Visit to London 2022

Gardeners Visit to London 2022

Not what you would expect for a garden called ‘The Phoenix Garden’  in the middle of  Tottenham Court Road near Crown Point. It isn’t a phoenix from the ashes of a great fire or a WW11 bomb site at but was built on a disused car park in the 1980s. It may be part of an overflowing burial ground for St Giles-in-the-field church back in the 1600s and is reputed to be the last surviving Covent ‘Garden’. The entrance is located in St Giles Passage

Despite being surprisingly close to the busiest part of central London there is a peace and tranquillity about the small but well formed, free to visit garden. It is maintained to a high standard by volunteers with lots of flowering plants and secluded seating. I was walking or ambling from Kings Cross to Westminster and unexpectedly came across the garden where I spent a tranquil time in a well stocked, well planned space. The large number of insects and wild life is a tribute to the planning and care that has gone into maintaining this community asset. The surrounding buildings do not intrude on the space but the photo below shows the competition from concrete.

Hawaii Gardeners Delight

Hawaii Gardeners Delight

You are unlikely to be able to recreate the conditions and zones of Hawaii in your garden but you can still gaze at some of the exceptional plants and study their habitats. Isolated by thousands of miles of ocean for millions of years, the Hawaiian islands are home to many unique plants and flowers described with great photographs in this book

Book Cover

This book describes more than 130 indigenous (originating or occurring naturally) and endemic (native and restricted) species of many unique plants and flowers.

Interesting Facts to Delight Gardeners

  • The Hawaiian islands, isolated by thousands of miles of ocean. Prehistoric evolution may have resulted from seeds that have been dispersed by oceanic drift, air flotation but most probably by birds droppings and attachment.
  • There were an acknowledged prehistoric 26 plant species before Polynesian immigrants arrived and developed knowledge of medicinal and other uses of plants. They introduced breadfruit, mulberry, coconut, yam, sweet potato, banana, sugar cane and ginger among other useful species.
  • Species have adapted to colonise lava flows in vegetation called ‘kipuka’.
  • The diverse ecosystems found throughout Hawaii include coastal areas, rain forest, bogs, sub-alpine , mesic forest and dry shrub land.
  • Hawaiian islands’ native flora are fast-disappearing nature conservation
  • The state flower of the Aloha State  is the Yellow Hibiscus.

 

Book Cover

If you are lucky enought o visit one of the many volcanic islands of Hawaii get out and about to visit different ecoregions and botanical sanctuaries. If you stick to coastal and tourist areas you will miss a brilliant and unique horticultural journey. If you can’t visit you can still wonder at the photographs and reports of others that I have hinted at.

Zen of Holland Park Japanese Garden

Zen of Holland Park Japanese Garden

Holland Park has some Zen like features but fails my Zen test. The classic elements of a successful Zen are stone, sand or gravel, water, plants and space. Then there is a question of balance between yin and yang. Cramped or cluttered gardens inhibit the flow of spirit so space is potentially the key ingredient of a Zen garden.

Stone is a solid yang element to be contrasted to the yin of raked gravel and or water. Stones have personality and should be placed carefully. Plants are not intended to be functional but are integral to the yang of design. Dry gardens replace water with gravel sometimes with stepping stones inset

In Holland Park London not far from Notting Hill is a peaceful Japanese garden. There are numerous features that can inspire your own plans although I draw the line at bringing in a dozen Peacocks to my plot.

Kyoto beach London

One feature I took note of was the beach effect for this pond. It allows birds and invertebrates easy access to the waters edge. Being in the process of installing another pond in my own garden I have built in a beach not dissimilar to this. I bought some butyl line with shingle already attached and shaped it to run down into a preformed pond.
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British View of American Landscape

British View of American Landscape

Some time ago in the pre-Trump era the west lawn at the British Museum  showed plants from North Americas landscape. The plants were provided in partnership with Kew but the photographs were mine taken in September.
I now wish I had also visited to see and take pictures of earlier spring and summer flowers fro N America.

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Amongst the more colourful flowers were a range of ‘tickseed’ which is the American name for Coreopsis. I like to grow these airy prairie plants even in darkest Yorkshire and you may see why from these photos.

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Trust me to get a photo of mildew! Must try again.

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The Museum garden had a lot going on in both leaf and flower forms.
The signage was good but it wasn’t obvious to me which of three zones each plant portrayed; Woodland, Prairie or Wetland.
I am sure the wetland was represented by the wonderful insect eating Pitcher plants.
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Older Pitcher plants below.

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I am sure it wasn’t intentional on the part of Kew to include these British Rockies. I am sure the real thing are more awe inspiring.

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For me the September light set off these New England Asters a proper treat.

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Cone flowers Echinacea purpurea held there own!

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Orange Coneflower Rudbeckia fulgida. The seeds feed finches and Native Americans used a wash from the plant for snake bites, earache and for a variety of other medicinal purposes.
First known in England in 1789 when they were described by Wm Aiton the first curator at Kew and ‘His Majesty’s Gardener at
Kew and Richmond ‘.

 

National Garden Scheme Raises £2.7m

National Garden Scheme Raises £2.7m

In 2016 the National Garden scheme donated £2.7 million to a range of cancer and other charities. This furthers the charitable objectives of the society ‘supporting charities, in their work in the provision of nursing and caring, and

  • the relief of sickness and the preservation and promotion of health;
  • supporting the queen’s nursing institute in its work.
  • assisting such charities or charitable purposes as the trustees shall think fit;’

Looking at the Yorkshire programme for 2017 I forecast an increase in these donations despite the economy and dare I say it the weather.

These Iris were in fine fettle at Creskeld Hall in Wharfedale at the end of May for their open day in aid of NGS. Renown for the Rhododendrons and Azaleas the 3½ acre garden did not disappoint.

Get your local Yellow Book the guide to open gardens and visit some open gardens and help this charity help so many other worthwhile charities.

Studley Royal Water Garden

Studley Royal Water Garden

Fountain Abbey

In the Georgian period of the 1700’s John Aislabie set about landscaping a water garden at Studley Royal near Ripon. Today it is a verdant green garden with ornamental lakes, cascades and vistas to take the breath away. There are temples, follies, St Marys church and several buildings within this World Heritage site. Not least of the buildings is the 12th century Fountains Abbey a crucial part of the landscape.

Things to look out for

  • Spring plants include Primroses, Cowslips and Oxlips.
  • Summer plants include Orchids, Pinks, Scabious
  • Autumn and winter interest comes from the tree colours and snowdrops
  • Wild flower meadow on the walk into Ripon
  • Deer in the parkland

Octagon Tower at Fountains Abbey

Environment

  • Soil is limestone and sandstone in a lowland setting.
  • Despite being distant from the East and west coasts the site is only 330 feet above sea level.
  • The site was well chosen by the Cistercian monks 1000 years ago.
  • The first indication of a water garden was the monk’s fish pond that was used to cultivate supper.
  • The land is managed by the National Trust and a team of volunteer gardeners.