Great Dixter in June

On Tuesday I was lucky to be able to have the time to visit Great Dixter . It was the first time I had visited at this time of the year as usually I go late to see the exotic garden at its best. I am also a big fan of their plant fayre that happens at around this time....go!

I was surprised at how different the garden felt. All the grass was actually a gorgeous meadow full of the most native orchids I had ever seen! Ox eye daisy’s had also self seeded all over the place and helped bring a great soft feel to the planting.

It was also very interesting to see the exotic garden at such an early point of its development. This made me feel better about my own garden as I was thinking that I was late with a lot of stuff and as such the garden looked a little behind, but I realise now this is normal.

They seem to be keeping more and more things out in the exotic garden, and it is very interesting to see the backbone. By the end of the year the garden is so full that you can barely see the path!

 

 

I assume this is a giant Schleffera taiwanna which must have been in for ages

 

Overall Great Dixter is still my favourite garden....more swooning over plants

 

 

Some type of variegated brassica which was new to me

 

I still have a bit of an obsession with Giant Fennels and bought 'Ferula sp 'Cedric Morris'. I hadn't realised how they are summer dormant which is a relief as I thought the slugs were eating them!

Marsh orchids, one of three native orchids I saw there...surrounded by yellow rattle

Ladybird Poppy's

 

Their nursery is also one of my favourites...I didn't think I wold buy anything but bought the Ferula, Cuphea cyanea (a perennial cigar plant) and Dahlia karma naomi and chocolate. now I just need to find them a place.....

 

 

 

Echium pininana: phwar

This has been my best ever year for Giant Echiums. I currently have about 13 flowering, the largest being approx12ft tall. Each a giant column of flower, much loved by the bees.


Catching the evening sun

I grow them as much for the foliage as for the flowers, each one making a tall exotic mound of foliage to gather energy before flowering after 1-3 years. This enormous amount of energy then killing the plant.

They actually come from La Palma in the Canary islands where they are threatened in the wild due to habitat loss of their native laurel forests. Surprising to a gardener who grows them and is amazed at how their seeds get, and germinate everywhere!

 

The cold is their biggest enemy as bad winters can either kill it outright or just take out the growing point. This can be solved with some protection, particularly of the growing point. If the growing point is damaged the plant will still flower but it wont grow tall. Personally I havent had much success with growing them in pots...

They also hate being transplated. I find I can only transplant them when they are young seedlings/plants. Take care when digging them up trying to get all their long root/disturb them as little as possible. Then take off half the leaves, water well and leave to sulk/die for a few days. If young they usually perk up, good luck with anything bigger than a seedling.

A fabulous plant to grow if you have a more sheltered garden, or want an amazing foliage plant.

The June garden: the end of manic planting out and a time for things to grow

I am exhausted! the last month has seen the end of the moving around of established plants and the planting out of all the exotics and annuals. This is one of the main disadvantages of an exotic style garden as you need to be prepared to spend a lot of time in the garden in May. This year I have tried to change things round, and be brave by taking out things that were doing ok, but not thriving. I have also tried to do things properly and ordered (and used)  about 30-40 bags of compost and rotted horse manure to get things off to the best possible start.

So....

The terrace...lots of pots, but lots of plants! I am trying to get some height with the 3 big pots of Musa sikkimensis and 1 Musa basjoo. Schlefferas and Canna. Annoying things being the Cyathea and Butia as they cast their leaves wide and take up a lot of space which make arrangements tricky!

 
Side wall...Hedychium greenii (so you can see the red leaves from underneath) bananas and a Cyathea

 
End bed...central planted Musa sikkimensis with Ricinus and front planting of Hedychium densiflorum

 

Other side of the pond, Ensete (which was probably planted out a bit early as the roots were only just developing) Tall yellow Cannas (Richard Wallace), Ricinus and Tithonia (although I am crying as from 2 packets of seeds I only had about 3 come up!)

 

 Sarracenias in the greenhouse looking stunningly beautiful
 

 
A sun soaked 'glaucous foliage' bed. Huge Melianthus which didn't flower well this year, expanding Rommnea with my new banana grove behind it. Hopefully then padded out with orange Canna (Syngapore girl) ricinus and Canna musifolia

 
Please note my allotment patch looking dead proper with stuff in straight lines and everything!

 
The Tetrapanax forest with a Paulownia that has just recovered from a transplanting. I will let it do its own thing for the year and then pollard it next year

 

Ganesh flanked by 2 sad Musa lasiocarpa. Im not sure how I feel about them as whilst they are fabulous when they flower they seem to be slow into leaf, and will they flower in the UK?

 

 
Middle bed....newly planted Musa basjoo grove, giant Miscanthus in the middle, Canna musifolia to pad out

 
Top dry beds...huge Dahlia imperialis which survived outside and is already 2ft tall.

 

Furthest bed....a lot dug over to clear for Dahlias, hardy ginger, Ricinus. Huge Kangaroo apple has survived and the Kiwi vine going a bit mental.

 

 

Top pond with big flowering Melanoselinum decipens (Parnip Palm). I bought this for the foliage as they looked very exotic at Great Dixter in October however they are also very floriforous. Im not a massive fan of Umberliferas, especially those that look like Cow Parsley but this is ok...I just wish the foliage wasn't yellowing!

 

 
The aims of the top veg plot is also to be a cutting garden, and I am rather pleased with these mixed Anenomoes which have been supplying many a vase 

 

All in all when the sun shines it is looking fab!

 

Clear your diary! Loads of fabulous NGS gardens to see in Camberwell and Dulwich over the next few weeks

This weekend is the NGS festival weekend, a weekend where there are loads of great gardens open all across the UK. We are reaching peak NGS season and there are some great ones coming up in our local area which I wanted to highlight and say GO!

So on 7^th June 2015 we have

35 Camberwell Grove, London, SE5 8JA:  NGS says: Plant packed 120ft x 20ft garden with charming backdrop of St Giles Church. Evolved over 30yrs into a romantic country style garden brimming with colour and overflowing with pots. In June, spectacular roses stretch the full length of the garden, both on the artist's studio and festooning an old iron staircase

I say a very unexpected garden in the heart of old Camberwell, and on one of the nicest roads. Really fabulous English garden giving an unexpected view of the church which all together makes you feel like you are in a Miss Marple!  For a real treat have lunch in the Camberwell Arms or Crooked Well before ambling up to this garden. Full details here This garden is also listed in the Telegraph as one of the 'top 20 NGS gardens'

Then you can walk 10-15 mins to....
 
Choumert Square, Peckham, SE15. NGS says About 46 mini gardens with maxi planting in Shangri-la situation that the media has described as a Floral Canyon, which leads to small communal secret garden.

The popular open gardens will combine this yr with our own take on a village fete with home produce stalls, arts, crafts and music. 

 
I say if you dont know Peckham you will be amazed this place exists! Not so much a ‘garden’ more a garden experience. Very Barbary Lane/Tales of the City. Also come as I will have a stand selling my honey and being a fortune teller! I will also be giving some plants to their plant stall....message me if you want to have any of my spare Canna musifolia tubers Full details here

 

Also 10 mins walk from here is...

174 Peckham Rye, London SE22 9QA Visitors call our garden an oasis of calm in Peckham. Every yr the garden changes and matures. It is densely planted with a wide variety of contrasting foliage. Unusual plants are combined with old favourites. It remains easy care and child friendly. Garden originally designed by Jude Sharpe.

Our ever popular plant sale and famed cakes will be available again. Full details

And also open that day....

4 Cornflower Terrace East Dulwich, London, SE22 0HH

Still defying size limits, now featuring wrought iron trellises to use every available inch. A pretty, secluded and tiny courtyard cottage garden, only 50ft x 9ft in a quiet street in the heart of artistic East Dulwich. Around a sunken patio with a bench and solar fountain are clustered climbers, roses, ferns, annuals and herbs in raised beds Full details

 

Then the following weekend on 14^th June 2015 we have :

Court Lane Garden Group 4 gardens with the best collective name! Dulwich London SE21 7EA

Court Lane Garden Group aka South London Urban Gardeners (SLUGS) bring you four gardens with very different planting styles which make for a very interesting visit

The gardens in this group are:
122 Court Lane
125 Court Lane
22 Court Lane Gardens
142 Court Lane

 

And back in Camberwell that day there is

 

81 Camberwell Grove London SE5 8JE

A large Japanese maple and a tall trachycarpus palm shade York stone paving and borders filled with herbaceous perennials, roses, clematis and shade loving ground cover. There is a pond and bog garden. Pots are a feature of the garden bringing colour and diversity. A west facing garden room filled with scented leaf geraniums catches the afternoon sun, and small greenhouse allows propagation. We also pride ourselves on our home made cakes.

Full details

 

Then finally on Sunday 21st June there is 

 

Dulwich Village Two Gardens London SE21 7BJ

2Georgian houses with large gardens, 3 mins walk from Dulwich Picture Gallery and Dulwich Park. 103 Dulwich Village is a country garden in London with a long herbaceous border, lawn, pond, roses and fruit and vegetable gardens. 105 Dulwich Village is a very pretty garden with many unusual plants, lots of old fashioned roses, fish pond and water garden. A destination opening!

Amazing collection of plants for sale. Wind band provided by Dulwich Symphony Orchestra will be playing in the garden of No.103 Full details

So no excuse! Clear your diary and get garden visiting! Lots of other gardens are open, these are just a highlight! Find other gardens at http://www.ngs.org.uk/ or download their new app to make finding gardens even easier!

Chelsea and naturalism

Sorry for being a rubbish blogger...I have been looking for a new job, and after my brush with tv stardom last month I was hoping for at least my own show. However, I apparently have  a 'face for radio' so have taken a new job elsewhere ;)

This has also been a mega busy time for the garden and life in general...but last week I managed to do a stint at Chelsea before dashing home to bash out 14 schnitzels for our Eurovision soiree.

One of the great things about being a volunteer is that you can get to do things you wouldn't usually do, and last Saturday I spent the morning on the NGS stand at the Chelsea Flower Show. For 3 hours of my time I got entry and to be part of the most important horticultural event of the year.

It was interesting being part of the NGS as the people we spoke to were very mixed. There were people who knew what we were and simply wanted to buy a book or grab a county booklet and then others who didn't have any idea. The main stereotypes being that NGS gardens were those that were open all year round/or all just opened for one day. We also seemed to attract a lot of Canadians and Australians on garden tours wanting to know what we did, and being disappointed there weren't really any gardens they could visit in the day they had left in London. I don't know why we had do many, but wonder if the natives just skirted the edges, with an underlying British reserve desperate to avoid engagement!

Chelsea is a funny place...if you haven't been before the thing that strikes you first is how busy it is! there are soooo many people and you have to queue to actually get to look at the gardens. Some were good some were bad. My favourite by far was Dan Pearsons Chatsworth garden as the scale of it was really inspiring, he also gets naturalism just right.

In general I am a fan of naturalism, and I use a naturalistic approach in my own garden. However, I am not a fan of getting excited over someone replicating a bit of overgrown grass/scrub complete with nettles and weeds that have no beauty! There was a fair bit of this at Chelsea, but Dan Pearson gets it just right as he has a bit more of a horticultural approach to naturalism using plants with good garden merit piecing them together in inspiring ways.

 

Amazing to think all this had been created for the show.....it they could only have dropped off a few bits in Camberwell on their way back

I loved this woven hangout....can I have one for Christmas?

Such a beautiful Japanese garden

 

I loved to Mexican garden which was done with the National Dahlia collection.

 

 

Singaporean exotics

nice and simple

Exciting Brahea

Cloud pruned Olive

 

 

So overall lots of exciting things to look at, now I just need to do some actual gardening....