2025 – CHW
Magnolia x brooklynensis ‘Lady Woodsman’.
Neolitsea sericea ‘Sliver Leaf’ living up to its name.
Michelia ‘Fairy Lime’ making a good show for the first time.
Pittosporum glabratum nicely in flower.
The very rare Rhododendron fuyuanense. This is not featured in the Pocket Guide to Rhodo species.
Still the odd decent flower on one of our original Magnolia sprengeri var. diva ‘Diva’.
A tremendous show on Symplocos aff. sumuntia.
A carpet of fallen tepals under the two Magnolia x veitchii ‘Peter Veitch’.
2024 – CHW
Away next week in Northern Ireland looking at gardens there so I thought I would have a quick look at the Malus in the old Kitchen Garden. Rather more in flower than I had expected so early although not many are full out yet.
Annoyingly and despite all the fencing there has been roe deer damage recently. I fear a doe has had her fawn and felt I was being observed!
Malus ‘Braendkjaer’ – pure white even in bud.
The daffodils which we planted last year have disappeared this year with very few flowers. Only half the bulbs planted have reappeared. At the show this was being blamed on the wet weather in July and August. I am not sure and suspect poor bulbs to start with.
Malus ‘Gorgeous’ – red buds opening to white.
Malus ‘Van Eseltine’ – a bit wind damaged.
Malus ‘Royal ‘Raindrops’ – a good red.
Malus ‘Professor Sprenger’ – pinkish in bud opening white.
Malus ‘Louisa’ – drooping habit and a gentle pink.
Malus ‘White Angel’ – top heavy with flower and only at the very top of the tree.
Malus ‘Royalty’ – not out yet but the buds match the foliage colour.
Malus ‘Prairifire’ – another good pink.
Malus ‘Donald Wyman’ – slightly pink in bud.
Malus ‘Rudolph’ – odd shape to the flower.
Malus ‘Sun Rival’ – the best one flowering today with a cascading habit.
Magnolia ‘Purple Planets’ has lasted a long time since we first saw it in flower.
Malus ‘Obelisk’ – grows as its name implies.
Prunus ‘Spring Show’ growing away nicely.
Malus ‘Harry Baker’ – pleasant enough in bud.
2023 – CHW
I cut the suckers off the 3 grafted Syringa pinnata 2 years ago but to no avail. Just out now.
I cut the suckers off the 3 grafted Syringa pinnata 2 years ago but to no avail. Just out now.
Rhododendron desquamatum – what a show stopper!
Camellia ‘Fairy Wand’ still as impressive as any camellia still out in mid-April.
Ucodendron whartonii (I still prefer to call it this) just into flower.
Magnolia ‘Fairy Cream’ just out as ‘Fairy White’ finishes flowering beside it. Odd! No colour yet on ‘Fairy White’ or ‘Fairy Blush’.
Daphniphyllum macropodum var. humile in full flower and developing well.
Rhododendron ‘Red Centurian’ nearly over.
Lindera erythrocarpa has made a decent tree of 30 feet or so. The best of the species in flower here I think.
2022 – CHW
Fairly decent bank holiday weather after a little rain yesterday evening.
Good news that the registrar of the International Camellia Society has very quickly confirmed the reregistration of Camellia x williamsii ‘Delia Williams’ first made in 1965 and then subsequently merged in error into C. ‘Citation’. The formal registration is attached.
A young plant of Michelia ‘Fairy Blush’ in a 3L pot covered in flowers at the sales point. Then on to Old Park for filming with Karol and photography.
More plants in flower (and one deado) in the new Amelanchier plantation (ex Starborough Nursery). They only flower for a shortish period but are certainly different in flower and new leaf.
Amelanchier ovalis ‘Wisley’
Amelanchier x weigandii (1985-8373-Kew)
Amelanchier ovalis ‘Jenny Belle’
Amelanchier bartramiana (1995-0254HA) – no bronzy new growth here.
Rhododendrons species – unknown – plan to check when finalised.
Some elderly 1960s planted Rhododendron calophytum.
Rhododendron denudatum – some flowers out and some in tight bud. Slightly dull as a species. Need to check if we have ever grown this before. I do not think I ever remember it.
Rhododendron minus var. minus – a good group of four plants flowering copiously despite only being moved here last year.
First flowering of Magnolia ‘Serenade’ in Old Park. Unexciting as yet with curving horizontal growth on the main stem.
Three plants of Rhododendron morii. New growth frosted on one, but not on its neighbour and the third plant has not put on any growth yet. All in seven square meters and the frosted plant is the furthest one up the hill. I said yesterday our plantings of this species had not fared well and here we are.
Magnolia ‘Carlos’ with some flowers frosted and some not.
First flowers out on the Echium pininana.
2021 – CHW
It is rhododendron time now and let us move to looking more closely at some of these.
The old clump of Rhododendron oreothrephes. One of the few species to self-seed itself here within the clump. The old plants had been cut back hard a few times and some have died but the seedlings are now up to 15-18ft tall and could probably do with a chop down themselves next autumn or spring. It is in the triflora subsection of rhododendrons along with Rhododendron augustinii and Rhododendron yunnanense.
Supposedly Rhododendron haemaleum var. atrorubrum from an Alan Clark collection. The flower does not begin to fit the very dark red of the ‘Pocket Guide to Rhododendron Species’. haemaleum is a form of Rhododendron sanguineum which does have dark red flowers and sanguineum grows in the Rookery (and elsewhere). No idea but the picture looks much more like a Rhododendron royalii cross to me.
Rhododendron ‘Damaris’ on the main path. It used to be one of the best yellow hybrids but has been superseded by better and is ignored a bit today. Another one to layer for the future.
Corylopsis sinensis ‘Spring Purple’ with its dark new leaves just about appearing with what is left of the flowers. For a day or two a most attractive contrast and how this excellent plant gets its name.
Amelanchier lamarckii on the drive – one of at least three. Similar to Amenlanchier laevis but the petals are smaller amongst other things.
Magnolia ‘Pinkie’ (one of the stellata/liliiflora ‘girls’) on Hovel Cart Road just above the Enkianthus.
Amelanchier interior does not have bronzy new growth. An attractive large shrub developing into a small tree above Hovel Cart Road. We have quite a collection of Amelanchier already which I hope to increase with purchases from Starborough Nursery who specialise in them.
Always fun to discover a plant which you never knew that you had (or had forgotten). Here a huge clump of Lonicera involucrata just coming into flower today. It looks like the cuttings are already fit to take so perhaps Asia can get a good bag full down to Burncoose (on the bank above Hovel Cart Road above the Osmanthus with wrinkled/prickly leaves and beside the Exochorda).
3 thoughts on “18th April”
Comments are closed.
Couldn’t help but notice, and correct it. Uocodendron whartonii is an invalid taxon, it’s now Disanthus ovatifolius, and yes is in the Hamamelidaceae.
Could they be Rh. Hodgsonii?
My first thought but I think they are too purple when first out compared to our other plants of Rh hodgsonii.