Styrax japonicus ‘Purple Dress’.

Styrax japonicus ‘Wespelaar’.

Aesculus wilsonii below Slip Rail.

Myoporum laetum flowering well. A plant that I have not seen in flower anywhere other than Ventnor Botanics.

Cornus angustata ‘Empress of China’ starting to flower properly.

Styrax japonicus ‘Farges Belle’.

2024 – CHW
Jaimie and Michael win the RMC Group Centenary Cup for our exhibit of Magnolia rostrata at the Trewithen show and AGM. We have never won this cup before. It was created in 2016 and has been won by Bodnant and High Beeches.

Hydrangea anomala subsp. anomala on the top wall. Planted in 2015 it is still only about 3-4 feet tall.

I could see the first few flowers on Hydrangea serratifolia on the top wall from my desk. When I get there they are already over.

Hydrangea ‘Madame Emile Mouillère’ by the greenhouse.

The 14 plants bought from Crug Farm over the weekend are now safely installed and repotted at the greenhouse.

A replacement for our Ucodendron whartonii which died last year.

Eriobotrya elliptica var. petelotii (BWJ 16323).

Oreopanax glabrifolius (BSWJ 14728).

Debregeasia longifolia (BSWJ 11686) with very different leaves and habit to the ones seen at Tregrehan and Castlewallan.

Engelhardia spicata (HWJK 2421).

Schima argentea (15423) looks nothing like our existing plant of this name.

Euscaphis japonica (BSWJ 14600).

Skimmia anquetilia (male) – a completely new species.

Hydrangea luteovenosa (BSWJ 11524) just about over.

Tom Hudson’s gift of Quercus quercifolia with its attractive new growth.

Dicentra scandens full out.

I have been puzzled in the nursery as to what this plant was called. Leaves rather nettle-like. Now, finally, a flower on Canarina canariensis.

2023 – CHW
Six magnolias in flower today and a seventh just over. Who says the magnolia season is over by May?Kalmia latifolia ‘Snowdrift’ has been given more light and has responded well.

I have never seen Euonymus myrianthus flower as copiously as this all over the small tree. Outstanding!

The very last of the bluebells in full shade.

Last flowers on Michelia crassipes (as we bought it) – now M. laevifolia.

Sadly the original Podocarpus elongatus ‘Blue Chip’ which fell over last year has not been saved by re-propping it up. This came originally from Lees & Co. Nursery. Time to replace it in this key spot although we all thought it would be too tender for us. I have no doubt that the current dry spell (& last summer) has speeded up its demise.

I have missed the first flower on a young Magnolia macrophylla. This replaces the original tree which died/ fell over a year or two ago beyond George’s Hut. As I remember it we used to look for flowers much later in the year.

Calycanthus ‘Aphrodite’ well out in Tin Garden. This diary saw flowers on this plant last October.

Magnolia acuminata ‘Blue Opal’ is not as good a ‘blue’ flower as M. ‘Woodsman’ and M. ‘Patriot’ which was out a month earlier. Odd and different!

Philadelphus satsuma (BSWJ 11004) – planted 2017. Less tall growing and vigorous than the other two species seen a week ago nearby in Kennel Close.

Magnolia x wieseneri well out.

Magnolia obovata ‘Pink Flush’ – some flowers over and some in tight bud.

Cotoneaster glomerulatus didn’t flower much or produce berries here last year.

Magnolia ‘Porcelain Dove’ with plenty of bud to come.

Magnolia globosa just opening.

2022 – CHWAzalea ‘Jane Fire’ by the Four in Hand. A very late flowering variety.

Deutzia x elegantissima ‘Rosealind’ on the bank by the top lodge.

The first hydrangea into flower – as usual Hydrangea ‘Madame E. Mouilliere’.

Philadelphus coronarius and Metasequoia glyptostroboides ‘Gold Rush’.

Cornus kousa var. chinensis and Fagus sylvatica ‘Purpurea’.

Crataegus x lavalleei ‘Carrierei’ newly planted in White Stiles.

Tail end flowers and berries forming on Cotoneaster flinckii.

And on Cotoneaster wilsonii.

Hemiptelia davidii with new leaf and vicious spines.

Cornus kousa ‘Doubloon’ just about fully out.

Magnolia ‘Yuchelia’ outside the front gate flowering as you would expect from the proper original cross. Quite what this makes our wonderful ‘Yuchelia’ I know not but something got very wrongly labelled by Eisenhut 20 or more years ago.

Neil, Serena and Lamorna were at the Trooping of Colour and the flypast last Thursday as you can see before returning to quieter village life.

2021 – CHW
Cordyline australis in full flower.

Azalea indicum ‘Balsaminaeflorum’

Agapetes serpens with flower buds in the Rockery. Planted in March.

Gladiolus communis appearing as a decent naturalised clump outside the front gate.

Syplocos paniculata in full flower.

Rhododendron ‘Olga’

Some Rhododendron decorum seedlings with a hint of pink in the flowers.

Still a few tail end flowers on Magnolia ‘Daybreak’.

The barn conversions at White Stiles are nearing completion.

Crataegus dahurica in flower for the first time here.

Vallea stipularis flowering away.

Brassaiopsis dumicola with a flower bud.

Leaves and new growth on Viburnum furcatum.

A present of four new oak species from Thomas Methuen-Campbell.

Quercus tavoveensis

Quercus pinnatinenulense

Hydrangea quelpartensis on the top wall.

Sorbus dunnii in flower.

Thomas Methuen-Campbell was of the opinion that this could not be Quercus acuta. One to show Sue and Bleddyn from Crûg on Monday.

Thomas identifies this unnamed oak above Crinodendron Hedge as Quercus sessilifolia.

Catkins on Quercus kiukiangensis.

A flower bud or two on Magnolia sapaensis.

Rhododendron ‘Mrs J C Williams’

Neolitsea aciculata – a gift from TH.

Magnolia ‘Silk Road’ flowering properly for the first time. Easy to see the Magnolia tripetala parentage.

Viburnum setigerum now out.

2020 – CHW
The last two days have been busy for the first time for 10 weeks. The estate insurance review and a rather exciting Burncoose management meeting as well as a Burncoose meeting about a new phone system and a meeting on the beach to investigate an automated self-ticketing system which may or may not be feasible.This large tree fern has lived in a pot in the back yard for at least 10 years and is looking rather tired and pot bound in the heatwave. Jaimie uses the presence of a small digger to move it to a new planting site near the shop in some shade.

The 20 year old fence on the lawn to keep the dogs penned in has lasted well but has recently started to have rotten posts. Good job the digger was around as the original posts had been concreted in and could not be dug out by hand. A few dwarf conifers which I planted 40 years ago were no longer dwarf at all and threatening the drawing room foundations. Another on the bank was obscuring the view of the sea from the dining room. All gone now.

Reconstruction starts and the new posts are re-concreted in and painted with creosote (or whatever we are allowed to use now).

Iris douglasiana (I think) growing outside the School Room window. Do not remember it being there before?

Then to Burncoose.

Ruta waters her admirable tunnel full of newly potted camellia liners (9cm) into 1.5L pots. Quite a crop for next spring and potted two months earlier than usual in the COVID lockdown. Another benefit and, let us face it, there are very few!

To my amazement I find Carrierea calycina in flower in the rarities tunnel. Very few people have ever seen this very rare large shrub or small tree in flower in this country. It was a Wilson introduction in 1908 but then died out until 35 to 40 years ago when reintroduced via a US botanist. At Penrice Castle a 20 -25ft tall plant has never flowered. Two grow here and are perhaps 6-8ft tall with a 4-6ft spread but no flowers here either although I must check again. Someone once brought a small spray to a Garden Society dinner but I did not know the plant then or its rarity. As unusual as an Emmenopterys henryi flowering in the UK (only three ever have at Borde Hill, Kew and Wakehurst and our 110 year old tree never has!)? I would describe the flowers as shaped like a toad’s mouth opening. The only vaguely similar shaped flower I know is Clerodendron.

Looking good in the nursery today:

2016 – CHW
Off to the rare plant fair at Tregrehan with Justin (7.30am start) and 104 rare plants to sell. We shift about 70 of them by 12.30 and meet lots of friends for ‘planty’ chats. A welcome outing after the horrors of Chelsea. Plant events like this are a delight.In turn I buy for Caerhays:Quercus insignis

Euonymus morrisonensisQuercus rugosa

Decaisnea insignis

Myrtus paraguayensis

Viburnum awabuki

Viburnum atrocyanea

Plus Thomas Methuen-Campbell gives us from Penrice:

Callistrus (a rare conifer)

Quercus hypoxantha

Salix aff moupinense (TH Vietnam)

2015 – CHW
The target today is to locate any old original Magnolia wilsonii or Magnolia sieboldii sinensis.  Having thought about it the latter is hidden completely behind the original Sassafras albidum above the Auklandii Garden.  However, as usual, there are distractions along the way:

Magnolia grandiflora ‘Symmes Select’ had a flower out during Jim Gardiner’s visit here in early March.  Still out today with buds to come.  Must be a record of some sort?

Schizophragma integrifolium full out beside it on the top wall.

On a bit further is Crug Farm’s form of Hydrangea quelpartensis which Burncoose stocked for years much more miniature leaved and quite possibly incorrectly named.

Along from the greenhouse is a 30 year old plant of Magnolia ‘Chelsea Coates’ (Magnolia sieboldii x Magnolia tripetala).  A rather ugly crinkly flower with sieboldii stamens.  A collector’s item only.  The plant on the drive at Burncoose is a bit different.  Perhaps ‘Ralph Coates’.  I bought Charles and Ralph Coates from Trehanes Nursery decades ago and they reside, as untrue to name as it is possible to be,  by Charlie Michael’s Nursery.

Above the greenhouse the first flowering of our new aesculus collection based on Michael Heseltine’s National Collection at Thenhurst.  What else (apart from cornus) is at its best as a flowering tree in early June?  Here is Aesculus x mutabilis ‘Induta’  with its apricot and yellow flowers.

Touching it is a well grown clump of Rhododendron ‘Fabia Tangerine’.

Going the other way is a nice clump of the heavily scented Rhododendron nuttallii (sinonuttallii)  which I used to grow in the Burncoose conservatory where it reached the roof but never set seed. Oppressive and overpowering/sickly smell especially in the evenings.

Then, just below today’s goal is Rhododendron ‘Tally Ho’.  A wonderful very late flowering red Rhododendron griersonianum hybrid (x facetum) which is attributed to other breeders but was undoubtedly raised here as well.  There is another old clump on the drive and at least one at Burncoose by the Tennis Court.

There used to be a good group of Magnolia sieboldii sinensis here but they have been squeezed out by a much newer Lithocarpus pachyphyllus.Only one old spreading plant survives.  It does have broader leaves than Magnolia wilsonii but too high up to smell if it has a lemon scent.  Photography difficult and the plant will not live much longer so we must diarise to collect the seed in early October.  The squirrel poison hopper (empty) is, I see, at the base of the plant.

Yes, you can see a very clear difference with Magnolia sieboldii both in the size of the flower and in the colour of the stamens which are reddish rather than pink.

There is now no more possible confusion between Magnolia wilsonii, Magnolia sieboldii and Magnolia sieboldii sinensis.  However I strongly suspect that in taking seed horticulturalist have bred hybrids between the two or three separate species so much of what is grown today is a mixture.  Good to have an old original to go back to.