2018 – CHW
A morning gathering seeds and evergreen cuttings here this Monday for propagation for the nursery by a third party specialist propagator. We cannot grow everything ourselves and many rarities are so difficult to propagate that it is best to have more than one person trying. The add-on benefit is that we may get new replacement plants for some of our aging rarities. Perhaps the most important thing overall! Fifty separate sets of seeds and cuttings were gathered by four of us in three hours with a careful route plan.
The first ancient single pale pink Camellia sasanqua has sprung open in a bit of drizzle. I looked only two days ago. About three weeks earlier than last year but about on par with the norm over 20 years. The other old sasanquas are a bit later especially the smaller flowered darker pink one. The camellia season is starting all over again. Marvellous!
You do not very often see Euonymus japonicus growing in Cornish hedgerows but here a bush full of seed pods which are turning red nicely but no colour on the leaves yet.
We have all missed the first flowering at Caerhays of another new clethra species. Clethra monostachya has leaves similar to Clethra delavayi but a different growth habit or so it appears so far.
2015 – CHW
Cornus kousa ‘Gloria Birkett’ had the best and largest red fruits on any cornus in the garden last year. They are hanging in profusion and swelling but not turning red just yet. I wonder why this exceptional variety is not more widely available?
