Rhododendron viscosum ‘Mermaid’ is excellent.

Rhododendron ‘Royal Flush’ – apricot form. Covered in flower below the Fernery.

Sorbus hemsleyi ‘John Bond’ growing away well.

Philadelphus purpureomaculatus. A dwarf growing form.

Cornus kousa var. chinensis in the Isla Rose.

Fruits on Viburnum buddleifolium for the first time.

2024 – CHW
Just a few flowers are now out on Styrax faberi.

Philadelphus pekinensis a good show today.

Large seeds already on Magnolia ‘Princess Margaret’.

Styrax americanus just about out.

Rhododendron weyrichii at the entrance to the Rookery.

Azalea ‘Western Lights’ (or so the plans say) with very blue foliage.

Hypericum augustinii was a 2022 gift from Maurice Foster. Huge flowers.

Hypericum forrestii has a compact habit and the flowers are much smaller but none the worse for that.

Today’s wedding took place here and then the 200 guests walked to Beach Meadow with a (small) band leading the way. Plenty of rain on the posh chairs overnight. A noisy evening in prospect as they warm up in a huge tent on Beach Meadow.

The first flower I have seen this year our on Magnolia delavayi.

The seed tassels are well formed now on Pterocarya fraxinifolia outside the backyard.

Azalea ‘Pink Pancake’ I think which is one of the best Nakahari hybrids.

2023 – CHW

A tour with 19 Americans as the heatwave continues. They worry about ticks and will not walk off the paths in the grass. I tell them I wear gun boots against snakes and that livens them up!

The leaflet on top of the flower buds on Magnolia sapaensis.

Tom Hudson’s 1999 planted Manglietia 695 flowering for the first time here.

Styrax serrulatus still not quite full out.

The Crug Farm Manglietia insignis gets better and better.

Rhododendron auriculatum struggling in the drought.

Carpinus fangiana splendid.

New chimneys on the Stable Flat. Smoke was leaking out the sides rather alarmingly last year.

2022 – CHW
Pterocarya fraxinifolia with its large pendulous seed catkins beside the sales point.

Hydrangea seemanii is suddenly out high up on the castle wall.

Aristolochia sempervirens with its rather modest flowers by the standards of other Aristolochia.

Pyramid orchids in the Isle of Wight in a chalk downland meadow.

A visit to the Railway Inn (which was closed) in the outskirts of Ryde to view what was billed as a ‘rare and peculiar tree’ in the pub’s roadside garden. It turned out to be a large and clearly elderly Gingko biloba. The owners had tried to cut it down and caused a furore.

2021 – CHW
A young (from Mark Bulk) plant of what is called Styrax hookeri yunnanensis. The leaf looks a bit like Styrax hookeri but the flowers do not. I wonder what the history of this is?

Cornus iberica in full flower.

The equally dull (and looking very similar) Cornus hemsleyi beside it.

Flowers out on Liriodendron chinense and one was pickable.

The flower close up and about halfway through its flowering cycle.

Liriodendron tulipifera also in flower but far too high to reach. A very different colour combination.

Liriodendron tulipifera ‘Aureomarginata’ was still in tight bud.