3rd December | The Garden Diary

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CONTRIBUTORS:

FJW 1955-2007

CHW 2015-

JCW 1897-1939

CW 1940-1955

2024 – CHW

Sunny and still but not yet cold.

The Rehderodendron macrocarpum outside the front gate has wonderful colour in the sun today. The plant beyond the Fernery has none of these colours.

Gingko biloba and Camellia sasanqua ‘Narumigata’.

Gingko biloba just colouring up.

The Rhododendron ‘Cornish Red’ opposite the Gingko is full of colour.

First flowers on Rhododendron mucronulatum as the last leaves drop.

Azalea ‘Greenway’ with its usual winter offering of a few flowers.

The first and only flower on Rhododendron moupinense on the drive below Red Linney.

Rhododendron nobleanum full out in the sun.

2023 – CHWLeaf blowing gives us a first sight of the snowdrops.

A half day of planting out a few large things from Crug Farm and Pavia reveals several novelties.

Euonymus nanus – a dwarf semi-evergreen shrub.

Euonymus carnosus (MWJ 14515) with seed capsules and seeds.

Microtropsis petelotii with nearly ripe seed heads.

A gigantic Daphniphyllum aff. longeracemosum (BSWJ 11788) in place beside the fallen acer.

2022 – CHW
The laurel hedge below Tin Garden now completely cut back.

Styrax japonicus and Styrax japonicus ‘Emerald Pagoda’ (‘Sohuksan’) showing off together.

Styrax japonicus ‘Emerald Pagoda’ and Stewartia serrata.

The autumn colours of Stewartia serrata. The Stewartia species have not performed nearly as well with autumn tints this year. Drought and a mild autumn I assume.

A particularly good single red Camellia japonica with several flowers out.

Despite there being few rabbits here at present they soon find a fallen magnolia branch and chew the bark.

The larger of the two mature Camellia taliensis in more shade still has plenty of flower out today. The one in more sun and exposure is more or less over.

2021 – CHW
Pruning up the champion (height) Magnolia ‘Gold Star’ to prevent it swamping nearby Pieris and scented rhododendrons. A fairly dramatic pruning of what had become a spreading tree.

A long dead snake bark maple was felled and burnt at the same time.

Euonymus alatus ‘Compactus’ has now dropped all its leaves.

Pruning has been completed on the ash and beech trees alongside Tin Garden to give the laurel more light to grow taller.

Eucalyptus simmosii with its flowers still in tight bud as they have been for some months. I have kept looking over the years but have yet to see them actually out in flower and have no idea of the colour.

2020 – CHW
The garden in the sun keeps you sane as lockdown ends.Liquidambar styraciflua ‘Gum Ball’ has an unusual shrubby and conical habit as here but it is said to turn orange-red and purple in an open position. All we see here are nice yellow tints.

This is Liquidambar styracifolia ‘Oconee’, which has a very similar habit to ‘Gum Ball’ but, here, has coloured up rather better as Hillier’s says it should.

Carpinus laxiflora a vivid yellow in the sun.

First two flowers out on Camellia champetre ‘Fairy Blush’.

Catalpa bungei Duclouxii Group (as it now is rather than Catalpa fargesii f. duclouxii) is late into leaf and late to drop too.

As is Halesia macgregorii.

Another Clethra pringleyi with flowers nearly over.

First flowers high up on Polyspora axillaris var. tonkinense.

First flower on the pale coloured Camellia x williamsii ‘Beatrice Michael’.

Buds nearly open on Camellia x williamsii ‘Jury’s Yellow’.

2019 – CHW
Jaimie and the team have started leaf clearance on the drive. We spent some time at the Royal Cornwall Show trying to identify a machine with a brush which could do the job more quickly. However the gap between the tarmac and the bank is usually very narrow and it gets filled with soil over the year as well as leaves. Without hard digging the drains simply do not work. Everything mechanical which we have tried does not do the job as well as the old fashioned spade and a lot of effort.

A few seeds for the first time that we have noticed high up on the 40 year old Davidia involucrata in the Auklandii Garden. This tree replaced the one here before whose trunk split out three ways. It was probably three Davidias planted together as there used to be a competition between large gardens to produce the Davidia with the biggest girth.

Gutter damage in the winds on the Stable Flat.

Actinidia deliciosa with good autumn colour by the gents’ loo long after the intertwined wisteria has shed its leaves.

2018 – CHW
Storms bring down a tree on the road to Tregavarras by the post box. A few other branches and small trees to clear as well. Not as much damage as expected.

We hear a coastguard siren rushing from Caerhays Beach to Portholland. A car has rolled off the concrete slipway at Portholland with, thankfully, no one inside. The waves have battered the car and moved it along the beach. We need to get bollards erected here to prevent a ‘handbrake incident’ (or an insurance event?) occurring when the beach is full in the summer. The council refused to do this a few years ago.

2017 – CHW
Here is Isla Rose standing on her hind legs for the first time aged seven months. I am not ashamed to be a rather proud grandfather but am doing my planting bit for her to enjoy in 30 years’ time or sooner! More dreckly!

A new evergreen plant to us in flower – Dasyphyllum diacanthoides. Very odd flowers which look a lot like Illicium flowers. Not in Hillier’s or New Trees no nothing to find out other than what I see.

2016 – CHW
First few flowers on Camellia x williamsii ‘St Ewe’. We have seen earlier but a cold east wind these last two days.

Camellia ‘Jurys Yellow’ will soon be out as well above the Auklandii Garden.

2015 – CHW

A rough windy day but none of the rain again forecast by day.The Rhododendron nobleanums are now full out on the drive and making quite a decent display. No sign yet of its lovely hybrid, ‘Winter Intruder’, though.

The unnamed x williamsii camellia opposite is now full out but its three neighbours are not in the same hedge. Normally they all come together. Quite a show on the drive which attracts comment from our shooting parties who ask if this is all early. ‘Not really’ is the answer although this has been the mildest of autumns. We often think that a cold snap vernalises camellias into flower quicker than prolonged mild. Rather like the snowdrops.

Still only one solitary flower on Camellia ‘Gauntlettii’ by the front door. After a visit to the nursery I wonder if this is in fact Camellia ‘Noblissima’? The family have always called it ‘Sodegasuki’ which I may have interpreted as ‘Sodekakushi’ (ie ‘Gauntlettii’). The two are similar and ‘Gauntlettii’ is described as a ‘weak’ grower which would certainly fit but ‘Noblissima’ is described as ‘very early’ (for a Camellia japonica cultivar). If the camellia ‘bible’, which is currently at Burncoose, says ‘Sodegasuki’ is another name for ‘Noblissima’ this solves the puzzle. If not then this very ancient original japonica cultivar remains a puzzle or perhaps the family have promulgated the wrong name? When it is fully out we can ‘go compare’ on other websites.

These three pictures [from gardenruminations.wordpress.com] make it clear it is Camellia ‘Noblissima’ but you can see how the confusion has arisen.

1974 – FJW
Potatoes at last in ground. Very wet year.

1950 – CW
Snow and some frost. Not bad so far. A few Saluenensis hybrids out and Taliensis. Hardly any rhodo’s. Some fuchsias and lapageria.

1949 – CW
Camellia sasanqua still very good also Oleifera. Big quarry early pink been out for 3 weeks, also Engine House double white. Lapagerias good, some fuchsias still nice. Rho lutescens a lot out and very many other odd bits. Yellow Hammer good. Large vases of pink and yellow Maddeni hybrids in the hall. Leaves by no means all off. White heath very nice.

1934 – JCW
Lapagerias have some flowers. Camellia sasanqua several also.

1930 – JCW
No real frost yet. Camellia sasanqua, Christmas camellia all with flowers, also lapageria and some fuchsias. Erica darleyense in flower and some Rho lutescens and neriiflorum.

1925 – JCW
Frost on and off for a good many nights, today it’s right across the pond. Berberis polyantha is far the best thing we have.