18th December | The Garden Diary

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CONTRIBUTORS:

FJW 1955-2007

CHW 2015-

JCW 1897-1939

CW 1940-1955

2024 – CHW (images to follow)

The first time I have ever seen flowers on the Chilean Griselinia scandens. Burncoose stocks this but we have only recently planted this one out. Odd holly-like leaves and greenish flowers.

Alniphyllum fortunei (FMWJ 13013) has kept its leaves and blown over beside Rookery nursery.

Rookery nursery bed full of young rhododendrons but little is large enough to plant out next spring.

Griselinia ruscifolia has purple-black flowers which are largely over. A multi stemmed shrub.

Gambelia pseudocuodendifolia (BSWJ 11767) is battered but intact as an evergreen.

Euonymus wilsonii looks to be developing into a small tree but needs a sturdier stake.

Storm battered but still not bad – Camellia ‘Winton’.

Sarcococca wallichii now full out.

An excellent young clump of Rhododendron burmanicum in the Aucklandii.

Wisteria still in leaf in mid-December entwined in the Pyracantha.

2023 – CHW

Tree planting in Dry Walls today.

They cannot resist incinerating a self-sown pampas grass along the way.

The RHS Woody Plant Committee have now ratified the awards for Caerhays plants exhibited at flower shows last spring and voted on by the RHS Rhododendron Camellia and Magnolia Group judges.
– Camellia x williamsii ‘Caerhays’ FCC
– Rhododendron ‘Caerhays Pink’ FCC pending registration
– Magnolia ‘F J Williams’ FCC
– Camellia japonica ‘Takanini’ FCC

2022 – CHW
Wreath installed at the front door. Jaimie and Michael are very good at making these.

Squirrel traps operating well in this cold snap. Here a double whammy with conkers being the attraction.

Ripening seeds on Schefflera delavayi.

This was planted as Camellia gigantocarpa and is flowering for the second time that we have seen. Maurice Foster has an interesting article on camellia species identities in the latest RMCG newsletter.

Here is another puzzle! The other plant (ex Crug) of Camellia gigantocarpa has very different leaves. Largely smooth rather than bullate leaves. No flowers here after 15 years and you can see how the secondary new growth can get frosted. However the flowers on the other plant accord with the pictures from Dr Clifford Parks (+ 2 Chinese authors) book on Camellia species. Is Camellia gigantocarpa this variable in its leaf form.

Finally the leaves on another Aesculus wangii are frosted but not yet dropping.

2021 – CHW

And a second 1990 planted Nothofagus has had a prune up.

Its neighbour too which has let in more light to neighbouring plants.

The half fallen Magnolia ‘Princess Margaret’ has been uprighted and propped.

2020 – CHW
A carpet of seedlings under a solitary Podocarpus salignus. You never see enough podocarps or red berries on the tree to realise it can produce such a crop. Nor had I realised that this was a female (and self-sown) tree about 40 yards from the main clump.

Styrax hookeri still has some leaf but the seeds have dropped.

Buds now showing up on Michelia doltsopa but nothing like the crop which it has produced in the last two years. Drought again I suspect but it did overdo it last spring.

A tail end flower on Hydrangea ‘Fireworks’ without any hints of red by Georges Hut.

Most of the buds on a young Magnolia ‘Caerhays Belle’ have shed the first of their outer bud coverings dangerously early in the wind and mild weather. A few years ago this plant flowered a bit in the autumn and, although the flowers did not open properly, the sap was up and dieback ensued after minor cold. This has now been pruned out and the plant has recovered for now.

2019 – CHW
Camellia sasanqua ‘Sugar Plum’ lives up to its name and is well worth Asia propagating. One young plant above the two veitchiis.

Camellia x williamsii ‘George Blandford’ was full out three weeks from the first flower opening as seen then in this diary.

2018 – CHW
The new gas operated squirrel traps which have been recently legalised by the government have just arrived and here is a picture of one of them. The bait smells particularly horrible and we must wait and see if the squirrels are inclined to play. The whole point about these traps is that they do not need to be inspected daily and that the dead squirrels simply fall to the ground. It will be interesting to see if they work.

On a happier note, here is a picture of a red squirrel enjoying its nuts in a garden in Seaview – very close to our holiday home. The Isle of Wight remains grey squirrel free.

2017 – CHW

Another trip to look at the schefflera collection.

Schefflera taiwaniana has just finished flowering and is now setting seed. It has a multi stemmed habit.

Schefflerea pauciflora is still a small plant with a single stem but is now sporting a fine crop of nearly ripe seeds.

Schefflera aff. myriocarpa has also recently finished flowering and has huge trusses of seeds setting.

Schefflera macrophylla is starting to put out a huge new growth shoot coated in orange-brown indumentum.

Schefflera alpina has seeds like ivy berries in similar clusters.

Some schefflera species flowered in late summer and some in mid autumn but the seeds are all the key feature of these superb plants in mid to late December. Much seed for Asia to collect although not all of it is ripe yet.

2016 – CHW
Jaimie has discovered one of our last true Blood Red arboreums in Dry Walls. It was revealed when the laurel was felled around it. Certainly one to propagate from.

2015 – CHW

A few camellias emerge early alongside the drive below the Top Lodge. All were planted as large plants in 2009.
‘Jurys Yellow’ has a single flower.

So does ‘Prestons Rose’; or rather I think that is the right name but need to check.

1987 – FJW
First flower on C noblissima.

1979 – FJW
Storms (not so bad) still continue.

1965 – FJW
Pale Saluenensis by Gunroom door – a few flowers – November Pink sparse. Nobleanum good but Mucronulatum only coming. Very wet since November 15th.

1953 – CW
Still mild. Rhododendrons not forward but Camellias are. Saluenensis the shiny leaf form covered with flower, some of others opening. November Pink still good. Fuchsias and roses also lapagerias not out yet. Rho mucronulatum good and nobleanum but little else.

1934 – JCW
I picked the Devon polyanthus 3 days back, just as above for most things.

1931 – JCW
Rhododendron nobleanum is good in the Drive. Hydrangeas near the lodge not touched by the frost. Some roses about, I could pick bits of say 6 species of rhodo’n and 2 hyrbids.