15th January | The Garden Diary

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CONTRIBUTORS:

FJW 1955-2007

CHW 2015-

JCW 1897-1939

CW 1940-1955

2024 – CHW

Another very drab, cold and overcast day.

Camellia ‘Cinnamon Scentsation’ with just a few flowers as yet.

Camellia ‘Cinnamon Cindy’ well out and beautifully scented today with no wind.

A strange white mould on the trunk of an elderly magnolia. I don’t think it is doing any harm.

The seeds have all now shed on Schefflera delavayi. I hope we remembered to gather some?

Rather more worrying is rot (looks like honey fungus) at the base of our oldest Magnolia ‘Caerhays Surprise’. Strangely this happened once before 25 or so years ago and the tree died to ground level but reshot as a multi-stemmed plant.

First flowers on a young Camellia japonica ‘Diamond Head’.

2023 – CHW
Daphne bholua ‘Garden House Ghost’ now full out above the greenhouse.

First flower out on the garden form of Camellia reticulata above the Aucklandii Garden.

The Malus have all now gone and the plant sales area is nearly clear of everything still to be planted out.

2022 – CHW
Early germination of Dodonea viscosa seedlings in the nursery in our new seed production house.

First flowers out on Edgworthia ‘Red Dragon’ at Burncoose.

An excellent new crop of customer information notice boards in the nursery produced by our own staff.

This is one of the unwelcome side effects of trying to use compost which is peat free. Inevitably bark and woodchip based composts will always grow fungi like this. Unsightly to say the least but probably not actually harmful to the herbaceous plant in this pot. Try telling that to a customer if you sent him a dormant plant with this level of ‘disease’!

2021 – CHW
Trimming up and uplifting on a Michelia x foggii ‘Allspice’.

The elderly Camellia maliflora which was storm damaged and cut down 10 to 15 years ago. It is rather chlorotic in parts.

Recent trimming has exposed a fine clump of Phyllostachys nigra with very dark canes.

The original and huge (despite being cut down 20 to 25 years ago) Camellia x williamsii ‘John Pickthorn’ just coming out. The buds are long and tubular.

The fruits on what Tom Hudson identified as Malus rockii (he said x rockii but this is not in Hillier’s) are now ripe. New Trees says the fruits are ‘pome red’. There is a hint of reddish brown in them but they are clearly not red!

Still some leaves on Crataegus aestivalis (wrongly spelt austivalis on the plant label) which was unexpected.

Betula utilis var. jacquemontii ‘Inverleith’ with a developing and colourful trunk.

Sorbus japonica still covered in ripe and attractive red fruits with odd spotting.

Sorbus hupehensis likewise.

Salix fargesii. Last year’s new growth is red, two year old growth has green bark that eventually becomes woody. A quick growing and attractive shrub.

Cedrus brevifolia with lots of new growth which has shorter and sparser needles than the more mature growth.

Abies pinsapo developing nicely.

Tilia mexicana has a drooping habit and frequently has branches split off in the wind when in full leaf.

Picea morrisonicola – a rare and graceful spruce from Taiwan. Mount Morrison spruce.

Cedrus libani

The bamboos in Kennel Close have not yet been scorched and partially defoliated in the wind. They look rather impressive clumps today.

Fargesia robusta

Chimonobambusa tumidissinoda – the most vigorous and spreading of these six.

Fargesia rufa

Fargesia utilis

Himalayacalamus falconeri

The evergreen leaves of Quercus rugosa have some scorching.

I had expected Camellia tsaii to be out earlier but it is just starting with loads of buds. Similar to Camellia cuspidata.

The seedpods we saw in the summer on Fitzroya cupressoides have long since ‘popped’ and shed their seeds.

I have seldom planted Hamamelis here as nobody ever sees them and we had previously found them suspect to Phytophthora ramorum. However I had forgotten this Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Ruby Glow’ tucked away in far too much shade by the Acer griseum. I think next year we ought to try a new planting of some of the best new varieties. An ideal spot would be on the drive where the ash tree fell recently and where we ripped out some poor Camellia reticulata seedlings in the spring.

I attempted to see if Magnolia martinii had any flower buds for the spring. Most are new leaf growth buds I fear.

Camellia ‘New Venture’ is now nicely out.

New posts installed above the main quarry to keep visitors ‘safe’ if we are ever allowed any.

2020 – CHW
The arrival of Storm Brendan gave us two extremely wet days.

Signs of deer in the garden.

A final bit of path clearing at the top of the garden prior to opening; trimming the laurel here is going to be a priority.

Jaimie has found a yew tree growing out of the fallen trunk of a tree fern. A yew berry fell here or was deposited into the fibrous trunk, perhaps by a mouse, and has been growing away quite happily for five or six years by the look of it.

2019 – CHW
Another magnolia is more or less full out. On time, as usual, is Magnolia campbellii var. alba ‘Strybing White’. There is a hint of yellow at the tips of the petals as they first open.

2018 – CHW
The new shop is finally finished and the team look pleased (Jaimie, Lucy, Lucinda, Tim and Aaron). The nice furniture from the old shop in the garage has been moved across and is in place. It all has a light modern feel and will oblige visitors to go through it on their way out of the gardens. Easier to manage with less staff especially on wet days. Not quite what we originally planned a few years ago but a great leap forward none the less. All disabled/wheelchair friendly we hope with a staff sink for health and safety handwashing – why is this obligatory I wonder?

2017 – CHW
The scent from the Daphne bholua alba is overpowering today above the greenhouse. The plant is now full out and breathtaking!

In the small greenhouse a couple of new plants of Camellia ‘Quintessential’ are full out. This is Camellia japonica crossed with Camellia lutchuensis and is supposed to be highly perfumed and semi-double. I cannot observe either trait but perhaps the flowers are too full out to still be scented? The plants came from a French nursery so perhaps a Brexit retaliation? I must ask Asia what she thinks.

Lots of new magnolias for planting out in a month or so. Quite a big job again this year.

2016 – CHW
Camellia ‘Noblissima’ by the front door is now full out and relatively undamaged by the wind and rain. The plant is 120 years old and very slow growing.

Its similarly elderly neighbour Camellia ‘Lady Clare’ has only one bud showing colour. In the main garden in shelter it is full out as we have seen previously.

1966 – FJW
6° frost. No snowdrops. Big clearing above Veitchii.

1958 – FJW
Picked 4 buds of Mary Williams – Camellias very forward – starting cutting back centre block of big bed of Hydrangeas above drive. Snowdrops good.

1928 – JCW
Just as in 1926. Erica hybrida is ¼ open, nobleanums nice, some snowdrops, the white ribes should be out this coming week. Hamamelis remain very good.

1926 – JCW
Snow and frost but not very bad yet, R mucronulatum is only now open as against Christmas in most years, excepting Hamamelis there is not much else.

1923 – JCW
Much later than 1916 or 19 owing to a cold wet summer as I see it, no real cold has come yet.

1919 – JCW
As near as may be to 1916 though I am not sure of the cherry.

1916 – JCW
The following Rhodo’s are open and are of about the relative value in which I place them R mucronulatum, R praecox, R nobleanum, R barbatum, R moupinense, Thomsonii x a blood red, R oleifolium, R lutescens, R chrysanthum and a bit of Pearl. The snowdrops, coums and aconites are fair, no daffodils yet. Wilsons cherry opens 1st bloom and the white Ribes.

1907 – JCW
Snowdrops just showing, aconite hardly showing, C coums ⅔ open, no sign of R Praecox, no daffs show colour,. R nobleanum is good.

1906 – JCW
Snowdrops well out, coum at their best, about six trumpet seedlings open, Ericas very good, it has been very mild, several Camellias open. Rho Praecox well out.

1897 – JCW
Snowdrops in full flower, a good few yellow crocus, 2 sorts Polyanthus Daf out and half the minimus, fair lot of Primroses.