29th January 1897 – 2020 | The Garden Diary

FJW 1955-2007

CHW 2015-

JCW 1897-1939

CW 1940-1955

2020 – CHW
Off to the nursery for the first time in a month and I am immediately struck by the wonderful hellebores in flower.

Helleborus ‘Sally’s Shell’ has a delicate pink frill to the edge of the flower which fades a bit as you can see.

Helleborus ‘Cheryl’s Shine’ has a rather more entire pink flower.

Helleborus ‘Anna’s Red’ is much redder on the back side of the flowers than the front but much darker overall than the other two.

Also out today was the new Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Pinish Orange’.

Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Rubin’ was also looking particularly good.

2019 – CHW
The two magnolias through the arch continue to come out despite the coldish snap and some northerly gales with heavy rain. Ridiculously and worryingly early.

Azalea ‘Hinomayo’ is nearly full out beneath them as well. Not just the odd few early flowers as we have come to expect here and at Burncoose in recent years.

Camellia x williamsii ‘Donation’ has its first few flowers by the Green Gate. Donation only performs later here and well after many of the original Caerhays x williamsii camellias are in their prime.

2018 – CHW
First flowers on Rhododendron moupinense a little later than last year I think.

Disaster with the Schefflera macrophylla which blew over in the gales. Fortunately only a few roots had snapped so it has been re-staked.

Fine leaf indumentum on Magnolia grandiflora ‘Kay Parris’.

Camellia ‘Cornish Snow’ has shed a fair number of its flowers to the ground already.

Michelia ‘Touch of Pink’ laden with well advanced buds.

First single flower on Magnolia campbellii ‘Strybling White’. It wins the contest for the first full open magnolia flower again this year.

2017 – CHW
An enquiry from our friends in Holland with whom we had been selling camellia flowers in years past. Why are they so late they ask? Look at their anticipation of last week’s weather is clearly the answer but, for now, the high pressure has gone and we are back into wet, westerly and mild conditions.First flower high up on Camellia x williamsii ‘Mary Jobson’ by the side door. No scent yet.

The wind and frost have not yet destroyed the darker of the two original Camellia saluenensis.

And the earlier into flower pale form still also has a few deceit flowers.

The buds on Magnolia ‘Caerhays Belle’ have shed their outer secondary coating presumably in the wind.

However the magnolia the other side of the wall which was out last year on 3rd January still has its outer secondary coating intact. A bit more sheltered perhaps?

First few flowers on Camellia x williamsii ‘Donation’ outside the back yard. Small and pale as blown open in the wind.

This Rhododendron ‘Lady Alice Fitzwilliam’ is on the way out from honey fungus by the cash point despite all the big buds. It will be dead by April and the leaves are just yellowing and starting to droop.

The two plants next door are still fine and well. We started with six or eight in this clump and now, 10 to 15 years on, have just two left. Typical of rhodos in a honey fungus spot but these are short lived plants anyway.

The flowers on the Fuchsia exorticaticas have now turned or opened into the correct darker colour despite all the cold last week.

2016 – CHW
Another day, another magnolia is out. Magnolia campbellii var alba ‘Strybing White’ is normally one of the first to show colour and is often frosted. Here, yet again, this is at least a month early. The flowers of this cultivar are a bit insipid with a slightly greenish/yellow hue as they first open. Nothing like as good as the true M campbellii var alba.

1933 – JCW
Very far behind 28. Forrest’s Camellias are the best flowers after the passing of the Hamamelis. 4 hardish frosts.

1928 – JCW
Later than 27 for Daffs, but many Rhodo’n hybrids and species show flower, some nice R sutchuenense open in the Old Park. Barbatum and the early Blood reds are good, also moupinense – lutescens – irroratum – mucronulatum. Prunus cerasus conradinae show colour.

1927 – JCW
Cyclamineus daff has been open for some three days, nothing else of that family. Camellia speciosa, oleifolia and the tea plant show flowers say 10 Rhodo ‘n species show flower of which lutescens, parvifolium and irroratum are the best.

1923 – JCW
Picked the first buds of Sutchuenense, most of the above are open, one or two cyclamineus open.

1922 – JCW
Pollen to be had off the following species R obtusum – moupinense – rubiginosum – neriiflorum – cuneatum – racemosum – scabrifolium – oreodoxa – cyanocarpum – mucronulatum – dahuricum semperivens – lutescens – baylei – sulfureum – micranthum.

1920 – JCW
Only one daff (cyclamineus) open so far, the blood red hybrids very good, irroratums have just begun to show their value, some arboreums in flower, Rho’n praecox was never better.

1915 – JCW
One cyclamineus is open the first bit of yellow, many beautiful scarlet Rhodo’s are open including R barbatum which only shows colour. Hamamelis mollis is really the best thing open.

1906 – JCW
Send eight or ten seedling daffs to Engelhart at Dinton, the first Soleil D’or came out, Narcissus Prince shows colour.

1905 – JCW
Picked the first seedling (Cyclamineus Max). Perhaps two or three open, nearly half the daffs above ground.

1904 – JCW
Yellow crocus open for a week or ten days, coums at their best, and snowdrops, a few seedling tets show colour, Soleil D’or well open and so Aconite.

1901 – JCW
I saw the first minor open. Snow and N.E wind.