7th February | The Garden Diary

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CONTRIBUTORS:

FJW 1955-2007

CHW 2015-

JCW 1897-1939

CW 1940-1955

2025 – CHW

Magnolia ‘Todd’s Forty Niner’ is showing colour evenly all over but no flower is yet actually out.

Rhododendron ‘Christmas Cheer’ performing at its best in the sun over a month late.

Magnolia campbellii subsp. mollicomata ‘Lanarth’ (the true form from Lanarth) just out above Orchid House Nursery.

Magnolia campbellii ‘Valentine’s Torch’ with a few yellow buds opening white. Blown open and nothing showing yet on our other two trees of this variety obtained originally from Mount Congreve.

The Embothrium above Roger’s Quarry which was nearly dead has had a haircut but I doubt it will reshoot.

Michelia doltsopa ‘Fairy White’ is now coming out properly.

The first plants from Burncoose for the shop are tucked away in the greenhouse. We open the garden on Monday 10th.

Just a hint of colour on the magnolias outside the Back Yard.

2024 – CHW
Rather surprising to find flowers out on Sorbus aff. ligustrinum (HWJ 948) planted in 2010 in Kennel Close.

Flowers tassels on the Hazels are already full out in the layby at Pittsdown Farm.

Rhododendron ‘Bo Peep’ (Yellow) suddenly out on the Drive. The pink form is always a few days later into bloom. More or less on time for this I think.

We head off to plant 15 new German bred magnolias in Kitchen Garden.

They more of less full the bottom end of the Kitchen Garden above the Old Dog Kennels.

Prunus ‘Kursar’ out below the tower.

Camellia japonica ‘Midnight’ out in Kennel Close.

First flowers out on Rhododendron ‘Red Admiral’ by George’s Hut.

2023 – CHW
Unusual to see seed heads on Hoheria populnea ‘Variegata’. Unaffected by the cold spell.

Severe deer nibbling of the lower branches on the evergreen Viburnum triphyllum and very recent too.

Illicium macranthum (BSWJ 11809) with buds close to opening. Plenty of them too.

What looks like Guinea Fowl excrement on an Ilex cornuta. Looks odd from a distance.

Still a good show of berries on the Corokia which the birds have left alone.

A sickly Rhododendron arboretum post drought below Slip Rail.

Buds with colour on Camellia lutchuensis but no flower open quite yet.

2022 – CHW

Walking off the path to Rookery I find an excellent young Rhododendron grande flowering away unobserved until now. When I look this up it was planted in 2004 and from seed collected by Mr & Mrs Greswell from Taunton in 1998. It was collected in Milake, Danda, Nepal (these spellings may well be wrong). Sadly I do not remember them or planting this myself so I probably did not!

Rhododendron arboreum – seven plants put out in 2009; six survive (5392 – an RCMG seed distribution I guess). Four just into flower today and some lower branch pruning on a nearby magnolia needed to give them more light.

A big consignment of new plants from Burncoose from my annual ‘wish list’ accumulated from what I have seen on webcasts and garden videos in lockdown. Lots of new specimen sized new German bred magnolias amongst them from Michael Gottschalk. Also perhaps 30 new varieties of magnolia from Magnoliastore to add to the collection here.

The Magnolia campbellii seedling by the arch has opened a lot more in four days. Looking good beside the Azalea ‘Hinomayo’.

2021 – CHW
A cold east wind is coming and possibly snow even for us in the next few days. A walk through Old Park, then Brownberry Wood and Bond Street.Gunnera manicata and snowdrops below the old hunt kennels in a bog. They have thrived here for generations despite frequent inundations.

Early signs of leaves shooting on the Gunnera in today’s sun.

At this time of the year Gunnera rhizomes can easily be extracted from the ground as the old roots die off. This huge rhizome could readily be lifted and chopped up to make more plants from sections of the rhizome.

This is the bank where the new additional collection of bought in bamboo species will be planted before long.

This is Pseudosasa japonica. A re-establishing and developing clump after the huge bank of it here in Old Park flowered and died 30 or so years ago.

Corylus avellana catkins in the sun. Quite a few catkins were seen even in December but they got frosted or blown away then.

Bluebells sprouting out of the ground in early February! Earlier and earlier.

Old Park in the sun. A few camellias just showing.

The two sluice gates were overrun by the floods last week.

This track was under water as were the whole of these water meadows.

Prunus laurocerasus about to come out into flower.

A huge clump of Camellia x williamsii ‘St Ewe’ on Bond Street.

Still red crab apples in profusion on one of the three different malus on Bond Street. This is the smallest and bottom one of the three (see earlier attempts at naming the three of them).

Mahonia (then) ‘species nova’ given to us by Roy Lancaster and planted below the dump on Bond Street in 2008 (two plants). I must ask Roy to identify it and send him these pictures. In too much shade today, unfortunately, for it to do well but, after last summer’s tree trimming, it now has more light than it did.

The typical branch/trunk formation on Magnolia dawsoniana.

Daphne bholua ‘Mary Rose’ is just coming out in a pot. At Tregullow last week they had a 6-8ft tall multi stemmed one full out in a huge pot by their back door. Amazingly good and the Burncoose label still there for all to see! I did not have the camera to hand.

2020 – CHW
First colour on the 1913 record (height) tree of Magnolia campbellii. Just a few flowers at the very top of the tree. 120ft or so.

First flowers on Camellia x williamsii ‘Brigadoon’ on the Main Ride.

The insipid coloured Magnolia campbellii by Tin Garden is now nearly full out in the sun.

This Daphniphyllum macropodum is dying as you can see from the base of the trunk. One side of the tree is dead and the other side seeded furiously last autumn in anticipation of its demise. You can see the red seed stems. A lecturer at the University of York contacted us wanting large samples of bark and foliage to test for unusual and potentially useful chemicals found in this genus. He has £1.2m of funding so it sounds serious! I will send him these photographs and see where we go from here.

Still lots of ripe fruit hanging on the branches of Styrax serrulatus near the Daphniphyllum.

Rhododendron ‘Ostara’ just coming out.

No colour on any of the three magnolia species in the Ririei Opening as yet. Just a hint of colour on the magnolia through the arch beyond ‘Caerhays Belle’.

2019 – CHW
First flower out on Magnolia ‘F J Williams’ on a drizzly afternoon in the Auklandii Garden.

Plenty of flowers now out on the original Magnolia campbellii. Spring has nearly broken here.

x Raphiobotrya ‘Coppertone’ has flowers nearly out. First time of flowering here.

The Michelia doltsopa buds are swelling nicely by Georges Hut but still not showing colour – thankfully!

2018 – CHW

What Trevor Green from Yorkshire calls ‘hogwart’ in flower already. Normally full out late April or May. Astonishingly early.

Not to be outdone for un-seasonality here is some ‘cow parsley’ with flowers just going over and seed setting on the other side of the road below the church and opposite the ‘hogwart’.

Gorse full out everywhere too.
I may well have my common names for weeds muddled and am happy to be corrected! In childhood ‘cow parsley’ was something similar but different I seem to remember.

2017 – CHW
Magnolia ‘Bishop Peter’ has a bit of colour only on the very top of the tree. Surprising that the wind has not yet blown it out more. Usually this is one of the first out.

On the way back I see Magnolia ‘Todds Fortyniner’ is out as well but I am out of camera battery. This was easily the first (pre Christmas) magnolia to be showing colour last year.

2016 – CHW
More gales coming but not too bad in the morning.Another unnamed seedling magnolia by the Rhododendron williamsianum clump is very good. It is now out properly and the third time this year I have photographed this.

Magnolia ‘Pristine’ has three buds with colour beside it.

Magnolia ‘Cecil Nice’ has the first few flowers out at Donkey Shoe.

Magnolia ‘Lanarth’ – the New Zealander form – is the best thing in the garden today. I had thought the buds were hail damaged but was wrong.

Storm damage on the Pinus insignis at Donkey Shoe needs clearing on a quiet day before we open.

It has narrowly missed Rhododendron veitchianum Group which has absurdly early flowers. Previously Rhododendron cubittii I suspect.

Magnolia ‘Bishop Peter’ is full out but starting to shed petals (tepals). A lighter colour than usual as I have said before.

Magnolia ‘Ians Red’, one of Ian Baldick’s New Zealand hybrids, has a few flowers blown open at least two and a half months early. A dark colour though.

Magnolia ‘Suzanna van Veen’ is out well before ‘Caerhays Belle’ which is the same cross made in New Zealand.

Magnolia sargentiana robusta (or so it is catalogued) above Crinodendron Hedge is actually full out (so I was wrong again but it is the only one out or even showing colour of a dozen mature plants – actually the flower shape is more campbellii x mollicomata than sargentiana robusta).

Just below it another pale Magnolia ‘Lanarth’ seedling is half out at the top. Quite nice but nowhere near the true colour.

Rhododendron delavayi is almost over above the Big Quarry. This has been visible for weeks from the Bottom Lodge.

Then a surprise! Nigel Holman’s Magnolia ‘Hawk’ on Burns Bank has lots of buds and flower on a small plant. It looks very much like a sprengeri diva seedling to me? I need to look up the parentage.

Another Magnolia ‘Shirraz’ above the Playhouse. Also very dark with only a few flowers at the very top of the tree.

Another unnamed seedling from the ‘Caerhays Belle’ seed batch. Smaller flowers but a bit darker pink perhaps. Nice but not worth a name as has always been known.

Snowdrops nearly over outside the front gate.

Bluebells (Spanish) even nearer to having a February flower!

2004 – FJW
Early daffs onto the front gate well out – snowdrops at their best.1981 – FJW
Miss Florence Williams (7 ½ months) came to lunch and sat at table.1968 – FJW
Very wet spell. Thermometer moving in a giddy way. No colour on Magnolias – many things flowering too early.1959 – FJW
Camellias at their best, snow returned. Magnolias too far on in bud. Flowers still show on M grandiflora by playhouse.

1944 – CW
Mag campbelli showing colour. About 2 dozen different hybrids out in Tin Garden. Best Rho ririei perfect. Camellia Lady Clare and Adolphe Audusson out.

1943 – CW
About a dozen buds on Mag grandiflora, Campbelli several buds, one Sargentianum bud shows colour. At least 15 Sutuenense hybrids in Old Park well out. Grande out and several more species.

1942 – CW
Bad frosts.

1941 – CW
First daff with colour open in Tin Garden. Cam reticulata species out, also hybrids and Lady Clare. Several Blood Red x Rhododendron arboreum – also Moupinense very good. Heath darleyensis v g.

1897 – JCW
Minor out in full flower, also Tenby at Tregony with Iris reticulata.