A big leaf rhodo looking very sad.

A larger plant struggling into its new growth. Desperate for water.

There always is another branch down.

In more shade at the far end of Old Park things look better.

Still some water flowing in the stream from The Vean and Kitchen Garden.

Several dead azaleas that were planted out last autumn.

Hypericum lancasteri.

2025 – CHW

Light drizzle after a fortnight away. Plenty of good rain in my absence.

Grass cutting starts in Old Park.

Seed forming on Magnolia laevifolia ‘Summer Snowflake’.

Hydrangea paniculata ‘Polar Bear’ and Hydrangea aspera villosa.

Hydrangea paniculata ‘Early Sensation’ and Hydrangea sargentiana.

Hydrangea paniculata ‘Vanille Fraise’ with no pink showing yet.

Rhododendron ‘Polar Bear’ and Eucryphia x nymansensis ‘Nymansay’.

Eucryphia x nymansensis ‘Nymansay’ just out by George’s Hut.

Magnolia tamaulipana with seed forming and flowers still.

Eucryphia ‘Nymansay’ towards Tin Garden. Before the 1990 hurricane it was a huge tree but now multi-stemmed.

2024 – CHW
Amazing to see Erythrina crista-galli in full flower in a garden just inland from Seaview. Very early in the year for it to be in flower.

A huge clump of Abutilon megapotamicum. The flowers are rather hidden within the clump.

Thirty acres of good arable land planted with trees three years ago. Two dry summers later there have been casualties particularly with the oaks. Ragwort and thistles now dominate. The successful establishment of Alder and Hawthorn is no surprise. I am surprised the grant was given for 3m spacings between trees as opposed to the normal 1.2m.

2023 – CHW
After the rain there is suddenly a late flowering clump of Rhododendron maddenii with decent flowers.

Another unusual flower combination of Catalpa x erubescens ‘Purpurea’ and Eucryphia x nymansensis ‘Nymansay’.

Flowers on Catalpa x erubescens ‘Purpurea’ are not much different to those of Catalpa bignonioides but there are more individual flowers in each flower truss.

A month ago this very rare Reevesia had no leaves left on it. The old leaves had dropped and it was too dry for the new growth to emerge. No problem now!

See how well these Rhododendron zaleucum have reshot new growth after we halved them in size last autumn.

A young plant of Eucryphia x hillieri ‘Penwith’ performing properly for the first time.

Lomatia fraseri flowering away int is deer shelter. At Gorwell Garden this has grown into a huge tree despite originating from New South Wales. So tall in fact that it is hard to see the flowers. In a good hot spot with us and also facing the sea.

Tetracentron sinense var. himalense (WJC 13618) is becoming interesting. The leaves are tiny in comparison to T. sinense and they are clustered much more closely together.

2022 – CHW
Forestiera neomexicena has turned up its toes. Very dull and very rare plant. No idea why but it had been doing not a lot since 1991.

Egg shaped buds on our Manglietia mote but none out yet.

A fine show of Rhododendron ‘Polar Bear’ in the Rireii Opening.

The once record Osmanthus yunnanensis is reshooting better than expected. We dug out its neighbour in the spring as it didn’t reshoot at all.

Some seed heads on Magnolia sargentiana var. robusta but not nearly as many as last year which looks well for budding for next spring.

The tail ends of flowers on Lomatia ferruginea which I have missed completely this year.

Another veteran bites the dust and now needs digging out. Our oldest Rehderodendron macrocarpum. Lots of youngsters coming on all over the garden. Almost 100 years old.

Flower spikes emerging on Schefflera delavayi. Normally out in November/December.

I have also missed Illicium aff. griffithii (WWJ 1911) very last flower here.

Our Ternstroemia gymnanthera (BSWJ 12948) has no flowers as yet. Reddish new growth and reddish tips to the leaves which do not match Tom’s plant. If ours grows as big as his in 25 years we have this in the wrong place!

No idea how to name this clump of late flowering Rhodos beside the Podocarpus salignus clump but superb today and one to add to the layering list. Easy layers here as you can see.

A dead Magnolia ‘Lu Shan’. Honey fungus or caught in the cold winds with early leaf. Fortunately we have another.

Look how the bark has peeled off on the wind on another Betula ‘China Ruby’.

Big leafs struggling into new growth in the dry conditions but we have had a few drizzly days to make them set seed.

Interested to read an article in MSI Journal of how you fertilise the flowers of Magnolia delavayi to make them set seed. In the evenings as the flowers begin to open apparently. Written by a Magnolia grower in Dorset. I send a ‘how to have sex with a delavayi’ email to the propagators with the article. Never had fertile seeds here before.

2021 – CHW
Visits to local garden centres today to try to pick out more popular and potential mail order selling ‘new’ plants. After visiting half a dozen garden centres on the Isle of Wight and a few others last week I can glean a fair idea about local pricing and the local competition.Chacewater Garden Centre is not really plant orientated and is mainly a shopping centre for garden related (and unrelated) accessories, clothes and cards. Impressive and well laid out indoors but the outdoor plant sales area was thin and far too hot.Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Andre’ looked good in leaf (no flower) but much the same as ‘Diabolo’ or ‘Lady in Red’.

Leucothoe axillaris ‘Little Flames’ looked good.

Hypericum ‘Sunny Boulevard’ was a pale yellow.

Carnon Downs Garden Centre has a much better plant range and nearly all covered and shaded.

Poleonemium ‘Sulphur Trumpets’ was a nice new thing.

Agapanthus ‘Midnight Star’ is attractive but there are now scores of very similar varieties all with ‘selling’ names. I photographed at least a dozen unknown ones today and Burncoose already lists 28.

Rehmannia ‘Walberton Magic Dragon’ grows to about 3-3½ft.

Campanula ‘Pink Octopus’ has the merit of being rather different.

Pengelly Garden Centre is rather different. A huge multi span selling only plants with few sundries. All beautifully laid out to tempt buyers with a multitude of mixed and clever plant displays. Real show talent here and far the most enticing to buy of the three. Sadly and undeservedly not a single customer for half an hour at midday.Hibiscus syriacus ‘Blue Chiffon’ – attractive but a bit too tender to grow properly outside?

Hibiscus syriacus ‘Starburst Chiffon’

The dark foliage on Ceanothus ‘Tuxedo’ looked interesting and new but no flowers now.

A wall of nasturtiums was superb.

Penstemon ‘Strawberries and Cream’ – better than some varieties on our website.

Penstemon ‘Appleblossom’

Geranium ‘Orkney Cherry’ – superb groundcover.

Leucothoe axillaris ‘Curly Red’ without any winter colour but unusual none the less.

Absurdly named but excellent – Hydrangea ‘You and Me Together’ – Rose and Blue. A rather more double and intricate flower than ‘Fireworks Blue’ and ‘Fireworks Pink’.