2025 – CHW
A free tour for 27 of the 500 signed up Friends of Burncoose (10% discount on all purchases).
Magnolia ‘Venus’ at Burncoose in a pot.
Magnolia denudata ‘Purpurascens’.
Acacia melanoxylon with immature and mature leaf forms in the nursery. Yesterday we looked at a mature tree. The juvenile growth is hugely different as it is in many Acacia species. Confusing as I said yesterday!
Buddleia farreri in flower – as it should be.
Magnolia ‘A.E. Bold’ ready to go out to a customer in the packing shed.
Magnolia ‘Black Swan’ now properly out in flower.
Salix hookeriana looking good and now in a vase for visitors to see. Salix gracilistyla ‘Mount Aso’, cut a month ago in flower, had rooted sufficiently just in a vase for Jaimie to pot up 6 plants. I suspect S. hookeriana will root just as easily.
First flowering of a newly planted Magnolia cylindrica ‘Hohman’.
First flowers showing on Rhaphithamnus spinosus in the Rookery. This is becoming a larger shrub here than I have seen elsewhere.
2024 – CHW
Easter Sunday and the search again for anything half decent to cut for the Spring Show later next week. Very wet overnight (yet again) and now a cold east wind. Cloudy and not encouraging for visitors.Enkianthus chinensis looks good to go. Three ancient plants towards the 4-in-Hand as here and some younger ones above Hovel Cart Road.
Easter Sunday and the search again for anything half decent to cut for the Spring Show later next week. Very wet overnight (yet again) and now a cold east wind. Cloudy and not encouraging for visitors.Enkianthus chinensis looks good to go. Three ancient plants towards the 4-in-Hand as here and some younger ones above Hovel Cart Road.
Magnolia ‘Blushing Belle’ is undamaged but sadly it will be over before next weekend. Looks wonderful today in the sun.
This is labelled Halesia parviflora which is a synonym for (the correct) Halesia carolina. Its not yet fully out but should be fine for the show. (Halesia diptera is not out yet and nor is Halesia macgregorii). This one on Sinogrande Walk. The one by the veitchii is hardly showing.
Another good clump of Rhododendron calophytum seedlings outside the front gate. Few flowers but looking healthy.
Stachyurus salicifolius will be spot on for the show.
Azalea ‘Hinodegiri’ out in March. 30 years ago we used to cut and show this at Chelsea in late May.
Prunus ‘Matsumae- hanaguruma’ was a gift from Windsor (Harvey Stephens) in 2015. Some hail damage but may well be perfect for the show.
Prunus ‘Hally Jolivette’ also looking a runner.
Prunus ‘Umineko’ has however been destroyed by rain – hardly any flowers left.
A tall stemmed Magnolia doltsopa in Kennel Close. Despite being in an exposed position it has grown well and is flowering high up.
This Hoheria nearly died in the droughts but has reshot well from the main stem and the dieback hardly shows today. In a group of 3 this one got the most sun.
Prunus ‘Beni-yutaka’ has rain damage but may have to do.
Prunus ‘Horinji’ in tight bud so borderline.
Prunus ‘Daikoku’ looks perfect.
Photinia lasiogyna with superb red new growth. I have not seen this before doing as well as this. This may or may not be the same as Photinia nussia. In my view it is very different to our other plant of P. nussia.
Xanthocyparis nootkatensis (formerly Chamaecyparis nootkatensis) in Area 23 in Kennel Close. I bought this at a CGS Show in 2011 and it was slow to get going but is now doing well. I had long admired a specimen at Rosemoor and now we have one doing just as well. The bark splits in an interesting way – Asia needs to propagate this as well at the other Xanthocyparis species (vietnamensis) as a matter of routine.
Prunus ‘Shirotae’ should be perfect for the show as well.
2023 – CHW
Torrential rain again today in what has been a spectacularly wet week as we try to cut perfect flowers for the CGS Show tomorrow. A catch up from last summer’s drought and a dry January/ February but not good for garden visitor numbers. A few bedraggled and wet stalwarts here today.
Fame at last! The Newquay Voice newspaper (which I have never heard of) has published pictures of the Malus planting in the Old Kitchen Garden as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy.
Magnolia ‘Blushing Belle’ is usually out later in the year than this. I looked last week and nothing but Jaimie has snapped it today (M. ‘Yellow Bird’ x M. ‘Caerhays Belle’). You do not really see the yellow in the opening flowers in the rain and drizzle today but this is what makes this a much under rated and still unknown hybrid of great merit which will, when known, sell well. Burncoose has a decent few plant coming on.
New growth on Metapanax davidii.
First flowers out on Rhododendron oreotrephes.
Flowers emerging on Aucuba aff. chlorascens (BSWJ 11815e).
At last I locate Michelia caveana to cut for the show. No flowers yet on this (already) 12-15 foot tree planted in 2017. Interesting bark.
Michelia floribunda ‘Fansipan Furry’ (FMWJ 13340) not yet large enough to cut.
First flower on a Rhododendron grande seedling in the Ririei Opening.
Michelia laevifolia ‘Sophie Van Vive’ (Raf Laenarts 2020) also to small to cut and no flowers yet.
Magnolia ‘Asian Artistry’.
Magnolia sinostellata has a hint of pink which does not show properly in this photograph.
Magnolia cylindrica x M. ‘Darjeeing’.
Eucalyptus gregsoniana from Roundabarrow with interesting foliage.
Magnolia ‘Black Tulip’ x M. ‘Serene’.
Magnolia x brooklynensis ‘Titan’ nearly out – early for a x brooklynensis variety.
Magnolia ‘Tititare’ (x ‘M. ‘Vulcan’ x M. ‘Apollo’).
Magnolia ‘Parfum’ – not registered as far as I can see.
Magnolia ‘Lu Shan’ (M. denudata x M. cylindrica).
2022 – CHW
The leaf on the trees and the rhododendron season rushes on after the rain a night ago.
A potful of Narcissus ‘Dailmanachii’ by the clock in the back yard. Pink trumpets.
The last flower on a graft from the original Magnolia sprengeri var. diva. The shape is unique and unmistakeable.
The two huge trees of Magnolia kobus var. borealis in the Rookery are nearly over with leaf just forming behind the flower.
The best Rhododendron macabeanum now full out.
Magnolia acuminata ‘Sunray’ is full out but hidden a bit from any path. Not bad and odd to see an acuminata variety out this early.
At last, and for the first time here, Magnolia ernestii (formerly Michelia wilsonii M. sinensis) is just out. Similar in shape and colour to M. martinii but smaller and less yellow – although the leaves are quite different. Nice to have in the collection but not that big a ‘wow factor’. Lots more buds to come.
Trunks from the once record tree Pinus pinaster rot away in a laurel hedge as we are now encouraged to do for biodiversity rather than burning them up.
A fallen old sycamore with a rotten base which must come down unnoticed in recent storms by Bramble Field gate. It has done little damage in a laurel hedge.
The pollarded laurels in the Bramble Field shelterbelt are regrowing vigorously.
Horrendous squirrel damage on a 15 to 20 year old beech tree (one of many).
Ilex kingiana covered in berries.
Magnolia ‘Wada’s Memory’ is a serious ‘flopper’ once its flowers are out.
Narcissus ‘Astro Pink’ below White Stiles.
Magnolia ‘Gold Cup’ above the kennels. Not very golden really as I have commented before.
Then the first of the 23 Amelanchier in the new collection planted above the kennels are just into flower.
Amelanchier laevis ‘Snow Flakes’
Amelanchier laevis ‘Princess Diana’
Amelanchier grandiflora ‘Robin Hill’ with a hint of pink in bud. I had not noticed this before in the nursery.
Amelanchier laevis ‘R J Hilton’ very pink in bud.
First flowers on a newly planted Salix hookeriana in Old Park opposite the bottom Gunnera patch. This is the ‘coastal willow’ from W. North America. Not bad flowers either are they?
2021 – CHW
These two bulls have just been let out of their winter sheds. They had a tremendous fight and made a fair mess in the field as you can see but have now settled down.
These two bulls have just been let out of their winter sheds. They had a tremendous fight and made a fair mess in the field as you can see but have now settled down.
Magnolia ‘Wada’s Memory’ full out in the sun.
I have been trying to get a decent photograph of Cercidiphyllum japonicum ‘Pendulum’ in flower for years but usually forget. Apart from the scent they are pretty pathetic ‘flowers’ – merely fat anthers with pollen. The tree is a remarkable shape and beautiful as it starts to leaf up.
Magnolia ‘Kalleberg’ full out.
What may or may not be Melicytus crassifolius definitely does not have the ‘usual’ tiny yellow flowers as you can see here.
The Donkey Shoe Michelia doltsopa at its absolute best.
Rhododendron ‘Elsie Frye’ gorgeously scented by Georges Hut.
The original and pure white Magnolia cylindrica (ex Trewithen).
We do not seem to have decent website pictures of Magnolia ‘Joli Pompom’ which has been slow to flower.
Camellia ‘Drama Girl’ full out. The flowers are truly enormous but not so different from Camellia ‘R L Wheeler’.
Magnolia ‘Phelan Bright’ full out above the greenhouse.
Hi Charles,
Came across your pics from March 31st of an arboreum Rhodo. I am certain this is arboreum albotomentosum, a beautiful Kindon Ward collection that used to be propagated by Peter Cox at Glendoick. Could your plant have originated from there?
It is low growing and more horizontal than one expects arboreum to be.
I came across the pics via google. I was actually looking to see if anyone grows Rhodo cinnabarinum ‘Caerhays Lawrence’ a beautiful plant I grew in London, has it gone the same way of most cinnabarinums? and ‘Caerhays Philip’ I remember. Beautiful.
Regards
Paul
Dear Paul
[Came across your pics from March 31st of an arboreum Rhodo. I am certain this is arboreum albotomentosum, a beautiful Kindon Ward collection that used to be propagated by Peter Cox at Glendoick. Could your plant have originated from there?]
Perhaps. It is growing on what was an old nursery bed.
[It is low growing and more horizontal than one expects arboreum to be.]
Not really here but short of space and light.
[I came across the pics via google. I was actually looking to see if anyone grows Rhodo cinnabarinum ‘Caerhays Lawrence’ a beautiful plant I grew in London, has it gone the same way of most cinnabarinums? and ‘Caerhays Philip’ I remember. Beautiful.]
Sadly yes but we have both parents re-established here now so could do the cross again soon we hope.
Thanks for your interest. There have been one or two other suggestions as to the arboreum which I need to dig out.
Best wishes
Charles
The unknown rhododendron looks very much like the rare Rhododendron arboreum ssp. delavayi var. albotomentosum (DAVIDIAN)
Dear Charlie
What a great idea to do a diary. So many good things to admire. I am fascinated to see your photo of Mag. denudata ‘Dubbel’ . We have a plant under that name but I could never find out anything about it
Lawrence