Camellia sasanqua ‘Versicolor’ just opening. Only these two showing in the Beatrice Fleur Plantation out of nearly 40 different varieties. ‘Versicolor’ much the same as the flower on ‘Variegata’.

Of the 40 different big camellias down from the Top Lodge just 2 in flower. Camellia japonica ‘High Hat’ is always very early.

Camellia sasanqua ‘Paradise Blush’ is the second and only just starting.

Styrax shiraianus has no autumn colour to speak of as yet.

Styrax japonicus ‘Emerald Pagoda’ isn’t a bad yellow.

2023 – CHW
Proper first flowers now out on Rhododendron nobleanum. I saw the same on the Tregothnan drive yesterday.

Autumn colour on Liquidambar styraciflua and Magnolia x loebneri.

The burn up of the large beech is now underway and will take at least a couple more days. My young plantations of Rhododendrons ‘Saffron Queen’ and ‘Nancor’ are no more. The Abies grandis which was to be the new feature tree here has had one side stripped up to 15 feet. Probably we should start again. A Cornus decimated too but the Nyssa sylvatica has escaped. The last of the original Rhododendron ‘Moonstone’ is somewhere under this mess.

Further up Hovel Cart Road another large oak limb.

Secondary flowers on the rare Viburnum parvifolium.

After all the rain suddenly Golden Scalycap – Pholiota aurivella all over a beech stump that was felled 4 years ago.

2022 – CHW
Tin Garden cut yet again.

And Kennel Close before the daffodils appear.

Groundworks for the water tank at Tin Garden. New gutters needed to direct roof water into the new tank. Then we are better prepared for the next drought.

A wasps nest in the Barn Owl box in Tin Garden.

Groundworks for the new water tank at George’s Hut.

First flowers out on Camellia x williamsii ‘George Blandford’.

The Nerine bed in full flower.

2021 – CHW

Camellia sasanqua (white) and Camellia sasanqua (pink) full out together in the sun.

Camellia sasanqua (white) and Lapageria rosea ‘Pictoee’.

Camellia x williamsii ‘November Pink’ – the first cut flowers this year.

A vase containing Camellia taliensis and Hoheria populnea ‘Variegata’ in the Georgian Hall.

Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Variegatum’ works well in a vase with Camellia sasanqua ‘Hugh Evans’.

The view out over Porthluney Beach from the Isla Rose Plantation at about 4pm today.

The first flowers we have ever seen here on Disanthus cercidifolius. Tiny and I had thought to expect these in the spring. Very similar to Disanthus ovatifolius (previously Uocodendron whartonii) which proves this name change makes sense. What else has flowers shaped like these? Asimina triloba perhaps?

The colours on the Disanthus cercidifolius have developed well over the last fortnight. This is a very special autumn colour plant.

Clethra pringleyi in full flower above the Crinodendron Hedge.

2020 – CHW
In the clump at the bottom of the Auklandii Garden three of the US Ackerman hardy hybrids are out but another four varieties are not yet. I may be wrong as ‘Snow Flurry’ and ‘Winter’s Snowman’ are very similar and both could be out.

Camellia ‘Winters Joy’ (Camellia sasanqua x Camellia oleifera) just coming out.

Camellia ‘Snow Flurry’ (Camellia sasanqua x Camellia oleifera) full out.

Camellia ‘Winters Toughie’ (Camellia sasanqua x Camellia oleifera) more or less full out.

Camellia x williamsii ‘St Ewe’ is now starting to perform high up in the Auklandii Garden clump.

Squirrels are carrying and devouring the clumps of Lithocarpus pachyphyllus a long way from the trees themselves.

A totally different autumn colour on this clump of Enkianthus serrulatus to the dark red colours on the plant (a layer) which Tom gave us and I photographed rather earlier in the autumn.

The largest and oldest of our Camellia oleiferas is almost over. Interestingly the Chinese book on the ‘Collected Species Of The Genus Camellia’ (Gao, Clifford Parks and Du) shows a rather different form of C. oleifera without the bulbous buds.
This is attached for comparison. Our plant’s flowers tend to droop downwards and are hard to see. Then we look at the similar Camellia confusa in the same book and it still is not quite the same as this but our supposed C. oleifera is closer to C. confusa than to C. oleifera. Undoubtedly our original plant is a Wilson or Forrest original. It self-seeds itself in several places around the garden.

Still a decent late flower head on Escallonia bifida.

2019 – CHW
The very first flowers this year on Camellia x williamsii ‘St Ewe’ in the Auklandii Garden.Another set of rather younger Stewartia than the ones which we viewed a few days ago in Kennel Close with autumn colour and some seeds. These are in the new Styrax/Stewartia planting area beside the old Charlie Michaels Nursery bed.This is labelled Stewartia sinensis. Good autumn colour but the seeds do not look quite right when I look at the ripe ones with five segments. However when I look at the ones still greenish-yellow and much more rounded they do look like the seed heads in Koen Camelbeke’s article dated 16.10.11.

This one is labelled Stewartia monodelpha. No autumn colour but dry ripe seed heads with (also) five sections. No unripe ones so difficult to tell if they do conform to the Koen article which shows only green and unripe seeds.

Another S. sinensis with no real autumn colour and only ripe seeds. They are much like the S. sinensis seeds above but no unripe ones here.

Stewartia serrata has a very distinct blackish-purple hue if it is indeed true to name? We have a few other plants from different sources which do not have this distinct autumn colour. No seeds as yet.

The Stewartia muddle here with acquired and gifted young plants needs a lot more work yet as you can see. Perhaps the autumn colours in some species are quite variable? Anyway, between the eight plants viewed recently we certainly have some sorting out to do.

2018 – CHW
Cotoneaster dammeri ‘Hybridus Pendulus’ growing well in a garden on the estate and looking superb today. Hilliers say it is a hybrid between C. dammeri with either Cotoneaster frigidus or Cotoneaster salisifolius. The berries are slightly red with a bit of yellow but perhaps not yet fully ripe.

Euonymus europaeus with a good crop of fruits too which have yet to split to reveal the orange seeds.

A few excellent autumn colour photos on the drive today.

2017 – CHW
A good crop of seeds to gather on Styrax ‘Emerald Pagoda’. Large flowers and equally large seeds on this superb plant. No other styrax anywhere near.

A young Rhododendron keysii with plenty of flower. Not unusual!

Peumus boldus just coming into flower. It should be out in the summer according to Hillier’s. We do evergreen cuttings anyway. I think it was flowering now last year.