29th October | The Garden Diary

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CONTRIBUTORS:

FJW 1955-2007

CHW 2015-

JCW 1897-1939

CW 1940-1955

2024 – CHW

A fine morning to catch some autumn colour.

The very first pale flower on Rhododendron nobleanum.

The leaves have all fallen already on Acer palmatum ‘Osakazuki’.

The three Hydrangea aspera ‘Kawakamii’ from Formosa are virtually over – BSWJ 7025.

Another trio of plants beside it are however just coming out. They have the same name and collection numbers and are also still in full leaf and full growth.

A further trio of Hydrangea aspera are well over although also in still full leaf. A good naming muddle here I suspect.

2023 – CHW
The hunt continues to see what other Camellia sasanquas are out earlier than ever. In the Beatrice Fleur planting below White Styles field only 2 of the 20+ new varieties are out as yet.

Camellia sasanqua ‘Versicolour’ (‘Sawada’) is full out and really rather pretty. An upright habit and delicate outward facing flowers.

Camellia x hiemalis ‘Setsugekka’ we have also seen elsewhere. Here the 3 half-eaten flowers all boast wasps and two of these are queens. What has eaten the flowers to get at the nectar? Blue tits I assume?

The 3 mature plants of Camellia x hiemalis ‘Sparkling Burgundy’ by the borehole are nearly over. Flowers variable in overall size and in the number of petals in each double flower.

The wind has brought down mountains of seed clusters of Lithocarpus cleistocarpa.

2022 – CHW
A recently planted Mahonia sheridaniana.

A seed cluster from the younger Lithocarpus cleistocarpus with one viable seed.

Immense late growth on Rhododendron griersonianum.

Ladder and pole pruners colleting seed on Michelia floribunda.

Michelia floribunda seeds still not quite ripe.

Clearing around George’s Hut to make room for the new water tank.

Completed the work on the part collapsed Gevuina avellana. See how well what we cut down a year ago is reshooting.

Reshooting Gevuina avellana by George's Hut — Reshooting Gevuina avellana by George’s Hut

Schefflera pauciflora (WWJ 11999) with nearly ripe fruits.

Schefflera delavayi nearly over and the seeds setting quickly as they do.

2021 – CHW

Storms overnight brought down a large beech tree from Battery Walk which blocked the road and brought down the phonelines. Bob assisted Jaimie with the telehandler and front bucket.

These may be shaggy inkcap or lawyer’s wig? Growing on Beach Meadow.

A trip to Burncoose in the sun.

Quercus velutina displays its autumn colour.

Globba schomburkii is a new catalogue addition for 2022.

Cotoneaster ‘Hybridus Pendulus’ in full berry.

Viburnum plicatum ‘Lanarth’ with attractive reddish-brown tints.

The first solitary and slug eaten flower on Camellia ‘Sode-goshuki’ (syn. ‘Gauntlettii’) by the front door.

2020 – CHW
A rogue secondary flower on the record Styrax odoratissimus just as the leaf is turning and starting to fall. Very odd! This is one of the first of the Styrax species to flower in March/April.

Osmanthus yunnanensis just into flower.

Magnolia ‘Sundance’ glowing yellow in the late afternoon sun with two Cornus kousa types showing red either side of it.

Magnolia ‘Porcelain Dove’ with brief but different autumn colours.

Prunus laurocerasus in full flower in late October!

Two cock pheasants devouring the fruits on Photinia villosa.

The first flowers on Camellia ‘Cornish Snow’. This is a larger leafed and larger flowering form than others which will be in full flower in December.

Berries are not usually obvious on Ilex perado subsp. platyphylla but the more upright and older mature plants do have some when you look quite hard.

2019 – CHW
A search for some surviving autumn colour after the gales have led to heavy leaf falls. Most trees and shrubs with heavy seeds will now be scattered on the ground and not on the tree.

Enkianthus can be a startling mix of colours even as small plants.

Rhododendron schlippenbachii is even finer than we saw it starting to turn colour a few weeks ago in this diary.

I am worried at the state of the leaves on the record sized evergreen Quercus lamellosa. It has not been cold and yet the leaves already look as though they have had a cold winter.

Acer takesimense has coloured even more in the last three days.

Acer rubrum ‘Red Sunset’ is now 20ft+ tall but the leaf is being blown away before it can begin to colour up properly as it should. At Burncoose this tree has performed well in the garden but only in a crisp, dry and coldish autumn. We are currently in a prolonged wet patch.

Acer heldreichii only has half decent autumn colour on one more sheltered branch. The rest already blown away. This species would have good potential in a different autumn.

Prunus incisa looks as though it is about to produce a decent show of autumn colour if the gales abate.

Cotoneaster moupinensis still has a fine crop of black berries intact on the shrub which is now 6-8ft tall.

Prunus ‘Hally Jolivette’ might also produce some half decent colour if we had the appropriate weather but, I suspect, it too will be blown away in the wet before anything much happens.

2018 – CHW
Sorbus forrestii by the Top Lodge. This plant was given to us by Trevor Green in 2003.

A Mahonia lomariifolia which I had forgotten about near the Top Lodge.

Another unidentified Sorbus near the Top Lodge.

The tree fern on the Main Ride now uncovered as the laurel has been cut back around it.

Good autumn colour on Stewartia pseudocamellia. Considerably better than last year’s effort.

2017 – CHW
Good yellow colouring on Halesia carolina above the Auklandii Garden.

Also on Cornus ‘Eddies White Wonder’ nearby.

The stump of the old oak tree felled by tree surgeons recently has been turned into a seat for visitors.

The new shop and sales point is taking shape and now has a waterproof roof!

2016 – CHW
Just look and wonder at this lot as a comparison of wonderful colour:Pseudowintera colorata ‘Red Leopard’ – stunning form.

Pseudowintera colorata – quite bland by comparison.

Pseudowintera colorata ‘Red Glow’ – different again.

Pseudowintera colorata ‘Moulin Rouge’ – some way between all of them.

These pseudowintera are each very aptly named but you can only really see them at their best together in October/November. What a thing to brighten up an overcast autumn day!
Compare these to the show today of the cotinus varieties in the nursery:Cotinus coggygria – who would not grow this for autumn colour!

Cotinus coggygria ‘Smoky Joe’ – hints of yellow in the darker red.

Cotinus coggygria ‘Young Lady’ – some yellow with the red.

Put the two together and you would have one hell of an autumn colour border. Just add a few nerines and there you are!

2015 – CHW
Two more sarcococcas out (or nearly out) in the Auklandii Garden. Both are less well known species in UK gardens and undeservedly so.

Sarcococca wallichii has a strong and not unpleasant smell with large flowers by sarcococca standards. Planted in 2008 it looks to be taller growing than other species and seems to like shade as here. Eventually four to five feet in height I would guess.

Sarcococca orientalis was a Roy Lancaster introduction in 1980. It has an attractive domed and compact habit which makes it a good small garden plant for a shady site. Not really a Caerhays type plant atall but none the worse for that. I think Roy gave it to us in 2006.

2001 – FJW
Thomas Williams arrived in the world.

1968 – FJW
Nov Pink flower picked.

1961 – FJW
Poppet died [Pekinese].

1950 – CW
Camellia oleifera picking for house otherwise as 10 days ago.

1924 – JCW
(Election Day). A long continued shower began in April not finished yet. No Sasanquas open, not many hybrids. Hydrangeas good.

1923 – JCW
Great rains this month and winds but after the hard summer of 1921 some ground is quite dry. 4 big old Argenteums are killed by it.

1922 – JCW
Three weeks of dry, cold winds and now snow. No planting so far.

1921 – JCW
The ground remains too dry to plant and has been since May. Roses and lapagerias are nice. So far the autumn colours have not come.

1907 – JCW
A Camellia sasanqua is just open, a fair lot of roses, many lapagerias, ¾ of the cyclamen, some are over. Very heavy rains for weeks on most days, some corn cut in Wendron now.

1905 – JCW
Two or three Cam sasanqua’s open, one (M x jonq) seedling up in the pans, the rain began two days ago.

1904 – JCW
Camellia sasanqua well out, some nice roses. Lapagerias and solanums good. It remains very fine up to now and dry.