7th September 1897 – 2020 | The Garden Diary

FJW 1955-2007

CHW 2015-

JCW 1897-1939

CW 1940-1955

2020 – CHW
Cornus ‘Gloria Birkett’ still has small green fruits which are far from ripe.

Heptacodium miconioides is now 10-12ft tall with a spread of 15ft.

Cladrastis kentukea turning yellow already.

Sorbus gongashanica has shed its leaves and its white berries now have a hint of pink.

2019 – CHW
Cotoneaster hualiensis covered in large red berries. The bush is now around 5ft tall with a similar spread.

Our small plant of Mallotus japonicus has suddenly produced flower spikes of tiny white flowers with yellow centres. The flowers look rather different to those I have seen at Ventnor Botanic Garden so I am guessing that our plant is a female and the one at Ventnor a male.

We have acquired Illicium tashiroi from Crug Farm in 2013. To my surprise and considerable delight this was in full flower today. The flowers are beautifully scented with the calyxes and outer petals tinged light pink. This is a startling new species which appears, unusually, to flower in the early autumn. If we can propagate this it will be in great demand. We have seen two or three other new Illicium species flowering this year but I think this is easily the best so far.

Syringa reticulata flowered for the first time last year rather earlier in the year. Today there is a single white flower at the very top of the plant which I think would have been out earlier if the drought had not held the plant back. Again, unusual to find a lilac flowering so nicely in September.

Cheques handed out at the wind-up meeting after the highly successful Caerhays charity fete on the 16th June. In all over £8,000 was available for distribution to the St Michael Caerhays Church, Cancer Research and other local charities.
Here the St Austell Boy Scouts troop leaders receive their cheque for £1,200 for new camping equipment.

Here Bob Thornton receives a similar cheque on behalf of the St Goran Community Land Trust.

Sophie Barber and the cheque for Cancer Research.

2018 – CHW
A new first for Caerhays. The first flower spike on a young Schefflera delavayi. Unusual split leaves and a very dominant flower which is far from out yet. Odd how the flowering time in Schefflera species varies from summer to autumn.

Acer laevigatum; a young plant with reddish secondary new growth after the drought.

2017 – CHW
A trip to the nursery to make video films for the website but still time to snatch some pictures.Sorbus pseudobakonyensis with early fruits.

Autumn tints are starting to show up – here Nyssa sylvatica.

Fothergilla major also.

Celtis australis

Arbutus unedo ‘Rubra’ in full flower – early!

Callicarpa dichotoma in full flower too.

Pittosporum undulatum is new for the catalogue.

Gunnera and hydrangeas growing well through weed free matting.

Wisteria brachybotrys ‘Shiro-kapitan’ imported from New Zealand in June has decided to flower out of season.

Tibouchina urvillana at its best.

Abeliophyllum distichum flowering four months early as the leaves turn yellow.

2016 – CHW
Work well underway with Frankie Tregunna to clean off and level The Cutting so that wedding parties can, from next year, have their tents and reception here overlooking Porthluney cove. It will be a great venue. Parking in the beach car park and we will need to install steps and handrails to the top. During the excavations we discover a 20ft deep well dug in the 1880s into solid rock when the fishermen manually removed part of the hill so that you can see the see from the castle.

2015 – CHW

The large circle of giant mushrooms in the middle of the lawn has been gathered in to the kitchen. Unfortunately this occurred just before I had the camera out. These giant mushrooms are often found in the moors or Derrecks Fields. Once there was one by the side door but I have not seen anything but ordinary sized mushrooms on the lawn before. Another by product of a wet August.

Gathering cuttings for Burncoose today. About 50 camellia varieties including lots of odd species and reticulatas that we have not tried before. New for catalogue 2017/8 I hope.

The new clearing above the greenhouse is settling down nicely ready for planting in the spring. More thought needed as to what should go here but probably tall growing rhodos for the next 100 years.

Acer henryi (record tree) has started some pretty purplish red autumn tints. I remember it as a yellow autumn colour but perhaps I am wrong? (I am – they are red!). You can see a full list of our record trees on the Caerhays website, we have over 75 in all.

1997 – FJW
Harvest in.

1990 – FJW
Slavery to Fax began – weather cool, windy but little rain.

1967 – FJW
All the corn in. Good harvest. 2 new combines worked well. Everything much earlier than last year.

1917 – JCW
Cyclamen very nice indeed. Hydrangeas nice. Moyesii fruit very nice. Six or eight species of rhodo’n show flower. Lapagerias fair, the only Solanum left and the crinums are open. Three rose beds good.

1915 – JCW
Cyclamen are very good and so the cassia, roses in 3 beds also, and the big group of hydrangeas are just taking a fine colour. There is little else but the lapagerias which are fair with the solanum too.