The chief disappointments have been amongst the herbaceous plants but I will start with a family of trees/shrubs, The Cornus family is very large but I am here thinking of what are sometimes called American Dogwoods , though since quite a lot started life in Japan and Korea, perhaps better to call them Flowering Dogwoods, In fact as regards the ones I am thinking of - essentially Cornus Florida and C. Kousa, and their many hybrids - it is not the flowers that are the feature, but their bracts which come in various shades of red, pink and white. Thy are amongst my favourite trees/shrubs spectacular when in 'bract', but also in the autumn when most of them have wonderful colouring. Of the half a dozen or so that we possess only one grown well but so far without any 'flowers'. It was sold to me as C. kousa chinensis but I am beginning to have doubts. All the others have 'flowered', this year rather better than in previous ones, perhaps because of the wet Spring, perhaps just because they are older. Probably our most successful dogwood is C. Porlock followed by what I think is C. Aurora, but C.Satomi looks miserable, C. capitata is dead! Now itis clear that dogwoods can be grown in S-W France. There is a flourishing C.capitata at the Gaujacq planterium, and I have occasionally seen other varieties looking good. Moreover there is always a selection at the excellent garden centre at Mirande, Le Jardin d'Embaloge and one or two other specialised nurseries, so people must be buying them. I suspect that the nearer that you are to the Atlantic the more likely you are to have success - a bit more rain, and perhaps more acidic soil though I do not think that the latter requirement is essential. And with all these recommendation the different conditions within your own garden - shade or lack of it, sloping or flat, north, south, east or west - play a vital part, For instance our C. capitata was planted on a dry bank in a rather inaccessible corner of the garden so not easy to water. No wonder it died! And finally as regards the dogwoods there is view that chez nous those with C.kousa blood in them suit our conditions a little better than those derived from C. florida, though in fact some have the blood of both !
Another death this year was the newly planted Sinocalycanthus raulstonii Hartlage Wine. This was strongly recommended by Helen Dillon and is seemingly a shrub not demanding any very special treatment, which did not prevent it taking a strong dislike to us! In fact I do not think that we will replace it for there is something rather too artificial about the flowers for my liking. On the other hand the newly planted Olearia x scilloniensis which I enjoyed so much in the Cornish gardens, have done reasonably well, this a little to my surprise, since I thought that they might find our summers too hot and dry. By no means dead but nevertheless disappointing is the also newly planted Philadelphus maculatus Mexican Jewel. This came highly recommended by Nick Macer of pan Global Plants,an English nursery full of interesting plants, but of course you have got to get the plants over here, so they cost. Anyway I think that I may be at fault in planting it in the wrong place. It turns out to be a much more delicate plant both in flower and foliage than your every day mock orange - a biggish rockery where you could see it from below would I guess suit it better than our rather overgrown bank - but it maybe that I am just being too impatient.
But as mentioned earlier the great disappointments have to do with the vivaces. Our so-called Prairie Garden needed revving up. It has plenty of grasses, chiefly different miscanthus, macleayas otherwise plume poppies, quite a lot of yellow daises, made up of different sorts of helianthus and rubeckias, blue and purple asters, bits of this and that, but above all and dominating what I shall call the front of the Prairie Garden visible from the house and pool a lot of gaura, chiefly of the bog standard G. lindheimeri, essentially white with just a touch of pink - there are some more strongly pink, not to say red plants available but for some reason chez nous they do not flourish in the same way. What I wanted to do was to add a bit more colour especially in high summer before the tall grasses really take over, and I thought that the answer might be what I used to call polygonums, but which are now called pesicarias, otherwise knotweed, and perhaps also some sanguisorbas - little bottlebrushes on tall stems in reds and whites. These plants are very much the staple diet of a Piet Oudolf's prairie planting so I did not think that there would be any problems with them. but,if for the most part they have not actually died, they have certainly not looked happy. The ground is flat having been cut out wedgelike out of a south facing slope, and made up of fairly typical Gersois clay, though some areas are a little bit more sandy. Because it is flat in Winter it can become a little waterlogged. In Summer, because it is south facing and there is very little overhead shade it is hot and quickly dries out. As regards my persicarias and sanguisorbas I guess that it was the latter that caused the disappointment. And over the years there have been quite a lot of other plants which one associates with a Prairie Garden that have not flourished. For instance it has been too wet in winter for agastaches and verbenas to flourish, and too hot in summer for many more prairie stalwarts such cimicifugas, eupatoriums, heleniums and veronicastrums to mention just a few. Still the grasses cover up a multitude of sins, or rather omissions, and looking out of the window as I write this on Boxing Day the Prairie garden does not look too bad!
Monday 26 December 2016
Wednesday 9 November 2016
Brexit Blues
One way and another it has not been a good summer, not helped by in my view the extremely foolish decision of my country to leave the European Union, not that I was allowed to vote on the matter. Moreover, a seriously bad back and too many visitors have meant that the garden has suffered, along with this blog, my last effort being as long ago as May. Back then I had intended to write a little bit more about roses, but I now cannot recall what I had in mind, except perhaps to recommend a rose that goes under the not very promising name of Bossa Nova. Its flowers, which are pink and fully double, remind me very much of the I am tempted to say 'iconic', since I fear that I have caught the disease, but anyway well known hybrid musk, Felicia. Its growth however is different making a lowish bush. Indeed the Quest-Ritsons' in the RHS Rose Dictionary point out that it was originally grown as a ground cover plant and in their view could also be grown a small climber. This is not at all what I want, but happily neither mine nor the one I first saw at La Coursiana shows any sign of either characteristic. And while on the subject of roses I would also like to recommend Thérèse Bugnet. Probably by mistake we have ended up with two plants neither of which got off to a good start. Now one of them has got away, and at this moment is very eye-catching, not in fact because of its flowers but because of the autumn colouring of its leaves. Thérèse Bugnet's parentage is rather complicated but there is certainly rugosa blood in it, which no doubt explains the wonderful colouring, a feature of all rugosas. But this may also explain its slow start. I may well have mentioned this before but in my view rugosas are not in our neck of the woods the fail safe roses that they are cracked up to be, often for instance suggested as hedges. I guess what they really like is poor soil, not our heavy clay soil which in winter can often result in water logging. Thus though I am recommending Thérèse, my advice would be to plant her on a bank where there is at least some chance of excessive water running off. And incidentally there is nothing wrong with her flowers, which are a fully double pink and repeat well.
Our garden has also suffered from lack of rain, though statistically it has to be said our rainfall amounts are still above average for the year, this because of the very wet first half. But apart from two downpours in September we have had very little rain since the end of July and this combined with high temperatures has meant that we have never been so dry. As a result much in the garden has suffered with for instance repeat flowering roses being very reluctant to repeat. This being the case I thought that it might be helpful to highlight plants that have not suffered. Of the trees I can strongly recommend four acers - A.discolor, A.oliverianum, A.Pacfic Sunset, and A.truncatum - that have come through with flying colours and are now all in their full autumn glory. Perhaps the A.oliverianum is the most interesting in that it resembles what are called the Japanese maples - A.palmatum. In my view they are amongst the most attractive small trees/shrubs as regards both the foliage and form, not to mention their autumn colouring, but alas they are difficult to grow in Gascony since they want acid soil, shade and a certain amount of dampness. A. oliverianum appears to survive without any of these things, or at least it copes well with dryness. And on the subject of acers and acid soil, I have to say that I am a little wary of some of the outstanding autumn colour performers such as A.rubrum, A.saccharinum, and A.saccharum. It seems clear that they do not need acid soil , but my suspicion is that they would prefer it. Certainly I have come across some showing signs of chlorosis - i.e. unnatural yellowing of young leaves - but maybe the result of winter wet and lack of drainage rather than lack of acidity. And incidentally I would say the same about many of the North American oaks.
Other small trees that flourish in the dry would include Maclura pomifera; I could do without the fruit which resemble a very wrinkled lemon, and the thorns are seriously vicious, but the hotter the weather the greener and shinier become its leaves, until they go a lovely autumn yellow. Also with yellow autumn colour is Melia azedarach, I would suggest that this is a must for Gascon gardens, what with flowers, fruit and scent, similarly Koelreuteria paniculata, which the Hillier catalogue pronounces to be 'easy on all soils but flowering and fruiting best in hot,dry summers". I guess the same can be said about the various Sumachs (rhus) and Sorbarias. Some will find them a bit too much in their face both as regards flowers and autumn colouring, and they all should come with a 'health warning' since they produce suckers in large quantities. But on the other hand they are very quick to make an impact, and if planted in grass the suckers can be kept at bay by mowing. I have a soft spot for the slightly lesser known R. chinensis; this with whitish rather than deep red 'candelabras' and with to my mind slightly more nuanced autumn colour, and incidentally on sale at La Coursiana.
Finally since time and space is running out four more trees that appear not to be affected by the secheresse. Our Pistacia chinensis have grown remarkably quickly, from around one meter to five in as many years. It is an attractive tree at all times with its glossy pinnate leaves, but brilliant autumn colour is when it really comes into its own. I am sure that it should be better known. Ptelea trifoliata is perhaps a little nondescript, but I was encouraged to obtain it on account of its fragrant yellowish flowers and attractive hop-like fruits, one of its common names being Hop Tree. Another is Swamp dogwood, but ours shows no sign of needing a swamp, or indeed very much moisture. I am rather new to Staphlea colchica first seeing it in a deserted quarry having initially mistaken it, with its pretty white flowers in late Spring for some kind of cherry. It is perhaps more of a large shrub than tree though growing up to four meters at least, but very much multi-stemmed. At first glance it does not look as if it would be happy in dry conditions, but ours is on a south facing bank, and showed no sign of wilting. Lastly Tetradium/Euodia danielli. This like the Ptelia has whitish flowers with attractive scent, though the flowers make more of an impact, followed by in its case strong reddish fruits. It is very similar to the Phellodendrons - japanese Cork and Amur cork trees. In fact all three make attractive medium sized trees, but if I had to choose between them I would go for Tetradium on account of the scent, but also with less conviction because I suspect that it copes with the dryness a little better.
There are of course other trees that cope well enough with Gascon summers, amongst them being the large Fraxinus family, or in other words the Ashes. Nor have I got time to tackle the even larger Quercus/Oak family, though some of these cope much better with dry than others. Meanwhile there have been quite a lot of disappointments, but more about these in my next blog;
Our garden has also suffered from lack of rain, though statistically it has to be said our rainfall amounts are still above average for the year, this because of the very wet first half. But apart from two downpours in September we have had very little rain since the end of July and this combined with high temperatures has meant that we have never been so dry. As a result much in the garden has suffered with for instance repeat flowering roses being very reluctant to repeat. This being the case I thought that it might be helpful to highlight plants that have not suffered. Of the trees I can strongly recommend four acers - A.discolor, A.oliverianum, A.Pacfic Sunset, and A.truncatum - that have come through with flying colours and are now all in their full autumn glory. Perhaps the A.oliverianum is the most interesting in that it resembles what are called the Japanese maples - A.palmatum. In my view they are amongst the most attractive small trees/shrubs as regards both the foliage and form, not to mention their autumn colouring, but alas they are difficult to grow in Gascony since they want acid soil, shade and a certain amount of dampness. A. oliverianum appears to survive without any of these things, or at least it copes well with dryness. And on the subject of acers and acid soil, I have to say that I am a little wary of some of the outstanding autumn colour performers such as A.rubrum, A.saccharinum, and A.saccharum. It seems clear that they do not need acid soil , but my suspicion is that they would prefer it. Certainly I have come across some showing signs of chlorosis - i.e. unnatural yellowing of young leaves - but maybe the result of winter wet and lack of drainage rather than lack of acidity. And incidentally I would say the same about many of the North American oaks.
Other small trees that flourish in the dry would include Maclura pomifera; I could do without the fruit which resemble a very wrinkled lemon, and the thorns are seriously vicious, but the hotter the weather the greener and shinier become its leaves, until they go a lovely autumn yellow. Also with yellow autumn colour is Melia azedarach, I would suggest that this is a must for Gascon gardens, what with flowers, fruit and scent, similarly Koelreuteria paniculata, which the Hillier catalogue pronounces to be 'easy on all soils but flowering and fruiting best in hot,dry summers". I guess the same can be said about the various Sumachs (rhus) and Sorbarias. Some will find them a bit too much in their face both as regards flowers and autumn colouring, and they all should come with a 'health warning' since they produce suckers in large quantities. But on the other hand they are very quick to make an impact, and if planted in grass the suckers can be kept at bay by mowing. I have a soft spot for the slightly lesser known R. chinensis; this with whitish rather than deep red 'candelabras' and with to my mind slightly more nuanced autumn colour, and incidentally on sale at La Coursiana.
Finally since time and space is running out four more trees that appear not to be affected by the secheresse. Our Pistacia chinensis have grown remarkably quickly, from around one meter to five in as many years. It is an attractive tree at all times with its glossy pinnate leaves, but brilliant autumn colour is when it really comes into its own. I am sure that it should be better known. Ptelea trifoliata is perhaps a little nondescript, but I was encouraged to obtain it on account of its fragrant yellowish flowers and attractive hop-like fruits, one of its common names being Hop Tree. Another is Swamp dogwood, but ours shows no sign of needing a swamp, or indeed very much moisture. I am rather new to Staphlea colchica first seeing it in a deserted quarry having initially mistaken it, with its pretty white flowers in late Spring for some kind of cherry. It is perhaps more of a large shrub than tree though growing up to four meters at least, but very much multi-stemmed. At first glance it does not look as if it would be happy in dry conditions, but ours is on a south facing bank, and showed no sign of wilting. Lastly Tetradium/Euodia danielli. This like the Ptelia has whitish flowers with attractive scent, though the flowers make more of an impact, followed by in its case strong reddish fruits. It is very similar to the Phellodendrons - japanese Cork and Amur cork trees. In fact all three make attractive medium sized trees, but if I had to choose between them I would go for Tetradium on account of the scent, but also with less conviction because I suspect that it copes with the dryness a little better.
There are of course other trees that cope well enough with Gascon summers, amongst them being the large Fraxinus family, or in other words the Ashes. Nor have I got time to tackle the even larger Quercus/Oak family, though some of these cope much better with dry than others. Meanwhile there have been quite a lot of disappointments, but more about these in my next blog;
Thursday 26 May 2016
Roses Galore!
It is almost peak time for the first flush of roses, with the facade of our house a mass of bloom, this provided by three climbers - the almost iconic, to use what seems to be an 'in' word at the moment, Maréchal Niel, the rather less known, Duchesse d'Auerstädt, and Westerland. All three are extremely floriferous, all three in the yellowy/orange shades. It is sometimes suggested that the Maréchal needs to be cosseted but not apparently in the Gers. The Duchesse on the other hand, with us at any rate a stronger yellow, has a tendency to 'ball' in wet weather, and as May is normally our wettest month this is a disadvantage, though fortunately it repeats well.
Meanwhile the various roses we have acquired in recent years from La Roseraie du Désert are beginning to make an impact, many of them classified as China and Tea roses, categories which before I came into contact with John and Becky Hook who run this nursery, I had not taken much notice of. They date chiefly from the 19th and early 20th centuries. They repeat generously, which of course has been one of their great attractions for all breeders of roses. They probably do prefer warmer and sunnier conditions, which may be one explanation why I have been so slow to discover them - the Riviera, Italy and further afield the Caribbean and California are where they flourish not dreary old Britain! Of course Gascony is not the Riviera and our wet Mays are not ideally suited for them, especially as their petals appear to be rather fragile, and thus easily damaged by rain. But since many will be still going strong in our very fine autumns this is perhaps not too great a handicap.
Which ones can I personally recommend? Well one of the most beautiful roses ever must surely be Noella Nabonnand: elegant buds, large semi-double flowers of a very strong crimson on a large bush, and nearly always in flower, though since I have only recently acquired ours, I guess I am cheating a little in recommending it so strongly! But in fact any rose originating from the Nabonnand nurseries - the father Gilbert who started it all, followed by two sons Paul and Clément who eventually had seperate nurseries, all in the South of France - are good news. General Schablikine, a coppery red and flowering strongly here since the middle of April would be a good example. Or if you prefer a lady, and what I call a strong pink but the Hooks a pale crimson, go for Alice Hamilton, incidentally a China rather than a Tea. For another good pink, though with rather larger and more blowsy flowers, and not from the Nabonnand nurseries, is the Duchesse de Brabant/Comtesse de Labarthe. And for continous flower power difficult to beat is Archiduc Joseph.
Still with La Roseraie du Désert, but for something rather different I can increasingly recommend Nanjing N92. It could do with a better name. It has taken quite a long time to get going, and I am not quite sure how big it is going to grow, but along with a multitude of rose magenta flowers it has very attractive dark green foliage. Similar in form with even more attractive foliage, and with flowers a strong red in bud, but with a whitish centre when open, is Bengale Pakistan. I have to confess I bought this originally because I was born in Pakistan, though in the Punjab rather than Bengal, now of course no longer part of Pakistan, but I am increasingly happy with it. There are others that I could mention, but the best advice that I can give is to visit to the nursery yourselves, this situated in the Gers near to Aignan. But you will have to hurry because the sad news is that reluctantly the Hooks have decided that the work is getting too much for them. Their hope is that they can find somebody to take up the baton, something which if I was younger I would be very tempted to do. But let us hope that that somebody turns up because it would be a tragedy if this wonderful collection ceased to exist.
But to return to our roses and indeed to my all time favourite roses, the Hybrid Musks. At this moment there is a length of border of about three meters consisting of Belinda, Penelope, and Vanity, with behind them Cornelia. It is a wonderful sight, and one that will continue for much of the summer and Autumn, since all Hybrid Musks repeat well, and moreover they do not appear to suffer from the various maladies that roses are prone to. If I started again I am not sure that I would bother with Belinda, good foliage but the trusses of fully double rather bright red flowers are a little bit of a worry. Penelope and indeed Cornelia you can take anywhere, but it is Vanity that I would most like to draw attention to, since I guess that it is not very well known. The flowers are single in very long arching sprays, and for this reason it does require quite a lot of space. Their colour is a strongish pink. Of course there are a number of more recent roses that do a similar job, which is to make a biggish impact in a mixed border over a long period. We grow André Eve's Axel Kahn with good single red flowers, and also The Fairy with small fully double pink flowers; We do not grow Ballerina, which I happen to hate, but I am clearly in a minority. Bonica also seems to be a favourite with many, and there are no doubt many others that I have not come across. But there is something about the way Vanity presents itself that makes it for me a real winner.
Meanwhile the various roses we have acquired in recent years from La Roseraie du Désert are beginning to make an impact, many of them classified as China and Tea roses, categories which before I came into contact with John and Becky Hook who run this nursery, I had not taken much notice of. They date chiefly from the 19th and early 20th centuries. They repeat generously, which of course has been one of their great attractions for all breeders of roses. They probably do prefer warmer and sunnier conditions, which may be one explanation why I have been so slow to discover them - the Riviera, Italy and further afield the Caribbean and California are where they flourish not dreary old Britain! Of course Gascony is not the Riviera and our wet Mays are not ideally suited for them, especially as their petals appear to be rather fragile, and thus easily damaged by rain. But since many will be still going strong in our very fine autumns this is perhaps not too great a handicap.
Which ones can I personally recommend? Well one of the most beautiful roses ever must surely be Noella Nabonnand: elegant buds, large semi-double flowers of a very strong crimson on a large bush, and nearly always in flower, though since I have only recently acquired ours, I guess I am cheating a little in recommending it so strongly! But in fact any rose originating from the Nabonnand nurseries - the father Gilbert who started it all, followed by two sons Paul and Clément who eventually had seperate nurseries, all in the South of France - are good news. General Schablikine, a coppery red and flowering strongly here since the middle of April would be a good example. Or if you prefer a lady, and what I call a strong pink but the Hooks a pale crimson, go for Alice Hamilton, incidentally a China rather than a Tea. For another good pink, though with rather larger and more blowsy flowers, and not from the Nabonnand nurseries, is the Duchesse de Brabant/Comtesse de Labarthe. And for continous flower power difficult to beat is Archiduc Joseph.
Still with La Roseraie du Désert, but for something rather different I can increasingly recommend Nanjing N92. It could do with a better name. It has taken quite a long time to get going, and I am not quite sure how big it is going to grow, but along with a multitude of rose magenta flowers it has very attractive dark green foliage. Similar in form with even more attractive foliage, and with flowers a strong red in bud, but with a whitish centre when open, is Bengale Pakistan. I have to confess I bought this originally because I was born in Pakistan, though in the Punjab rather than Bengal, now of course no longer part of Pakistan, but I am increasingly happy with it. There are others that I could mention, but the best advice that I can give is to visit to the nursery yourselves, this situated in the Gers near to Aignan. But you will have to hurry because the sad news is that reluctantly the Hooks have decided that the work is getting too much for them. Their hope is that they can find somebody to take up the baton, something which if I was younger I would be very tempted to do. But let us hope that that somebody turns up because it would be a tragedy if this wonderful collection ceased to exist.
But to return to our roses and indeed to my all time favourite roses, the Hybrid Musks. At this moment there is a length of border of about three meters consisting of Belinda, Penelope, and Vanity, with behind them Cornelia. It is a wonderful sight, and one that will continue for much of the summer and Autumn, since all Hybrid Musks repeat well, and moreover they do not appear to suffer from the various maladies that roses are prone to. If I started again I am not sure that I would bother with Belinda, good foliage but the trusses of fully double rather bright red flowers are a little bit of a worry. Penelope and indeed Cornelia you can take anywhere, but it is Vanity that I would most like to draw attention to, since I guess that it is not very well known. The flowers are single in very long arching sprays, and for this reason it does require quite a lot of space. Their colour is a strongish pink. Of course there are a number of more recent roses that do a similar job, which is to make a biggish impact in a mixed border over a long period. We grow André Eve's Axel Kahn with good single red flowers, and also The Fairy with small fully double pink flowers; We do not grow Ballerina, which I happen to hate, but I am clearly in a minority. Bonica also seems to be a favourite with many, and there are no doubt many others that I have not come across. But there is something about the way Vanity presents itself that makes it for me a real winner.
Friday 22 April 2016
Seeds et al.
In recent years I have tried to cut down on the number of seeds I order, this in order to save time and worry. Moreover if it is bedding plants one is looking, there is so much on offer in way of plugs or whatever the small plants sent by post are called, that I am happy to go that route. I would also recommend them in preference to the more fully developed plants that you will find in the shops and markets. These may look wonderful but can reach their peak too soon, since they are for obvious reasons programmed to catch your eye - or perhaps I am still a believer in the rather old-fashioned notion that deferred rather than instant gratification is best. Still as I was saying I have been trying to cut down but have to admit with very little success.
I have always found Thompson & Morgan a bit bling bling, but if it is novelties you are after they are the firm to go for.For a very long time I have been a fan of Chiltern Seeds: they offer a huge choice in a catalogue written in a very distinctive style, which may or may not give pleasure. More recently I have come across Jelitto, a German firm but with offices in England. It is very much in the same style as Chiltern Seeds, but perhaps with a slightly more interesting choice of perennials; for instance if it is Aciphyllas you are after, these incidentally looking somewhat between a phormium and a yucca, Chiltern Seeds list three varieties, Jelitto eight. But what has got me going again this year has been Derry Watkins's Special Plant Seeds. This is a much smaller list than those already mentioned but this is in many ways an advantage, especially as one gets the feeling that Derry Watkins is very knowledgeable and with a good eye for a winning plant. Moreover, perhaps because she hails originally from the States, she is the only seed supplier that I have come across that lists seeds of my currently favourite plant that I have already much bored you with, Erigeron annuus. She also sells plants but I am not sure that she will send them abroad. And finally she is also very pleasant to deal with which is always good news.
Meanwhile my impression is that this year the 'Spring offensive', by which I mean the rapid growth of grass and weeds, is even more aggressive than usual, or is this just that as one becomes older it presents more of a challenge? May be, but the consistantly wet and reasonably warm weather since the beginning of the year has probably had a great deal to do with it, or that is what I am hoping. Of course good things grow as well as bad and there has been plenty of things to admire. I may have said before that we grow our fruit trees chiefly for their blossom since Nature in one form or another conspires to destroy most of our crops, perhaps especially the apples. But for flower power I can strongly recommend the Flat Peaches - a very strong pink semi-double blossom - while this year both cherry and plum blossom has been particularly good. One of my favourite trees is the decorative pear; we grow Pyrus calleryana Chanticleer, perhaps the best known one, and P.c. Red Spire, which seems to flower a little earlier than the former. I have mentioned them often before, but just a reminder of their qualities: flower power early in the Spring, upright growth which has advantages where space is a problem, and very good late autumn colouring.
This year, despite the mild winter, our Autumn Flowering Cherry - Prunus x subhirtella Autumnalis Rosea saved its main flush of flower for the second week in April - incidentally it hardly ever flowers in the Autumn, or at least not with us - so it coincided with a decorative apple tree next door to it - Malus Prairie Flower - with deep red flowers, and the effect was rather good. And I guess most members of the Malus family are good for us, despite the threat of Fire blight. I still have failed to obtain M. Evereste with lots of white flowers and good decorative orange/red fruit is the autumn, but having got over my resistance to plants that are too popular, I now cannot make up my mind where to put it.
Finally the Ceanothus. I increasingly feel that are a 'must' for Gascony gardens, since they seem to like both our soil and our weather. It is however a plant that I seem to pick up rather casually - they are readily available at very reasonable prices - and then I tend to forget their names, so that I am not sure that I could name all the ones in our garden. Most have blue flowers and darkish evergreen foliage. C.thyrsiflorus repens is almost omnipresent, but then it is a very useful shrub providing all the year ground cover as well as a good blue flower. What I am certain of is that C. Puget Blue, despite the popularity in recent years of C. Concha, is the king of them all, the flowers being a brilliant almost florescent deep purplish blue, which last for a considerable amount of time. I suppose all ceanothus are vulnerable to a really cold winter - they mostly hail from California - and they are not the longest living of shrubs but they are easily replaced, look good all the year round, and in the Spring are complete stars.
I have always found Thompson & Morgan a bit bling bling, but if it is novelties you are after they are the firm to go for.For a very long time I have been a fan of Chiltern Seeds: they offer a huge choice in a catalogue written in a very distinctive style, which may or may not give pleasure. More recently I have come across Jelitto, a German firm but with offices in England. It is very much in the same style as Chiltern Seeds, but perhaps with a slightly more interesting choice of perennials; for instance if it is Aciphyllas you are after, these incidentally looking somewhat between a phormium and a yucca, Chiltern Seeds list three varieties, Jelitto eight. But what has got me going again this year has been Derry Watkins's Special Plant Seeds. This is a much smaller list than those already mentioned but this is in many ways an advantage, especially as one gets the feeling that Derry Watkins is very knowledgeable and with a good eye for a winning plant. Moreover, perhaps because she hails originally from the States, she is the only seed supplier that I have come across that lists seeds of my currently favourite plant that I have already much bored you with, Erigeron annuus. She also sells plants but I am not sure that she will send them abroad. And finally she is also very pleasant to deal with which is always good news.
Meanwhile my impression is that this year the 'Spring offensive', by which I mean the rapid growth of grass and weeds, is even more aggressive than usual, or is this just that as one becomes older it presents more of a challenge? May be, but the consistantly wet and reasonably warm weather since the beginning of the year has probably had a great deal to do with it, or that is what I am hoping. Of course good things grow as well as bad and there has been plenty of things to admire. I may have said before that we grow our fruit trees chiefly for their blossom since Nature in one form or another conspires to destroy most of our crops, perhaps especially the apples. But for flower power I can strongly recommend the Flat Peaches - a very strong pink semi-double blossom - while this year both cherry and plum blossom has been particularly good. One of my favourite trees is the decorative pear; we grow Pyrus calleryana Chanticleer, perhaps the best known one, and P.c. Red Spire, which seems to flower a little earlier than the former. I have mentioned them often before, but just a reminder of their qualities: flower power early in the Spring, upright growth which has advantages where space is a problem, and very good late autumn colouring.
This year, despite the mild winter, our Autumn Flowering Cherry - Prunus x subhirtella Autumnalis Rosea saved its main flush of flower for the second week in April - incidentally it hardly ever flowers in the Autumn, or at least not with us - so it coincided with a decorative apple tree next door to it - Malus Prairie Flower - with deep red flowers, and the effect was rather good. And I guess most members of the Malus family are good for us, despite the threat of Fire blight. I still have failed to obtain M. Evereste with lots of white flowers and good decorative orange/red fruit is the autumn, but having got over my resistance to plants that are too popular, I now cannot make up my mind where to put it.
Finally the Ceanothus. I increasingly feel that are a 'must' for Gascony gardens, since they seem to like both our soil and our weather. It is however a plant that I seem to pick up rather casually - they are readily available at very reasonable prices - and then I tend to forget their names, so that I am not sure that I could name all the ones in our garden. Most have blue flowers and darkish evergreen foliage. C.thyrsiflorus repens is almost omnipresent, but then it is a very useful shrub providing all the year ground cover as well as a good blue flower. What I am certain of is that C. Puget Blue, despite the popularity in recent years of C. Concha, is the king of them all, the flowers being a brilliant almost florescent deep purplish blue, which last for a considerable amount of time. I suppose all ceanothus are vulnerable to a really cold winter - they mostly hail from California - and they are not the longest living of shrubs but they are easily replaced, look good all the year round, and in the Spring are complete stars.
Tuesday 23 February 2016
Corrections!
For some years now I have been in love with a winter/early spring flowering buddleya: strong purple panicles that droop - 'lax panicles' might be a more elegant way of putting it - in what I find is a very attractive way, this on a bush with grey foliage which looks good all the year round. The only problem is that I have been calling it B. officinalis Vicomte de Noailles, when I am now fairly certain it is in fact B. x Bel Argent, this after having seen some photos of the latter. It was certainly acquired from Le Jardin de Rochevielle where you will find both buddleyas. Moreover both shrubs have a special relationship to that nursery: 'Vicomte de Noailles' was discovered by the owners, Jean-François Giraud and Dominque Permingeat, in the famous garden of the Villa Noailles, while Bel Argent is their own creation, an offspring of B. farreri and B.davidii. So I do not feel too bad about it. Nevertheless I do want to apoligize for misleading people, but on the other hand it does provide me with an opportunity to encourage people to buy the plant, for it really is a lovely addition to any garden.
My second correction, or rather apology concerns a rather slighting comment I recently wrote about a book by Piet Oudolf and Noel Kingsbury entitled 'Planting; a New Perspective', the text of which I had found rather boring. I do not feel any need to change that judgment, but on the other hand what I would now like to recommend is another book, 'Dream Plants for the Natural Garden', one of whose authors is again Piet Oudolf, while there is an introduction by Noel Kingsbury, who has for a very long time been Oudolf's great advocate in England. . But as regards 'Dream Plants' there is a co-author, Henk Gerritsen, and may be it he who has made the difference, for the book is not at all boring. It consists mainly of a list of non-woody plants - the brief chapter on 'Tough Shrubs' is the least satisfactory, while bulbs are also included. There are three sections: 'Tough', 'Playful', and 'Troublesome'. If one then look at the subheadings of, for instance 'Part 3, Troublesome', one finds 'Invasive plants', 'Capricious plants', 'Staking', Demanding plants' and finally 'Failing the test', which I hope gives you the flavour of the book and the reason why I like it. It is personal and judgmental. This could annoy, especially when one disagrees, but given the knowledge and experience of the two authors this is neither here nor there: what they have to say has to be worth hearing. Curiously, since they have almost opposed views about what makes a good garden, their approach rather reminds me of Christopher Lloyd's garden writing; none of them afraid of calling a spade a spade, or rather a bad plant a bad plant.
And I do disagree quite often, or sometimes I think that they are just wrong. For instance writing about Hydrangea quercifolia in the 'Tough shrubs' chapter they state that "it only grows well in moisture-retentive acid soil", when for us with no acid soil and summers that can dry out even the most retentive soil it is our most reliable hydrangea. In their last section 'Failing the test' there are thirteen entries of which one is for 'Gaura lindheimeri 'Whirling Butterflies', about which they write that it is "a wonderful gap filler, but you have to buy a new batch every year". Well, ours have so far lasted eight years and have increased mightily, but then perhaps I should have already mentioned: both the writers are Dutch and it seems to me that the book is chiefly directed to a North European audience, which does not stop it being enormous fun, and I for one will always consult it before buying herbaceaous plants.
My second correction, or rather apology concerns a rather slighting comment I recently wrote about a book by Piet Oudolf and Noel Kingsbury entitled 'Planting; a New Perspective', the text of which I had found rather boring. I do not feel any need to change that judgment, but on the other hand what I would now like to recommend is another book, 'Dream Plants for the Natural Garden', one of whose authors is again Piet Oudolf, while there is an introduction by Noel Kingsbury, who has for a very long time been Oudolf's great advocate in England. . But as regards 'Dream Plants' there is a co-author, Henk Gerritsen, and may be it he who has made the difference, for the book is not at all boring. It consists mainly of a list of non-woody plants - the brief chapter on 'Tough Shrubs' is the least satisfactory, while bulbs are also included. There are three sections: 'Tough', 'Playful', and 'Troublesome'. If one then look at the subheadings of, for instance 'Part 3, Troublesome', one finds 'Invasive plants', 'Capricious plants', 'Staking', Demanding plants' and finally 'Failing the test', which I hope gives you the flavour of the book and the reason why I like it. It is personal and judgmental. This could annoy, especially when one disagrees, but given the knowledge and experience of the two authors this is neither here nor there: what they have to say has to be worth hearing. Curiously, since they have almost opposed views about what makes a good garden, their approach rather reminds me of Christopher Lloyd's garden writing; none of them afraid of calling a spade a spade, or rather a bad plant a bad plant.
And I do disagree quite often, or sometimes I think that they are just wrong. For instance writing about Hydrangea quercifolia in the 'Tough shrubs' chapter they state that "it only grows well in moisture-retentive acid soil", when for us with no acid soil and summers that can dry out even the most retentive soil it is our most reliable hydrangea. In their last section 'Failing the test' there are thirteen entries of which one is for 'Gaura lindheimeri 'Whirling Butterflies', about which they write that it is "a wonderful gap filler, but you have to buy a new batch every year". Well, ours have so far lasted eight years and have increased mightily, but then perhaps I should have already mentioned: both the writers are Dutch and it seems to me that the book is chiefly directed to a North European audience, which does not stop it being enormous fun, and I for one will always consult it before buying herbaceaous plants.
Wednesday 10 February 2016
Call me Daphne!
I have never really got on well with daphnes. I remember that in my Aunt's garden in Bexhill there was a purple flowering D.mezereum which for some reason I thought was rather ugly, though I see that Graham Thomas gives it high marks - "one of the most valuable,hardy,small to medium-sized shrubs for our winter gardens". I have also a various times grown D.collina which makes quite a pleasing small bush though when its lilac flowers are not in bloom, it is perhaps not very noticeable, this in France but much nearer the Pyrenees than I am now. Perhaps my favourite to date , this in another French garden, was D.burkwoodii Somerset, or least that is what I thought it was, though plain 'Somerset' does not have variegated leaves which ours did, so I suppose that it might have been 'Astrid'. Anyway the variegation was rather the point because what slightly worries me about daphnes is that when not in flower they are usually not a very exciting feature. Many of course, make quite small, low shrubs - D.collina and D.petraea to name two - more suited to the rockery than the shrub border, which reminds me to ask what on earth has happened to the rockery? My father adored them and in my youth it seemed that there were a 'must have' feature, but they seem to have gone quite out of fashion. This is odd in a way because in a sense they are as naturalistic as say the now very popular gravel or meadow garden. Perhaps they are too much trouble, too fiddly and time consuming, and I guess that a rock garden which is not well-tended just looks a mess, while say my gravel garden can get away with murder, or I pretend that it can!
Meanwhile back to daphnes in order to report that despite my worries about them - and I have not mentioned my chief worry is that they do not want to be too dry or hot in summer - last year I did acquire two. Daphne 'Eternal Fragrance' is I fear one of those 'tendance' plants that suddenly everybody wants to acquire only for them all too often to be quickly forgotten. Its attraction is of course the word 'eternal' - most daphnes have a fairly short flowering period often in the late Winter or early Spring, so that one that is always in flower would be very exciting. Mine however managed about a week but it was its first year so I can only live in hope. Then towards the end of last year I was seduced by an item in the excellent Burncoose website - D. x transatlantica Pink Fragrance, which looking at the new Hilliers I see is related to Eternal Fragrance so I am promised a long flowering period, though this time with pink rather than white flowers. And as both names indicate, the chief reason why ones grows daphnes is for their fragrance, so that if they can be planted near a door or beside a path, and I guess preferably in semi-shade, or at least near a source of water, so much better.
Finally a plant that I should have mentioned in my last blog since acquired last year, and seen first in Cornwall - Berberis valdiviana. As with daphnes I have to admit to being only half in love with the 'barberries'. I guess it is the prickles that most of them have in abundance that makes me wary of them, while they can, as in the case of B.darwinii, have rather too bright orange flowers. But by and large they are easy plants to grow and as regards the many B. thunbergii hybrids they come very often with bright coloured leaves that go an even brighter colour in Autumn. And the good news about B.valdiviana is that it is not very prickly, and its flowers are a saffron yellow. Spotted from afar, since it is a very large shrub, I had no idea what it was but it certainly made a big impression with what could be called a 'gosh factor', so I am hoping that it will make the same impression here.
Meanwhile back to daphnes in order to report that despite my worries about them - and I have not mentioned my chief worry is that they do not want to be too dry or hot in summer - last year I did acquire two. Daphne 'Eternal Fragrance' is I fear one of those 'tendance' plants that suddenly everybody wants to acquire only for them all too often to be quickly forgotten. Its attraction is of course the word 'eternal' - most daphnes have a fairly short flowering period often in the late Winter or early Spring, so that one that is always in flower would be very exciting. Mine however managed about a week but it was its first year so I can only live in hope. Then towards the end of last year I was seduced by an item in the excellent Burncoose website - D. x transatlantica Pink Fragrance, which looking at the new Hilliers I see is related to Eternal Fragrance so I am promised a long flowering period, though this time with pink rather than white flowers. And as both names indicate, the chief reason why ones grows daphnes is for their fragrance, so that if they can be planted near a door or beside a path, and I guess preferably in semi-shade, or at least near a source of water, so much better.
Finally a plant that I should have mentioned in my last blog since acquired last year, and seen first in Cornwall - Berberis valdiviana. As with daphnes I have to admit to being only half in love with the 'barberries'. I guess it is the prickles that most of them have in abundance that makes me wary of them, while they can, as in the case of B.darwinii, have rather too bright orange flowers. But by and large they are easy plants to grow and as regards the many B. thunbergii hybrids they come very often with bright coloured leaves that go an even brighter colour in Autumn. And the good news about B.valdiviana is that it is not very prickly, and its flowers are a saffron yellow. Spotted from afar, since it is a very large shrub, I had no idea what it was but it certainly made a big impression with what could be called a 'gosh factor', so I am hoping that it will make the same impression here.
Tuesday 19 January 2016
Nouveautés
Last year we seem to have acquired quite a lot of new plants, quite a few from England, which is not something we particularly like doing - it costs! - but as I have mentioned before there does seem to be a wider choice. I suspect many of our new plants will turn out to be mistakes. I am undoubtedly an impulse buyer, which no doubt can be criticised, but for me is part of the fun, and if you do not have a go you will never know what plants will flourish. And though there are mistakes there are fortunately some pleasant surprises as well.
Of course my visit to the Cornish gardens was the cause of many temptations, and I was only saved from financial ruin by the fact that many of the most exciting plants were clearly not going to flourish chez nous. In our garden azaleas and rhododendrons are impossible, while camellias and magnolias are difficult. What I ended up with were two species that are probably not in what might be called the first rank of plants but but were sufficiently a feature of the Cornish gardens to catch the eye.
The first of these was Olearia x scilloniensis. If I describe it as a white daisy on a grey-leaved small shrub it does not sound all that exciting, but it charmed me sufficiently to want to acquire it, this as a good filler-inner on our Southern slopes. What should perhaps have flagged up a red light is that you do not see many olearias in Gascony. I have grown nearer to the Pyrenees than I am now O.macrodonta, which to be honest is a rather dull shrub with sage-green, holly like leaves, but the white daisies do smell. Also smelly, or perhaps I should say fragrant, is O.x haastii, this flowering in the summer, while O. x scillionensis flowers in late spring. Meanwhile I also fell for O. phlogopappa 'Comber's Blue', probably even a greater mistake, since its rather exotic purple daisy-like flowers may look rather bizarre in our mixed shrubbery, that is if it survives. Olearias come from the Southern hemisphere, so they are not afraid of heat, and some of them will not survive a really cold winter. But I suspect that it is not the cold that is going to be the chief worry but our dry summers. What they like is mild and wet which is why they flourish in Cornwall, and may well not in Gascony.
One could probably say the same for camellia sasanquas. Moreover like all camellias they would prefer a soil that that was rather more acid than our frequently heavy clay, while according to Hilliers "a Woodland site with light overhead shade is ideal". These are not conditions that most us can provide very easily, but this has not stopped me acquiring three camellia sasanquas -Crimson, Versicolor, and Yuletide - along with C. Quintessence, a hybrid between C.japonica and C.lutchuensis, all of these from Alan Thoby, an elder brother of Jean of Gaujacq fame who runs a nursery, pepiniere des Cascatelles in the Tarn, which I have only really discovered this year, but that seems to be very good news. The feature of sasanquas for those who do not know them is that they flower in the autumn, have less artificial flowers than the more commonly found japonicas, since often single though not such a variety of choice, but with very often good scent. Moreover I have always had in my head that for us they are slightly easier to grow, though admittedly I have not found much evidence for this in the reference books. Still I have done my best. They are planted in semi-shade on the south terrace. I have added a good deal of peat to the soil, and there is ready access to water, for another problem with camellias, perhaps even the most important, is that they do not like dry conditions. Apart from that they should be easy!
As easy, or should I say as difficult, is another plant that I fell for in Cornwall - Amomyrtus luma. As the name suggests, it is essentially a myrtle - bush/tree with darkish evergreen leaves and fragrant white flowers. It differs from most other myrtles in that it is spring rather than summer flowering. Also praised are the copper coloured young leaves. I have to say it looked extremely attractive, but then I was seeing it in full flower. Whether it will do here is quite another matter. I have tried and lost the related Luma apiculata Glangleam Gold, a variegated version of the so-called Chilean myrtle, though whether through cold or drought I am not sure. It could well have been the latter because like most of the plants already mentioned it likes mild but also humid conditions. As always this is not easy to find in our garden but beneath a quite high wall there was formerly a 'mare' and as a result the water seems to be retained there despite the sunshine it receives, so that is where it has gone. On verra!
Finally two other shrubs that were acquired this year. I did not spot Philadelphus maculatus Mexican Jewel in any of the Cornish gardens I visited since it was not in flower, but I suspect it was there since featured in many of the English catalogues. Like many new introductions it may well be being oversold but with its 'intensely scented white flowers which hang down' it sounds rather good, though the fact that it is called 'frost hardy' rather suggests that it does not like being too cold. Curiously we lack Philadelphus perhaps because of my plant snobbery since they are to be found in many people's gardens. They are also only in flower for quite a short period and without flowers the plant is not very attractive. But of course the scent is to die for, especially since it does carry, and one of my resolutions for 2016 is to plant more.
The last shrub is one that as far as I can make out, and unlike most of the others so far mentioned, should be full proof in Gascony but probably so far untried since it is a comparatively new plant. Its name is Calycanthus raulstonii Hartlage Wine. C. floridus,or otherwise called Carolina allspice I have grown, but would only give it medium marks - attractive shiny green leaves but the brownish rather dead looking flowers did not do anything for me. C. raulstonii Hartlage Wine has 'maroon to wine-red summer flowers . . . with a circle of smaller creamy white tepals in the centre', and is delicately scented. And since it was strongly recommended by the celebrated Irish gardener, Helen Dillon, I hoping that it is going to be a winner - and on this note I will end by wishing you all Happy Gardening in 2016.
Of course my visit to the Cornish gardens was the cause of many temptations, and I was only saved from financial ruin by the fact that many of the most exciting plants were clearly not going to flourish chez nous. In our garden azaleas and rhododendrons are impossible, while camellias and magnolias are difficult. What I ended up with were two species that are probably not in what might be called the first rank of plants but but were sufficiently a feature of the Cornish gardens to catch the eye.
The first of these was Olearia x scilloniensis. If I describe it as a white daisy on a grey-leaved small shrub it does not sound all that exciting, but it charmed me sufficiently to want to acquire it, this as a good filler-inner on our Southern slopes. What should perhaps have flagged up a red light is that you do not see many olearias in Gascony. I have grown nearer to the Pyrenees than I am now O.macrodonta, which to be honest is a rather dull shrub with sage-green, holly like leaves, but the white daisies do smell. Also smelly, or perhaps I should say fragrant, is O.x haastii, this flowering in the summer, while O. x scillionensis flowers in late spring. Meanwhile I also fell for O. phlogopappa 'Comber's Blue', probably even a greater mistake, since its rather exotic purple daisy-like flowers may look rather bizarre in our mixed shrubbery, that is if it survives. Olearias come from the Southern hemisphere, so they are not afraid of heat, and some of them will not survive a really cold winter. But I suspect that it is not the cold that is going to be the chief worry but our dry summers. What they like is mild and wet which is why they flourish in Cornwall, and may well not in Gascony.
One could probably say the same for camellia sasanquas. Moreover like all camellias they would prefer a soil that that was rather more acid than our frequently heavy clay, while according to Hilliers "a Woodland site with light overhead shade is ideal". These are not conditions that most us can provide very easily, but this has not stopped me acquiring three camellia sasanquas -Crimson, Versicolor, and Yuletide - along with C. Quintessence, a hybrid between C.japonica and C.lutchuensis, all of these from Alan Thoby, an elder brother of Jean of Gaujacq fame who runs a nursery, pepiniere des Cascatelles in the Tarn, which I have only really discovered this year, but that seems to be very good news. The feature of sasanquas for those who do not know them is that they flower in the autumn, have less artificial flowers than the more commonly found japonicas, since often single though not such a variety of choice, but with very often good scent. Moreover I have always had in my head that for us they are slightly easier to grow, though admittedly I have not found much evidence for this in the reference books. Still I have done my best. They are planted in semi-shade on the south terrace. I have added a good deal of peat to the soil, and there is ready access to water, for another problem with camellias, perhaps even the most important, is that they do not like dry conditions. Apart from that they should be easy!
As easy, or should I say as difficult, is another plant that I fell for in Cornwall - Amomyrtus luma. As the name suggests, it is essentially a myrtle - bush/tree with darkish evergreen leaves and fragrant white flowers. It differs from most other myrtles in that it is spring rather than summer flowering. Also praised are the copper coloured young leaves. I have to say it looked extremely attractive, but then I was seeing it in full flower. Whether it will do here is quite another matter. I have tried and lost the related Luma apiculata Glangleam Gold, a variegated version of the so-called Chilean myrtle, though whether through cold or drought I am not sure. It could well have been the latter because like most of the plants already mentioned it likes mild but also humid conditions. As always this is not easy to find in our garden but beneath a quite high wall there was formerly a 'mare' and as a result the water seems to be retained there despite the sunshine it receives, so that is where it has gone. On verra!
Finally two other shrubs that were acquired this year. I did not spot Philadelphus maculatus Mexican Jewel in any of the Cornish gardens I visited since it was not in flower, but I suspect it was there since featured in many of the English catalogues. Like many new introductions it may well be being oversold but with its 'intensely scented white flowers which hang down' it sounds rather good, though the fact that it is called 'frost hardy' rather suggests that it does not like being too cold. Curiously we lack Philadelphus perhaps because of my plant snobbery since they are to be found in many people's gardens. They are also only in flower for quite a short period and without flowers the plant is not very attractive. But of course the scent is to die for, especially since it does carry, and one of my resolutions for 2016 is to plant more.
The last shrub is one that as far as I can make out, and unlike most of the others so far mentioned, should be full proof in Gascony but probably so far untried since it is a comparatively new plant. Its name is Calycanthus raulstonii Hartlage Wine. C. floridus,or otherwise called Carolina allspice I have grown, but would only give it medium marks - attractive shiny green leaves but the brownish rather dead looking flowers did not do anything for me. C. raulstonii Hartlage Wine has 'maroon to wine-red summer flowers . . . with a circle of smaller creamy white tepals in the centre', and is delicately scented. And since it was strongly recommended by the celebrated Irish gardener, Helen Dillon, I hoping that it is going to be a winner - and on this note I will end by wishing you all Happy Gardening in 2016.
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