Heavenly

Henbury

Hall new for 2016

Spring 2016

2

The perfect recipe... For me a day in a beautiful garden, lots of beautiful plants to browse and

the chance to “talk plants” with fellow enthusiasts comes close to the

perfect recipe for contentment.

I’m really lucky to do the job I do, together with my wife Janet,

organising Plant Hunters’ Fairs and running our own specialist nursery

from our Cheshire garden.

Part of the joy for us is stepping up to new challenges. Last year we said

fond farewell to fellow organiser Judy Jesse who has (temporarily we

hope) retired from plant fairs meaning we have taken on running of the events at Ness, Norton Priory

and Whittington Castle. We have added extra dates at Donington Le Heath and Carsington and have

three exciting new venues: Battlefield 1403 farm shop near Shrewsbury and Southwell Minster in

Nottinghamshire as part of Southwell Gardens Open and a new gem to discover: Henbury Hall near

Macclesfield in Cheshire. You could see this as a lot more work, we like to see it as a lot more fun

doing what we love.

For us the perfect recipe is a great value day out at a lovely garden or countryside location with

expert specialist nurseryfolk and artisans in the company of fellow plant lovers. We hope you agree!

Best wishes

Martin

We are thrilled to

announce our first ever

plant fair in

Nottinghamshire to be

held in the beautiful and

historic grounds of

Southwell Minster on

Sunday 19 June from

11am to 4pm

Southwell is famous not just for

its great Minster church, but for

the adjacent former Palace of

the Archbishops of York,

recently restored with a

Heritage Lottery Fund grant.

Under the east gable of the

ruined section of the Palace the

Minster is creating a new public

open space - the Education

Garden. In 1108, Archbishop

Gerard was found

dead in his chair in

then palace garden. When his

body was moved, a book on

astrology was found under the

pillow – heretical studies in

those days.

His death was recorded,

therefore, as being due to

‘divine judgement for his

addiction to the magical and

forbidden arts.’ In Gerard’s day,

the gardens and hunting park

were extensive. The present

garden, created in 2014 from

an overgrown coppice, includes

individual planting areas

reflecting the history of the site,

such as visits by Cardinal

Wolsey and King Charles I (the

information panels tell you

more). The development of the

garden, with volunteer

assistance, is an on-going

project.

Entry to the fair is just £1.00

and this is redeemable when

you purchase a ticket to visit

the private gardens opening

just for this special day.

Details of the gardens open will

be posted on our website

nearer the time.

Southwell Minster

Southwell

Notts. NG25 0HD

Summer at

Southwell New fair in association with Southwell

Gardens Open

3

Norton Priory truly is a secret

garden; hidden behind woodland

and not far from the M56, this

18th century walled garden is

little known in comparison to

other Cheshire attractions.

Norton Priory’s walled garden

was built for the Brooke Family

between 1757 and 1770 to

provide fruit, vegetables, herbs

and flowers for their Georgian

house, Norton Hall. After the

family moved away in the 1920s

the trapezoid-shaped garden

became neglected until it was

restored in the 1980s. It is now

part of the larger Norton Priory

Museum & Gardens site. Other

highlights include medieval

priory ruins, woodland walks,

icehouse, and tea room. A brand

new museum will open in August

2016.

Norton Priory Museum &

Gardens is home to the National

Collection of Tree Quince

(Cydonia Oblonga) which is

looked after by Head Gardener

John Budworth, who has worked

at the site for over 25 years and

can be considered a bit of a

quince expert! John regularly

offers tips and for looking after

your quince trees, as well as the

many other fruits and flowers

grown in the Georgian Walled

Garden and orchard including

traditional varieties of pear and

apple trees. Quince trees can be

purchased from Norton Priory.

These trees are propagated by

Clifford Cain using Norton Priory

stock.

Quince are an apple or pear

shaped fruit with a golden yellow

skin and a strong, spicy scent. It

is not eaten fresh as it is hard

and bitter when raw but is

delicious stewed with meat or

boiled with sugar to produce

mouth-watering jams or jellies.

Quince is popular with home

bakers as it contains a high

amount of pectin which makes it

ideal for making jams and jellies.

It is also high in antioxidants so

it has many health qualities.

Quince would have been

preserved in the autumn and

eaten throughout the year in

medieval times and is believed

to have been the forbidden

‘apple’ which tempted Adam in

the Garden of Eden.

Quince is not grown widely in

the UK, Norton Priory are lucky

to have 25 different cultivars of

Quince, with two trees of each

variety. It is quite easy to grow,

is in the Rosacea family and

grows to about 4 to 6 metres

high depending on its rootstock.

Quince trees have to be pruned

in the summer and winter, then

there’s fertilising, watering and

fruit picking. It is reasonably

free of pest and disease, but

John’s secret is using a garlic

barrier spray to protect from

quince leaf blight.

Quince leaf blight can be a

problem – leaves start to

speckle and drop, but the fruit

remains edible.

Quince also like full sun and a

rich, loamy soil, they don’t need

much feeding once established

but require moisture in dry

summers.

Norton Priory: a truly secret garden

Quince are an apple or pear shaped

fruit with a golden yellow skin and

a strong, spicy scent.

Norton Priory: the

Quince-essential

Garden John Budworth, Head Gardener

and “a bit of a quince expert”, on

the National Collection of this

unusual and rarely grown fruit.

4

A new tree takes a while to bear

fruit, usually around five years.

By the time the tree is about

eight you could be getting as

much as 15kg of fruit from it.

Try to leave the quince on the

tree as long as you can so it can

ripen to a good yellow, but make

sure you pick it before the first

frosts.

Once picked the fruit can bruise

easily, they can be kept for up

to four months, but store them

separately from other fruit

though as the perfume can

affect the taste of other fruits

such as apples.

With such intensive labour John

is very grateful for the help he

receives from the small

gardening team and the

gardening volunteers who help

keep the two and a half acre

garden looking its best. We also

work in partnership with Halton

Borough Council’s day services

who work with adults with

disabilities to run a tea room,

micro-brewery and ice cream

parlour on site.

We sell the produce from the

garden to the public, but also

use some to make the jams,

jellies and juices for sale in our

gift shop.

The jams and preserves are

made especially for us by award

winning Jane Maggs who

operates under the name Wild &

Fruitful. Jane was recently

featured on BBC 1’s Countryfile

making a traditional quince

marmalade in the Norton Priory

garden. She will use anything

we have picked from the garden,

inventing recipes to suit

whatever we give her. This

means we have different

varieties of jams, preserves and

pickles on offer throughout the

year depending on what has

grown well in the garden the

previous season.

Every October Norton Priory

holds a Quince & Apple Day

celebration. Quince & Apple Day

will take place in Sunday 9th

October 2016. The walled

garden is open daily between

10am and 5pm from 1st April

until October 31st 2016. Norton

Priory produce, including quince

preserves, are available in the

Walled Garden shop, located in

the Gardener’s Cottage.

Our Plant Hunters’ Fair at Norton Priory is held just outside the walled garden and entry to fair

and parking is free. This year the fair is Sunday 24th April and is open from 10am to 4pm

Jane Maggs’ Quince Marmalade

Recipe as featured on BBC 1’s

Countryfile The recipe used is dated 1697 for a 'white marmalade of quinces'.

All it requires is quinces and sugar.

“Preparation: quinces are very hard and whilst recipes tell you to

peel and/or grate them raw, I find parboiling before peeling much

easier. Most recipes also tell you quinces take ages to cook. I do

not find this to be the case. Bring clean quinces to the boil and cook until slightly soft but not mushy.

If too mushy they fall to bits and are hard to peel. Keep the boiling water. With any luck the skins

will slip off like beetroot. If not, peel normally and cut the flesh away from the core. Chop coarsely

into sizes you might like to see on your scone or toast.”

“Cooking: weigh the chopped quince with enough of the boiling water to just cover. Yes, you can use

the boiling water too as quinces are so high in flavour and pectin! If you are at all nervous about the

set put the quince cores and peels in a bag and cook up with quince flesh. Bring the quinces in their

water to the boil. If they are still a bit hard finish cooking them now, otherwise add the sugar. The

weight of sugar will be 75% of whatever is the combined weight of quinces and water. Lower the

heat and stir to dissolve the sugar, then, when the sugar is dissolved boil hard until a set is reached.

Remove the bag, if added, and squeeze. The old recipes do not add lemon juice (quince will set

perfectly well without it) but I add it to balance the sweetness as quince has no acidity in its flavour.

The colour of the preserve will be pale amber. If you cook a little slower you will get a beautiful 'red

marmalade of quinces' as you watch the colour darken to a beautiful deep amber.”

“If you did not use the peels and cores, quince is so accommodating that you can even make quince

jelly with the boiling water! if you boil the peels and cores in a bag with the remaining quince water

until everything in the bag is mushy, squeeze the bag, strain the boiling water through a sieve and

add sugar as before and boil as before, add some lemon juice, maybe 2 tbsp to 500ml, and boil to a

set, you will get a beautiful amber-coloured quince jelly.”

5

This is the first year that

Forestart has ventured into Plant

Hunter’s Fairs! We are nervous

and excited at the same time

about it!

Not many of us think about the

very start of tree growing. From

seed to sapling and then to

mature forest or ornamental tree

is a long journey. It starts, of

course, with the seed.

Forestart have been collecting,

cleaning, grading and treating

tree seed for nearly 25 years.

Based just north of Shrewsbury

in the village of Hadnall we have

recently moved to a brand new

facility which houses seed

storage in fridges and freezers,

processing rooms, both wet and

dry, the laboratory and offices all

under one roof.

We collect seed from all over the

country and from our own seed

orchards in Shropshire. We also

import seed from reputable

collectors all over the world since

we list in our catalogue anything

from Abies to Zelkova. All our

seed is

traceable,

which in these

days of international trade and

travelling tree diseases is

extremely important.

Once our home-grown seed

arrives, we sort it from the

leaves and twigs and then

extract it from pods, cones or

fruit, cleaning, grading and

drying it. Depending on the

species, it is then stored at

different temperatures or put

into stratification to ensure good

germination.

Our lab. tests each batch of seed

for viability and germination. The

seed number per kilo for each

batch is also calculated.

Nurserymen buying our seed can

therefore work out how much

seed they’ll need to produce the

required amount of plants. When

the public buy our seed, they

can be confident that the quality

is exactly the same as the

professional growers receive.

The other side of the business is

the wildflowers. We harvest our

wildflower mixes direct from

meadows in Shropshire and our

single species wildflowers are

grown near Hadnall. We are very

keen on the provenance of

wildflowers (and trees) so by

growing our own, we know

where they have come from!

We hope that offering for sale a

range of tree and wildflower

seed will encourage everyone to

do some growing, making a

difference to our countryside, to

our wildlife and ultimately to all

of us!

Forestart for the future.

The Seed Unit

Ladymas Lane

Hadnall

Shrewsbury

SY4 4AL

www.forestart.co.uk

Meet us at Dearnford Lake

20/03/16, National

Memorial Arboretum

02/04/16,

Norton Priory 24/04/16.

Seeds of a

Forest Diane Snow introduces

Forestart to Plant Hunters’

Fairs

One of our cold stored

Wildflower Meadow

Wildflower meadow

6

Middleton Hall is a Grade

II* listed manor with a

museum housed in

buildings spanning 750

years of architectural

styles. The surrounding

estate covers 42 acres and

includes a Site of Special

Scientific Interest, a walled

garden and shops. Now

restored the Hall is run by

a small independent

charitable trust. Middleton

Hall has had a wide variety

of owners and tenants.

Two of our most famous

residents were the great

naturalists Francis Willughby

(who spelt his name this way)

and his tutor, friend and

collaborator John Ray.

Francis’ work on birds

‘Ornithologia’ and on fish

‘Historia Piscium’ were

published after his death by

John Ray. John Ray tutored

Francis’ children whilst he

stayed at Middleton Hall and

remained at the Hall for a

number of years after Francis’

death. It was at Middleton that

he developed his original works

on Natural History including his

‘History of Plants’.

John Ray (1627-1705)

Philosopher and writer, cleric,

traveller and taxonomist,

deserves a wider reputation. His

botanical works - ‘Historiae

Plantum’ and ‘Methodus

Plantarum Nova’, were published

1682.

Known as the father of English

natural history, John Ray’s

system of plant classification

became more popular than that

of Morison, and was in general

use in England until the latter

half of the 18th century, when it

was gradually superseded by the

Linnean method which was first

applied to English botany in Dr J.

Hill’s Flora Britannica 1760.

Ray enjoyed the advantage of a

very long period of productive

activity: in the thirty-four years

that separated his Tables of

Plants from his Methodus

Emendata et Aucta, he had time

to revise and remodel his

system.

During his residence in

Cambridge, Ray devoted much

of his time to the study of

natural history, a study which

The moat entrance to Middleton Hall. The hall is

open and ready to explore during our plant fair. Walled garden and gazebo—the gardens are also open on

the day

Middleton and

John Ray Jo Walker from Middleton Hall on the

story behind an historic and rare

rose

Rose “John Ray” is believed to survive

only in Middleton Hall’s walled garden

7

afterwards became his chief

occupation. The first fruit of his

labours in this direction was the

Catalogus Plantarum circa

Cantabrigiam nascentium,

published in 1660, followed in

due course by many works, for

he was a prolific author,

botanical and zoological as well

as theological and literary, of

which only those can be

considered at present which

contributed materially to the

development of systematic

botany.

He studied and graduated with

such distinction at the University

of Cambridge, that he was in due

course elected a Fellow of, and

appointed a Lecturer in, his

College (Trinity). Here he

remained until 1662. After

leaving Cambridge he spent

some years traveling both in

Britain and on the continent; and

eventually settled at Black

Notley. He was working on a

book on insects when he died on

January 17, 1705.

The History of Plants is the

naturalist John Ray’s greatest

work. In three magnificent folio

volumes Ray classified plants in

the first place using the

differences amongst seeds. He

distinguished flowering plants by

their flowers, seeds, fruit and

leaves and had separate

categories for fungi and lichens,

mosses and herbs. Ray managed

to classify according to many of

the natural families that are

recognised today even though

his taxonomical principles were

primitive. The word ‘historia’ in

the title of this work reminds us

of Bacon’s influence on the Royal

Society of which Ray was a

member. Natural philosophy was

conceived as assembling natural

histories and Ray understood his

work as a contribution to this

task.

Middleton Hall, is believed, to

have the only example left in the

country of the John Ray rose in

its walled gardens. Volunteer

gardeners have taken up the

challenge of attempting to

propagate this beautiful and

fragrant rose. Ruth Springer the

Hall’s Volunteer Head Gardener

said ‘We have 6 plants in total in

our gardens and want to make

sure that we have new plants to

replace any that we may lose.

The best time to propagate roses

is from new growth, however we

did not want to wait until the

spring so we have decided to try

our luck with cuttings created

when we cut back the roses this

autumn, ready for the winter.

We are starting to see signs of

new growth at the shoots and

are hopeful that we will be

successful in our attempts to

protect this rare and historically

significant rose.’

Sunday 22nd May 2016 Times 10am - 5pm

Entry to fair, gardens and

hall : £2.00 per adult

(Children free)

Middleton Hall Middleton Tamworth Staffordshire B78 2AE

Phone: 01827 283095 www.middleton-hall.co.uk

We were blessed with a lovely, sunny spring day for our first ever plant fair at

Middleton Hall in 2015

Two Treats combined at Dearnford Lake For those who want to combine two treats into one, visitors to the Plant Hunters Fair at

Dearnford Lake can enjoy a traditional Sunday lunch on Sunday 20th March as well as

source beautiful plants.

The Lake’s café has been offering Sunday lunches from 17th January giving customers a choice from

three starters; two meats with vegetables and three puddings.

Two courses cost £17.95 per person; or three courses £22 per person. The lunch is served from 12

noon to 2pm. If you would like to join us for lunch on that date and to avoid disappointment, please

call the café on 01948 665914.

8

From simple beginnings – a

desire to cook with chillies at a

time when they were scarce in

shops and expensive – Chilli Zoo

has evolved.

As a bit of a foodie, I have

always enjoyed experimenting

with flavours, chillies an obvious

source of exciting – and

sometimes scary – taste tours.

Like many people, the chillies I

first knew were the green and

red cayenne type that you can

buy readily nowadays, but what

about these recipes that

demanded things like jalapenos,

habaneros and ancho grandes –

what on earth were these?

Research left me beside myself

at the range of chillies – both

heat and beauty – that were

available. The only thing to do

was to grow them. At this point

in time I left the UK to spend

time in France helping re-build a

farmhouse (as you do) and as a

reward was given space in a poly

-tunnel to play in. Rising to the

challenge of filling the space

given, I germinated over 30

different types with handfuls of

seeds to see what happened. As

it turned out, I was quite good at

this, filling not only the poly

tunnel but also a south facing

slope with Satan’s Kiss, Atomic

bombs, Red Demon’s, Purple

Tiger’s and Scorpions to name

but a few.

Back in the UK, I have continued

to produce about 4000 seedlings

a year keeping a core of popular

plants but changing some each

year. This year germination is

coming along nicely and includes

Kashmiri’s – a favourite of Rick

Stein’s for Indian cooking, the

hottest chilli in the world – the

Carolina Reaper, a range of

plants which produce stunning

black chillies with dark and

exotic foliage and one beauty

which looks like a small apple,

aptly named the Hungarian

Apple…not to be eaten as an

apple though!

I don’t force growth under

artificial light or heat but let

them do their own thing. They

have been germinated in doors

and will graduate to the poly-

tunnel shortly. They will thrive

anywhere there is warmth and

sunlight – a kitchen window or

conservatory is ideal or pop

them in the greenhouse.

www.chillizoo.com

You can meet head keeper

Pam at The National

Memorial Arboretum on

May 28th.

Chilli Zoo: home

to exotic breeds By Head keeper, Pam Davenport

9

Battlefield

1403: New

for 2016 Something new for

Plant Hunters’ Fairs

as we team up with

this great venue for

two new fairs in

2016

The first is on Easter Saturday

and we return again on Saturday

30th July. Both fairs are free to

enter!

Battlefield 1403 is way more

than just a farm shop, it’s one of

the best butcheries in the UK, a

well stocked deli counter, a shop

full of specialty great tasting

local goodies, a museum

celebrating the Battle of

Shrewsbury, a Falconry Centre –

oh and a café full of homemade

fresh food.

What makes them so special is

they celebrate low food miles,

only buying British and that

means no

lemons or

grapes in

sight –

eating fresh seasonal products

with full traceability is crucial to

their success. The café cooks

fresh daily with local ingredients,

serving loyal visitors that return

time and time again.

The staff are passionate and that

shines through from advice

given from the team of butchers,

to the staff in the farm shop

being able to tell you where the

vegetables were grown. The café

cooks up a storm daily and you

can enjoy homemade meals,

cakes and afternoon tea every

day.

Today Battlefield 1403 is a

bustling farm shop, butchery,

deli, café and exhibition, but

over 600 years ago this was the

site of one the bloodiest battles

fought on British soil. After

visiting the shop at Battlefield

1403, walk off one of their

delicious sausage rolls with a

walk around the boundary of the

100-hectare battlefield. The

Battle of Shrewsbury was fought

between King Henry IV and a

rebellious faction led by the

Percy family in 1403. The

significance of the battle lies not

just in its political ramifications

as precursor to the Wars of the

Roses but also in the fact that it

was the first time that the

English longbow was used on

both sides. Battlefield Church is

said to have been erected over

the site of the mass burial pit

dug immediately after the battle.

Now looked after by The

Churches Conservation Trust, it

provides an opportunity for quiet

reflection. A key to the Church

is available on request from the

Battlefield 1403 Farm Shop.

Saturday 26th March

and Saturday 30th

July 9:30am-4pm

Free entry and

parking

Battlefield 1403

Upper Battlefield

Shrewsbury SY4 3DB

Tel 01939 210 905

www.battlefield1403.com

10

We love to fill our

garden with the colour

and scent of flowers.

For me that passion is

concentrated on hardy

herbaceous perennials

and the appearance of

buds signal the new

season of flower is

about to burst forth.

But buds aren’t just the heralds

of beauty to come: many are a

delight in themselves and greatly

add to the season of interest.

Here are some my favourites. All

are hardy and easy grow.

Centaurea and their close

cousins , Stemmacantha have

some of the most beautiful,

jewel-like buds in the perennial

garden.

Stemmacantha centauroides

(syn. Centaurea pulchra major)

eventually has large, pink, thistle

-flowers on 2ft 3in tall stems but

for weeks leading up to the

eruption of fuchsia-pink, the

silver-scaled buds are even more

thrilling.

Just about every Centaurea is

worthy of mention but if I had to

pick just one then C.phrygia

would get my vote. We’ve

dubbed her the Ena Sharples

plants for her “hair-net” buds.

Sometimes it’s the pure

symmetry of a bud that attracts

me. The giant yellow scabious

(Cephalaria gigantea) has a

geometric, beauty before the

loose, feathery flowers open.

That other scabious cousin,

Knautia has wonderful pin-

cushion buds that gradually

unfold into a feathery feast of

burgundy red.

Some flowers are as restrained,

quiet and understated in bud as

they are exuberant, showy and

attention-seeking in flower. The

coneflowers (Echinacea and

Awaiting a fuchsia-pink explosion

from the silver buds of

Stemmacantha

Cephalaria gigantea has a pure

symmetry of pattern

Bursting with

Anticipation Martin Blow of SpecialPerennials finds time to

enjoy the beauty before the buds burst

It’s easy to fall in love with the silver

buds of Cupid’s Dart (Catananche

caerulea)

Knautia has pin-cushion buds

Centaurea phrygia with “Ena

Sharples” buds!

11

Rudbeckia are prime examples of

this transformation as the petals

open: from achingly delicate to

big, bold and blousy.

Poppies are a brief, but dazzling

display in the garden but the

Orientale Poppy (papaver

orientale) has just tactile, silken

buds for so long prior to

flowering. And of course the

flowers are followed by those

pepper-pot seed heads.

Sometimes the contras between

bud and flower on the same

plant lifts a planting to new

levels. Hydrangea Annabel is

perhaps the best example of

this, with lime-green buds and

apple-white flowers together

through the summer.

Members of the Cynara (Thistle)

tribe have impressive buds too—

often more striking than the

flowers. Choose with care as

some thistles are very invasive

and some are biennial.

Onopordum (Silk Thistle) is one

of the biennials but does self

seed. This is 6-8ft giant for a

sunny spot. The buds spiny and

very architectural.

The cardoon was grown as a leaf

vegetable to produce long

succulent leaf stems. He is a

cousin of the globe artichoke as

can be seen from the buds.

The joy of buds is in purity of

form, dramatic contrast and

expectation of flowering beauty

to come.

You can almost see the bees

queuing up in anticipation of the

feast to come as the buds of

Cirsium rivulare Atropurpureum

begin to burst.

I’m trying to learn to be patient

and not want everything to rush

into flower. Stopping to

appreciate the beauty of buds,

new stems emerging, an

unfurling leaf, all add to my love

of our garden and perhaps helps

me “chill out” a bit in the busy

seasonal cycle of garden and

nursery.

Just sit back and enjoy the

growing anticipation!

Visit our website at

specialperennials.com

Oriental poppies (Papaver orientale)

Hydrangea Annabel has a

delightful contrast between bud

and flower

You can meet Martin at every Plant Hunters’ Fair in 2016.

Silk Thistle (Onopordum) is a giant

biennial

Cardoon is a cousin of the globe

artichoke

Cirsium rivulare waits in

anticipation of the show to come

Coneflower, Rudbeckia subtomentosa

transforms from delicate to big and

blousy between bud-burst and flower

12

Crown Imperials (Fritillaria imperialis) bring

height and seasonal highlights amongst the

mixed borders at Cholmondeley

Barry Grain, head gardener at

Cholmondeley Castle Gardens

digs deep into the delights of spring

bulbs

13

I often think of

bulbs as being like

that Christmas

present you always

wanted and got

given as a kid,

played with for a

couple of months

and then forgot

about. Then every

so often when

having the annual

‘sort out’ they re-

surface, and you

wonder how you

ever lived without

them.

Bulbs or should I say ‘bulbous

plants’, by their very nature are

some of the most adaptable

plants in our gardens. Indeed

their adaptations that make

them able to withstand seasonal

hardships, can often lend them

to be grown in some of our most

challenging borders. Also

because most have short

seasons and take up very little

room it is possible to have a

variety of bulbs in flower

throughout the year in even the

smallest flower bed. The shear

variety of forms alone means

that there is more than just a

little something for every taste.

Many are at their most

impressive when planted in

larger groups and especially

when naturalised in grass, which

may not be possible for

everyone but even in a small

garden good results can be

achieved without the mowing

nightmare.

One of the things Cholmondeley

Castle is known for are its large

drifts of bulbs both in grass and

in borders. Of particular note in

March and April is Castle Hill

which is covered by a great

many thousands of the wild

Daffodil N pseudonarcissus.

Tulips are planted annually to

improve early interest in the

Herbaceous Borders, whilst

Fritillaria imperialis and species

Lillium are used to bring height

and seasonal highlights amongst

our mixed borders.

This past autumn we have added

over 8,000 bulbs mostly to our

borders and some to grassed

areas, something that we intend

to continue year on year. 2,000

Galanthus nivalis, (Snowdrop),

were added to the swathes down

the main drive. And we continue

to introduce Narcissus to the

arboretum, this year in the form

of N. ‘Peeping Tom’, a vibrant

early yellow that naturalises well

and was one of Lady

Cholmondeley’s personal

favourites. Other good subjects

for naturalising in grass are

Crocus, and we have added

another thousand mixed colours

to further increase the large

group at the bottom end of the

Temple Garden by the new

specie Rose beds. The great

thing with both Crocus and

Galanthus in a lawn is that

they flower early and the

Cholmondeley Castle is known for its drifts of bulbs. In March and April is Castle

Hill which is covered by a great many thousands of the wild Daffodil N.

pseudonarcissus.

N. cyclamineus which grows really well at Cholmondeley, and flowers from

mid-February onwards and for over two months in some seasons

14

leaves die back before the grass

gets too long and thick, making

mowing all the easier. A great

Narcissus for this purpose is the

tiny N. cyclamineus which grows

really well at Cholmondeley, and

flowers from mid-February

onwards and for over two

months in some seasons. Their

many tiny nodding heads are a

real early season treat.

We have introduced 2,000 blue

flowered Anemone blanda

‘Atrocaerulea’ to the Glade and

Duckery, in challenging beds

that are typically dry but have

enough spring moisture to

support these fabulous plants,

which en masse make an

incredible feature. Another great

early spring introduction is the

small but feisty Puschkinia

scilloides var. libanotica which

have been threaded throughout

the newly renovated section of

rockery in the Temple Garden.

This is one of my favourite bulbs

and looks great when allowed to

naturalise in a border, their

silver-blue flowers being a real

joy.

Our new look Silver Garden

amongst the Castle terraces

needed an early injection of

colour as it doesn’t come into its

own until late spring, and with

bed space being tight bulbs were

the obvious solution. Here we

have added Iris reticulata ‘Alida’

which produce light blue flowers

in February that will look great

against the winter silvers. To

follow the Iris are the small

Narcissus ‘Petrel’ with creamy

white flowers, and for the

autumn we have added Crocus

speciosus ‘Conqueror’ whose

hazy violet-blue will look great

amongst the silvers in

September and October.

Elsewhere across the garden we

have introduced other subjects

for seasonal highlights. The

curious Fritillaria acmopetala

along with Allium christophii and

A. caeruleum have been added

to the grass beds. Hardy

Cyclamen coum and C.

hederifolium are used to under-

plant the Hydrangeas in the

Duckery. In the Temple Garden

delicate species Tulips in the

form of Tulipa tarda and T.

saxatilis have been threaded

through the rocks and Camassia

quamash (another personal

favourite) give a bold splash of

blue to the newly renovated

shrub beds. A real highlight of

autumn for me are Colchicum

and at Cholmondeley we have

several bold groups across the

garden. For this coming autumn

we will have a new and equally

impressive group in the Temple

Garden, amongst the new specie

Rose beds. C. autumnalis

‘Pleniflorum’ has been our choice

here which show beautiful

double rose-pink blooms that are

definitely worth waiting all year

for, it should look great with the

autumn interest in the Roses.

So why wouldn’t we plant more

and more bulbs in all our

gardens? Those named in this

article are but a very small

taster of what is available, and

like most bulbous plants require

very little attention, and

continue to improve year on

year. That gift that keeps on

giving. easy grow.

Hardy Cyclamen are used to under-plant the Hydrangeas in the Duckery

Come along and experience the sheer exuberance of the spring bulbs at Cholmondeley Castle

Gardens. Our Plant Fair is on Sunday 10th April and the gates are open from 11am to 5pm.

Entry for this special event only is just £3.50 for adults (half standard price) (children £2.00)

The tearooms will be open serving teas and light lunches.

Dogs on leads welcome

Cholmondeley Castle is situated near Nantwich, Malpas and Whitchurch between the A41 and A49.

Use SY14 8HN for Satnav. You can contact the garden on 01829 720383 for access information.

The castle is not open to the public.

15

By Christine Ffoulkes Jones of Hall Farm Nursery.

It’s early Saturday morning – the telephone starts to ring,

I rush in from the garden “Hi there” a kind voice sings

“I’m off to Hodnet Plant Fair” my friend started to say

“Do you fancy coming with me – we’ll have a real fun day”.

“Well you know I’m always up for that” was my instant reply

Buying plants & browsing through, it gives me such a high.

Plant Hunters Fairs they are the best, ask anyone in the know,

They are a cut above the rest, thanks to Janet & Martin Blow.

The greatest range of nurseries – more than I can here attest

Edrom from the North to Roseland House from far South West.

Each with its own speciality, growing style & skill

You’ll soon find your own favourites – your wants & needs to fill.

So many different plants on show, there are some sundries too

The nurserymen are in the know, to help & inform you.

If alpines are your main desire, Rob Pottertons your man

Tiny plants you may admire to fill your alpine pan.

Paul Green has true green fingers, Greens Leaves is how he’s known

He’ll give you all such sound advice – his rare shrubs so well grown.

If you seek a garden tool, Fairfield Bygones fit the bill

A preloved fork or garden hoe – your vegetables to drill.

To view the garden is a special draw on this and other dates

Some gardens rarely open, others reduce their entry rates.

So bring your bags & trolleys, big ones are the best

Fill them with well chosen plants then head for tea, cake & rest.

If you too are a gardening fan you’ll love the whole affair

View Plant Hunters web site & you can find out where

The fairs are held – the ones near you – the venue, time & date

Hopefully I’ll see you there “Shall I meet you at the gate?”

You can meet Christine and Nic at most of our fairs in 2016.

www.hallfarmnursery.co.uk

16

As the days get longer and the

sun climbs higher and higher on

the horizon, all of us here at the

Dorothy Clive Garden are

looking forward to hosting yet

another Easter Plant Hunters’

Fair. The garden should be

showing a lot of vigour at this

time, with most plants truly

woken up from their winter

slumber and growing away with

increasing speed. The main floral

focus on the Hillside part of the

garden will be on our many

Camelias as well as our very

early and utterly show stopping

Magnolia sargentiana var.

robusta.

If we are lucky enough to get a

warm spell before Easter, the

30.000 daffodils ‘Jack Snipe’ on

the verge of the Quarry garden

will be stealing the show and in

the Quarry garden itself many

early Rhododendrons will be

starting to perform. For the

connoisseurs, the understated

and graceful members of the

genus Corylopsis should be

covering themselves in

deliciously scented soft yellow

catkin-like flowers.

The many specialist nurseries

that pitch their stalls at the

event consistently offer a great

range of plants, all the way from

the tried and tested garden

staples to the extremely weird

and wonderful. So whatever

your gardening taste, come

along, get inspired and maybe

leave with an addition or two (or

twenty!) for your own garden.

Easter is early this

year and the plant

fair is on 27th &

28th March from

10am-5pm (Don ’t

forget the clocks go

forward on the

27th!). Entry is half

standard price at

just £3.50.

The summer plant fair

at the garden will be

on August 28th & 29th

The Dorothy Clive Garden

Willoughbridge

Market Drayton, Shropshire

TF9 4EU

Tel: 01630 647237

www.dorothyclivegarden.co.uk

Gardener Zdenek Valkoun on what to see at

Dorothy Clive Garden this Easter

17

The inspirational naturalistic

planting ideas of Piet Ouldorf

have been much copied in the

last two decades or so. His eye-

catching swathes of grasses and

perennials look wonderful but

are much better suited to larger

than average gardens and vast

acres of landscape rather than

the smaller gardens of today.

We can to some extent

compensate with the occasional

larger specimen grass planted

amongst our herbaceous borders

or make a small grass garden

that might emulate Ouldorf’s

ideas in miniature but since

there are so many grasses/

sedges that lend themselves to

living in a pot there is simply no

excuse not to make good and

interesting use of them. With

garden plots getting ever smaller

the need to make use of every

available space for planting

increases.

For instance we have a delightful

Stipa tenuissima sitting proudly

in our small goldfish pond, this

serves two purposes, one it is

very pleasant on the eye all year

round and secondly we like to

think that the local heron is just

a little uncertain of what it is and

keeps away from our very fat

goldfish population – time will

tell! The pot by the way is one

of a selection from Studio 8

Pottery, who you will find at

most Plant Hunters Fairs.

Some grasses will also sit very

amenably in pots of your

summer bedding, just look how

the colours of these begonias are

enhanced by the very striking

Elymus Magellanicus, which, of

course, can be left in-situ to

accompany maybe a planting of

colourful bulbs the following

year. Just cut down the Elymus

when the majority of the leaves

have died back and wait for

them to reappear at the same

time as your bulbs.

For those with a larger pot to fill

and keep a good balance of

scale between the grass and

Stipa tenuissima is commonly called

Angel Hair grass

Magellan's Blue Grass (Elymus

magellanicus) sits well with

summer bedding

Keep a colonising grass, like

Marram, in check in a large pot.

Pots of Potential Jacqueline Jones of

Architectural impact

selects grasses to excel

in pots and containers

Even in your darkest corners

colourful Carex Chocolate catches

what light it can to shine.

18

the pot, then why not consider a

Marram, these strident grasses

with their steel blue like

colouring look quite wonderful

on their own in a contrasting

pot. These grasses can quite

overtake smaller gardens if not

kept in check so they are best

displayed in a large pot and give

an added bonus of being

evergreen.

Even in your darkest corners

this colourful pot of Carex

Chocolate catches what light it

can to shine and shimmer its

way through the dullest of days.

A very easy sedge to grow, all it

requires is a good comb through

in the spring to get rid of any of

the dead leaves and it will

bounce back as good as new.

Again a lovely evergreen

specimen for your pots.

For a smaller pot of contrasting

grasses, again evergreen,

especially useful in winter time

when you may not have much

colour in your garden, you have

the black and lime yellow

colouring throughout all the

Seasons of the year, the

Ophiopogon Nigrescence and

Acorus Hakura Nishiki are two

lovely plants that go so well

together, the upright arching

leaves of the Ophiopogon are a

very good foil for the spiral fan

shaped Acorus.

One of my own particular

favourites in the garden as well

as in a pot is the Stipa

Arundinacea (or Pheasant Tail

grass). It has a wonderful

colour in the summer, autumn

and winter with the gently

flowing flowers and seed heads

looking particularly fine with a

slight breeze. I like to leave all

seed heads on my plants

throughout the winter to feed

the birds and my resident field

mice, who incidentally live under

one of my large Belfast sinks in

the garden.

There are many, many more

grasses, too numerous to

mention, that adapt brilliantly to

pots but please ask us when you

visit the Fairs and we will be so

pleased to help in anyway.

Now for the 2016 Season, as

many of you may know by

reading some of my past articles

for the Newsletter and our

information leaflet, we have, for

the last couple of years, been

trialling pond marginals in our

two trial ponds and I am

delighted to say that we will be

offering a selection of pond

marginals including Carex

Riparia Variegated, Juncus Elk

Blue, Juncus Pallidus, Glyceria

Maxima variegata, Equisetum to

name but a few. I must say

that these trial ponds have

increased our wildlife population

considerably, not just frogs,

toads, newts etc. but many

species of insects and

dragonflies.

Ophiopogon Nigrescence and

Acorus Hakura Nishiki are two

lovely plants that go so well

together

Pheasant Tail grass has a

wonderful colour in the

summer, autumn and

winter

Emerging dragonfly on scouring

rush

You can meet Jacqueline and the rest of the Architectural

Impact team at: Battlefield 1403 26 March, Bodenham

Arboretum 16 Apr, Weston Park 1 & 2 May, British Ironwork Centre 15

May, Middleton Hall 22 June, Hodnet Hall 4 & 5 June, Whittington

Castle 26 June and Sugnall Walled Garden 3 July.

19

Adlington in

Spring Our eighth year at this Cheshire gem

It’s hard to believe that

this will be our eighth year

at Adlington Hall and one

of the few onerous parts of

running a plant fair is that

you rarely get time to look

around the gardens on the

day itself. So I was really

pleased that some of the

nurseryfolk took time out

to wander and brought

back some lovely photos

for me to share with you.

Holding the fair on its now

regular spot at the beginning of

May means the bluebell woods

should be at their peak and

looking a picture. The gate to

the avenue opens to reveal the

ancient trees with a tide of blue

lapping around their feet: it’s

just magical.

The living arch leading to the

rose garden and maze continues

the blue theme with a froth of

forget-me-nots.

The Acers and rhododendrons

add blazing red and orange to

scene.

And of course the hall itself

provides a grand backdrop to

fair itself.

A great way to see the gardens

is on one of the free guided

tours by head gardener Anthony

O’Grady which start regularly

from the side of the hall.

The fair is on Sunday 8 May

and runs from 10:30am to

4pm.

Entry is just £3.00.

Dogs on leads welcome.

Ample free parking.

Adlington Hall,

Mill Lane,

Macclesfield,

Cheshire

SK10 4LF

Tel: 01625 827 595

www.adlingtonhall.com

20

Native

Orchids

in Your

Garden

Dr Wilson Wall,

Technical Director,

Bewdley Orchids

The beautiful magenta Southern

Marsh orchid. does not actually need

a marsh to survive, just a little more

year around dampness

21

Here at Bewdley

Orchids we are trying

to help our native flora

by encouraging

individuals and

institutions to

reintroduce orchids into

woodlands and

meadows.

Redressing the balance of

ecology that has been badly

disrupted by historical events.

During the twentieth century a

great deal of highly biodiverse

land has been lost through

mechanization of agriculture and

the increased use of fertilizers.

This has happened to lowland

grassland, downs, orchards and

woodland as well. These unique

areas are not always lost by

being built on, as it is often

thought. Changes have been

more subtle and slow,

associated with application of

fertilizers and herbicides or over

enthusiastic use of the plough. If

we look back at old regional

maps it is often possible to see

that what was pasture land still

is. Now if you visit these same

fields they are a desert of

ryegrasses (Lolium spp.) which if

left to seed can reach nearly a

metre in height.

When changes to woodlands are

made the losses are more or

less permanent. Changing the

climax vegetation back, in

woodlands from conifer to mixed

deciduous, will not automatically

result in a resurgence in other

woodland species. Those plants

which have windblown seeds

may return given time, but

many will not. Some plants

species will not have a local

reservoir population that can

recolonise. The change in

agriculture may well have wiped

out the only extant population in

the area. Orchid species are

prime examples of this, they will

reappear, but only if there is a

species stronghold nearby.

There is a lot that can be done

to restore meadows, but when

there has been a major change

to the basic botany, reduced to a

virtual monoculture over a large

area there is a problem. While

restored areas may regain some

species, many will have been

wiped out with no seed stock left

to recolonise.

Success of seed dispersal for all

plants is dependent upon where

the seed lands and for orchids

this is especially so. They need

the presence of a symbiotic

fungus for germination and the

early survival of the developing

protocorm, up to the point

where chlorophyll is produced

and photosynthesis starts is

dependent on this association.

This dependency on a fungal

symbiont has resulted in a

strategy of producing vast

numbers of seeds from each

plant. A common spotted orchid

will produce about half a million

seeds every year for the lifetime

of the plant to ensure that some

will survive and prosper. At

Bewdley Orchids we use

sophisticated techniques to

ensure a very high germination

rate, allowing us to provide large

numbers of plants for planting in

gardens and meadows.

If you are lucky enough to have

a garden where you want to

naturalise orchids, an important

question is what is the state of

the soil? This question will have

some influence on the ease with

which the process can be carried

out. If the area has been heavily

treated with fertilizers and broad

leaved weedkiller, ‘weed and

feed’, the soil may be inclined to

grow grass at such a rate that it

may overwhelm any orchids you

Pyramidal orchids also prefer a

sunny aspect

The Early Purple orchid is a

Woodland species preferring

dappled spring shade

To control the grass in a genteel way,

you can introduce Rhinanthus minor,

Yellow Rattle .

22

plant. This is worth thinking

about because at certain times

of the year it will not be possible

to cut your naturalized lawn.

To start the process of

controlling the grass in a genteel

way, you can introduce

Rhinanthus minor, Yellow Rattle.

This is easily done by seeding

and once established even

though it is an annual plant it

will take care of both itself and

the grass. This annual flower is

semi parasitic on grass and will

eventually give the area a

degree of autonomy from grass.

While introducing wild flowers is

relatively easy using seed which

is readily purchased, this is not

so for orchid species as huge

amounts of seed would be

required to produce a single

adult plant. The only sensible

way of reintroducing these

marker species is to plant them

yourself.

It is sometimes assumed that

because orchids require their

own symbiotic fungus they will

not seed into the surrounding

ground and survive if they are

introduced without the fungus.

We have shown this to be

incorrect. The reason for this is

that most of the mycorrhizal

species associated with orchids

are ubiquitous members of the

soil flora and if the orchids can

grow happily, so the fungus is

likely to be there to help the

seeds germinate. This may

sound contradictory to the idea

of not being able to grow our

native orchids simply by

spreading seed. But it should be

remembered that a single plant

may flower year after year, each

time producing tens of

thousands of seed.

It is true that most species are

very tolerant of a range of

conditions, but they do have

preferences on available light.

For example Anacamptis

pyramialis, Pyramidal orchids,

will grow in woodland but they

do tend to be rather leggy,

preferring a sunny aspect and

Platanthera chlorantha, Greater

Butterfly orchids, will grow on

open fields in full sun, but are

often found in woodland. There

is an interesting pair of orchids

which look superficially the

same, but one likes sunshine

and one likes shade. These are

the sun loving Green Winged

orchid and the woodland species

of dappled spring shade, the

Early Purple orchid.

An often overlooked aspect of

garden cultivation is the

possibility of producing a small

scale meadow in a back garden.

We have considerable

experience in this aspect of what

is really just small scale meadow

restoration. A lawn can often be

looked at as improved pasture,

which is ripe for restoration.

Even small lawns can give an

immense sense of achievement

Greater Butterfly orchids, will

grow on open fields in full sun, but

are often found in woodland Another way of cultivating these

special pants, like Bee orchid, is to

make use of a rockery

Common spotted orchids may be relatively common, but with their size,

ability to form clumps and lovely spotted leaves they leave many of the rarer

species in the floral shade.

23

when the wild flowers start

appearing. Another way of

cultivating these special pants,

like the Pyramidal orchid or the

Bee orchid, is to make use of a

rockery where you can control

the amount of lime in the soil

quite easily to suit these plants.

Now, with garden meadows

there are two primary aspects

which are of particular interest.

The first is that a garden

meadow constitutes an

ecological island. By this I mean

that anything you introduce will

be genetically isolated unless

someone up the road also has a

garden meadow with which the

plants can cross pollinate. The

other is also due to isolation and

is that most plants will not turn

up by chance. They need to be

deliberately introduced. Some,

of course, have wind blown

seeds, all the dandelions for

example. For a lot of the others

like vetches the seeds are heavy

and do not travel far. In

between these two there are

some which are staggeringly

successful in their distribution

and are mainly dependent upon

animals eating the fruit.

Brambles are one such example

of this. Orchid seed is rather odd

in this process of distribution

because although the seed is

very light and can be wind blown

over considerable distances, the

possibility of some coming down

in your garden and then growing

into a flowering plant is rather

slim.

It is interesting that small

meadows do act like islands in

that the populations of some

species will wax and wane. This

is most apparent with obviously

active species, such as bumble

bees. In small garden meadows

bumble bee nests may come and

go on an annual basis, as the

size of the meadow increases so

the rate of fluctuation will

decrease, until the area is large

enough that there is always a

bumble be nest present, or

several if you are lucky. In our

own garden meadow there is an

irregular presence of Bombus

pascuorum, a carder bee. This

tendency to fluctuate in numbers

on small plots is also true of the

plants, although as the plants

are not able to actively search

out suitable grassland, the

fluctuations can be both extreme

and once at zero, permanent.

One of the ways in which these

fluctuations of plants can be

kept under control is by timing

the cutting of the meadow so

that the annual plants have time

to set seed before they are cut

down. Orchids can handle the

occasional early cut as they are

perennial plants and will regrow

from their root the following

year.

Whatever the size of the plot, or

if you want to grow your orchids

in pots an easy one to start with

is also one of my favourites.

Common spotted orchids may be

relatively common, but with

their size, ability to form clumps

and lovely spotted leaves they

leave many of the rarer species

in the floral shade. It is also

rather nice to be able to spot the

leaves long before the plants

start flowering. For wetter

gardens you may be lucky

enough to set up colonies of the

beautiful magenta Southern

Marsh orchid. This does not

actually need a marsh to

survive, just a little more year

around dampness.

When you are next looking for a

special plant for your garden or

patio, it can always be enhanced

by growing some of our native

orchids.

The sun loving Green Winged orchid

Find out lots more about hardy native orchids at

www.bewdleyorchids.com

You can meet Wilson and his orchids at our plant fair at Arley

Arboretum on Saturday 11th June

24

Come to Arley

for Giant

Wellies!

(That’s Wellingtonia

we should say)

Arley Arboretum was first

planted in the early 1800s

by Lord Mountmorris. Since

then it has passed through

a number of families before

being purchased by Mr

Roger Turner in 1959. The

arboretum was opened to

the public for the first time

in 2004. Over the years the

arboretum has grown to

now cover 45 acres.

There are around 600 species of

trees at the arboretum including,

Crimean Pines, Cedars and

Wellingtonias, some of which are

the UK’s tallest and widest in

girth and date back to the

founding of the arboretum in the

1820s. There are also stunning

magnolias, an acer garden and

the UKs longest Laburnum arch.

Dendrologists from around the

world come each year to study

the exotic collection of trees and

plants.

Jenny Harris, from the

Arboretum told us more about

the treats visitors can expect:

“0ur guests can wander freely

around our 45 acres of pure

nature with 3 acres enclosed by

listed walls including our

beautiful Italian Garden with its

magnificent fountain. Stop at our

viewing point to look across the

River Severn to see the timeless

Severn Valley Railway steaming

past.”

“Recently we have begun the

creation of a new sensory

garden and added new pathways

to increase the accessibility of

the gardens for everyone. We

also have a programme of

events running throughout the

year including the Plant Hunters

Fair and a Viking weekend in

June and an outdoor theatre

production of Much Ado About

Nothing in July.”

“We have children’s activity

trails, a maze and a play area to

keep the little ones occupied for

the whole day. Also visit our

website at

www.arleyarboretum.co.uk for

dates of additional activities.”

Why not visit the tea room which

provides drinks, snacks with hot

and cold meals, or you can enjoy

the use of our picnickers’ area.

We are also dog friendly.

The plant fair is on Saturday 11

June from 11am-5pn and

entry to the fair, gardens and

arboretum is half standard

price at just £2.50.

We have all the best nurseries

including newcomers Bewdley

Orchids, Jurassicplants,

Mucklestone, Paviour & Davies

and garden accessories from

Vintage Garden Store. So far we

have 22 stalls booked.

Arley Arboretum & Gardens

Upper Arley,

Near Bewdley

Worcestershire

DY12 1SQ

Just off the A442 between

Bridgnorth and

Kidderminster.

25

Show of Hands for

Hope House Hospices

Over £1400 raised

at our first British

Ironwork Centre

Plant Fair

Our first fair at this eclectic

Shropshire venue was a brilliant

success, not least because the

entrance money and donations

all went to help the essential

work of Hope House Children’s

Hospices making a total of

£1474 raised on the day.

We are back again in 2016 on

Sunday 15th May and we are

hoping to raise even more this

year. The entrance is just £1.00

but the ladies with collection

buckets will be more than

pleased if you choose to donate

more!

The fair is certainly worth it with

around 20 top nurseries and

artisans on show.

The Ironwork Centre always has

something new and different on

show and we can’t wait to see

what they’ve got in store for us

this year. There will be plenty of

tea and cake on offer and hot

food as well. There is lots of

parking right next to the fair and

dogs on leads are very welcome.

Please do bring the kids as the

centre is full of quirky attractions

to thrill and entertain them.

15th May 2016 10am - 5pm

Entry to fair, sculpture

trail and Ironworks :

£1.00 in aid of Hope

House Children's

Hospices.

Whitehall Aston

Oswestry

Shropshire

SY11 4JH

On the A5 at Oswestry.

Dogs on leads (or wheels!) are

very welcome

We hope to beat the £1474 raised

last year

We hope to see Chicken Street

and Dylan the cockerel at the

fair again this year

Always something to thrill the kids

26

Aquilegia For All

Chris Eyke of Lyneal Mill Nursery

on the many faces of the familiar

columbine

Aquilegia “Black Barlow” was bred for

cut flower production and will last for

up to two weeks in a vase

27

The most frequent remark from

customers when we bring our

Aquilegia to Plant Hunters Fairs

is ‘I didn’t know there were so

many’. But they are available in

just about every flower colour

you can think of, with heights

ranging from around 3 inches to

over 3 feet and single, double,

pompom, pleated, spurless,

short spurred and long spurred

flower forms, the variety of

Aquilegia is almost endless.

Aquilegia are Northern

hemisphere plants and have a

wide geographical spread

growing in diverse habitats. They

can’t all be treated in the same

way.

The alpine types such as A.

laramiensis (Wyoming USA), A.

pyrenaica (Pyrenees) and A.

flabellata (Japanese mountains)

need a gritty well drained, quite

low nutrient compost. In rich

soils the leaves can become too

lush and may obscure the

flowers. They are best grown in

containers and plunged into a

border or scree bed from April-

October or stood in a sunny spot

on the patio. Move them into an

unheated greenhouse for the

winter. They can take any

amount of cold but dislike winter

wet.

Most other Aquilegia broadly

speaking prefer a moist well

drained soil that doesn’t become

overly wet in winter. Full sun or

dappled shade, though species

originating in open woodland

such as A. canadensis (Eastern

N. America) will tolerate more

shade than others. Most flower

from May-June. However some

species such as A. flabellata

flower from late April, while A.

chrysantha ‘Denver Gold’ flowers

up to mid September. Dead

heading and mulching are

advisable but apart from that

Aquilegia are pretty much

maintenance free.

At about 10inches A. canadensis

‘Little Lanterns’ with deep red

and yellow nodding flowers was

my favourite Aquilegia in 2015.

It looked great in the dappled

shade of our birch trees and I’ll

be using it more extensively in

2016.

Around 18inchs and suitable for

the front/middle of a sunny or

lightly shaded border are A.

caerulea (Rocky Mountains) and

its varieties. Of these ‘Sunshine’

with a mass of double, lemon

yellow, long spurred flowers over

a compact mound of delicate

foliage in my opinion is one of

the best.

The Winky series (A. vulgaris) at

about 15inchs produce a

profusion of upward facing

flowers held above a mound of

lacy leaves. Good in containers

or front of border. It makes an

excellent cut flower. The flowers

are bicoloured, the most popular

being red and white, also

available in other colours and

double flowered varieties.

Always popular, A. chrysantha

‘Yellow Queen’ from New Mexico,

USA, at about 2 foot 9 inches is

more suitable for mid to back of

border. Huge long spurred

yellow flowers, almost 3 inches

across. A late season plant

flowering well into August in our

garden. Yellow Queen will

tolerate quite dry conditions.

Aquilegia were used extensively

at Chelsea in 2015, particularly

A. vulgaris ‘Black Barlow’ and A.

vulgaris ‘Bordeaux Barlow’ a

lovely rich red wine colour.

Double spurless flowers, they

were bred for cut flower

production and will last for up to

two weeks in a vase. Caution

required when cutting though as

Aquilegia sap can irritate the

skin. These two plants look good

when used en-masse at the back

of borders or in association with

grasses.

Other tall Aquilegia that proved

very popular at Plant Hunters

Fairs in 2015 were the pompom

and double pleated forms. Pink

Petticoat at almost 3 feet and

large blooms was amongst

“Little Lanterns looks great

dappled shade under birch trees

“Sunshine” has a mass of flowers and

some of best foliage

“Bordeaux Barlow” was particularly

popular at Chelsea in 2015

Aquilegia chysantha will tolerate

quite dry conditions

28

the most impressive of our

pleated Aquilegia but for the

number of pleats in the flowers

Double Pleat Blackberry reigned

supreme.

Here at Lyneal Mill we grow a

large range of Aquilegia, far too

many to bring to Plant Hunters

Fairs. With that in mind for the

enthusiast and curious alike we

will be holding Aquilegia days in

May and June 2016, all of our

varieties will be on display.

Please see our website for

details, www.british-

wildflowers.com

The “Winky Series” have upward

facing flowers

You can meet Lyneal Mill

at lots of Plant Hunters’

Fairs in 2016. Please see

our website for details

Join the throng at

Bodenham

Arboretum & Farm

Saturday 16 April &

Saturday 3 September 2016 Our two fairs at the lovely Bodenham Arboretum

remain free to enter and to park as always as does

access to the lovely lakeside restaurant,

But we do hope lots of you will also choose to pay

to explore the 150 acre arboretum and farm. Bring

the kids, dogs and granny for a stroll round the

lakes before a well-earned lunch beside the lake.

But if you do have only time to pop in then its good

to know its free to browse all those wonderful

plants.

We open at 11am (although early birds are usually

there before this!) and this year we are finishing

slightly earlier than before at 4pm.

There are some first timers at the venue to meet:

Edrom Nursery all the way from Scotland with world

-renowned Woodland and Alpine plants;

Jurassicplants from Wales with seed grown exotic

(and often edible) trees, shrubs and climbers; North

Staffs Hostas (April only), who will have day lilies and ferns as well ; and also Bridge Farm Plants

from Derbyshire with unusual perennials. Of course all your established favourites will be there as

well.

FOR SAT NAVS PLEASE INPUT DY11 5TB

There are brown signs to direct you from Wolverley Church Island and the A442 Kidderminster -

Bridgnorth Road.

Bodenham Arboretum, Wolverley, Kidderminster, Worcestershire

29

The novelist Edna o’ Brien

wrote about August being a

’wicked month’ and so it

has been, weather wise,

for the garden, here in

Cheshire‘s Vale Royal, with

a pattern of heavy rain

followed by intermittent

sunny spells.

The prolonged Indian Summer,

however, more than made up for

it, and encouraged plenty of very

late new growth (possibly too

much if they’ve used up reserves

which would be better kept for a

new season) from newly cut

back plants.

Traditionally, however, the end

of August is when I sit on the

bench at the top of the garden

and review the successes and

failures of the season.

Although the numbers and

varieties of bees and butterflies

were not as numerous as two

years ago, when I was preparing

my talk on them, I have had a

couple of new visitors to the

garden this year. For two short

weeks I had Common Blues on

the wildflower area which I

sowed in early May. I have tried

this before, with varying

success, but the mix of

eschscholtzias, Achillea

millefolium, red and blue flaxes,

larkspur, Lagurus ovatus, and, in

particular, Bird’s Foot Trefoil,

one of their main food plants,

proved very popular, and looked

fabulous in amongst Verbascum

‘Snow Maiden’, Salvia glutinosa,

Potentilla recta and Phlomis

russeliana in the new sunny,

sheltered border. The increased

amount of white clover in the

lawn has helped as well!

Brimstone butterflies

(frustratingly common in several

villages within a small radius of

me, but rarely seen here) paid

brief visits thanks to my

increased plantings of Echinops

ritro and Greater Knapweed ,

and I had several Marbled

Whites this year instead of a

forlorn solitary one last year.

Only feet away from where I am

sitting, the Painted Ladies and

Red Admirals, who arrived only a

few days ago, are feasting on 8’

high cardoons and 6’ high Aster

‘Connie.’ I should have divided

the latter in the spring, as it is a

big clump, so it has not had as

many flowers this year, but in

November, (when I am revising

this article for the newsletter) it

is still in flower.

Annuals (which are great fillers

for in between the shrubs and

perennials) have done

particularly well this year, and

still flowering happily away are

borage (white and blue), blood

red nasturtiums, Antirrhinum

‘Sawyer’s Old Fashioned Lemon

and Orange Mix’, Orlaya

grandiflora and Ammi majus, all

of which have brought in lots of

very plump garden bees, red

tailed bees and honey bees. I

sell small pots of these annuals

every year, and they prove very

popular.

Knowing that butterflies love

yellow flowers, I planted a

yellow section last year, and

looking at it now, the

combinations of Verbascum

‘Christo’s Yellow Lightning’( a

new introduction from Great

Dixter), Nepeta govaniana ,

Digitalis lutea and ambigua, and

Oenothera ‘Apricot Delight’

whose lemon blooms deepen to

apricot, has attracted

Tortoiseshells, Small and Large

Whites, Commas and Peacocks,

all drowsily browsing what’s on

offer. The Gatekeepers and

Meadow Browns, however, have

preferred the clumps of black

August Musings Jane Allison of Mayfields Garden Plants

on the joys of her summer garden

Echinops ritro attracts bees and

butterflies

Common Blues visited the

wildflowers for two short weeks

Aster (Symphyotrichum) “Connie”

30

peppermint and marjoram in the

herb garden.

There’s nothing like a cup of tea

and a couple of ginger biscuits

to accompany a wander round

the borders, while I choose my

four best performers. Here they

are:

Scrophularia auriculata

‘Variegata’ ( variegated water

figwort), which the Americans

picturesquely call ’Red Birds in a

Tree’, (you’ll see why when you

look at a picture of its flowers,

which resemble tiny robins). Its

wild relative grows on the bank

of the Middlewich canal.

Hoverflies love it.

DiascIa personata ’Hopleys’. This

really is perennial, and flowers

for ever! I had a ’Christopher

Lloyd’ moment, and teamed its

pink flowers with the large

yellow and bronzy red blooms of

Helenium ’Sahin’s Early

Flowerer’, which, for me, is the

best performing helenium .

Phlox paniculata ‘Eventide’. Its

subtle shades of violet conjure

up this evocative dusky light,

and it clumps up well.

Galega x hartlandii ’ Lady

Wilson’ is 6’ across now, and still

has plenty of violet, pea-like

flowers on it. Closely planted at

the base of it is a trio of

Echinops ritro, the blue globe

thistle, which, at the moment,

has more bees feeding on it than

any other plant in the garden.

Growing so may varieties of

foxglove can be a problem if

they are not labelled as soon as

they are pricked out, or if labels

are blown off by the wind. In

May, I planted half a dozen of

these ‘mystery varieties’ in the

moist dappled shade of the

house, where a leaking gutter

keeps the ground damp, and

these have each increased in

size to 3’ across. I look forward

to seeing which varieties they

are!

Finally, the excellent crop of

‘Worcester Pearmain’ apples and

‘Jubilee’ plums are worth a

mention. I must remember to

keep a bucketful of the former

to put out for the fieldfares

when they arrive in January.

Many of the plants mentioned

here will be available on my stall

at various times during the

season. As always, of course,

there will be lots of beautiful

foxgloves to choose from, with

plenty of Digitalis hybrida

‘Polkadot Pippa’ which many of

you asked for but missed out on

when my stock ran out!

Talks news:

At the end of August I

completed my series of walks on

coastal paths, in woodland, and

along country lanes and the

banks of streams, where I took

over 150 slides for my new 2016

talk, ’A Country Walk’. These will

be subjected to a severe

selection process during the cold

dark days of December.

Next year I will be preparing:

‘Shrubs for Suburban

Gardens’ (specially requested by

one of the Garden Societies I

visited this year).

‘My Favourite Gardens’: secret

corners of Arley Hall, Dorothy

Clive Gardens, Forde Abbey and

Powys Castle.

These can be booked for 2017.

I look forward to meeting you all

at the many beautiful Plant

Hunters’ Fairs venues, old and

new.

j@mayfieldsgarden.demon.co.uk

www.mayfieldsplants.com

New at the National Memorial Arboretum Our 3 fairs at this major venue go from strength to strength. Every time we arrive there’s

something new to see and discover. This year the venue has embarked on a major development.

They told us “work to transform our existing visitor centre has started. We are developing new

exhibition, learning, restaurant and retail facilities along with a new outdoor space, Heroes’ Square,

which will lead visitors out into the wider site. “

Whilst the work is progressing the site is still fully open and you can enjoy a mouth-watering lunch

or rest mid afternoon with a refreshing 'cuppa' and a slice of homemade cake in the two eateries:

The Pavilion Lunch Room and The Café Bar.

Our fairs feature lots of your favourite nurseries plus some new comers to tempt you. On Saturday

2 April we welcome first-timers Forestart (tree and wildflower seeds), Linda Scott (hardy

geraniums) and Pantazia Lincoln (primulas). On Saturday 28 May Chilli Zoo with Chilli plants make

their Plant Hunters’ Fair debut. On Saturday 6 August we have a great line up of your favourite

nurseries from across the country.

Entry is free—there is pay and display parking.

National Memorial Arboretum, Croxall Road, Alrewas, Staffordshire DE13 7AR

31

Podophyllum (family

Berberidaceae)

Podophyllum is a genus of

hardy woodland perennials from

Asia and one from America,

mostly grown for their foliage

and form. They prefer deep

shade and are all hardy in the

U.K.

Podopyllum peltatum

(American "May-apple")

Podopyllum peltatum grows well

in a woodland situation . Flowers

are white and can be followed

by 1- to 2-inch fruit that looks

like small apples hence the

nickname. Mayapples belong in a

woodland garden or other moist,

shady areas. They can spread by

rhizomes to form large colonies.

Podophyllum

“Kaleidoscope”

This is a modern hybrid and as

the cultivar name suggests, the

leaves of ‘Kaleidoscope’ have

distinctive markings, which can

range in colour from silver to

light green to nearly black. Very

much like a child's kaleidoscope.

Maroon flowers bloom in early

summer. This plant is mostly

evergreen. The plant's growth

habit is umbrella-like. The leaves

can be 30cm or more across and

quite spectacular.

Podophyllum Hexandrum

Asiatic species with mottled

leaves appearing in Spring. It

has upward facing white or pink

flowers which readily produce

egg -shaped fruits which turn

red in autumn when ripe.

One of the smaller leaf forms.

0.5m high x 0.5m wide

Podophyllum "Spotty

Dotty"

Podophyllum 'Spotty Dotty', is a

relatively recent cultivar with

strong, beautiful, mottled

foliage. These are a spectacular

woodland plant with the

dramatic large, highly-patterned

leaves ,and in the Spring and

early Summer, produce exquisite

dark wine-red drooping flowers

with the appearance of torn silk.

A connoisseur's plant for that

damp shaded spot. They can

easily reach 0.75m high x 0.75m

wide

They can remain evergreen in a

sheltered site in a mild winter.

Part of Tony’s Podophyllum collection.

Some of our baby Podopyllum Spotty Dotty getting ready to be sold in the

Spring

Spotlight on

Podophyllum Tony Marden of Shadyplants.com won’t keep

you in the dark about these shade lovers

32

Podophyllum pleianthum

Native to central and

southeastern China. This is a

shade loving, clump-forming

perennial that typically grows to

18-24" tall.

The beautiful large, very glossy

green leaves, shallowly-

lobed and toothed around the

edges grow to 12-16" wide. The

flowers are produced under the

leaves in the leaf junctions and

are wine-red.

Tony has taken many years to

collect different clones of this

plant and has now managed to

produce viable seed.

Podophyllum delavayi

This plant is probably the most

spectacular Podophyllum.

Beautiful deeply incised ,

mottled leaves in shades of

brown to black.

Crimson red flowers hang

beneath the leaves.

Podophyllum Versipelle

I find that this is the largest leaf

of the genus. Similar to

Pleianthum but more deeply

incised lobes.

Podophyllum difforme

This is a wonderful plant that is

not easily obtained. It has a

most unusual rectangular leaf

that can be beautifully marked.

Podophyllum

aurantiocaule

It is a rare white flowered

species from Tibet. which I have

not previously grown but we

have obtained a few small plants

for sale 2016.

Tony’s Top Tips:

They like a deep humus rich soil

that is well drained. Shady spot

out of full sun.

All in all, Podophyllums are a

beautiful, architectural

statement for your woodland or

shade garden.

Please note all parts of all

varieties are toxic.

P.hexandrum is being grown

for use as a anti-cancer drug.

You can meet Tony and

Sylvia at most Plant

Hunters’ Fairs in 2016.

Fresh-Ness! Ness must be our longest established plant fairs but

every year we like to inject a little freshness into the

mix!

In 2016, we welcome Bob Brown’s famous Cotswold

Garden Flowers from Worcestershire for the first

time to Ness. Also debuting are world-renowned

alpine and woodland nursery Edrom from Scotland.

RHS Gold winners Packhorse Farm from Derbyshire

will be there with their lovely Acers, trees and

unusual shrubs. ShadyPlants from Gloucestershire

also make their first appearance.

Our spring fair is a week later than usual on

Sunday 3 April and the autumn one on

Sunday 4 September.

Entry to the plant fair is just £1.00 and this

is redeemable against optional entry to the

garden.

Ness Botanic Gardens

Ness

Neston

South Wirral

CH64 4AY

33

Here Comes Summer at Hodnet

Hall

We just love visiting Shropshire’s

Hodnet Hall for our plant fair on the

“first weekend in summer.” This

year it falls on June on Saturday 4

and Sunday 5.

The garden always surprises and delights and

each year the preceding winter and spring

conspire to bring forth a unique blend of late

spring and early summer flowers at the garden:

sometimes more of spring and others more of

summer.

Some years the azaleas and rhodos are the stars,

others it’s the primulas, meconopsis, peonies and

roses.

There is so much to see and explore so do plan a

nice long time for your visit.

As always we have a tremendous line up of plant

“talent” at the fair, including your only chance to

see Roseland House’s National Collection of

clematis and climbers in the region this year.

Edrom nursery from Scotland are also making

their debut at the event.

The fair is open 10am—5pm both days and entry

to fair and gardens is just £3.50

Dogs on leads welcome.

Hodnet Hall Gardens Hodnet Market Drayton Shropshire TF9 3NN

www.hodnethallgardens.org

34

In 1780 William

Caldwell was just 14

years old when he

began his

horticultural training

at John Nickson’s

nursery in

Knutsford.

Less than 20 years later he

returned to join the business as

a partner. He was the first of six

generations of the Caldwell

family to run the nurseries until

they closed in 1992.

Being in the same family for so

long should give Caldwell’s a

mention in any history of the

nursery trade, but what makes

them special – perhaps unique –

is that they have left behind

more than a dozen business

ledgers – from the 1790s, the

1830s and the 1910s. These

include day books and order

books which provide a

fascinating insight into our

forebears’ plant-purchasing

habits. Those from the 1790s

are from both Caldwell’s

Knowsley and Nickson’s

Knutsford nurseries.

In 1794, a gentleman named

John Thomas was living at Mount

Pleasant in Liverpool. Judging

from his purchases from the

Knowsley nursery, he seems to

have been both wealthy and a

plantsman. In March, he

purchased 41 fruit trees, 16

roses, two primulas and

10,000 thorns. In late

November he took delivery

of an unspecified number of

orange trees which had

been ordered from

elsewhere.

But it is the 4 visits between

September and early November

that are particularly interesting.

The number of new plants being

introduced into the country was

increasing. American plants

were already popular, but

Francis Masson had been

sending back previously

unknown flowers from places

like South Africa for twenty

years.

These plants either needed or

were thought to need

Customer ledger 1789—1796

Preserving Plant History Joy Uings on the Cheshire Gardens

Trust’s project rediscovering

the people and plants of a

historic Cheshire Family

Nursery

35

shelter from the English climate,

so enthusiasts erected

greenhouses and hothouses to

protect them. Annoyingly, we

don’t have details of all the

plants that Mr. Thomas

purchased, because 127 of them

were included in the orders

simply as “greenhouse plants” at

varying prices from 6d to 2s 6d

each, a total expenditure of £7

16s 6d. (The 41 fruit trees had

cost £3.)

However, a further 27 items are

recorded by name. Some are

easy to read and understand –

like rhododendrons, hyacinths,

tulips, etc. Others are a little

more confusing. What was the

Umbrella Tree? A search in

books from the period suggests

it was Magnolia tripetala. Then

there was the Arabian Jasmine.

Was this Jasminum arabicum, as

described by Philip Miller? In

that case it was probably a

variety of Nyctanthes.

Antholyza meriana is now called

Watsonia meriana. Glycine

apios is a synonym for Apios

Americana, whereas Glycine

sinensis is a synonym for

Wisteria sinensis.

Four of the plants purchased by

Thomas seem to have been

given the correct names. These

were four varieties of Erica from

South Africa – E. caffra, E.

imbricata, E. cerinthoides and E.

baccans. The coming years

would see a big demand for

South African Ericas and by the

1830s there were ten times as

many varieties being sold by

Caldwell at his new nursery in

Knutsford than appear in the

earlier ledger.

In fact by that time the number

of ornamental shrubs and

flowers had increased

enormously and it is fascinating

to decipher the records. The

first challenge is the

handwriting; the second to

‘translate’ the plant name.

Spelling was often phonetic and

rarely consistent, Latin endings

were confused and names have

since been declared synonyms.

This has required some detective

work. Consider Ferraria

conchiflora. This was listed in

many books of the period but is

not a currently recognised

name. However, a little

searching shows that the plant

must have been Tigridia pavonia

incorrectly listed by Sweet as

Tigridia pavonia var. conchiflora.

Some plants were giving rise to

many different cultivars.

Dahlias had followed Ericas as

the plant in vogue and those

sold included two of Caldwell’s

own raising: Gloria Mundi and

Purple Globe. New varieties of

rose led to a burst of

hybridisation. Elsewhere the

number of varieties of a

particular genus were the

precursor to the hybridisation

and cultivars that would

Order on 19 March, 1794 includes 14 peach, 6 nectarine, 2 apricot, 6 cherry

and 10 apple trees

Purchases on 8 November 1794 include 4 varieties of South African Ericas

36

come within the next few years

– like Calceolaria. But cultivars

create their own problem as it

can be difficult to be sure that

the names have been recorded

correctly.

All the ledgers have been

photographed and a team of

volunteers has been working for

more than 3 years on

transcribing information into a

database. Two ledgers (from

the 1790s) have been completed

and we are working on one from

the 1830s. All this – and much

more, including recorded

memories of owners, staff and

customers from the latter half of

the 20th century – can be found

at www.caldwellarchives.org.uk .

There you can look through the

ledgers, review catalogues and

search by customer or by plant.

More plants are on the database

than

currently

show up in

the reports,

so if you

decide to

look for a

particular

plant and

don’t find it,

remember to

try again a

few weeks

later when it

may have

been entered in an order.

For anyone interested in plants

the website is a source of

enormous pleasure. We haven’t

always got it right, so if you spot

a mistake, do tell us!

The Caldwell Project is the result

of the efforts of volunteers from

the Cheshire Gardens Trust and

has been made possible by

financial assistance from the

Royal Botanic Gardens of

Manchester and the Northern

Counties and the Heritage

Lottery Fund. The website

continues to be developed.

The archive is available online at www.caldwellarchives.org.uk

The Cheshire Gardens Trust promotes the enjoyment and conservation of Cheshire’s garden

heritage. You can find out about membership and activities on www.cheshire-gardens-

trust.org.uk

1884 seed catalogue with some familiar and some long-lost

plant varieties

Sunny Sugnall (Please) Last year at Sugnall Walled Garden we had every type of weather imaginable including torrential

cloud bursts, sudden gales but also beautiful sunshine making the gardens sparkle.

At least when the rain came we had the

lovely tearooms to retreat to!

This year we have 2 fairs. The first is on

Saturday 23 April and our summer fair

is on Sunday 3 July. Entry is just £1.00

and there’s loads of free parking.

Please bring the sun along with you!

Sugnall Walled Garden

Sugnall

Stafford

ST21 6NF

The Walled Garden is on the B5026,

Eccleshall to Loggerheads road, 2 miles

from Eccleshall More of this please! Less of this!

STOP PRESS: A fascinating book has been published titled: Caldwells: Nurserymen of Knutsford for

two centuries. Price: £7.95. Order form available on the website www.cheshire-gardens-trust.org.uk

37

Our newest plant fair venue in the

North Cheshire countryside is a

garden lover’s paradise.

The Hidden Garden is a place to relax

and take stock. The palette of green,

silver, grey and white creates a calm,

ethereal atmosphere warmed by the pink

of enclosing walls

38

This is a very exciting time to

visit Henbury Hall Gardens.

The garden is well into a

restoration programme is

bringing the gardens back to

their full beauty.

Nestling in its Cheshire

landscape and surrounding two

magnificent lakes, the gardens

contain many fine trees and

shrubs including some rare

specimens of Rhododendrons,

Camellias, and Magnolia.

The old Walled Garden has been

completely transformed and now

reflects its association with the

present Henbury Hall and its

Venetian connections. The old

Foster & Pearson glasshouses,

which were derelict, have been

restored and under the watchful

eye of Head Gardener Sean

Barton is steadily building up a

collection of exotics

concentrating mainly on

temperate and tropical

Pteridophytes and Orchidaceae.

Highlights of the collection

include the large group of

Pamianthe Peruviana, the

wonderfully flamboyant

Amaryllid (which is sadly now

extinct in the wild) and the rare

Blechnum Palmiforme from

Gough Island in the territory of

Tristan da Cunha.

The more homely Pelargoniums

The gardens nestle in the

undulating Cheshire landscape

the ancient peach cases will be the subject of a restoration in the future but which

meanwhile house figs, peaches, apricots and Muscat grapes

The old Walled Garden has been completely transformed

The garden surrounds two lakes

39

including the walled-trained double,

Appleblossom, are a delight in

summer.

We are delighted to be invited into

this magical garden to create a new

2-day plant fair in July 2016. We

will be holding the fair in the

courtyard of the estate buildings

which offer a cosy and sheltered

setting for us.

The entry price of just £2.50 to

include the gardens and fair is

outstanding value.

Dogs on leads are welcome however

because of the undulating nature of

the gardens not all is accessible to

wheelchairs.

The hall is not open.

Henbury Hall Gardens Saturday & Sunday 16th & 17th July 2016

Times: 10am - 5pm

Entry to fair, gardens and

grounds £2.50 (Half

standard price)

Henbury, Macclesfield,

Cheshire SK11 9PJ

Two miles west of Macclesfield on

the A537. Turn down School Lane,

Henbury at the Blacksmiths Arms.

After 200 yards, the entrance is at

the East Lodge on the right.

Telephone 01625 422101

Email: gardens@henburyhall.co.uk

website: www.henburyhall.co.uk

The glasshouses are home to the exotic collections as well as more

homely plants.

Glazed pool house by Francis Machin

40

If you are going to flower

in the depths of winter

with so few pollinators,

you really need a trick up

your sleeve.

The genus Sarcococca comes

with intoxicating perfume that

drifts on the air and always

has you looking for the source.

I have a slight obsession with

Sarcococca or “Christmas Box”

as it’s commonly known. It’s

very underrated in my opinion

and I think it’s because it’s

planted in less than ideal

conditions, often in full sun/

awful soil by so-called

Landscapers. It sits there

looking chlorotic with no clue

to its real potential. In my

own garden, in shade and rich,

edaphic soil, the best variety –

hookeriana v. digyna – is a

thing of great beauty throwing

up mahogany/purple willowy

stems and long, lanceolate

leaves to three feet and

beyond and in December/

January, covered in delicious,

scented blooms.

Less common and slightly more

tender is S. wallichii, an exotic,

large leaved evergreen that

starts flowering as early as

October. S. balansae is a big

species from Thailand which I

have yet to test outdoors.

Another scented treasure is

Narcissus paperwhite which

here at Henbury Hall, we start

with as soon as they are

available, staggering them to

keep a supply going for the

house. Always in terracotta

pots with lichen covered twigs

collected from the garden for

support. Garden canes are

never used as they look so

unnatural and stiff. We force

the Narcissus in gentle heat but

if needed for an event, they can

be put into the warmth of the

Orchid House to speed them up.

We have many Orchids to tide

us over the gloom of winter.

Dendrobium delicatum produces

lots of honey-scented, ivory

blossoms. It’s a tough, vigorous

beauty (by orchid standards)

and could easily be grown on a

large windowsill with good light.

Hopefully, we’ll have some

available on our plant stall in

July 2016. It can even

withstand a cold winter which

induces flowers. I’m going to

trial one in an unheated section

of the greenhouse to see what

happens. A specimen was

given to a friend of the family

and was reported back as being

covered in flowers. Most

annoying as ours didn’t flower

so well that year!

Another species - Bulbophyllum

graveolens – also blooms here

in the winter. With mustard

coloured blooms and a ruby red

lip, the scent is a cross between

blue cheese and wet Alsatian;

definitely not one for the house!

You can meet Sean at our

plant fair at Henbury Hall

on 16th and 17th July

Narcissus Paperwhite, a scented

treasure.

What do you get if you cross blue

cheese with a wet Alsatian? Answer:

Bulbophyllum graveolens

41

Enjoy 3 great

plant fairs in 2016 Our first evet plant fairs at this

beautiful Derbyshire country

park in 2015 were a great

success. So much so we are

adding an additional date in May

this year.

In 2015 the weather may have

challenged our spirits with cold

winds in April and torrential rain

in July, but the plant loving

public turned out in force to lift

us.

The brilliant thing about

Carsington Water is that there’s

so much to do whatever the

weather: just remember to dress

accordingly.

There are 8 miles of good paths

made up of various marked

routes from short strolls to

serious marches (or bring the

mountain bike if you like) and

there’s always something to see

along the way.

The variety of wildlife at

Carsington Water makes each

visit such a special day out. For

bird watchers and wildlife

enthusiasts there is a wildlife

centre a short walk from the

main visitor centre where you

can learn more about the

different species of birds that

make their home here. In the

spring and summer warblers,

terns and waders return to breed

on the islands, rafts, meadows

and woodlands.

There are four bird hides dotted

around the site, each with

sightings books and boards.

Carsington also has an active

Bird Club with a great website

providing information about what

to see where and featuring all

the latest sightings.

Looking at previous year’s

sightings you might be lucky

enough to see an Osprey at our

first fair on Saturday 9th

April as well as terns perhaps

the first returning Swallows and

Martins.

By the time we return on Bank

Holiday Monday 30 May the

Barnacle, Greylag and Canada

Geese may have young on view.

The stars at the time of our last

fair on Sunday 31 July are likely

to be waders like Redshank,

Dunlin and possibly Ruff as well

as more unusual ducks like

Common Scoter and Red Crested

Pochard.

The restaurant and courtyard

shops will be open as usual for

well-earned refreshments.

Around the Visitor Centre there

are several grassy areas, ideal

places to relax, enjoy a picnic

and take in the scenery. There

are also barbeque stands

available in the grassed area

next to the play area, lots of

seating and a covered picnic

area for rainy days.

A full list of nurseries attending

each event is published on our

website and there will be a great

range and diversity of plants on

offer.

The fair is held on the grass to

next to the main visitor centre,

or if the grass is too wet, on the

paved areas in front of the

visitor centre.

The fair and country park are

free to enter but there is a

charge to park (check the venue

website for up to date prices).

Carsington is situated off the

B5035 between Ashbourne and

Wirksworth

Carsington Water

Big Lane

Ashbourne

Derbyshire

DE6 1ST

42

Hardy Geranium specialist Linda

Scott picks us a couple of winners

from the pack

I have been growing and

selling plants for the past

15 years and this year am

delighted to have been

invited by Janet and

Martin to join their Plant

Hunters’ Fairs.

My speciality is Hardy

Geraniums and my favourites

are not the modern hybrids

(though I do like these too) but

the species Geranium versicolor

and Geranium palmatum.

Versicolor is a versatile, clump

forming European species that

will grow in full sun or part

shade. The funnel shaped

flowers are not huge but appear

profusely all summer and are

white with intricate purple

veining. It is quite a vigorous

plant providing good ground

cover and doesn’t mind being

cut back if it starts to look

untidy. It will hybridise readily,

in fact all the Geranium

oxonianum hybrids have

versicolor as one of their

parents, the other being

endressii. So if you have room

to let the seedlings grow you

may end up with a brand new,

original plant.

In contrast, Geranium

palmatum is a large evergreen,

up to 4ft./120cm. when in

flower, and will likely die if cut

back. It is said to need full sun

and well drained soil but grows

happily on my clay in dappled

shade under trees. Many large

pink blooms are produced

during summer attracting

hummingbird hawkmoth,

though I would grow it for the

large exotic foliage alone. A lot

of people confuse palmatum

with the tender Geranium

maderense and think it isn’t

hardy. They are in good

company as the R.H.S. thought

this too until a few years ago.

Both plants are from Madeira

and look similar, maderense

growing in low lying areas and

palmatum in the hills, though

when mature maderense has a

tall main stem and looks like a

miniature palm tree, whereas

palmatum stays as a basal

rosette.

In 2002 the R.H.S. asked us to

send some geraniums for the

Wisley trials but didn’t include

palmatum as they thought it

wasn’t hardy. After explaining

that it had survived -15 C in

pots here they agreed to trial it,

and on completion of the trial

gave it an Award of Garden

Merit.

Anyway, that’s just a couple of

the many hundreds of Hardy

Geraniums available to grow in

our gardens. Whatever

conditions you have in your

garden (with the exception of

bogs and ponds) there is a

Geranium that will grow there.

I look forward to meeting many

of you at the fairs.

The giant Geranium palmatum

has survived –15c with Linda

Geranium versicolor is versatile,

clump-forming , growing in sun or

part shade

You can meet Linda at The National Memorial Arboretum (April 2, May 28 and August 6);

Carsington Water (April 9, May 30, July 31); Southwell Gardens (June 19) and Donington Le

Heath (7 August)

43

Consall Hall

Gardens: always something

different around the

corner

44

Consall Hall

Gardens Sunday

17th April 2016

10am-5pm We are back for our 6th year at

this hidden Staffordshire gem.

The garden is rarely open so this

is a brilliant opportunity to

explores its 70 acres of vistas,

lakes, woods and cascades.

The garden landscape is wholly

manmade; the work of William

Podmore OBE who fashioned the

garden from old industrial

workings.

Entry is just £2.00 for this event

only! (normally standard price is

£5.50). Dogs on leads are

welcome.

The Halcyon tearoom will be

serving teas and light lunches.

There is ample free parking on

site as well.

Consall Hall Landscape

Gardens

Consall

Wetley Rocks

Staffordshire

ST9 0AG

Over 70 acres of dramatic vistas, intimate nooks with well-laid out paths

Water is at the centre of the garden with the chain of 6 man-made lakes and cascades

Plenty of plant stalls along the avenue. You can’t resist….

45

Salvias: Hot

Right Now Ingrid Millington from Hillveiw Hardy Plants with the on-trend

flower for every garden

Saliva, which is in the family

Lamiaceae, is the largest genus

of plants with around 1000

species. They originate in Central

and South America, Central and

Eastern Asia and the

Mediterranean.

They come in many forms:

annual, biennial, herbaceous

perennial and woody subshrubs.

They all have square stems

which make them sturdy and

requiring little staking.

The common name is “Sage”

which I am sure that everyone

knows as a culinary herb but

that is just “touching the tip of

the iceberg”.

All are fantastic plants for bees

and butterflies.

The shrubby salvias are

wonderful plants for dry soils in

full sun. If not pruned back until

early April, they are very hardy

and can be kept to a reasonable

size.

Salvia x jamensis ‘Golden Girl’ is a new plant, developed by Suncrest Nurseries of Watsonville, California. It has small mid green leaves and is a very compact plant. The flowers emerge from rosy pink calyxes and are a lovely bright yellow. Salvia x jamensis ‘Javier’ This superb new shrubby hybrid was raised by a breeder in New Zealand. It produces masses of lovely blue-purple flowers between May and November with its black calyces contrasting with lime-green foliage. Drought tolerant and hardy on well drained soils. 65cm

Salvia x jamensis ‘Nachtvlinder’ (Night-moth) This has the darkest inky purple flowers imaginable. It is one of the most stunning shrubby salvias I grow.

Salvia ‘Royal Bumble’ There

are many red-flowered salvias

but this one is outstanding. The

stems are dark reddish brown

with white edges, growing up to

120cm. The flowers have almost

black calyxes and are a

fluorescent red (if that’s

possible).

Herbaceous perennial salvias are

excellent border plants, giving

colour over a long season and

will re-flower if spent flower

stems are removed.

Salvia bulleyana ‘Blue Lips’

Pretty two lipped open-mouthed

flowers of soft pale yellow with

blue-mauve markings to the

front lip form many flowered

racemes or spikes above

aromatic dark green leaves that

are very crinkly. 60cm.

Salvia ‘Madeline’ Bred and introduced by plant breeder Piet Oudolf, this lovely sage has long spikes of flowers that are bright violet blue with a contrasting white lip. Once you see this plant, you will have to have one.

Salvia ‘Amistad’ This is an

exceptionally beautiful new

variety. Large rich purple flowers

are carried on tall, near-black

Salvia “Golden Girl”

Salvia Nachtvlinder (Night

Moth)

Saliva Red Bumble

46

stems above a mound of lush

green foliage. With regular

deadheading, this magnificent

hardy perennial can flower

almost continuously from May

right through to October.

120cm.

Salvia ‘Love and Wishes’ This

was bred in Australia and

produces masses of open

mouthed dark red flowers from

May to November. Sumptuous

dark stems and calyxes make a

wonderful contrast to the

flowers. 80cm.

These are just a few of the 60+ varieties salvias we grow and are our favourites at the moment. The range of colours provided by salvias and their often aromatic foliage make them a plant that no garden should be without.

Salvia Amistad

You can meet the Hillview team at Sat. 26 March Battlefield 1403, Sat 2 April

National Memorial Arboretum, Sat 16 April Bodenham Arboretum, Sun/Mon 1 & 2

may Weston Park, Sun 15 May British Ironwork Centre, Sat 28 May National

Memorial Arboretum, Sat/Sun 4 & 5 June Hodnet Hall, Sat 6 August National

Memorial Arboretum

Double Dates at

Donington We have added an extra plant fair date

at the wonderful Donington Le Heath

Manor House this year. As well as our

spring fair on Saturday 7 May we also

have a summer fair on Sunday 7 August

this year. Entry to the fair and gardens is

just £1.00. The house is undergoing

major refurbishment and won’t be open

for the May fair but we expect it to be

fully open for August (extra charge).

We have lots of great nurseries with a

different mix at each fair with lots of that

haven’t been to this venue before.

Donington Le Heath Manor House

Donington Le Heath

Coalville

Leics

LE67 2FW

47

Incredible

edibles! Exotic edibles for your garden

By Dr Zoltan Hamori of

JURASSICPLANTS

The sweet pulp of the Blue Bean Shrub is

edible and tastes similar to a watermelon

48

There are numerous, little known

edible trees and shrubs you

usually don’t find in garden

centres. We collect the seeds all

over Europe and grow these

plants here in North Wales and

they grow happily! Why not give

them a try – you will probably

have something that will be the

envy of your neighbour, but

most importantly, you can

harvest delicious, unusual fruits

for the table. Here is a little

taste.

Decaisnea fargesii – Blue

Bean Shrub (ultimate

height: 2-3m)

You can harvest sausages from

trees! Fast growing, eye-

catching, unusual shrub. Its

main character is the large

pinnate leaves which can reach

80cm in length and 40cm in

width and the metallic blue,

fleshy seed pods, hanging on the

"naked" plant after fall (until

early winter). These quirky fruits

are unique in shape and in

ornamental value. Moreover, the

gelatinous, translucent, sweet

pulp is edible, tastes similar to a

watermelon. In early summer it

produces greenish-yellow flowers

in hanging racemes.

This plant often grows multi-

stemmed and can be pruned as

well, even trained

to a wall. Very cold

tolerant to -15C.

Pest and disease

resistant.

Poncirus

trifoliata –

Japanese

Hardy Lemon

(Bitter Orange)

(ultimate

height: 2m)

Unusual spiny

shrub from the Far

East, related to

citrus, but

extremely cold

tolerant, down to -20C (fully

hardy in the UK). Under warm

climate, it is often used as the

rootstock for grafting different

citrus varieties due to its strong

growth and cold tolerance. Its

pure white, scented flowers open

in March-April, before the leaves

appear and from September,

yellow, lemon-like fruits develop

(stronger than a lemon; suitable

for marmalade or for tea).

Leaves turn bright yellow in

autumn. The plant is covered in

large spines, and the stems stay

green for several years, which

gives a spectacular architectural

appearance to the plant during

the winter months, boosted by

the long spines. Drought

tolerant, ideal for bonsai, for

borders, to plant it against a wall

or for an impenetrable low hedge

-barrier. This species has a

contorted, twisted stemmed

variety, called ‘Flying Dragon’

which comes true from seed – it

is really, something special.

Diospyros virginiana –

American Persimmon

(ultimate height: 5-6m)

A very sweet tasting fruit and an

elegant ornamental, small tree

with striking yellow autumn

coloration and excellent food

source for birds during winter, as

the tree holds the fruits on the

branches for a long time. Its

fragrant flowers appear among

the large, leathery, entire leaves.

It starts to produce fruit from

around the age of 6, but it is

dioecious, so you may consider

to order 2 or 3 plants to get a

great chance to have both sexes.

Fruits grow to tomato size,

becoming orange in colour, and

soften in winter by frost – similar

to the Japanese Persimmon or

Sharon fruit, but even sweeter!

The pods of the Blue Bean Shrub

hang on the naked stems until early

winter

“Flying Dragon” has contorted stems and really is

something special

The fruits of Japanese Hardy Lemon

are suitable for marmalade

The sweet fruits of American

Persimmon are ideal for birds in

winter

49

Eriobotrya japonica –

Loquat or Japanese Medlar

(ultimate height: 5m)

This fruit has hundreds of

cultivars in China and Japan and

is widely produced in the Far-

East and in Mediterranean and

subtropical regions. An

evergreen, very ornamental

small tree with long, dark green,

leathery leaves and yellow-white

flowers, open on the tip of the

branches in winter - the flowers

may be pollinated even when it

is cold if not frosty. In order for

the succulent, sweet fruits to

develop fully, it requires almost

frost free environment from

February to May but if

successful, a very tasty fruit can

be harvested early Summer! It

is best to plant by a wall in

Britain or can be kept in a

larger conservatory. The flowers

have the most sweetly scent

one can imagine. The tree itself

is hardy to about -10C.

If you have further questions or

are ready to try out some of

these plants, please don't

hesitate to get in touch or visit

our website:

www.jurassicplants.co.uk

Loquat fruits require protection from

frost in early spring to ensure plenty of

succulent fruits in early summer

A fairy tale Castle, ivy clad

ruined walls, medieval moat and

a twin towered gatehouse

entrance are the iconic features

of Whittington Castle near

Oswestry in Shropshire. This

Castle which was the first

community run Castle in the

country, was re launched in

2007 after a huge restoration

project and it has been drawing

visitors from far and wide since.

The Castle makes the ideal

group outing it has a tearoom

serving sandwiches, cakes and

refreshments and the speciality

The Castle Cream Tea. The

Castle has a well-stocked second

hand bookshop area and sells

souvenirs and gifts.

A new bridge gives access to the

inner bailey area and tower and

the moat has been extended

and the pavilion replaced to give

view of the landscape which was

once a medieval garden.

Disabled toilets are available.

The castle is steeped in

historical tales of bitter warfare,

treachery, death, myths,

legends and of course many

ghosts and strange

happenings. It is said

that “The Holy Grail”

was once hidden here as

well as a cursed chest

which is opened would

bring death. The Castle

is also connected to

some very famous

historic figures like Dick

Whittington once Lord

Mayor of London and

Shropshire’s very own Robin

Hood – Fulk FitzWarine 111. The

FitzWarine family acquired

Whittington Castle and in the

late 12th Century Fulk

FitzWarine 111 was outlawed by

King John.

The Castle is available for Civil

Ceremonies, Knight and Princess

Birthday Parties as well as

Paranormal Investigations,

Group tours and School groups.

The Castle has a Membership

scheme and welcomes new

members and those who wish to

help at the Castle as volunteers.

The Castle is now completely

self funded.

The plant fair is on

Sunday26th June from

10am-4pm. Tel 01691

662500

info@whittingtoncastle.co.uk

www.whittingtoncastle.co.uk

Castle Grounds open All Year

Free Entrance

£1.00 to park

A Fairy Tale Setting

Come to Whittington Castle for

ghost, outlaws and of course, Plants!

50

Bee Happy! At

Abbeywood

Gardens

Echinops Veitch’s Blue in the prairie

garden is continually abuzz

51

We are thrilled to return to

Abbeywood Gardens in Cheshire

for our August plant fair after a

brilliant premier there last year.

The weather could have been

kinder with rain stopping play

from mid afternoon but we

couldn’t have asked for more

support from the enthusiastic

visitors from near and far.

We hope a lot of you having

discovered this relatively new

garden and are planning your

return.

We are back on Sunday 21st

August from 10am to 5pm

and entry to fair and gardens

is astonishingly good value at

just £3.00

The restaurant will be serving

light lunches and teas and has

learned just how busy a Plant

Hunters’ Fair can be for them

after coping with incredible

numbers last year.

We are moving the fair to the

hard car park this year—I think

the number of feet through the

fair played havoc with the grass

especially after the rain started.

The gardens continue to mature

and develop. I find it impossible

to pick out just one stand-out

planting; there’s just so many

different styles to marvel at and

be inspired by.

What is also great is the amount

of wildlife flocking to the garden.

With so many bee plants to feed

them the garden is abuzz. Firm

favourite with the bees and the

visitors I spoke to was the

massive drift of Echinops

Veitch’s Blue in the prairie

garden.

Even the hardened nurseryfolk

were astonished by the quality

and scale of the plantings with

the exotic garden proving a

winner with many of them.

Feeling hot, hot, hot at Abbeywood Gardens!

The exotic garden wowed even

the hardened nurseryfolk

The formal rill garden is the ideal contrast to the exotic garden and the long

herbaceous borders.

52

Butterfly numbers have been

severely hit in recent years due

to loss of habitat and some very

wet summers. Planting

wildflowers is a way of helping

them and also gives you the

pleasure of seeing more

butterflies in your garden. We all

know that nectar plants are

important and there are many

garden flowers and wild flowers

which produce lots of nectar. If

you are planting cultivated

varieties in your garden choose

the single rather than double

varieties as the doubles often

produce no nectar at all.

Nectar is important for the adult

butterfly but what about the

caterpillars? They also need food

plants and each adult butterfly

has to seek out particular plant

species to lay their eggs. When

the eggs hatch the caterpillars

emerge and find themselves on

their correct food plant so they

can start eating straight away.

The more common butterflies

are not too fussy. The ‘Cabbage’

whites are not short of food and

the Meadow Brown, Ringlet and

Gatekeeper caterpillars feed on

common plants such as grasses,

ragwort and bramble. The Red

Admiral and Peacock are fairly

common in our gardens and

their caterpillars feed on nettles,

the Painted Lady prefers thistles.

It is the less common butterflies

which are suffering most from

habitat loss because their food

plants are rarer now in the wild

and only the true wildflower

will do. Here are some examples

along with the caterpillars that

rely on them:

Rock rose: Green hairstreak,

Brown argus, Silver- studded

blue

Birdsfoot trefoil: Common

blue, Green hairstreak, Dingy

skipper, Wood white, Clouded

yellow, Brown argus

Dog violet : Small pearl-

bordered fritillary, Pearl-

bordered fritillary, High brown

fritillary, Dark green fritillary,

Silver washed fritillary

Agrimony and Wild

strawberry: Grizzled skipper,

Meadow vetchling: Wood

white

Honeysuckle: White admiral

Primrose: Pearl-bordered

fritillary, Duke of Burgundy

Wild thyme and Wild

marjoram: Large blue

Red clover: Clouded yellows,

Mazarine blue, Short-tailed blue

Devils bit and Field

scabious: Marsh fritillary

A full list is available on

www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/

foodplants.php

It’s best to plant several clumps

or drifts of one species so that

there is plenty available. You

could also do some research to

find out which species are

struggling in your area.

Plantwild sells a Bee and

Butterfly plug plant collection

which includes some of the most

important nectar plants and

caterpillar food plants and we

can offer planting advice. Do the

butterflies a favour and plant

some wild flowers in your garden

this year www.plantwild.co.uk/

plugs .

You can meet Plantwild

at The Briish Ironwork

Centre (May) and

Weston Park

(September).

Top 10 wild

flowers to plant

for butterflies Suzanne Noble of Plantwild with

the chart-toppers Devil’s bit scabious are top with Marsh

fritillaries

Silver-washed fritillary

53

Capability Brown

celebrations at

Weston Park This year Weston will be helping to

lead the celebrations of the 300th

anniversary of Lancelot ‘Capability’

Brown’s birth.

It is his landscaping work that has

helped to make the 17th century estate

a national treasure, and it’s the

enduring legacy of which that will be

rejoiced throughout 2016.

The proliferation of Capability Brown’s

work across the country is vast, but

what makes Weston so significant is its

Pleasure Grounds; Temple Wood and

Shrewsbury Walk. These naturalistic

paradises are classic Brown

representations, which are little altered

from how they looked when they were

conceived in the 1760′s. However they

are an unusual find in the 21st century,

at which time it is believed there are

only five such schemes in existence.

Weston has always celebrated its

Capability Brown heritage; it’s views

across the landscapes he created that to

continue to woo brides and grooms

holding their wedding receptions. It’s

the restful walks through the pleasure

grounds that today’s visitors enjoy, just

as Brown would have intended when he

scribed his vision. And it’s to the Walled

Garden, laid out by Brown, that

Weston’s head chef still looks to yield

produce such as fruit, nuts and

herbs. All around Brown’s legacy

continues to live and breathe at Weston.

Our two plant fairs will be on Dairy

Green as usual and are ideal

opportunities to appreciate the gardens

at different times of year. The first is on

Bank Holiday Sunday and Monday 1

and 2 May (entry to gardens and

fair just £3.00) and the second

closes our season on Sunday 11

September. (entry to gardens and

fair just £2.50)

At both we have lots of great nurseries to meet.

Weston Park

Weston-under-Lizard Nr Shifnal Shropshire TF11 8LE

54

In August 2015 Rob

Potterton walked the

Viking Way through

Lincolnshire and thanks

to the support of many

donations raised over

£1300 for The

Himalayan Trust, to

assist with rebuilding in

Nepal following the

earthquake in April

2015. Here is his story:

I was first introduced to the

sense of adventure and travel as

a teenager, reading the exploits

of Sir Edmund Hillary and

Sherpa Tenzing conquering

Mount Everest in Nepal; a few

years later my sister invited me

for a weekend of walking with

her university friends in the Lake

District. I was instantly hooked.

In my early 20’s

I did a lot of

walking,

camping and

youth hostelling

at week-ends

with friends, this

then led to me

walking The

Pennine Way

and Coast to

Coast footpaths

and a four

month grand

adventure

tramping around

the south island

of New Zealand.

Returning home in 1986 I hung

up my backpack and boots and

joined the family nursery

business, only occasionally

walking including a charity walk

of The Cleveland Way and an

exceptional adventure plant &

seed collecting in China with The

Alpine Garden Society in 1994.

There was one walk though that

I’d always wanted to do - The

Viking Way - this is my local

national trail footpath which is

overlooked by so many; I have

often been told by other walkers

I’ve met that “its flat and boring

in Lincolnshire”. For me though,

it was a very personal

adventure, to walk through and

explore the countryside I’d

travelled by car often in my life.

The Viking Way runs roughly

south to north a distance of 147

miles, starting from Oakham in

the small county of Rutland and

finishing underneath The

Humber Bridge on the shores of

the River Humber opposite Hull.

I’d put the idea on the back

burner, something to do when I

retired but as I passed my mid

50’s i decided I’d best get on

with this while I physically could.

In March 2015 I told Jackie my

wife my plan and after some

discussions concluded that it

could be done in August between

shows; I have to say she was

very understanding. Then in

April the devastating earthquake

occurred in Nepal, I chose then

to use the walk as a charity

event to help raise funds for The

Himalayan Trust, a charity

founded by Sir Edmund Hillary in

1960 in Nepal, to help the

people of the Everest region

with health, education and

general wellbeing.

A Just Giving page was set up

online and at every Plant

Hunters Fair I attended

donations received. Just a few

weeks before starting my

mother who is now in her early

80’s but exceptionally fit and

healthy decided that she would

accompany me for the first half,

hoping to reach Lincoln.

A very quiet walk

Rob Potterton and Mum,

Jean on a walk in

Lincolnshire that led to the

Himalayas

The Viking Way route

55

The walk was a complete

success, we were blessed with

11 days dry and mostly sunny

weather. Lincolnshire is a very

rural county with few built up

areas and seemed to be a

continuous carpet of golden

fields of corn, just prior to the

harvesting period. It was

predominantly quiet and

peaceful, we only met a few

other walkers and then they

were only attempting a few

miles. It left me with a great

sense of well being.

The charity fund target was met

and then exceeded within a few

weeks.

In 2016 my mum and I will be

attempting another walk, The

Coast to Coast, 220 miles from

Robin Hoods Bay in Yorkshire to

St Bees in the Lake District.

Hotels and hostels are already

booked for June and July. It will

be an 18 day journey with two

week breaks after each 5 to 6

days of walking, this will enable

me to attend several Plant

Hunters’ Fairs events and for

mum to recover.

Really looking forward to our

walk together.

Potterton's Nursery

Moortown Road

Nettleton

Caistor

Lincoln

LN7 6HX

Phone: 01472 851714 Please

call ONLY between 9.00am &

4.00pm

email: sales@pottertons.co.uk

Website: www.pottertons.co.uk

Lincolnshire from the Viking Way

You can meet Rob at most Plant Hunters’ Fairs in 2016

Plant Hunters’ Fairs is a partnership of

Janet & Martin Blow

You can contact us by:

Email: martin@planthuntersfairs.co.uk or janet@planthuntersfairs.co.uk

Phone: 01270 811443 / 0771 699 0695

Website www.planthuntersfairs.co.uk

Twitter: @plantfairs

Find us on Facebook as well.

Details published in this newsletter are, we believe, correct at time of press but

please do check on our website or with the venue before travelling as occasionally

arrangements do have to change.

All views expressed are those of the authors.

All text and images in this newsletter are the property of Plant Hunters’ Fairs or

the respective authors. Please ask before republishing anything from this

newsletter.

You can subscribe or unsubscribe on our website or by email.

56

2016 Plant Hunters’ Fairs

March

Sun 20th Dearnford Lake, Whitchurch, Shrops. SY13 3JQ 10am-4pm

Sat 26th Battlefield 1403 Shrewsbury, Shrops, SY4 3DB 9:30am-4pm

Sun/Mon 27th/28th Dorothy Clive Garden, Newcastle, Staffs. TF9 4EU 10am-5pm

April

Sat. 2nd National Memorial Arboretum Alrewas Staffs DE13 7AR 10am 4:30pm

Sun 3rd Ness Botanic Gardens Wirral, Cheshire. CH64 4AY. 10am-4pm

Sat 9th Carsington Water, near Ashbourne, Derbyshire. DE6 1ST 10-4pm

Sun 10th Cholmondeley Castle, Malpas, Cheshire. SY14 8HN 11am-5pm

Sat 16th Bodenham Arboretum near Kidderminster, Worcs, DY11 5SY 11am-4pm

Sun 17th Consall Gardens, Wetley Rocks, Staffordshire. ST9 0AG 10am 5pm

Sat 23rd Sugnall Walled Garden, Eccleshall, Staffs. ST21 6NF 10am-4pm

Sun 24th Norton Priory, Runcorn WA7 1SX 10am-4pm

May

Sun/Mon 1st/2nd Weston Park, Shifnal, Shropshire. TF11 8LE 10am-5pm

Sat 7th Donington Le Heath Manor House, Leicestershire LE67 2FW 10am-4pm

Sun 8th Adlington Hall, Macclesfield, Cheshire. SK10 4LF 10:30am-4pm

Sun 15th British Ironwork Centre, Oswestry, Shrops. SY11 4JH 10am-5pm

Sun 22nd Middleton Hall, Tamworth, Staffs. B78 2AE. 10am-5pm

Sat 28th National Memorial Arboretum Alrewas Staffs DE13 7AR 10am 4:30pm

Mon 30th Carsington Water, near Ashbourne, Derbyshire. DE6 1ST 10-4pm

June

Sat/Sun 4th/5th Hodnet Hall, Mkt Drayton, Shrops. TF9 3NN 10am-5pm

Sat 11th Arley Arboretum, Near Bewdley, Worcs. DY12 1XJ 11am-5pm

Sun 19th Southwell Minster Gardens, Notts. NG25 0HD 11am-4pm

Sun 26th Whittington Castle, Whittington, Shropshire. SY11 4DF 10am-4pm

July

Sun 3rd Sugnall Walled Garden, Eccleshall, Staffs. ST21 6NF 10am-4pm

Sat/Sun 16th/17th Henbury Hall, Macclesfield Cheshire SK11 9PJ 10am-5pm

Sat 30th Battlefield 1403, Shrewsbury, Shrops, SY4 3DB 9:30am-4pm

Sun 31st Carsington Water, near Ashbourne, Derbyshire. DE6 1ST 10-4pm

August

Sat 6th National Memorial Arboretum Alrewas Staffs DE13 7AR 10am-4:30pm

Sun 7th Donington Le Heath Manor House, Leicestershire LE67 2FW 10am-4pm

Sun 21st Abbeywood Gardens, Delamere, Cheshire CW8 2HS, 10am-5pm

Sun/Mon 28th/29th Dorothy Clive Garden, Newcastle Staffs TF9 4EU 10am-5pm

September

Sat 3rd Bodenham Arboretum near Kidderminster, Worcs, DY11 5SY 11am-5pm

Sun 4th Ness Botanic Gardens Wirral, Cheshire. CH64 4AY. 10am-4pm Fair

Sun 11th Weston Park, Shifnal, Shropshire. TF11 8LE 10am-4pm

Details may change due to prevailing circumstances.

Keep up to date at www.planthuntersfairs.co.uk

follow us on Twitter @plantfairs