JEARRARD'S HERBAL
Thats enough introduction - on with the plants!
To navigate this site, use the links above, or the detailed links at the bottom of this page.
... out in the garden.
10th January 2010
Acer campestre .
Along with everybody else in the county this week, everything here has revolved around the snow. It didn't start to fall until wednesday, but
a fairly heavy fall overnight meant that thursday was quiet and white. I had been staggering along in the greenhouse potting things at the start of the week,
but once pots froze solid I had to stop. After a moments sulking, I was pleased to have time to do some tree surgery. This hedge of Field Maples has been too tall for a long time,
but somehow there is never a good season for trimming them - always something growing beneath them, or something more important to be done.
Hopefully they will now produce some twiggy growth that will shelter the top of the garden from the wind. I have a plan to replace them with Magnolia and Mahonia,
but having a plan is only the first stage of the process, and things may change!
10th January 2010
Galanthus 'Straffan' .
The snowdrops had started to grow when the cold hit, so they have come to a halt again temporarily, but under the trees, 'Straffan' had a single flower open, and with a bit of shelter
it has survived. The garden is full of Redwings at the moment, turning over leaves looking for meals, and at any moment this flower may be jumped on
by a hungry thrush, so I'm enjoying it while I can. The Redwings have been pushed south by the cold, and were wintering on the pastures around the garden, but once the snow fell, the
only clear ground was under my trees, so that is where they have congregated. My resident pair of Jays are telling then exactly what they think of them,
and even the local Buzzard has returned to the garden to shelter.
The snowdrops will be fine, but if the weather continues as they are threatening, they may be a bit late this year.
10th January 2010
Hamamelis x intermedia 'Ruby Glow' .
This Hamamelis has been the first of them to flower (and apologies if it isn't 'Ruby Glow' the ground was too cold and hard to go fossicking
for a label) though it isn't quite open yet. I was hoping for a slight scent from it, but the H. x intermedia forms are not the most
fragrant, and it was shockingly cold, so I wasn't surprised not to find any. I planted a number of cultivars last spring, and I think they have established at the root. I didn't
get much new growth last year, but I am hoping they will get away now. They are another part of the plan to establish some wind-break at ground level. The
original wind-break trees at the top of the garden are now getting thin at the base, and allowing a stiff breeze to slice through beneath them.
10th January 2010
Passiflora 'Victoria' .
Last year I had another little fit of Passion flowers. A few of them have come into the conservatory to keep them through the winter, but the majority
are going to take their chances in the greenhouse. If they survive out there, I may try a few more next year. So far I have been quite impressed,
but if that comment presages a fortnights ice storm then I might have to reconsider. If I had been sensible, I would have taken cuttings in the autumn,
but there just wasn't time.
The summer flowers on 'Victoria' were lilac and blue, but this winter bloom is a splendid chilly star that has opened in the snow. Curiously, we are
getting the most perfectly shaped snowflakes I have ever seen, that seem to match the flower's shape. There is a risk that as the snow melts,
so will the Passiflora, into an equally sodden mush, so I have my fingers crossed.
To find particular groups of plants I grow, click on the genus name in the table above. Click on the "Index" box at the top of the page for the full list.
I have a lot of good intentions when it comes to updating this site, and I try to keep a note
about what is going on, if you are interested.
If you want to contact me, the address is infoMONKEYjohnjearrard.co.uk
When typing the address in, please replace MONKEY with the more traditional @ symbol! I apologise for the tiresome performance involved, but I am getting too much
spam from automated systems as a result of having an address on the front page.