JEARRARD'S HERBAL
That's 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.
11th August 2024
Clematis 'Warsaw Nike'
A wet summer has provided some relief for the garden after a couple of dry years. The rain didn't come soon enough to save Magnolia wilsonii which died in the snowdrop border.
I think it was drought, exacerbated by competition from Acer campestre, but it might have been honey fungus. Either way, it came out yesterday and gave a much better view of the
Lophosoria in the process. The fern had not been enhanced by the presence of a dead tree.
The wet weather has also enlivened Clematis 'Warsaw Nike'. I planted it on a whim many years ago, hoping that it would run up into the rather dull surroundings. It has finally done so.
I was surprised to find the purple flowers shining among the dead twiglets of a Lawsons Cypress. I bought it from Morrisons and I'm fairly sure it was 99p so I am getting my moneys-worth.
When I planted it, it had a name. Not so now. I have even investigated around it with a trowel to see if the buried label can still be found. No sign.
For now it will have to remain a 99p whim. (ps. further invesitigation has revealed that it is C. 'Warsaw Nike'.)
11th August 2024
Cyclamen hederifolium
The first Cyclamen appeared in the garden a few weeks ago but then there has been a gap. This week a second wave of plants has broken from summer dormancy.
I have plants from a number of different sources. I was hoping that by adding diversity I would get an improved seed set and faster colonisation.
It hasn't quite worked out like that. They are spreading but only slowly. However, the process is working. This week I have a few white flowers coming up in places
that I have never planted white plants. Cyclamen seeds are distributed by ants so perhaps instead of planting a variety of strains, I should have encouraged a variety of ants.
I almost overlooked this deep red flowered plant. It is a very striking colour that has become available in the last few years, though possibly not the brightest colour to plant in the shade
of an old sycamore. I put a few plants in and am delighted that at least one has survived. Like the purple Corydalis in the spring woodland, I enjoy the fact
that I have to look for it.
11th August 2024
Ledebouria 'Gary Hammer'
It has been a week of small surprises and tenuous memories. I had to fish around in the fluff of forgetfulness to identify the Clematis. Unfortunately the fluff
was not co-operating. This Ledebouria has also struggled with oblivion. A few years ago, while clearing space to house more Nerine, I decided that a lot of small,
dull bulbs would have to take their chances in the garden. Ledebouria 'Gary Hammer' was one. Drimiopsis maculata was another. They went out into a narrow border
that I planted exclusively with spare bulbs. Unfortunately, I then got carried away and filled the space with surplus Nerine (whoops). That is all very well but the Nerine
are winter growing and the others are summer growing. Through the summer I have had an empty border (weeded twice) with a single clump of leaves. It's a management nightmare.
Worse still, in the fluff of forgetfulness I had convinced myself that this was Drimiopsis maculata and was puzzled that both the leaves and the flowers were 'wrong'.
Perhaps it is just because it is growing outside. The fluff was only dispelled when I looked at the pictures. This is Ledebouria 'Gary Hammer'.
It is looking a bit lonely in the bare ground. I might plant some more Ledebouria with it. That would free up some space.
11th August 2024
Roscoea purpurea rubra
I have a new herbaceous border that has rapidly become a centre for biodiversity. I plant anything I like in it, and I weed it once a year. The idea is that the more I add, the less space there will be for weeds.
Perhaps it will work. In the meantime I have a gentle display of wildflowers with startling interludes. Euphrasia confusa is currently top of the list of interesting wild flowers,
Roscoea purpurea rubra heads the list of startling interludes.
I have raised a great many red Roscoea purpurea from seed. I have even named a few of the best, but that left me with hundreds of others, all delightful but not outstanding.
I have been scattering them willy-nilly through friends gardens at every opportunity. The last few dozen were planted in the new herbaceous border to see what happened.
They have prospered. The herbaceous thugs of spring have flowered and relaxed. In their place I have bindweed and red Roscoea. It wasn't what I had envisioned
but it is quite satisfactory.
I have a few yellow Crocosmia lying around spare as well. That would certainly liven things up.
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.
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