I rarely leave this place now that the nursery is open, except for the odd errand. Even on days that we are closed I’m in the garden or the nursery, planting, weeding, propagating or catching up with admin. So it was a real treat to have a proper day out at Malvern Show on Friday – even more of a treat to go with another gardener and have a day of unbridled plant appreciation. My co-visitor was Bob Tridgett, who won the Gardener of the Year programme last year and we spent a great day poring over the very fine plant offerings in the floral marquee. Top marks went to Edrom Nurseries from whom I gleefully picked up a Trillium vaseyi, after almost giving up finding a new Trillium – the gorgeous T. grandiflorum f. roseum on Chris Cooke’s stand had sold out.
Other successful finds included Paris quadrifolia (I have sown some seeds but can’t wait), Podophyllum peltatum and Meconopsis x sheldonii ‘Slieve Donard’. The podyphyllum is destined for an area which already has Podophyllum hexandrum var. chinense and Arisaema consanguineum, so I thought I’d turn this spot into a little collection of the weird and wonderful. Here’s my Podophyllum hexandrum in all its brief flowering glory in the garden. And the Arisaema has survived the cold winter and is throwing up new shoots – yippee!
Did I mention the heat? Well it seems rude to mention it after April’s snow and hail, but we recorded 85F(30C) in the shade on the nursery today. At least we now have a decent watering system and well potted plants, so we can cope. Dave found a couple of shade umbrellas and we sold out of ice-cream and cold drinks. It feels like we’ve gone from winter to summer in under a month – which in truth we have! It feels like summer, but lets not be fooled – it is only May…
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