Gardener and Photographer with a love of Roses and a magpie-eye for all things Horticultural
Nerine flexuosa in the Davies Alpine House at Kew. Scilla maderense (below) This clam shell construction lies at the head of the Rock Garden, next to the Princess of Wales' Conservatory and the Grass Borders. Actually there wasn't a great deal to see in the Alpine House this time - a few cyclamen, Paperwhite narcissus…
Continue reading ➞ A Kew Gardens Miscellany – Alpines, Trees and Random Autumn Stuff
This very long border, packed full of all manner of Salvias, is looking just glorious - despite it being the 20th November - a late triumph of colour, with dark blue-blacks and palest blues, indigos and purples, reds, pinks, cerise and carmine set against typically aromatic leaves. These are tender, half-hardy and borderline hardy plants…
Continue reading ➞ Glorious Salvias at Kew Gardens
Ginkgo biloba at Kew Gardens today. Gorgeous golden, buttery loveliness... http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/ginkgo-biloba This remarkable tree is known as a 'living fossil', as it is the sole survivor of an ancient group of trees that date back to beyond the time of the dinosaurs. Ginkgo fossils are common in the rocks of the Jurassic and Cretaceous, but…
Continue reading ➞ At Kew Gardens, Ginkgo biloba – a meeting with these remarkable prehistoric trees
Sunshine today and a few things that caught my eye - walking past St. Peter's Church yard in Petersham this morning; the sun shining on the display (pictured yesterday but with the benefit of sunbeams); an oversized stone basket with more golden Spirea; some equally sunny Mahonia and one of the earlier-flowering Camellias, the pink…
Fire and gold tints throughout this display - from an unexpected source - Spirea nipponica Snowmound is better known for its smothering of white blossom on arching stems in June and July but this vigorous shrub is putting on a spectacular finish, teamed with spires of Molinea grasses, fountains of green Liriope muscari, berries of…
Blue skies, sunshine and a long hour at Kew Gardens to spy some autumnal goings on with a collection of amazing trees. I didn't travel far from the Palm House and I know there would be much, much more to see if I had to time to explore further - I really wanted to see…
The Botanic Gardens in Funchal, Madeira, are, and this is not a surprise, steeply terraced gardens with a mix of native and international flora, displayed in tropical, desert, formal, forest, succulent, medicinal and herbal.... different zones with winding paths leading up and down the hillside. There is a sad and unnecessary aviary here too with…
Situated in the town of Monte, high up to the north of Funchal and accessed by the Cable Car (and the excellent bus services that criss-cross the capital and environs), this is a rescue project with ambition. Monte Palace was once a prestigious hotel that fell out of favour, and then out of time, until…
The gardens of Quinta da Palheiro are famous not only for the variety of plants that grow there but also for the beauty of their setting in the hills to the east of Funchal, the capital of Madeira. Madeira has long been called the Garden Isle and it seems that almost anything will grow in…
The Teddington Gardener 