Weekly catch up with gardens & propagation

Garden Team

It's been all action for the garden team this week, moving through the entire garden to prune and cut back the last of the plants. 

They have pruned various hydrangeas back to a strong famework so they're better able to carry the weight of new blooms on strong stems. More continus were cut, this time near Beth's house ready to produce striking leaves and clouds of flowers which give them the common name smoke bush. Cornus and salix by the ponds were also cut back to knuckles ready for the bright new stems to emerge for a fantastic display later in the year. 

After a really good watering in (we haven't had any rain here yet this April) the new plantings of cercis and arbutus were mulched along the drive. The cercis were rootballed, delivered covered in hessian and a thin mesh for easy transport which both breakdown rapidly after planting. The knot at the top of the ball was cut away, the roots thoroughly soaked and then planted into the hole that also had a good soaking. The team did really well moving these heavy shrubs on a really steep slope!

Doing the morning chores each day is a great way to see plants in the garden. The wood is a favourite spot at the moment, full of little gems. The often overlooked symphytum (comfrey) caught our eye this week. We grow many varieties which are all pretty and available in many colours from white, pink, blue and purple. They are great for early pollinators and make fantastic ground cover for shady spots.

Propagation Team

This dry spring has got things into full swing, perhaps sooner than we anticipated! So here's a quick catch up with the propagation team during this rootin' tootin' time!

Sometimes, as many growers will know, you don't hit the numbers you so wished for, but there's nothing to fear, especially when you have an Emily in your team! Pachyphragma macrophyllum, perfect for adding splashes of white beneath trees and works well as succession for when we wave goodbye to snowdrops for another year. We wanted to top up our numbers to make them available for you to bring home, so stemming from the usual propagation schedule and regime, Emily and Miya gathered some runners from garden established plants. Sometimes you have to think on your feet and make a slight detour from the standard to achieve the best results.

The stockbed team have been thankful for the sunshine as it's made being down in either our damp or dry areas a little more comfortable without the drizzle, (however, we know Ben and Ned over in our estate team are longing for some rain to help get our grass back to its exceptionally lush aesthetic.) Hannah and Sean got to it with a heap of Poa labillardierei. This full sun loving, clump forming plant is commonly known as Australian bluegrass. It's truly one of the best grasses for dry soil, with plumes of flowerheads lasting from mid-summer into the autumn. It's needle like, blue-green leaves can create true magic and depth within your designs.

Another grass looking particularly lovely at the moment is our faithful Stipa tenuissima, which Mel captured earlier this week. Like poa, it's clump forming whilst enjoying full sun, yet enjoys poorer soils to keep it standing proudly. In time, the Mexican feather grass turns to a warm, sandy colour, reminiscent of the sepia tones of summer holidays. With the slightest breeze a spell is cast upon this plant, great motion begins, and with etheral, dream-like sways you discover S. tenuissima at its finest. 

Elsewhere, Miya has been working on our incredible agapanthus. Propagated by division, these robust perennials, often with lilac-blue flowers, are a favourite here with our team, so head to the website to be notified when they're available and enjoy their splendor for yourselves.

As mentioned earlier, everything has woken up and is putting down roots, whilst launching up top growth, almost like they're actively trying to get us to lose that little extra timber from the winter. Our propagation house is looking verdant with future wonders waiting to be potted on.

Exciting times!

A special mention now for Elma who is visiting us this week from Kew.

Elma is working with Emily and Debs, sharing and experimenting with propagation techniques. It's been truly lovely having Elma visit and we hope to see her again soon.