What a well behaved spring we’re enjoying; cool temperatures with some sunny days bursting through allowing enough time to get on with seasonal work – unlike warm springs where watering becomes the name of the game. Our volunteers from home and abroad are having a positive effect as additional pairs of hands help in getting … Continue reading
Have you taken a leaf out of West Dean’s book and your garden is tickety-boo? Plants firmly pruned, spare pots washed and stacked? Paths swept and seeds sown in a timely manner? Not many of us reach those standards. I’m quite fussy at workplaces, but I’m a bit slapdash about my own garden and it’s … Continue reading
Yes folks, it’s official, Spring has sprung! How do we know this? Not because we have passed some arbitrary date such as the 1st of March but because we are gardeners and are attuned to all those subtle, sensory signals that silently but insistently say “Winter is past, the sap is rising, it’s all before … Continue reading
Yorkshire rhubarb, from the hallowed rhubarb triangle around Wakefield has been awarded the coveted protected designation of origin (PDO) status by the European Commission, prohibiting anyone growing it outside the region from calling it the same. It gives it similar status to Cornish clotted cream and Melton Mowbray’s pork pie. This rhubarb is grown in … Continue reading
Did you see the naturalised bulbs in action at West Dean during February this year? If you missed the display poor you as it was a sight to gladden any heart. On sunny days, the gardens were bathed in a symphony of mauve, yellow and white as the bulb flowers opened their faces, creating a … Continue reading
Back in December I was absolutely convinced that my wintersweet (Chimonanthus), a shrub renowned for both its headily-scented winter flowers, and taking its own sweet time to getting around to flowering, was finally about to do the business this year. I tweeted: “After a careful search and google I can confirm there seems to be … Continue reading
Chelsea week is the one time of the year that gardening dominates the airwaves and takes centre stage in the public’s mind which is slightly curious because as any “real” gardener knows gardens are an all year round obsession that occupies one’s thoughts and efforts for 52 weeks of the year . It is that … Continue reading
April was such a benign month at West Dean, mostly rain-free days and glorious enjoyable sunshine. What a blossomy year so far – I feel as if the garden is garlanded with these magical blooms at present. The pear blossom was magnificent in March and April and now the orchard is a riot of pink … Continue reading
Well spring has certainly sprung and everything is roaring out of the ground as if its life depended on it, which in a way of course it does. This is a lovely time of the year, full of promise, everything looking fresh in the first flush of its youth and as yet unblemished by the … Continue reading
People often talk about good blossom years when the combination of prolific flower production and perfect climatic conditions at the time of flowering i.e. still, no hard frosts nor torrential rain or even worse sleet or hail, all come together to produce a display which is mind blowing in its intensity and over the top … Continue reading
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