Innholdsfortegnelse for Special 2017 i Gardens Illustrated Magazine

What it is that makes growing things so captivating is something I’ve been trying to pin down ever since I planted my first garden. It’s a nebulous question and one I put to Allan Jenkins, best known as the editor of Observer Food Monthly but also a sower and grower at Plot 29, a north London allotment. Allan describes a packet of seed as ‘a pact with the future’ and an intuitive approach backed by experience. He speaks of being rooted in past and future, and working with rather than against the land. ‘Sometimes I just pop by the plot to say hello, or goodbye if I am going away’. When garden designer Dan Pearson spoke to Sissinghurst’s head gardener Troy Scott Smith about his latest project, there was talk…

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show showcases not just the best garden designs and designers but also the best plants, and nursery Hortus Loci is a key grower for the show gardens – the details of which are usually kept top secret until the event. Working in close partnership with designers, the growing and sourcing of plants begins as much as a year before the show, reaching a frenzy of logistics once the garden builds begin in early May. Our Reader Day will give you a behind-the-scenes preview of the plants being grown for RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2018, just before they head off for Chelsea. You’ll get a sneak peek at what’s likely to be this year’s must-have plant, as well as an insight into the planning and growing process.…

Parterre 1 Salvia pratensis ‘Indigo’ One of several hardy Salvia with attractive calyces. Prune by half its height after the first flush and it will flower again. 90cm. AGM*. RHS H7, USDA 4a-8b† . 2 Potentilla nepalensis ‘Miss Willmott’ An old hybrid of worth dating from 1920. Abundant, warm cherry-pink flowers, each with a conspicuous dark eye. 50cm. RHS H7, USDA 3a-9b. 3 Baptisia australis A plant that enjoys full sun and deep soil. Your effort is rewarded with intense blue flowers and lupin-like foliage. 1.2m. AGM. RHS H7, USDA 3a-9b. 4 Nepeta govaniana A plant that is often mistaken for something else. Its delicate, light yellow flowers last for many weeks. 90cm. RHS H6, USDA 5a-9b. 5 Campanula ‘Purple Sensation’ Dark-purple flowers emerge from near-black buds and hang in…

 The National Collection of Clematis montana is held Val Le Neville-Parry at her garden By The Way in Salisbury, Wiltshire, and contains more than 200 plants in 50 named varieties and cultivars. A few are rampant reaching 8m or more, but clematis breeding has produced more compact varieties that are suitable for growing in smaller gardens. As with the more vigorous types, flowering is longer than is often assumed, starting in early March and continuing into late June, and all Clematis montana go on the produce fluffy seedheads in autumn and into winter. Recommendations for using compact cultivars include combining them with later flowering Clematis viticella or encouraging them to scramble up obelisks or poles to add verticals to a border. They will also grow successfully…

Setting sail from Plymouth in 1768, with James Cook at the helm, HMS Endeavour’s crew hoped to achieve much in the fields of astronomy, cartography, botany and ethnology. It was also to be Cook’s first round-the-world voyage. A 24-year-old Joseph Banks, already an experienced and well-regarded botanist, assembled a small team (including artist Sydney Parkinson) to assist him in the collecting and recording of botanical species of interest as Endeavour made landfall in the varied terrains of Madeira, Brazil, Tierra del Fuego, the Society Islands in French Polynesia, New Zealand, Australia and Java. While the voyage’s primary purpose was to observe from Tahiti the rare planetary occurrence of the transit of Venus across the Sun, exploratory forays at each of the stops on their circumnavigation allowed Banks to gather over…

“Stock beds allow clients to see plants growing to their full potential – this takes a leap of the imagination if you only ever see them in two-litre pots” Arvensis Perennials, is tucked away on a quiet slope of the mildly rolling hills just to the north of Bradford on Avon. On a crisp autumn morning I was happy to get slightly lost in my immediate approach to the nursery, circulating agreeably and unnecessarily on grass-tufted roads around one or other of the South Wraxalls. A delightful destination, but how did Arvensis Perennials come to find itself here? “Serendipity,” explains Robert Macdougall, as he and his wife Gussy greet me with coffee. “We heard from Marina Christopher [of Phoenix Perennial Plants] that this site was for sale just at the…

THE THOUGHTFUL GARDENER: AN INTELLIGENT APPROACH TO GARDEN DESIGN  by Jinny Blom Jacqui Small, £35 ISBN 978-1910254592 This sumptuous book by designer Jinny Blom aims to chart her progression from ‘apprentice to journeyman to master craftsman’. The scale of many of the featured gardens could be off-putting for the rookie designer or garden owner, but intimacy is central to Jinny’s designs and many of the images reveal serene spaces that could also work in small gardens. Reviewed by Annie Gatti in the April 2017 issue. NATURAL SELECTION  by Dan Pearson Illustrated by Clare Melinsky Guardian Faber, £20 ISBN 978-1783351176 Dan Pearson’s book is a selection of ten years of his Observer columns. He writes about his former London garden and his new home in Somerset, where he is transforming a…

CHARLOTTE HARRIS Charlotte is a garden and landscape designer who won Gold for her first RHS Chelsea Show garden this year. She now runs a collaborative practice with Hugo Bugg from studios in Exeter and London. This issue she is one of four top designers who are recommending their favourite nurseries on page 17. “Beautiful gardens are the sum of many parts, not least their plants. All these nurseries we use for advice, inspiration, quality and choice.” ALLAN JENKINS Allan is editor of Observer Food Monthly. Previously on The Independent, he once lived in an experimental eco-community on Anglesey, growing organic food on the edge of the Irish sea. His book Plot 29 was longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize. On page 60 he shares his thoughts on nature and…

1 Special Plants Derry Watkins’ treasure trove of a nursery is located in a beautiful valley outside Bath. It is packed with eclectic, unusual and – as the name suggests – special plants from all over the world, both hardy and tender, for outside and in. There’s always something new to discover. Seeds can be ordered online and plants are available to buy from the nursery (open daily March to October). Derry is also an inspiring plantswoman and speaker, and runs many courses. Greenways Lane, Cold Ashton, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN14 8LA. T 01225 891686. W specialplants.net 2 Phoenix Perennial Plants Marina Christopher’s knowledge of interesting and unusual perennials is encyclopaedic. She grew many plants from seed for Hugo Bugg’s Royal Bank of Canada garden at the 2016 Chelsea Flower Show.…

Sitting on a wooden bench in the walled garden at the Emma Bridgewater factory, drinking tea and tucking into home-made cake, while surrounded by chickens, it’s easy to forget you’re in Stoke-on-Trent. Apart from the dull drone of traffic nearby, the small space is bright and peaceful; like a place in the country, with cottage-garden favourites spilling out of dolly tubs and raised beds. The garden is the work of 24-year-old Arthur Parkinson, who was given the challenge of transforming an unloved dumping ground into a space that would attract visitors to the factory, and supply the café and gift shop with cut flowers. When I visit it’s September, and the garden is tumbling into delightful, organised chaos. In a few weeks, all the plants will be pulled out, cut…

1 Phlox paniculata ‘David’ Immense heads of snow-white flowers crown strong stems with foliage that is reliably free of powdery mildew. 1.2m. AGM*. RHS H7, USDA 3a-8b† . 2 Aralia cordata ‘Sun King’ The glowing chartreuse foliage is an essential foil to the purples, pinks and blues. 1.8m. RHS H7, USDA 4a-8b. 3 Salvia ‘Indigo Spires’ This robust annual with deep-purple wands is a late-summer staple. 1.8m. RHS H3, USDA 7a-11. 4 Ageratum houstonianum ‘Blue Horizon’ Dean uses its button-sized, royal-purple flowers to visually link other plants. 75cm. AGM. RHS H2, USDA 2a-11. 5 Allium lusitanicum Lasts long after most alliums. Drought tolerant with handsome foliage. 45cm. RHS H6, USDA 5a-9b. 6 Petunia integrifolia An under-used annual that Dean loves for its bright magenta colour that brings real zing to…

I recently spent a Sunday morning planting 150 tulips I’ll likely never see. They are sitting huddled now in the sandy ground of the Danish seaside summerhouse I try to visit every six weeks or so. Sometimes the timing works and there they will be in late spring, clustered, bloomed, some standing to attention, scarlet as a soldier’s uniform. More often, though, they will be in too-tight bud or else will have been and gone. A few rusty petals in the grass to show they were there. And I am good with that. I don’t need, you see, to see them; it makes me happy to know they’re there. I grow mostly trees there, beech and birch; I may never see them reach maturity, though the spurt of the larch…

Plants we undervalue in the garden can suddenly capture the imagination when we come across them in the wild. On a visit to South Africa I was charmed by an imposing shrub, three metres tall, covered in graceful, airy, lilac flowers. Our guide told us it was Plectranthus ecklonii. I wrote in my notebook that it was a plant waiting for an enterprising nursery to promote its virtues. At the time Plectranthus were, for me, as I suspect for many gardeners, a group of undistinguished, workaday foliage plants usually seen in hanging baskets or as unloved houseplants in dentists’ waiting rooms. Fast forward two decades and it is now a group of plants that I prize for their undemanding nature, patterned or polished foliage and elegant flowers. In general,…

1 Agastache ‘Blue Fortune’ The blue flowers are tiny compared to the hefty spike of calyces that carries them, meaning that once flowers drop cleanly, it offers additional structure for autumn and winter. 90cm. AGM*. RHS H6, USDA 5a-9b† . 2 Blechnum spicant One of several ferns grown at Arvensis for their atmospheric foliage, this hard fern is noted for its fertile fronds, which are markedly erect. 50cm. AGM. RHS H5, USDA 5a-8b. 3 Molinia caerulea subsp. caerulea ‘Heidebraut’ A compact grass that embodies both rigidity and grace. In autumn it becomes really eye-catching as it dies back. 1.5m. RHS H7, USDA 4a-9b. 4 Symphyotrichum ‘Prairie Purple’ A S. cordifolium hybrid that has inherited the characteristics of a mass of smaller flowers and good mildew resistance. A tall plant with…

1. WYKEHAM MATURE PLANTS Specialist grower of large trees, specimen shrubs and instant hedging for immediate impact. Specialist in screening for privacy and security. Yorkshire grown – hardiness guaranteed! Advisory services and delivery available. wykehammatureplants.co.uk  | 01723 862406 2. KEN MUIR Christmas gift ideas for the garden connoisseur. Providing only the highest quality fruit trees, soft fruits, canes and vines. Aiming to share knowledge and expertise in this rewarding area. kenmuir.co.uk  | 01255 830181 3. THORNCROFT CLEMATIS NURSERY Select from our superb range of evergreen clematis for winter interest and year-round colour. Expert advice and award-winning, mail-order service. thorncroftclematis.co.uk  | 01953 850407 4. WEASDALE NURSERIES LTD Hardy trees and shrubs from hardy beginnings at an elevation of 260m above sea level. Ask for a copy of our splendid 126-page catalogue…

• Tom Stuart-Smith’s serenely beautiful Jardin Secret in Marrakech • Jinny Blom’s arid garden in Kenya • Martha Stewart’s private garden in New York State • A textured garden in western Spain filled with succulents, cacti and agaves ON SALE 4 JANUARY Save money when you subscribe to the digital edition – see page 24. Also in selected Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Tesco stores, as well as WHSmith, and all good magazine retailers.…

TOUR LEADER Annie Guilfoyle is an award-winning designer and lover of all things Italian. She combines a successful garden design consultancy with lecturing, writing and judging internationally. Our journey to the Italian Lakes will take us to some of the finest lakeside and island gardens of this uniquely beautiful region. We will travel mostly by boat, discovering landscapes of quiet enchantment and sublime grandeur. While our days will be infused with exquisite light, by night we will revel in the fin de siècle atmosphere of our lakeside hotels. The warm, humid microclimate results in exceptional growing conditions, with much to enthuse the plantsman. Combining great botanical interest with the fascinating history of the gardens’ origins, our tour will move from the Renaissance to the 20th century through compelling and often…

1 Dahlia ‘Bishop of Llandaff’ A favourite for good reason: it flowers for a long period with semi-double, brilliant-red petals and egg yolk-orange centres. The foliage is a deep kelp green, verging on black. 1m. AGM*. RHS H3 USDA 7a-11† . 2 Thunbergia ‘Sunset Shades’ These exotic climbers with peach and nectarine petals and deep chocolate-brown middles, will be present from July into November and make surprisingly good cut flowers. Plant out seedlings in June. 40cm. 3 Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Double Click Cranberries’ This cosmos looks at its most lavish when freshly opened. While Arthur generally avoids double flowers, because they are of little use to bees, he finds that semi-doubles give an extra thrill, while still being pollinator-friendly. 30cm. 4 Dahlia ‘Totally Tangerine’ A nectar-rich anemone dahlia. Arthur feeds the…

“By cutting the pins to different lengths, I can create a dynamic floating effect that’s enhanced by the play of light and shadow” Anne ten Donkelaar is fascinated by the beauty she finds in nature’s quirky shapes and forms. The walls of her studio in Utrecht, the Netherlands, are lined with the delicate, three-dimensional collages she calls her Flower Constructions: hybrid works combining pressed real flowers and paper floral images cut from old books, which she displays in wooden frames made by her husband, product designer Vladi Rapaport, who also made her large flower press and the wooden rail from which she hangs her flowers, seedheads and branches to dry. Like Vladi, Anne studied 3D product design at the Utrecht School of the Arts, but her work was always…

Since 1991, when they took the decision to give up beef farming and open a nursery instead, Sue and Bleddyn Wynn-Jones have spent part of every year travelling the globe in search of rare and unusual plants. For the rest of the year, when not lecturing or touring plant fairs, they are busy in their nursery, Crûg Farm Plants, on the north Wales coast; a magnet for more venturesome gardeners with a taste for the exotic. Alongside the nursery, their own walled garden, is a gloriously exotic test bed for new plants, which is full of unexpected treasures. How did your interest in plant hunting come about? Bleddyn We were always big travellers but our plant hunting started with an expedition to Jordan in 1991. Since then we’ve travelled…

A. Cuttings can be taken from the tips of non-flowering stems, or from the part of the stem that has not turned woody, known as semi-ripe stems. Although cuttings can be taken at any time of the year, the optimum time is early summer for tip cuttings and late summer for semi-ripe cuttings. It is easier to take cuttings from a plant that is already growing in a pot. Choose a plant that is vigorous and free from pests and diseases. If you are collecting cutting material from the garden, put the cuttings in a plastic bag straight away to stop them loosing moisture or place them in a container of water. B. Fill a 10-12cm pot with a proprietary cuttings compost and gently firm it down. To prepare a…

Pinus sylvestris Scots pine Scots pine is the national tree of Scotland, and it is in Scotland that you will see it at its finest, in ancient pine forests and in majestic stands on heathland. Its leaning, red trunks glow in the low, northern light, and its spacious, gappy canopy is never dense enough to create a dark and gloomy forest floor. All of those found in England, Wales and Ireland have been planted or have naturalised from plantings – even those of the New Forest, where it looks so at home, were only introduced in the 1600s. It followed hard on the heels of the retreating glaciers at the end of the ice age, settling in the far north of the UK and carrying on beyond, well…

1 SMALLHYTHE PLACE, NATIONAL TRUST A hidden gem in the Kentish countryside. Set amid a sea of ever-changing colour and views of the rolling hills beyond, the garden at Smallhythe Place is a tranquil retreat encompassing a traditional rose garden, orchard, nuttery and ponds – all of which are home to an abundance of wildlife. nationaltrust.org.uk/smallhythe-place  | 01580 762334 2 BLARNEY CASTLE Blarney Castle and Gardens are Ireland’s most visited garden. The 60 acres of gardens are a joy to explore. Visit the prehistoric Fern Garden, the deadly Poison Garden, and the magical Rock Close. Stroll by the lake, riverside and woodlands or through the arboretums and herbaceous borders. Café and shops on site. blarneycastle.ie  | Blarney, Co. Cork, Ireland 3 CHENIES MANOR Built in 1460, set in award-winning gardens…

Who would not want to send double lines of trees marching across the landscape? An avenue is quite a thing: more idea than fact, depending, as it does, on all the constituents surviving into maturity and growing at more or less the same rate. The planters of avenues, being of necessity rich and possessed of more land than they need, will probably not be young and must suffer agonies in the attempt to survive to see a return on their plantation. The pity I express is a poor disguise for envy. Who would not want to send double lines of trees marching across the landscape? What better way to end your days than by watching the gaps close as whips thicken to saplings and then cautiously begin to coat their…