Autumn Spice
Reading time 3 minutes
The problem with owning a garden dominated by evergreens and tropicals is that I don’t really get to experience autumn colour at home. My […]
gingers
How to Grow Ornamental Gingers in UK Gardens
Reading time 24 minutes
Ornamental gingers – we’ve admired them whilst on holiday in tropical countries, or seen them curated in the glasshouses of botanical gardens, but […]
Daily Flower Candy: Hedychium densiflorum ‘Sorung’
Reading time 5 minutes
Ginger lilies are disgustingly straightforward to grow, which is satisfying when one considers their fabulously exotic appearance. Hardy gingers from the genus […]
Daily Flower Candy: Asarum delavayi ‘Giant’
Reading time 5 minutes
Asarum delavayi ‘Giant’*: Giant Wild Ginger, Panda face ginger As an antidote to my post about Vita Sackville-West’s macabre ‘Box of the Dead’ […]
The Final Countdown
Reading time 7 minutes
Twelve days to go and preparation for this year’s garden opening feels like one of those bad dreams where, try as one may, one […]
Opening Pains
Reading time 5 minutes
Had we opened our seaside garden on the usual weekend, this is the scene that would have greeted our visitors. Not bad, even […]
The Stage is Set
Reading time 5 minutes
The stage is finally set for our open weekend on August 1st and 2nd. Any changes I make from now on will appear too obvious, […]
All Systems Go!
Reading time 7 minutes
Here at The Watch House we are steadily building up to our second annual National Gardens Scheme open weekend on August 1st and 2nd. Unlike last […]
Gardening Leave
Reading time 3 minutes
No, I haven’t quit my job or been given my marching orders, but I have taken a couple of days off to prepare the […]
Daily Flower Candy: Hedychium densiflorum ‘Stephen’
Reading time 1 minute
Clearing our borders of tender perennials last weekend, I was surprised to see the earth scattered with what appeared to be large pomegranate seeds. […]
Flowers of Bhutan – Curcuma aromatica
Reading time 1 minute
This curious little fella is Curcuma aromatica, or wild turmeric. We discovered it today, growing amongst the pine needles at the side of the […]
A Touch of Ginger
Reading time 3 minutes
Bringing a touch of the tropics to our garden this summer are two members of the ginger family – Hedychium densiflorum “Stephen” and Cautleya […]