Dumfries and Galloway Garden Weekend

[Brian Ellis]

Threave, owned by the National Trust for Scotland, is host to a gardening school.  It is one of the few National trust gardens that I have enjoyed
The most impressive Davidia I have seen was in full flower (bract) and beside it were a group of trilliums.  Also pictured here Gentiana lutea and some slate pots. walking round I came upon this unknown (to me) yellow flowered shrub.  The rock garden was undergoing some replacements but nonetheless quite good.

[Brian Ellis]

Our exhausting weekend drew to a close with a visit to Cally Gardens, I would love to show you some pictures, but I was like a child in a sweet shop and didn't have time to take any
It was a wonderful walled garden and a most interesting nursery.  The only picture I took was of Anemone faninnii standing at about 60 cms, of course it was not available in the nursery and I understand that you need very fresh seed
The last visit was totally different, a most unusual garden, not my sort but it was most interesting to visit.

[Brian Ellis]

...and here are the pictures, sorry!

[shelagh]

A terrific tour Brian I have thoroughly enjoyed it.  It is interesting to see that very few of our pictures overlapped.  Just goes to show that you could visit a garden every week and see something different.  It always amazes me when people say 'Oh I've been there' as if it is always the same.

Shelagh

[Brian Ellis]

Thank you Shelagh, sorry to have hijacked your thread   Yes I do agree with you it is amazing how quickly gardens change and you can go back again and again.  Ours is being visited in a fortnight and it is difficult to see what will be in flower then, so much of what is out now will be over but there is always something coming.  I'm glad you enjoyed it, we have had some wonderful breaks in this area and look forward to more.

Brian

[Lesley Cox]

And many thanks again for all the above. The yellow unknown rings a bell but I'm not answering at present. Something will click at 3 in the morning.

The grey leaved plant Brian, is Senecio candicans. It may also be called S. magellanica but I think candicans is correct. In a talk to my local group once, I saw an amazing slide of it in full (yellow daisy)  flower, in its native Falkland Islands. The plant was groundcovering a little rocky peninsula and the south Atlantic ocean was crashing onto the beach, all around the plant. It can be grown by seed or root cuttings as well as stem cuttings.

Be careful with your Jovellana. It's tender, even here, a bit. Nice though. And I like the Hollboellia too. Wonder what it's related to.

[Brian Ellis]

Thanks Lesley, I thought it was probably a senecio of some sort.  I am sure the wall (where a sequence of them was planted) will look stunning when they are in flower.  I was warned about the Jovellana - he said it came easily from cuttings and to overwinter it in a cold greenhouse - let's hope he was correct.  I've planted it against the south facing wall of the house and taken cuttings just in case

Crug farm plants say Holboellia latifolia (Lardizabalaceae) it's potentially the hardiest form to be introduced into cultivation from near the Tibetan border at 3150m. A vigorous woody-stemmed evergreen, twining climber to 6m., with leaves composed of five or more leathery dark green glossy leaflets. Bearing in spring an abundance of separate male (flared pale pink) & female (plump, pale green), highly scented flowers, followed by purple sausage-shaped edible fruit. Best grown in a sheltered site out of freezing winds in a fertile well drained soil with some moisture retention.

So I'm thinking about where I could possibly put it in a small garden!!!