The Beth Chatto Gardens-28 April 2017

[David Nicholson]

The Beth Chatto Gardens are located just outside the City of Colchester in the County of Essex some 70 miles North East of London. Colchester was the Site of the Roman City of Camulodunum (The Fortress of the War God Camulus-{Camulus was a Celtic God}).

Beth Chatto is in her 94th year and was recently seen on Gardener's World being interviewed in her garden by Carol Kline. The gardens were first formed in 1960 from "an overgrown wasteland of brambles, parched gravel and boggy ditches". Today the Dry Garden, which is never watered, is World famous and the rest of garden varies from water gardens (two lakes) to woodland, to borders and is constantly being developed.

Being a frequent visitor to Essex it really is one of my favourite gardens and I learn and see something totally different everytime I go. This was a special visit also as for some time I have been trying to source bulbs of Leucojum vernum vagneri and L. v. var. carpathicum and was lucky enough to find them for sale on the Beth Chatto Web Site. 

The following pictures represent just a few that particularly took my eye.

A black Frit-name anyone please?
Carex elata 'Aurea'
Cercis siliquastrum (Judus Tree)
Choisya ternata (I think?)

[David Nicholson]

some more:-

Darmera peltata 'Nana'. The stream banks were full of them
Diperta floribunda
From the Dry Garden Erodium acaule
Exochorda 'The Bride', hugely popular these days

[David Nicholson]

.... and more

From the Dry Garden Ferula 'Cedric Morris' with three pictures attempting to explain the odd growth habit of this plant.
Fothergilla
and again from the Dry garden Genista hispanica

[David Nicholson]

and still more

Two Lake views
You Tell Me? 2 plant seen floating in the Lake
Viburnum
Primula 'Miller's Crimson' seen all over the wet parts of the garden

[David Nicholson]

and still more

Magnolia 'Susan'
Malus hupenhensis- about 25 feet high and grown from a pip sown by Beth in around 1994.
Melica uniflora f. albida
Ornithogalum-two shots. Seen widely across the garden

[David Nicholson]

In many shady parts of the garden was sometimes one, sometimes up to three plants of Paeonia mlokesewitschii
Persicaria bistorta 'Superba'
Pieris showing good colour and size
Tiarella cordofolia
You Tell Me 1

[David Nicholson]

Penultimate group.

Trillium-not sure which, two shots
T. chloropetalum, two shots
Rhododendron luteum, or possibly a hybrid

[David Nicholson]

The end!

Polygonatum x hybridum, in great swathes throughout the shady, wet parts of the garden.
Trillium chloropetalum White Form two shots
You Tell Me 3

[Maggi Young]

Lovely visit!
The "black frit" is Fritillaria camschatensis

 "You tell me 2" is Water Hawthorn , Aponogeton distachyos


 "You tell me  1"  is, I think, Pickerel rush, Pontederia cordata before it flowers - or maybe after it  flowers! - corrected by  Philip  - it's Orontium aquaticum- Golden Club, I learn!

 The first white Trillium is T. grandiflorum

and while I SHOULD know what the shrub is, I cannot think!

[Graham Catlow]

You tell me 3. Looks like a Cherry laurel, Prunus lauroceracus.

[johnw]

David  - The Rhododendron luteum ? may in fact be R. japonicum (yellow form), hard to tell given the distant shot, with a distinctive skunky smell as opposed to lutuem's delicious spiciness. 

The "you tell me 3" Prunus larocerasus is smart enough to be the cultivar "Otto Luykens".

john

[David Nicholson]

Many thanks Maggi, Graham and John.

[Brian Ellis]

Always a joy to visit isn't it David, some super shots.  We haven't yet been this year although I did buy the Leucojums when they had a stall at the Norfolk PH Spring Gala!

[Philip Walker]

Despite only being 40 mins away,I've never been.Hoping to put that right this year.
Isn't no.1 Golden Club.I can't remember proper name.

[monocotman]

Great photos David,
I try to get over there at least twice a year as we live just over an hour away.
It is always a super day out.
Our front garden is a pale copy of her dry garden,

David