Crevice Gardening ......in defence of rock.....

[Katherine J]

I like very much Your humour, ZZ.
And thanks for the comment to You and to Maggi. I've made this mistake a few times already. 

[ranunculus]

It is wonderful to see some more pages about 'rock gardening' on the site of the Scottish 'Rock Garden' Club. 

[maggiepie]

What a wonderful thread, I am enjoying it immensely.

[johnw]

I propose a musical toast to Zdenek and this great thread. Not quite a czardas but hope it will do.



johnw

[Katherine J]

A good musician this Lara St. John! I've never seen her in Budapest concert halls. (This does not mean that she never was  )

[Lesley Cox]

Is she from your part of the world John?

[Lesley Cox]

I haven't planted my new troughs yet but before I do, I'm thinking a trip up country for some crevice-type rock would be a good idea.

[maggiepie]

Kata, your crevice pots are an inspiration.
I imagine they would be very heavy by the time the pot is finished. Do you place your pot before starting to add the soil and rocks?

[johnw]

Is she from your part of the world John?

Lesley

By Jove she is from Canada, I really had no idea.  She was born in London, Ontario - a long hike from here.

Wikipaedia says "With her studies disrupted, St. John took the opportunity to travel throughout the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. During that time she encountered and lived with the Roma people, a cultural experience that would later be reflected in her 1997 album Gypsy."

johnw

[maggiepie]

John, thanks for the introduction to Lara St. John, she's fantastic.

[Stone Rider]

ALAN FURNESS THE KING OF BRITISH CREVICE BEDS

   The readers of the AGS Bulletin know Alan Furness as the master of the scree techniques and the holder of The National collection of Celmisia. I witnessed his perfect work with pieces of sandstone in the Pershore project. He is a professor by profession but he use hammer and chisel with bravery of a stonemason.
 I also heard and saw his lecture about crevice gardening in N. Ireland and it was superb delivery. Alan built his crevice bed with surgeon preciseness, with wisely designed paths for the intimate access to his crevice plants.
I own only one picture with a fresh rockwork and planting but everybody can see the happiness of his plants in this construction made from sandstone. Because he loves to grow Himalayan Androsaces he invented method of planting young seedlings and cuttings into ultra thin fissures. He split stony desks with special chisel to have lovely chinks and he fills them with a brush with dry silver sand and inserts fine roots of androsaces during the filling. Saxatile androsaces need cultivation in narrow crevices like many true alpines.
I hope that Maggi or somebody else can ask him to show his crevice bed with older plants at this Show.

[Stone Rider]

I propose a musical toast to Zdenek and this great thread. Not quite a czardas but hope it will do.



johnw

Thanks, but I have blue eyes, so the music toast goes to the owner of the black ones- the principal of this Circus Alpinus

[Stone Rider]

QUIET MAN IN CZECH KARST

  This Show of Maggi Young (some Russian wrote song Oči čornyje- Black Eyes after being inspired with this woman) will be uncompleted if I miss Milan Čepička and his two outstanding limestone outcrops. His brother is active Czech member of the Prague Club of Rock Gardeners (growing Iris elegantissima outdoors) but Milan is a solitaire sticking to his small garden and job of car mechanic. He collected in local fields and forest smaller limestone pieces and put them together with divine talent for naturally looking outcrop. He had between two outcrops a path paved with concrete square desk and I asked him to put some layers of stones there; the effect is seen in one picture. He is slowly improving his assortment of plants. Pictures are from Calgary (The Fergusons).

[Maggi Young]

ZZ, it has been my pleasure to tempt you along this particular garden path!
It seems our walk together is enjoyed by many others too which is a delight to me.

Your words to me are too kind..... for my eyes are green .... but it would be grand to be the subject of this fine song.... sung in this instance by Feodor Chaliapin, whose version is perhapsthe most famous........ with this wonderful chorus.......a Magnificent thought!!

Dark eyes, passionate eyes
Burning and splendid eyes
How I love you, how I fear you
Verily, I espied you in an ill-starred moment .....




or if you prefer it sung by a woman, here is Blanka Dosen....

[johnw]

Your words to me are too kind..... for my eyes are green .... but it would be grand to be the subject

Zdenek     - You can believe her.  The darkness you have seen is the reflection of two large plates of chocolates before her.  Moments (the ill-starred bit) later they would have been green again.

johnw