KentGardener's Galanthus Blog 2012

[RichardW]

I did actually stand with them, point at the bed and say that's where the special snowdrops are, so don't dump anything on it 

we're open next weekend and it really does look like a building site 

[johnw]

Carolyn - I'm afraid we'll both be Wasp-less for quite some time. It is such a beauty.

johnw

[mark smyth]

John I'm guessing from the size of your snowdrop clumps you dont have Narcissus problems?

[KentGardener]

Hi Mark,

I'm afraid I do get the dreaded fly here - I have no idea where they came from as no one else gardens round here and there are not any mass plantings of narcissus for miles in any direction. 

The little pests always seem to choose the extra special plant that I only have one bulb of to turn into grub poo!     I've lost some really special things, over the years, that never got their chance to shine.   

[Gerard Oud]

05.04.19 am  You were early up enough to catch them John

[Alan_b]

You can tell a lot about a person from what they post on the forum, and you can certainly tell that KentGardener is an early-riser.

[steve owen]

Really great to see snowdrops in the garden - they are one of the strongest reasons to get out and tidy the garden up early! Temptation is obviously building because I hope to visit Steve's garden in February! I know it's a time of year that we want to get out be stimulated in the garden, but why is there not the same sort of following for the choice alpines that many gardeners have? Is it simply that we attach snowdrops to people we know, whereas alpines are so much more botanical?

Back to SRGC after two days away. Just need to point out that the principal reason for the midweek gathering here was to EAT and there also happened to be some snowdrops out.
Tim, hope you do manage to get here; many of my snowdrops are grown in a large raised gritty alpine bed with no shading whatsoever (completely contrary to the received wisdom about deep loam and dappled shade being ideal growing conditions) amongst crocus, primula, lots of dwarf Daphne, soldanella, cyclamen etc. I recall that many of the snowdrops at Sue and Wol Staines' super garden are also grown in very open conditions, albeit in richer loam than my alpine bed.

[Maggi Young]

Just need to point out that the principal reason for the midweek gathering here was to EAT and there also happened to be some snowdrops out.

Steve... you are proof that white fever need not mean the loss of other passions... well said! 

[Tim B]

John is picture 3 ,Selina Chords?



I think there are a lot of these types being found in Holland and Belgium - and unfortunately some sites have had more than one person collecting from them so there are likely to be lots of very similar plants under lots of different names.

This one was marked down purely with a collection number HK39 - but I couldn't see the label clearly.

Edit:  MK39 (Mens/Koln) - many thanks to a member from continental Europe for correcting me.

  Was that the 'David Baker' that Ruby gave you? 

[Maggi Young]

Hi Tim, welcome to the Forum 


I've sorted out your mix-up with the quote box... seems to be catching a few these days... must be the cold weather!

[KentGardener]

Was that the 'David Baker' that Ruby gave you?  

Welcome TimB - how is your 'D B' gift from Ruby doing in it's new home in deepest darkest Wales?

It is great to see you on the forum.  Now that you are retired and have a few spare minutes I know there are some people on here who will love to pictures of your National Collection of Asplenium scolopendrium.  I have posted a few pics of some of the plants you have kindly given me from the collection in the past and they are often met with much interest.

Previously I have posted the photographs in the 'General/Flowers and foliage now' thread - but Maggi (the Boss  ) might know of a ferny area you can post in?

John

edit by maggi:
no particular ferny place.... as you know, these delightful plants do well in many situations    General Forum http://www.srgc.org.uk/forum/index.php?board=4.0 is just fine 

[KentGardener]

Yesterday morning dawned to find me on the early morning high speed train to St Pancras International.  It could have been so easy for me to then hop on a train over to mainland Europe - but todays journey was up into Cambridgeshire.

AlanB had invited me up to re-visit some of his favourite snowdrop sites (and, of course, to have tea and cake).  I arrived in Cambridge at 9.30am and Alan met me from the train station and drove me to his house.  His lovely wife Corinne had the kettle on the boil and some fruit and cake to prepare us for our day out.  It was great to chat with them both while watching a Dummock, 10 GoldFinches, a pair of blackbirds, blue tits and a robin entertaining us a few feet from the window.

I donned my imaginary blindfold while I was driven to our first location in one of Alan's secret private woodlands.  We had visited here last year and it was good to see that the same variety of different genetics were still present in the woodland.  Our visit was weeks ahead of last years so the main drifts of drops were still 14 days or so from flowering. But we still managed to spot some yellows, some 'weird ones'  (though not as weird as last year - there were still so many flowers to come out so hopefully they are still there), a variety of green markings, and a couple of reverse poculiform.  We speculated how nice it would be if the reverse poculiform could breed with the yellows to produce a yellow reverse poculiform in years to come.

1 - yellow

2 - yellow

3 - Reverse Poculiform

4 - long flower

5 - green tips

6 - green tips (possibly due to damage of the bulb?)

7 - green marks

8 - Weird

9 - Weird

10 - Ladybug and Spider  (I didn't spot the spider until I was sorting the photos afterwards)

[Hagen Engelmann]

What a wonderful world!!!

[Hagen Engelmann]

Nr.3 - the best I ever saw in this group.

And you went back home???

[KentGardener]

Next we stopped off at the private woodland where Alan found 'Green Light' and Joe found 'Charlotte Jean' - there were some lovely drifts starting but we didn't spot anything unusual on this visit.

Finally Alan took me to a country park called Gog Magog where we walked over what passes for hills in Cambridgeshire and ended up somewhere I have always wanted to visit - Wandlebury Ring.  This is the place that 'Wendys Gold', 'Bill Clark' and 'Wandlebury Ring' were found.  It is probably the largest walled 'garden' I think I have ever been in - all just grass and trees now (with some rabbits and moles!) - but there were still a few drifts of plicatus snowdrops remaining under a few of the trees.  

After a fantastic day out and about in the Cambridgeshire countryside Alan dropped me back at the railway station for the 2.5 hour journey home.

1 - Drift of snowdrops and acconites starting in the 'Green Light' area.

2 - The entrance

3 - The building

4 - A couple of birds that caught my attention

5 - Archway into garden

6 - Walled Garden

7 - Alan studying some drops

8 - Drift of drops under a tree