Sweet success for TV Tom as the Sugarbush flowers outdoors in The World Garden of Plants

Tom Hart Dyke’s been at it again as he manages to produce a rare bloom at ‘The World Garden of Plants’ in the grounds of Lullingstone Castle, Kent (subject of BBC 2’s ‘Save Lullingstone Castle’ series). This time it’s with a sweet little beauty known as the ‘Sugar Bush’ Protea Repens. The Protea was first grown in the UK under glass at Kew when it was brought back from the Cape by intrepid plant hunter Francis Masson in 1775. Tom has dedicated the plant to Masson – one of his heroes. Tom says; ‘ Masson was an amazing chap – a phenomenal character who brought back to the UK many plants we now take for granted in our garden as natives to the UK – he’s one of the plant hunters who has inspired me the most as I’ve built The World Garden here at Lullingstone. A huge part of the reason behind the garden is to show what plant hunters like Masson achieved’.

Tom’s Protea actually traveled to the UK courtesy of Tom’s dad Guy Hart Dyke, who brought the seeds of the Protea Repens back from a trip to South Africa in 2001. Tom says; ‘Dad knew it would be a great challenge for me – he gave me the seeds and said; there you go, see what you can do!’ I managed to germinate just one seed from the lot – but that is the seed that has gone on to bring forth the blooming beauty in flower in our ‘South African border’ of the World Garden of Plants’

It’s a very unusual occurrence to see the Protea growing outdoors, facing the elements unprotected. Tom says; ‘ We’ve had a great response from the public who aren’t used to seeing the plant grown outside. They’re enchanted by the beauty of the flower and Masson’s story’.

The second series of ‘Save Lullingstone Castle’ is due to be aired towards the end of this year. The 2nd series features the blooming firsts that Tom has achieved against the odds in his map shaped garden at his ancestral home - Lullingstone Castle.

Notes: Named after the great god Proteus – who could change his shape at will – the Protea is a plant beloved of the horticultural world for its amazing variety in plant size, habitat, flower size and colour – the colour varies in the wild from cream/white to white touched with pink, to the red variety favoured by florists in the UK.

© Copyright Tom Hart Dyke and Vikki Rimmer

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