“Your Majesty - Tom The Plant Hunter”

Bloggers, I have to firstly apologise for being, of late, horticulturally AWOL! I’ve been running around the World Garden here at Lullingstone like a headless carrot thus failing to get on top of things.

Wowsers what a humongously fabulosus year 2011 has been for The Green Man. The highlight by far was being invited on 8th December to Buckingham Palace for a lavish reception hosted by The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh – celebrating those involved in Exploration and Adventure. It coincided with the centennial of Scott’s famous ice filled expedition. Jeepers, the interior of the palace was kaleidoscopically awesome what with gold coloured art deco to die for plus to tease me - lots of Asiatic Phalaenopsis Moth Orchids spraying their arching stems amongst the 200 or so assembled privileged guests.

With the crab pate, profiteroles and wonderfully sweet apple juice flowing – I was then calmly asked by a member of staff if I wanted to meet the Queen – A huge chlorophyll endowed smile stretched my face. As I joyously approached Her Majesty and The Duke in an orderly single file – One of her entourage took my guest invite from me and bellowed out “Tom Hart Dyke – Plant Hunter” – and with everyone around me looking puzzled, thinking "‘Plant Hunter’ – what’s that?!", I shook her hand and with my gardener's knees arching slightly down towards her, I plucked up some chloroplast filled courage saying, “My Granny helped make your 1953 Coronation Robe...” ‘She stopped me dead in my tracks’, “I shall never forget that name Hart Dyke – that lady with all of those silk worms”. I was knocked for six – Her Majesty was as sharp as ever. Later I pondered how much I’d love to have met my late Granny Lady Zoe who established the biggest Silk Farm in the land here at Lullingstone.

But above all Dear bloggers it was the recognition that really counted to me - All of that toil in the soil with the creation and development of The World Garden was being observed – And that means a lot. So humbling.

Right readers, now juddering back down to green covered earth with a floriferous bang: A dear friend Gum Nut Geoff (he loves Eucalyptus!) and I recently visited the RHS powerhouse of Wisley and was overpowered by the huge Wisley glasshouse. Bloggers, you simply have to visit – The zonal ranges are superbly almost seamlessly laid out, from Tropical to Desert to temperate with so much surprisingly in flower at this time of year.  It was in the temperate section that Geoff and I gasped in sheer delight at the first flowering at Wisley of a South African Cycad called Encephalartos villosus or “Poor Man’s Cycad”. These honey coloured female cones looked like an extraterrestrial being!

Warm festive wishes bloggers and let 2012 be a joyously plant filled year for you. 
Tom - the plant nut .x

Cracking Cape Verde:

It’s with overriding ecstatic joy dear readers to type to you about my recent mini plant hunting jaunt to the Archipelago of the Cape Verde islands. The What? I hear you gently inquire into my left ear. Well readers, Cape Verde consists of a group of 10 islands and 3 islets 300 miles off the Senegalese, West African Coastline; approximately 6 hours Southerly flying time from Gatwick. 

My attraction readers in venturing to this volcanic part of the world for the 1st time, is because of this archipelago’s isolation – Cape Verde therefore has extremely high plant endemism; plant life that is unique to these islands. Coupled with the intention of creating a Cape Verde Section in The World Garden for 2012 – thus promoting its poorly publicised and understood flora – I couldn’t wait to step onto the Thomson bound flight from Gatwick.

But shock horror readers I wasn’t alone, I had a fantastic travelling companion called Kate, finally someone who could put up with me! Together we set flight from Gatwick to Sal (becoming a popular tourist destination with gorgeous coconut lined beaches) and then onwards on the same day to the capital and largest island of Santiago. Santiago was to be our plant hunting destination - collecting in total 6 different types of plant all unique to the Cape Verde Islands. Highlights of these collections were Sarcostemma daltonii – an amazing scrambling mysterious looking plant from the family Asclepiadaceae.  Kate and I observed it dangling from sun scorched coastal cliffs and death defying crevices in the North Western Region of Santiago. It’s milky latex used by the locals to sooth chronic toothache which then induces the offending tooth to drop out! Jeeper’s readers it was quite a sweaty trek and climb to find the Sarcostemma, which looked like a heap of long arching smooth snakes! Moreover what fascinated my green blood cells was on an island no more than 35km x 50 km – in a matter of a couple of hours (in a 4x4 hire vehicle!) you can leave behind golden, coconut sun baked tropical beaches at sea level and head to the summit of Pico da Antonia at 4,600 feet in the centre of Santiago whilst being amongst the goose dimpling, blasting white fluffy clouds! The transitional changes in topography and plant life were retina blowing – near the chilly billy, sporadic gale force wind, summit of Pico da Antonia, Kate and I discovered a mini forest of Euphorbia tuckeyana – a shrubby endemic Spurge with lovely delicate glowingly golden yellow flowers.
However readers the star dazzling find by far from this one-week action packed trip was stumbling across the highly endemic, site specific – “Cape Verdean Sea Lavender” – Limonium lobinii. This very rare plant exclusively grows on a handful of NE facing cliffs up to 800m in the Serra da Malagueta mountain range in Northern Santiago. After a few hours of strenuous hiking what with Kate breezing up the cloud swept mountain pass and Tom the Plant Nut wearily lagging behind!, we stumbled upon this horticultural treasure. Reaching this plant involved pretty hair raising slope scaling! All in all readers I had a cracking time and now have exclusive plants to show visitors here at Lullingstone from the cracking Cape Verde Islands.

Horticultural Hugs,

Tom.x.

Electric Elaeagnus:

Jeepers Creepers Readers – How often do you get your horticultural socks knocked sideways, your garden scent addicted nostrils blasted away at this stage in the deepest of the autumnal season???  Virtually never is my guess.

But there’s a horticulturally bomb proof shrub this autumn, flowering throughout our glorious land, that I have never seen flower so prolifically. The delicious nostril piercing fragrance fills the entire two-acre walled garden at Lullingstone, drifting from its native miniature Japan in the World Garden and stretching its fragrantly endowed wafting legs to South America and the far reaches of mountainous Colorado in NW America at the furthest end of the World Garden. The sumptuous perfume is so piercing that it has seeped through and over all four of the ancient walls!

Wowsers, what’s this shrub? In fact a very well known shrub called Elaeagnus x ebbingei. It’s a hybrid of garden origin between Elaeagnus macrophylla x Elaeagnus pungens – both of these species hailing originally from Asia, especially Japan. Another commonly grown, more popular type is the large shrub Elaeagnus pungens ‘Maculata’ with the centre of each leaf being decorated with a splash of gold, giving a retina blasting bright effect. This variety of Elaeagnus however is prone to reverting back to a plain green colour.

But for Tom the Plant Nut - Elaeagnus  x ebbingei is far superior than any other type because of its is far more abundant crisp white flowers, that emit a fragrance to die for – that sends you into a spinning heady twirl faster than any Catherine wheel on Guy Fawkes night!  Moreover to extend your head spinning dizzy twirl – just get your eyeballs to observe the large almost leathery yet strangely soft leaves that are ornamentally silver beneath. Readers, Elaeagnus x ebbingei is such a fabulous fast growing, large evergreen shrub that will grow in any old aspect as long as the soil is not waterlogged. Great as a hedging plant and also as tough as old spotted fluorescent pink wellington gardening boots in exposed regions including coastal sites. And finally to persuade you green fingered folk to purchase this stunner if you’re looking to make a hedge – It’s simply fabulous as a shelter belt plant – to soften the harsh blasting elements and protect other more fragile treasures in your possession.

Happy Nostril Smelling!! Lots of autumnal swelteringly mild hugs.

Tom the Plant Nut. X.