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Monday, October 29, 2007
Jack Frost Cometh !!!:
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Finally a horticulturally endowed update from the floriferous World Garden! Many apologies for the huge lapse in blogging. But Tom The Plant Nut hasn't been able too leave the 4 walls containing the World Garden since February!
Let's start with something special to tell you - It's my Granny's 93rd birthday today. Granny (nicknamed Crac) is my horticultural, legendary inspiration. We've just had a birthday lunch for her & she's on absolutely cracking form!
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We've experienced a tumultous 2007 season here in The World Garden, albeit the wettest summer for many years - personally for me the best ever summer for plant growth and exposive flower power action! Eucalyptus globulus (The Blue Gum), where your fisherman's friend and Viks vapour come from has grown over 8 feet since first May! The Blue Gum is stately situated in the middle of my miniature Tasmania especially as its the floral emblem of this wonderful island state.
Visitors to the World Garden have been massively supportive as ever - we passed our dream goal of 20,000 visitors this year on our last open day - Sunday September 30th. Wowsers!!!
Jack Frost cometh now with minus 4c last Tuesday night, which transformed the World Garden into a wintry wonderland. This was the hardest frost in October for over 5 years at Lullingstone; A sign of things to come? - I hope not! My miniature Mexico, in the nick of time, had its plastic corrugated roof, supported by scaffolding and thick plastic sides - constructed last week. This is to keep "God's Tear's" between Nov - March off the 'hardy when dry' succulents such as the Agaves, Dasylirions, Opuntias (Prickly Pear's) and Furcraeas, which have literally doubled in size this year. These beauties will tolerate extremes of cold in the deserts where they originate but not wet at the same time. A huge thanks to Dave, Les, Jim, Sylvia & Adrian for their humongous efforts in constructinf the Mexican roof!!
As for the 50ft x 20ft polytunnel - well it's crammed full (you can barely open the sliding doors!) with over 1,500 tender plants that have had to be dug up from South Africa, Australia, South America and The Canary Islands for winter protection against 'Jack' and Arctic Winds that are surely to come!?! All the Lullingstone helpers have been amazing in cramming this tunnel often working till its pitch black to get these stunners in before the frost - Sarah, Laurence, Jo, Jo, Iris, Alan, Benus & Andrea have been marvellously faithful and hardworking! The World Garden wouldn't be able to continue without them.
What a year! Simply cant wait till we open next Easter!
More hardcore horticultural banter to follow - i promise!
Over and Out - The Plant Nut (Tom Hart Dyke).x.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
The Glorious Silver Princess:
Dearest Splendid World Garden Supporters,
A huge stack of horticultural apologies for my blogging absence!!!! Since my return from seed collecting in Venzezuela i've literally been stuck knee deep in the world garden, cracking on with a variety of challenging winter jobs.
Last Saturday for example with the trusted and brilliant help of my best friend Tom, Mr Adrian, Jo, Jo, Kathy, Iris & Alan we got cracking on moving 10 tonnes of york stone to create 3 mountain ranges in central africa!
However the highlight of my plant-filled life this year has been the flowering of my beloved Silver Princess (Eucalyptus caesia). I collected this cracker in Australia in 1999. It produced corking deep pink large flowers for the first time in UK history last year & is at it again in 2007 but with many more blooms. Gosh this flower flicks my horticultural switch!! SEE WEBSITE FOR PIC OF SILVER PRINCESS.
Moreover the King Protea (Protea cynaroides) is flowering in the new polytunnel (which incidentally hold over 1,000 different plant species lifted from the world garden last autumn thus escaping from Mr Jack Frost). A bonus too this mild winter is that there's hardly an frost damage in the world garden - wowsers its been a mild one!!! In fact only one night of below -7c so far that lightly chilled in particular my South African delights!! The gusty winds have been more of a problem - i lost my biggest Eucalyptus (58.5ft) a few thursday's back! I've wiped the tears from my cheeks now coz i'll re-plant this year in the knowledge that my recently wind felled beauty was only 7 years old from seed!
Oh by the way please watch out for the BBC 2 tele series starting on March 5th which captures the ongoing developments of the world garden & the colouful characters here at my family home - Lullingstone Castle.
Lots of horticultural hugs to you all & may 2007 bring you many gardening, floral delights,
As ever lots of hugs from your horticulturally endowed plant nut,
Tom Hart DykexXx.
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