I recall in the early 1980s when I started my professional horticultural career as a nurseryman, admiring the Welsh Poppies from the glasshouses, colonising the grass areas that surrounded the acres of glasshouse on the east side of the Arreton Valley on the Isle Of Wight. With no mow…

The Hybrid Hellebores are currently a real showpiece on the edges of the woodland setting at the Lakeside garden. Companion planting includes Cyclamen coum and Crocus tommasinianus. The colour tones of Hybrid Hellebores are quite something to behold, rich burgundy, plum, deep black-purple, greenish tints, pink/white flowers, deep apple greens,…

It’s this very practical time of the year that I really love and enjoy the garden that bit more, (that may seem strange to some gardeners !) it prepares the way for the new growing season, to get the best from our hardy perennials.  The cool glasshouse is filled with…

It’s that time of year to rethink the perennial borders. I like to leave as much interest as possible on display, even if it’s the various structures of foliage until the frost takes them, in addition to that I leave dried seed heads and stems of various perennials through the…

Helleborus – Orientalis It’s just not easy to spot an entire Hellebore plant at this time of year that doesn’t display the fungal signs of black spot on the leaves. Helleborus orientalis the Lenten rose seems particularly susceptible as with  the caulescent species of Hellebores. Hellebores do of course display…

Galanthus nivalisThere are about  20 species of the common snowdrop Galanthus nivalis, but as a genus it is far more widespread, comprising approximately 1,500 cultivars ! Snowdrops were introduced into this country in the late 16 century from europe. Unfortunately the current  Conservation Status of Galanthus is near threatened !…

Posted on 14.10.2022 | Added in Eco Plant Whisperer Salvia x jamensis ‘Hot Lips’ Salvias comprise approximately 1000 species of annuals & perennials that belong to the family ( Lamiaceae) from South America. At the Lakeside Garden we have been propagating and increasing on a collection of various Salvia species…

Posted on 08.08.2022 | Added in Eco Plant Whisperer Lobelia tupa The eye catching blood red tubular flowers of Lobelia tupa makes this perennial a strong talking point! Commonly known as Devil’s Tobacco, Lobelia tupa belongs to the family (Campanulaceae) and is native to Chile.  The morphology of the flowers…

Posted on 14.07.2022 | Added in Eco Plant Whisperer Cephalaria Gigantea This eye catching perennial makes a real statement in height, colour, and flower formation. The majestic yellow flowering Scabious is a member of the Honeysuckle family (Caprifoliaceae) and is native to Turkey.  This exhuberant plant grows in open meadows…

Posted on 09.05.2022 | Added in Eco Plant Whisperer I spend a lot of time in the spring working on rockeries, and it’s an admission of mine that it really is one of my favourite aspects of gardening ! It’s that element of really getting drawn into the fact that…

Posted on 19.02.2022 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens It’s that time of year when it’s a good idea to really get to grips with planning ahead for the woodland garden. The Cyclamen coum are striking and flourishing here at the Lakeside Hotel Garden  after some TLC, recovering…

Posted on 02.10.2021 | Added in Eco Plant Whisperer Veronicastrum virginicum ‘Album’ Let’s get close up and personal with this gem of a perennial ! Just look at that plant morphology ! It’s when you really get to close quarters with plants that you begin to appreciate their merits more and…

Posted on 10.09.2021 | Updated on 03.10.2021 | Added in Eco Plant Whisperer Rhodochiton atrosanguineus To nurture this South American climber  from Mexico through the winter in the lakes is a horticultural challenge.  It can be grown as an annual climber in temperate zones, a half hardy or hardy specimen…

Posted on 28.08.2021 | Updated on 03.10.2021 | Added in Eco Plant Whisperer What I am really enjoying now working  as a Horticultural Plant consultant is the variation of work within each week. One of the aspects I really enjoy is planting combinations ! Plant associations and how plants visually…

Posted on 05.01.2021 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens Brightening up  along the  base/ edge of the Beech hedge was my main priority for this winter as a late autumn task. Cyclamen coum fit the bill nicely and will flower from December until March. The shades of deep…

Posted on 01.09.2020 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens Planting propagated Penstemon cuttings It’s just one of those personal targets! to get a task done in my last week at Hipping Hall before I start my new gardening position in early September. The Penstemons have rooted from cuttings…

Posted on 01.06.2020 | Updated on 20.06.2020 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens The sight of Crinodendron hookerianum (Chilean Lantern Tree)  family –  (Elaeocarpaceae) is really something to behold from the month of May through to August. If these beautiful pendant/lantern bright red flowers don’t stop you in…

Posted on 16.12.2019 | Updated on 17.12.2019 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens I’m just grasping the moment to take semi ripe / hardwood cuttings of a various number of species of hardy fuchsia. These hardy perennials will also strike well from greenwood cuttings taken in the summer. That…

Posted on 26.11.2019 | Updated on 18.12.2019 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens This week’s seasonal task is potting on rooted Syringa vulgaris cuttings at Hipping Hall taken last autumn 2017. I took these cuttings from a rather sad looking lonesome lilac tree which borders a moss lawn…

Posted on 03.10.2018 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens Syringa vulgaris This week’s seasonal task is potting on rooted Syringa vulgaris cuttings at Hipping Hall taken last autumn 2017. I took these cuttings from a rather sad looking lonesome Lilac tree which borders a moss lawn project I have…

Updated on 11.10.2018 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens I think Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’ really sets the scene at the start of the autumn. One of the planting projects at the Ryebeck, Lake Windermere has been to replant an end section of a Hydrangea border comprising the good old…

Posted on 12.06.2018 | Updated on 19.06.2018 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens Omphalodes cappadocica ‘Starry Eyes’ is a real winner in the garden at Hipping Hall in Kirkby Lonsdale, situated on the border of the Yorkshire Dales. This last winter I pruned the Omphalodes hard back, right to…

Posted on 28.01.2018 | Updated on 11.06.2018 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens When I started working at the Ryebeck Hotel garden, Bowness On Windermere late January last year, the Camellia sinensis were situated in a very exposed north east aspect. Most of them looked worse for wear…

Updated on 15.06.2018 | Added in Kevin’s Propagation/Plant Focus Blog/Healing Gardens This is one of my choice selections for late summer/autumn pollinators, Helenium ‘Sombrero’. I am currently developing a border for pollinators, bees, butterflies etc, they need all the help they can get.      Last year was a particularly poor year for…