The National Garden Scheme and Scape Lodge Garden

Presentation

Elizabeth and David Smith gave us a talk on the National Garden Scheme and the volunteers who open their gardens to the public with proceeds going to various charities. They are Yorkshire county volunteers and have opened their own garden for many years.

We learnt that the scheme, initiated by the philanthropist Elsie Wagg in 1927 when entrance to gardens was one shilling per head. Today the scheme includes 3300 gardens, 46 allotments, 56 community gardens and 12 hospices. Many allow dogs, offer tea and cake and sell plants. It is a lovely way to spend an afternoon, get ideas for your own garden and have refreshments.

Elizabeth then told us about their own garden; Scape Lodge in Huddersfield. When they first moved in the property was mostly conifers and heathers and perched on a hillside with poor soil. We were then shown a plan of the garden as it is now with illustrations to show the borders, greenhouse, pots and terraces as they are now in various seasons. The garden attracts a lot of wildlife. The local mayor makes an annual visit to the garden which has been featured on television on Gardeners World and Gardens of the Year. David and Elizabeth also brought plants for sale that are grown in their garden.

Display Table

On the display table this week:

 Kate brought Viburnum bodnatense 'Dawn', Camellia 'Simple Rouge', Chaenomoles 'Crimson and Gold', Ribes 'White Icicle', Prunus incisa 'Kojo-no-mail' and Pulmonaria 'Blue Ensign'.

 Sue brought a pot of Eucomis which are coming on well but wasn't sure whether to put them in a bigger pot or in the ground yet.

 Sue also brought a pot of Narcissus bulbocodium 'Arctic Bells'

 Dorothy brought a pot of tete a tete daffodils

Anne B brought an assortment of daffodils she found in the supermarket 

Next Meetings:  

4th April – Our Friday Forum Mini Show. The categories as follows and we hope you will enter in at least one category:

FRIDAY FORUM SPRING SHOW

CLASS 1 One vase containing one Daffodil

CLASS 2 One vase containing three Daffodils

CLASS 3 One vase containing three Tulips

CLASS 4 Container of Spring flowering bulbs

CLASS 5 One pot plant, indoor or outdoor

CLASS 6 One vase containing flowering branches

CLASS 7 Dish of floating flower heads

18th April – there will be no meeting as it is Good Friday

2nd May – Flower Festival. This year the theme is Finery in Flowers and we are asking members to decorate or make an article of clothing or fashion accessory with flowers eg Footwear, headgear, handbag/man bag, umbrella etc. Only two non-natural materials allowed such as plastic plant pot, Oasis or wellington boot (although you won't be penalised for lining your container with a plastic bag).

It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold; when it is summer in the light and winter in the shade. I think we all know that kind of Day - Dickens

We held the first meeting in our new venue. It was fitting that we started the meeting with Friday Forum’s AGM followed by a talk by Paxton chairman, John Freer.

Presentation

As always, John, who loves to experiment with growing plants, entertained and educated us. We found out that the UK grows more daffodils commercially than any other country and tete a tete bulbs come in sizes small with one flower, medium bearing two flower and large with 2 – 3 flowers. He grows newly acquired daffodil bulbs in a pot first in case they have a virus.

John brought along these plants and each one came with a story

 A three-year old Winter flowering Almond which flowers from November to May

 Pelargonium

 Daffodil bulbocodium Arctic Bells, Iris Sensation and Corydalis Beth Evans,Polyanthus and  Primula 

John brought his Streptocarpus leaf cuttings to show how they had grown

Vernal Equinox Table

Norma organised this charming table.  There are spring flowers and branches, feathers, (artificial) birds eggs and candles.

Display Table

 Carol’s Hyacinth is perhaps the latest of the distributed bulbs to flower

 Suzanne brought Hellebores including pretty Ellen White, niger Christmas Carol, Emma, red picotee and argutifolius, Skimmia confusa Kew Green and japonica rubella, Pulmonaria Raspberry Splash and the semi-evergreen Buckler Fern Drayoptens atata

 Ann brought the orange flowered ornithogalum from South Africa

 Ann also brought Hellebores Ashwood, Tibetanus, Yellow and argutifolius, Puschkinia, Galanthus double, Cardamine raphanifolia, Narcissus and Hepatica ballardii

 Maggie brought a pot of white Muscari

 Maggie also brought Narcissi: Snow baby, Jetfire, Tete-a-tete bearing three flowers and Magnolia stellata

Judith brought a pot of the attractive Tete a tete Bouclé and Amanda brought a double, yellow Snowdrop, Daphne, Erysimum, Rosemary, Hellebore, Amicia, the scented winter Pansy Blueberry Swirl and Primula (sorry no photos)

 

Kate brought Camellia Silver Anniversary, Hellebores: Double Ellen Pink, SP Sophie, Erysimum Bowles Mauve, Pachyphragma, Pulmonaria Blue Ensign, Crocus, Narcissus Tete a tete and Chaenomoles Crimson and Gold

Gardening Matters

Peter told us about a supplier of horse manure. Not sure about the names of the horses though! 

 NGS booklets were made available with details of Yorkshire Gardens open for charity this year. Our member Carol’s garden can be found at no. 64 of the booklet. What is nicer than a visit to a garden followed by tea and cake?

Next Meeting:  21st March - A presentation by David and Elizabeth Smith on  NGS and Scape Lodge Garden

Wildlife in our gardens in Winter

 

Wildlife in our gardens in Winter

Kate opened up the Forum with a recent article by Bunny Guinness who advises that flat, table type feeders and houses are a death trap to birds as they spread disease.

Members contributed advice such as food placed under shrubs with a barrier of twigs will allow blackbirds access rather than wood pigeons, an old table with logs and water is good for large birds, cage type feeders let little birds feed and keep out other wildlife. Other tips included hanging feeders with fishing twine or from washing lines, greasing poles or installing a baffle over feeders to deter squirrels and thinking about where to place feeders, perhaps from a tree with nearby shrubs for birds to feel safe. Maggie brought the ultimate in bird feeders, a hanging Flutter Butter (other brands available).

We discussed how our plants can feed the birds with their berries and seed heads and provide nesting materials.

Display Table

Dorothy’s Iris reticulata ‘Joyce’ 

 Dorothy’s vase has various Hellebores, Crocus, Solanum Capsicastrum, Primula, Cyclamen coum, Pulmonaria and Snowdrops

 Maggie brought Tinue ‘Eve Price’, Viburnum bodnantense, Vinca, the purple stemmed Sarcococca hookeriana and a Snowdrop from Sue G.

 

                                                         Sandra’s Snowdrops

 

 Judith brought Crocus, 2 x Hellebores plus variegated Hellebore foliage, Pittosporum ‘Tom Thumb’ and Cardamine

Kate’s brought scented plants: Sarcococca, Viburnum bodnantense, Hamamelis mollis ‘Arnold’s Promise’. Snowdrop ‘Savannah’ and Skimmia. 

 Norma’s seedlings of cactus ‘Golden Barrel’ which came from Derek

 A few of our late blooming Hyacinths which were expected to flower at Christmas:

Linda and Dorothy’s blue ones, Maggie M’s white, Norma’s yellow and Marjorie’s still to flower.

Gardening Matters

There will be a seed swap with refreshments on Saturday morning 1^st March between 10 and 12 at OPAL, 55 Bedford Drive, Cookridge LS16 6DJ. All welcome.

Next Meeting: 7^th March - Friday Forum AGM followed by talk from Lineham Farm about fundraising.

*This will be at our new venue St Chad's Parish Centre, Otley Road, Leeds LS16 5JT*

Snowdrops. Little bells of hope. Whispering “Spring is on its way” ...Unknown 🌱

 Presentation:  Heligan and the Eden Project 

John Freer is modelling his own knitted top and collects donations for his talks for Martin House 

John, who is chairman of Paxton, spoke about the lost gardens of Heligan and the Eden Project in Cornwall. 

Nobody was initially interested in Heligan and the land had been allowed to grow wild for 70 years.  The National Trust turned it down, estimating a 10-year renovation project at a cost of a million pounds.  As a result of two men, Smit and Nelson, going on local radio, 200 volunteers turned up to make a start on clearing the gardens.  

The history is really interesting and John, a regular visitor to Cornwall, was able to show us slides of his visits in the early days of the renovations. 

We saw the gardeners’ sheds and the tools they used.  The gardeners enlisted in WW1 and never returned.  In the vegetable garden, lead plant labels were discovered under the soil and, from these, they were able to recreate the vegetable garden.   

John went on to tell us about the making of the Eden Project.  This began in 1988 on the site of an old clay mine.  Housed mainly in biomes, giant greenhouses, this project was turned down by the lottery.  Students from a university climbing club helped to erect these enormous structures. Again, John showed us slides of how the project developed and the many problems they had to overcome. 

Display Table 

Some members brought in the Hyacinths which members started off as forced bulbs at the beginning of September and were supposed to flower at Christmas.  Some did, but others are still to flower 

Gill brought Snowdrops  'Mrs Macnamara' 

Derek brought in his tiny cacti ‘Golden Barrel’ produced from seed and grows very slowly 

Judith’s Amaryllis

  Trevor’s early flowering Hellebore ‘Christmas Carol’ 

Ann has plenty of colour in her garden:  Skimmia ‘Kew Green’. Hamamelis mollis, Hellebores: Molly’s White and a yellow one from the garden of the late Elizabeth Bidgood, Cyclamen coum and Iris unguicularis 

Next Meeting:  7th February: Forum - Looking after garden wildlife in Winter.