Talk on Reginald Farrer

Talk

Talk by Kate van Heel:  Reginald Farrer, Botanist, Plant Hunter and Writer (1880 – 1920)

Kate

In true Friday Forum tradition and following on from Carl and the late Celia,  we were treated to a very interesting and informative talk on the subject of Reginald Farrer.

Kate would take her pupils on residential trips to Ingleborough Hall in Clapham, North Yorkshire.  On one such trip, Kate bought a Viburnum farreri, not realising that this was a plant named after Reginald Farrer which he brought back from China and who once owned and lived in Ingleborough Hall.

Farrer came from a wealthy family and travelled widely bringing back plants from the Riviera and European Alps, where he was accompanied by E A Bowles.  He then embarked on expeditions to Eastern Asia where he developed strong views on rock garden design saying, “where naturalism superseded formal artificiality, and where alpine plants were to grow in surroundings which, though ordered by man, copied as far as possible their original habitats”; clearly ahead of his time.

In 1907, Farrer published his popular and influential book My Rock Garden which was in print for more than 40 years.  While in Japan he was attracted to Buddhism and, when visiting Ceylon the next year, he became a Buddhist.

Farrer later founded the Craven Nursery in Clapham which specialised in Asian alpines hoping to introduce these to British gardeners.

For those members who missed the talk, a more detailed version of the talk is available.

Some illustrations of Farrer and further information can be found at

 Reginald Farrer - Plant hunter and writer - Alpine Garden Society

If any other Friday Forum members would like to give a presentation, please let Kate know.

Display Table

Judith’s display in a basket is made up of small pots of cheap and cheerful plants to give this stunning effect:  Cyclamen Solanum, Hellebore Silver Dollar, The barbed wire plant Calocephalus brownie and Begonia

Gill J’s Rose in full flower mid-November and Fatsia Japonica looking so attractive at this time of year

Kate’s pot of Tulbaghia, a pretty flower from the Amaryllis family with pungent leaves

Kate’s jug shows there can still be plenty of interest in the garden at this time of year:  the scented and floriferous Rosa Blush Noisette, Cotinus coggygria Royal Purple, Persicaria campanulata, Verbena rigida, the early dpring shrub, Edgeworthia chrysantha with yellow scented flowers.  In Japan, the shrub’s bark is used for making durable tissue paper called Mitsumata paper which is used for making bank notes

Next Meeting  3^rd December: Christmas Flower Arranging.  Please bring along anything you have made or some material for an arrangement you would like to make for a Christmas decoration.  Help will be on hand from Judith and Norma.