Virtual Friday Forum on Good Friday 2021

Another Friday Forum catch-up allowing us to find out what is looking good just now in the gardens of our members plus Easter decorations for the house.

We had beautiful examples of a wide range of spring flowers and shrubs from pastel shades to vibrant colours.  Here are a few:

In Dorothy's garden

White flowering currant

 Pulmonaria

 Helleborous

In Kate's garden

Trillium chloropetalum ‘Album’ ?

Pulmonaria ‘Blue Ensign’ with Millium effusum ‘Aureum’ and ‘Brazen Hussy’

Camellia ‘Silver Wedding’

Ipheion ‘Alberto Castillo’

The heron keeping an eye on the tadpoles!

A vase of spring flowers from Linda's garden

Flowering Blackcurrant, Polyanthus, Marsh Marigold, Muscari, Bergenia, Bowles Mauve and Daffies Talia and Minnow.

If you are interested in Erythroniums, this link takes you to a talk with Keith Wiley and Carol Klein.

(82) Keith Wiley's Erythronium - YouTube

… and finally, I thought this poem by Robert Frost sums up  the weather in April.

"The sun was warm but the wind was chill.
You know how it is with an April day.
When the sun is out and the wind is still,
You're one month on in the middle of May.
But if you so much as dare to speak,
a cloud come over the sunlit arch,
And wind comes off a frozen peak,
And you're two months back in the middle of March."
-  Robert Frost, Two Tramps in Mud Time, 1926 

 

 

Virtual Friday Forum meeting March 2021

 So we’ve reached meteorological Spring after a very strange year.  It’s almost soothing to see the normal stuff like snowdrops appearing.

Here are pictures of what is happening in the gardens of some of our members:

Derek and Olwen

Snowdrops in front and back gardens

Dorothy

Iris reticulata

Carol

An impressive collection of Spring plants

Linda

In addition to the snowdrops and crocuses

 Third Age: Six on Saturday: Signs of Spring (thirdageblogger.blogspot.com)

Maggie:

An elegant arrangement of Galanthus ‘Magnet’, Narcissus ‘Snow Baby’ and Narcissus ‘Tete a Tete’

Judith

Judith's signature basket

Other plants include Polyanthus Blue Denim, Hellebores, Crocus and Corydalis

Kate:

First bloom of my Camellia ‘Silver wedding’

Tete a tete daffodils

Edgeworthia chrysantha flowers are just coming out. They have an amazing scent.

I like this corner of the garden when the Skimmia flowers and the Fastsia ‘Spiders Web’ is showing new leaves.

                                                                                                                                             

Gill J

Crocus ‘Cream Beauty’ which were sent last autumn in place of the ones you all told me last spring were NOT ! They just need some sun to show off their beauty!

 Two contrasting snowdrops, possibly S.Arnot, and galanthus nivalis

Narcissus Spring Dawn, been out about 3 weeks now.

Jenny showed us a Fieldgate snowdrop she has had for over 30 years and tiny narcissus, both of which are kept in the greenhouse.  Sue showed us her Anemone blanda, Erythroniums, Leucojums and Snowdrops.  Sef has snowdrops which have self-seeded into his garden and Norma showed a bowl of Iris Harmony.

In true GQT style, member Dorothy sent in this question:

My friend is wanting to plant small evergreen shrubs/trees not Box or Azalea type. Can Friday Forum suggest anything please?

 

The shrubs that everyone suggested are: 

Euonymus Jean Hughes

Ilex crenata ( good substitute for box )

Hebe varieties

Sarcococca

Pittosporum 'Tom Thumb’

Pittosporum 'Golf Ball’

Amelachier lamarkii (not evergreen)

Mahonia aquifolium  ‘Apollo'

For very small shrubs contact the Alpine society.

Kate recommended this book by Andy McIndoe called Shrubs! It’s part of the Hillier Gardener’s Guides.

I hope these ideas prove useful and we hear of the outcome.

Virtual Friday Forum; First Meeting of 2021

 

The theme of this meeting was to be what can be seen in your garden ……. best laid plans.

We did have quite a few members telling us what has been doing well at the moment and delighting them at this bleak time.  We also heard how the snow had damaged various trees and shrubs, sometimes quite badly.

Lizzie B

This Camellia has been out since early December.  Does anyone know its name?

Tête-à-tête trying to push through the snow

Maggie

A bit of colour (taken before the snow)

Linda:

Variegated Vinca, Bowles Mauve, a descendant of the original plant given to me by Margaret H, Winter Jasmine land Viburnum tinus.

Norma:

Norma sent this lovely photo of her flower arrangement suggested by a flower arranger to the Queen.

You need a pretty tray, I used a jam jar, a vinegar bottle, two wine glasses and two pieces from a dressing table set. Spring flowers are lovely. I used Tulips, Freesia, Forsythia twigs and Garrya elliptical.  

If you have time on your hands or perhaps starting a new garden, check out this link

Free fast-track garden design classes online (successfulgardendesigner.com)

Her blog and the rest of the website also looks interesting.

Looking forward to the gardening year ahead ....

Photo: courtesy Ann from the Feb 2020 display table

Virtual Friday Forum Christmas Party

Friday Forum members started the virtual party season early.  Guests dressed for the occasion and had a festive drink and snack on hand.

Everyone contributed a Christmas-themed joke or two to get us in the party mood followed by a quiz, set by Kate and won by Judith, which was both eclectic and challenging.

Some members made beautiful wreaths.  This is Judith's:

Liz still has colour from these flowers in the garden:

Liz says:  I took this pic of Astrantia Bo Ann on Dec 1st. I bought it from Jimi Blake’s garden in Dublin last year. He said it is the longest flowering plant in his garden, and it has certainly proved to be the same in mine.

Bidens

Wishing our members and readers a merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and peaceful New Year.

  

Virtual Friday Forum 15

 

 

There was a good attendance for what is now our 15^th virtual meeting and we were happy to welcome a new member to the room.  It will never replace our meetings at Paxton where we were able to touch, smell and buy the plants as well as have a cup of tea and a chat, but hopefully these virtual meetings and our Friday Forum blog will keep us going until normal service resumes.

Gremlins were at work again and Jenny couldn’t make herself heard, so her contributions turned into a sort of name-this-plant quiz which Sue G won by a country mile.

Carol still has plenty of interest and colour in her garden:

 Leyesteria Formula (Autumn berries)

Mahonia   (just coming into flower)

 Morina Longifolia

Standard Flower Carpet Pink tree 

Acer  Palmatum Seiryu

Abutilon megapotamicum 

 Cotoneaster

 Nerine bowdenii

 Arbutus (strawberry tree)

Maggie M couldn’t join us this month but sent in a photo of her late bumper tomato crop

Judith:

Judith introduced us to the idea of leaving seasonal plants in their pots and arranging in a basket meaning, as the season changes, new plants can be easily substituted.  Since learning about this, I have copied this idea and have an ever-changing basket by my front doorstep.

Linda: 

 (WIP) An autumn/winter wreath using pine cones, ivy flowers tinted gold, holly and rose hips

 

Sue Gray and her Autumn pinks:

 Nerine bowdenii

 Bergenia ‘Tubby Andrews’

Sorbus ‘Pink Pagoda’ 

Maggie:

  Dolly tub planted with heathers, pansies, ivies and Heuchura ‘Bronze Beauty’ +  Bulbs waiting to appear in the spring

Persicaria from the Friday Forum plant stall.   Unknown 

Autumn colours from my garden, including
Ceratostigma Willmottianum and Plumbaginoides -  bronze foliage and blue flowers
Persicaria
Hesperantha (unknown)
Cotoneaster
Japanese anemones
Sedum and Ivy 
Toaster unknown 

Amanda: 

Parrotia persica leaves  

Kate: 

 From left to right Persicaria campanulata
Pelargonium capitatum
Anisodontea ‘El Royo’
Hebe ‘Donna’

,

  Panicum ‘Purple Haze’

Thelma showed us her vase of grasses and Chinese lanterns and Norma showed us her birthday bouquet from Friday Forum.

There was also some discussion on Heuchera Autumn Bride and Rue.  

Martin Fish is moving house as he wants to develop an open woodland garden.  Anyone fancy moving to a well maintained garden in Rainton? 

We had some tasty, hearty soup recipes for the colder weather which can be found on the Recipes page.

A potential nursery to explore in Harrogate click on  https://www.harrogate.gov.uk/parks-woodlands/plants-sale where you can find more details and opening hours. Nursery Lane East, off Harlow Moor Road in Harrogate  (Postcode HG2 0FH in your satnav).