Members’ gardens – Charlton and Blackheath Amateur Horticultural Society

Plant of the Month: Pelargonium Pt.2 (October 2026)

Plant Fairs are irresistible places: my planned budget (every single year) goes completely out the window by the time I reach the very first stall! Which means that I usually end the day spending three times my allotted budget. But, I am happy and very content with my purchases, especially when I take home choice Pelargoniums that I’ve not seen before. These are the varieties, apart from Pelargonium sidoides, that have been purchased at various stalls at the Horniman Museum Plant Fairs during 2025 and 2026.

Pelargonium ‘Black Prince’

The photo of this very handsome specimen, taken during the summer, is one of Margaret T’s plants, purchased in 2025 at the above fair. This is an old, 1852 cultivar and I am not surprised it’s been around for so long, as it’s just so gorgeous to gaze at: rich, deep purple-wine petals, set off by white edges and white centres.

This is a Pelargonium everyone should have.

Top tables

Class 15 (‘photograph of a display of plants on a table’) in our recent Flower, Fruit and Vegetable Show revealed a lovely variety of interpretations again this year (see last year’s tables for further inspiration). All are expressions of nature’s bounty, whether displaying the fruits – and flowers – of the summer’s labours or the exciting potential of seeds and cuttings. Indoors or outdoors, many choose to display tender plants in containers, enabling easy frost-protection later in the year.

Class 15 2026: a display of plants on a table

Plant of the Month: Pelargonium Pt.1 (September 2026)

Every home should have at least one Pelargonium and, once you have one, you will most definitely want more. There is something so uplifting when seeing a Pelargonium in a pot, whether it’s flowering or not. Some can flower from early spring until the early frosts, but September, to my mind, is the month when many come into their own, generally sending out multiple flowering shoots to delight the eye. But they are all regarded as tender and should be brought indoors before the first frost of the season.

The following plants are in Vija’s garden, enjoying the present sunshine, amongst her table displays.

Plant of the Month: Solanum laxum ‘Crèche du Pape’ (August 2026)

Long-flowering, no-fuss species/varieties are ever so handy to have in our gardens, especially roses and climbers, which I’ve not watered at all this summer – a big bonus! One of these, Solanum ‘Crèche du Pape’, probably purchased 16-17 years ago, is such a plant – no trouble at all and flowering for months at a time. I wouldn’t be without it.

Weather winners and losers

NB: We have just heard about an RHS survey about the impact of the recent weather: RHS Climate Change Resilience: Heatwave Impact on Gardens which has to be completed by 30 September 2026.

Following on from Pat’s ’10 Jobs…’ tips on coping with drought and heat, we asked CABAHS members to share which plants had proved to be ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ in the recent extreme weather, to help us all make climate-change-appropriate choices in the future.

Charlton House Peace Garden, July 2026 Pomegranate, Magnolia grandiflora and perovskia are all winners — Pomegranate, *Magnolia grandiflora* and *Salvia yangii* (aka perovskia) are all winners in the Charlton House Peace Garden this year

A summary: After the spring AND summer drought of 2025 (with four of the previous five years being the warmest on record), we experienced a cold November and a wet winter (the 4th wettest on record for Southern England), with the addition of unusually low light levels in early spring. We have now had extreme drought (no rain at all since early June and counting – and there were long dry periods before that too) and, so far, several heatwaves (which is counted as three or more consecutive days over 28 degrees in London – all have been in the 30s). Of course, the heatwaves may have counted six times (starting on 22 May, 19 June, 4 July, 28 July, 2 August and 9 August respectively) but the weather hasn’t exactly cooled off much in between. In addition, Thames Water declared a hosepipe ban beginning on 23 July (though watering cans and drip-feed systems are not banned) and there’s precious little rain showing in the forecast even now.

Plant of the Month: Tithonia (July 2026)

Being very partial to soft-orange and terracotta-orange coloured flowers, I am delighted that from my kitchen I can enjoy the vibrant, terracotta-orange flowers of the statuesque Tithonia rotundifolia. The flowers are an absolute delight, lighting up my garden at the moment, and, hopefully will do so until October.

Tithonia rotundifolia Daniel Hincapie CC BY 4.0 via easyscape.com

I’ve never tried sowing seed of this wonderful variety but I will experiment next year. I spied this plant for sale when visiting one of the lovely gardens open for the Greenwich and Bexley Hospice Open Gardens, held once again in June, to the delight of local residents.

Plant(s) of the Month: The Purples (June 2026)

Clematis ‘John Treasure’ (Viticella)
This free-flowering and vigorous Clematis has been growing on the north side of my garden fence – for many years, as the label reads £3.50!

Plant(s) of the Month: The Whites (May 2026)

A blue sky has appeared, white clouds are in retreat and the white flower clusters are glowing in the bright sunshine, after two days of rain.

Outside my window, Matthiola perennis ‘Alba’, the white scented stock, is soaking up the warmth of the sun. Classed as a short-lived perennial, this cluster is most likely 6-7 years old now, with grey-green foliage and flower clusters sitting atop tall, 3 foot, woody stems. Wonderfully perfumed, preferring shelter, full sun, good drainage and poor soil.

Matthiola perennis 'Alba' (white scented stock)

Plant of the Month: Camellia (April 2026)

It really is a privilege to be invited into other people’s gardens, where the host is allowing us to peek into their private spaces, their secluded oasis and, we, the invitees, do feel very honoured on such an occasion. We see their tastes, their flair, their artistry of everything that make their garden special, thus revealing a little of themselves in the process.

Some are lucky enough to inherit established plants and Juli F is one of those gardeners who embraced her south-facing courtyard garden and the already mature crimson-flowered Camellia that came with it.

Small gardens

What is a small garden?

Margaret P's garden — Small is beautiful. Margaret P’s garden.

Technically, a small garden is considered to be one that is approximately 100m² (33 x 33ft) or less. While the average UK garden is apparently about twice that size (225m²– almost a tennis court), and most new build etc gardens are about half the size of ‘small’ (50m²), we are based in London and what really defines a small garden is probably more a matter of opinion and perception than exact dimensions. To complicate the topic further, many larger gardens are divided into smaller spaces or ‘rooms’, which will often have features and considerations in common with smaller gardens.