28 Marsden Road SE15 4EE, Open Sunday to Thursday inclusive, 10.30 to 16.30. No charge
We are members of the London Wildlife Trust, which runs the Centre for Wildlife Gardening (CWG), but it was word-of-mouth from a volunteer at Christchurch Community Garden that made us aware. We visited on London Marathon Day, passing through a crowded Blackheath Station on our way to Peckham Rye Station.
Marsden Road itself is remarkable: its houses all along have designer ironwork gates & railings on wildlife themes, and each lamppost has a ‘squirrel’ high above. These, and the wildlife-themed iron gates to CWG, were designed by Heather Burrell: bollards at the entrance and within were designed by Antony Gormley: a gable-end has a large mural of a Goshawk.
One morning in mid-April – the warmest of the month so far, I had the pleasure of visiting our ex-chairman, Jillian S, to see the display of her stunningly beautiful tree peony flowers. These are well established shrubs with one or two still in bud and the rest nearly finished flowering, apart from the 2-metre species Paeonia delavayi, which is covered in red flowers and buds.
Every gardener should possess at least one tree peony – just to experience their few weeks of fleeting beauty – and, of course, their very handsome and large foliage, which is an added bonus to every garden for many months of the year.
I noticed that Jillian’s tree peonies have or had far more buds than mine, which is about 20 years old. Why is that? Jillian tells me that she has always had a strict policy upon purchasing any plant, including the tree peonies, and that is to immediately repot the plant with one-third multi-purpose and two-thirds of soil from her own garden. Only when the roots have established themselves in the new soil mix does Jillian then plant them in her borders. This method ensures there are fewer plant losses as the roots get the chance to adjust slowly to the change of soil, with the outcome being much stronger and robust root systems and, ultimately, stronger and healthier plants. And, that is the best gardening tip I have ever received!
Jillian tells me that all her peony varieties (Paeonia x suffruticosa) arrived as ‘freebies’ during 2009 and 2011, as special offers advertised in one of our major newspapers. They would arrive in good condition: an 18” stem with two or three branches and a sturdy root system of approximately 9” in length. These would, after potting on, be left for around 9 months to 1-year before being planted into a bed. In springtime, from then on, when the soil is still moist, a mulch of homegrown compost is added around the base of the plants to retain the health of these specimens.
Over the years, Jillian has diligently and systematically recorded in notebooks all of her purchases. And in one of her notebooks she has found her notes on the exact dates the tree peonies arrived: 4th June 2009: Hai Huang Yao (yellow) and Huang Hu Huang Dao Jin (cerise with white splashes). 11th November 2009: Wu Long Peng Sheng (pink/red) and Honxia Hu Hong (pink). 23rd April 2011: Wedding Day.
Peonies prefer morning sun and dappled shade if possible and Jillian’s peonies are perfectly positioned, growing on the north side in the spring garden, some protected by the apple trees. Very little pruning is necessary but I notice that Jillian’s tree peonies are more elegant than my shrub, so a little judicious pruning on my part would not go amiss!
I, too, have a comfy seat looking out on my garden where I spend many happy hours deciding what changes need to be made in my garden (there is always something).
I am currently enjoying watching my pots of bulbs grow and begin to flower. I posted a photo on Facebook of my Harmony irises and my friend in Norfolk (who I think was rather envious) suggested I had a microclimate in my garden. It is very sheltered and faces west so maybe I do.
I have just decided to empty my rather unsightly compost bin and replace it with a smaller, more discreet one. I therefore have a large pile of compost which I am in the process of shovelling around the garden. I am expecting a spectacular display later in the year!
My Clematis Armandii under the tree is budding nicely. I planted it some years ago and was disappointed last year that I had so few flowers on it. That was until I looked out from the upstairs window and discovered that my neighbours were enjoying a beautiful display! It had put all its energy into growing to a lighter spot in the garden next door!
I find this time of year quite difficult garden-wise, especially when the weather is mild, as it is at the moment. I am having to restrain myself from going wild with the secateurs and cutting everything back. I shall wait another month before giving my clematis, roses and salvia a good hair cut. I think it is also time to give the Hibiscus Syriacus Woodbridge a trim as it has grown rather tall and thin.
I hope other people will write about their views, as Kathy suggested.
A few years ago I cleared out my greenhouse following the losses of the winter and dumped in my compost the remains of pelargoniums and other dead items. It’s always a little sad to lose much loved plants which have given you their best. I then had some fun ordering new plants to replace the old ones (and some others!). A couple of weeks later, I found several of my ‘dead’ pelargoniums lying in the compost and sprouting new shoots from the roots. Of course, I swiftly took them out and potted them up to achieve lovely healthy plants. I am now a little less impatient to discard anything that looks dead.
As always, we didn’t get around to answering all your questions at our August GQT meeting (I’m very sure they don’t manage to on the radio programme either!). But you may remember that Annie H brought in her strange distorted tomatoes to show everyone. If it had not been for the biblical deluge, I expect we would have had a good discussion about them.
Annie H’s weird tomatoes!
Annie was undaunted by getting no answers at the meeting, and contacted the RHS directly. She says, “I was informed that the most likely cause was a too high concentration of a contaminated farmyard manure compost in the pots. The farmers spread weedkiller/ pesticide on the field, the grass grows and the cattle dump cowpats which are composted and then bagged up for sale but still contains residues of weedkiller/ pesticide.”
Thank you for this Annie, something for us all to watch out for. It would be interesting to hear from other members if they have had a similar experience.
Juli’s project to keep busy has been making a bird table. She says it took the birds less than a day to find it, and she’s restocking it daily. She now has 6 feeders and 3 coconut suet holders, and her garden is quite small. A real hit with the wildlife though!
This common Hawthorn in full flower is one of many that line the Vanburgh Pits, just by the top Maze Hill entrance to Greenwich Park. It is magnificent, and makes you wonder why we bother to buy and grow pampered garden shrubs like Spirea etc.!
Anna’s Coronilla was purchased as a small cutting from a garden Open Day. It grows happily in a pot and flowers around now for about 2 months. Every garden should have one!
Here is another from Anna, a pretty Epimedium pubigerum, in flower now. The common name for it is Hairy Barrenwort – rather nasty, I can see why we all stick to “Epimediums” even if that doesn’t trip off the tongue either.
Below is Juli’s apple tree in blossom overload. She says it is usually a biennial fruit bearer and wasn’t expecting much from it this year. Either the mild winter, or the fact it didn’t crop heavily last year, has sent it into overdrive this year! Lots of apples for the Autumn Show maybe..
Angerstein Lane, going well over the top on tulips, just gorgeous!
Sara B has been out on dog walks and spotted some lovely blossom in Maryon Road, enjoyed her Whispering Dream tulips (a birthday present) and got crafty making the most of the spring flowers!
Vija’s pots of Narcissus, in the early morning April sunlight:
This is Juli’s “cloud-pruned” patio Cherry! It really couldn’t fit any more flowers on, I bet the bees just love it.
Here is Angela’s Iris japonica, or Fringed Iris, looking fab. The flowers are almost like orchids and seem to float above the foliage, which is why it is sometimes called the Butterfly Flower.
Below: Not very pretty perhaps, Kathy is very proud of her two year old “black gold”, especially as its so tricky to get hold of compost now!
Here’s Pat K’s Chionodoxa sardensis, in full bloom and some!
Charlton and Blackheath Amateur Horticultural Society 