What a mild 2025 December we are having! So mild, the weather is confusing some plants, such as lavender, Calendula and yellow-flowered Phlomis, out in flower at present.
One of the joys of winter is admiring all the window boxes, the wide variety of beautiful Christmas door-wreaths and observing what’s flowering in front gardens whilst out strolling.
December is a month when the garden often takes a back seat, and when Pat deserves a break from helping you all with your garden jobs, so the CABAHS Committee have come up with a list of 10 Things that they are doing this month in, from, or for their gardens.
Everyone enjoyed seeing the autumn colour in CABAHS members gardens, so we thought we’d like to see some more – this time on the theme of ‘ingredients for a winter wreath’. People submitted photographs of evergreen shrubs and perennials, winter flowers, berries and seedheads, and here they all are, compiled into virtual wreaths – complete with festive bows! If you contributed a photo, can you spot your plant or plants?
One of the joys of walking around the neighbourhood is noticing what’s growing in front gardens and I like to stop and admire the imaginatively designed Xmas wreaths on doors at this time of year, planted window boxes and containers, and see what else is flowering in residents’ borders. And, when at bus stops, I have more time to absorb what’s around me.
So, at a bus stop a few days ago I noticed Clematis ‘Freckles’ cascading over the wall of CABAHS member Linda W’s garden.
Linda tells me that she bought the clematis six years ago at around this time of the year – with its grey, dank days – “when one needs cheering up and it has not disappointed.” Linda also says that although the vine was slow to establish when planted on the cooler side of the property, it has really taken off. It was planted with a honeysuckle and it flowers profusely in the south/south-west boundary wall. In the summer months it can soak up the sun and in the winter is sheltered by the brick boundary wall.
Continue reading Plant of the Month: Clematis cirrhosa ‘Freckles’ (December 2024)The park is sparkling! Our visit to the first night of Sparkle was very impressive, the light installations have been fitted really thoughtfully around the layout of Charlton House grounds.
The trail starts by the Mulberry, and the avenue of trees have been lit up beautifully as you walk through a snow storm and then past installations based on Christmases in Ukraine, St Lucia and Lagos. We loved the Ukrainian stars decorated by local schoolchildren.
At the end of the avenue you turn back towards the House – and can’t miss the glowing giant spheres (sorry, I didn’t note down the artistic reasoning for those, but they are certainly eye-catching!) and beautiful blue and white snowflakes played onto the back of the House.
As a special, early, Christmas treat, on a very mild evening on 30th November 2023, a friend and I visited Greenwich Council’s Light Festival, the magical Sparkle in the Park, held this year at Avery Hill Park. This was Greenwich Council’s 4th Sparkle in the Park event, this time featuring many new displays, and it was nice to see the many artists being acknowledged for their spectacular creations. The excitement was palpable as the winter wonderland trail lead visitors through an illumination of lights and enchanting displays amongst the trees.
At this ho-ho jolly time of year I expect everyone is looking forward to getting some good Christmas gardening presents! (Yes? No? Bah Humbug?)
I asked the committee what ideas they have this year, and we came up with the selection below. I hope it gives you some inspiration, or at least is something you can use when asked the dreaded question “What would you like for Christmas this year?”
Books: The Power of Trees by Peter Wohlleben. This was reviewed recently in the RHS magazine and I have seen it recommended elsewhere too. Waterstones says it is “a manifesto aimed at preserving the future of our forests and debunking accepted wisdom about tree-planting schemes”.
Books: What did the Tree See by Charlotte Guillain. I bought this for my grandson, it’s one of those childrens books that covers a huge age range. He is far too young to understand the whole thing at 3, but loves the pictures and storytelling. Much older children will like the historical side of it. And OAP’s like me love it too!
Continue reading Are we Feeling Christmas-y yet?As a Garden Volunteer at Charlton House Gardens, I was recently asked to explain what makes the walled gardens and estate “unique”. The question was born of a genuine desire to understand and perhaps help the gardens become better known. Of course, it’s one of those questions that you go away and carry on thinking about.. and wonder what you should have said.
I asked our regular Volunteers what they thought (they keep on coming back, so they must love it for some reason!)
Lots of great ideas came up around biodiversity and pollinators and sustainability. But you could argue that every garden is unique – what makes this particular combination of place and plants so special? We kept coming back to community spirit – particularly as the gardens have had only a tiny amount of external funding – the majority of their transformation has come from community fund raising and effort, and crucially, the use of a professional garden designer.
A good point was made that if you compare Charlton House Gardens with, say, Greenwich Royal Park, Charlton attracts mostly local people and not your average tourist – so there is an great feeling of ownership and responsibility. They may attract the discerning tourist in future (we certainly hope they do) but for now they are in “our” Trust.
We often call the Old Pond Garden the “Secret Garden”, after Frances Hodgson Burnett’s childrens story, but one Volunteer suggested the Lost Gardens of Charlton (Heligan) might be a better comparison now, as we re-discover and re-imagine the original spaces.
What do YOU think? Send in your ideas of why Charlton House Gardens are unique, we would love to hear from you (anyone, not just members) to cabahshortisoc@gmail.com. We will encapsulate your ideas into one “unique” statement in the New Year – and hopefully answer that question.
Kathy
Welcome to Winter in the garden, and all the many lovely shades of brown. So many seedheads, grasses and winter leaves are keeping the Old Pond Garden looking beautiful. November was incredibly wet but the Volunteers tackled some great projects. The shrubbery in the front car park has benefitted from a comprehensive weed and some marathon pruning. A soakaway was dug by the steps to the Montessori Nursery, so that parents can pick up the kids without needing waders. Then it was on to bulb planting – we predict a River of Purple (Alliums) through the beds next year!
Wreath making and decorating this week. Our upcycled pallet makes a great Christmas Tree!
The volunteers wish everyone a very Happy Christmas!
Charlton and Blackheath Amateur Horticultural Society 