Wisteria Hysteria & Marwood in May
Mid May and the Wisteria arbour is in full bloom welcoming visitors to the gardens and creating a spectacular sight at the beginning of the gardens. Planted with 10 different plants, many years ago, the arbour is awash with the blues, pinks, purples and whites of the cascading flowers and a dramatic entrance to the tempting tearoom where a coffee or tea and cake, makes a great start to wander around the gardens with many plants bursting into flower this month.
Our lovely cover photo was taken by Mandy Dee from the Braunton Camera Club!
Continuing down the path, our hot and dry Mediterranean garden has recently been planted with colourful plants native of Southern Europe, South Africa, Australia and South America, all enjoying the good drainage that is in this part of the garden. We are fortunate in a garden of this size; 20 acres, that we have such a range of soils and environments that suit various types of plants. It is always best practice to use the correct plant for the correct location rather than force a plant to grow in an unsuitable one.
As the path wends its way around the top lake, an existing large area has been cleared and dug over and replanting is under way with new plants; always a challenge but a great thrill when it’s done and looks good.
Further around the corner, the Candelabra Primulas are opening their colourful flowers of pink, blues, yellow and reds which snake around the lake and along the stream and down the valley. By the time you reach the middle lake, a side path passes our stately handkerchief tree (Davidia involucrata) adorned with myriads of silvery hanging handkerchief like flowers.
Carrying on up that track brings you to, possibly the Plant of the Month, the Chilean Fire Bush, (Ebothrium coccineum), lighting up the surrounding vista with scarlet flowers. Quite a rare tree from South America and certainly worth visiting.
Spring is now rapidly turning into Summer, and more and more herbaceous perennials are coming into flower. Colourful Iris sibirica stand shoulder to shoulder with tree Peonies in the herbaceous borders, their flowers and foliage contrast and merge into a colour palette of yellows and blues.
In the walled garden, our plant sales area is looking quite impressive with a vast array of seasonal goodies – hopefully something to tempt everyone to buy a plant and take home something to remind them of Marwood gardens!
Whilst in the walled garden do look inside the Tulbaghia greenhouse, these dwarf plants native to Africa are in flower, with their delicate sweetly scented flowers giving a dazzling display of colour. Although we grow them in pots and in a greenhouse they are hardy for planting outside but do need good drainage conditions and a sunny position.
This is a busy time of year, the grass is growing fast, weeding and keeping the garden tidy and watering in the long sunny spell we are having at the moment is a constant job, but well worth it when the plants respond and put on an amazing show of colour with their unique flowers.
