Primula scotica and Taxus

1. Taxus baccata 'Amersfoort'

Been a while

It's been a while since my last entry so a wee update here. I have really been enjoying doing my gardening presentations this year and a recent one took me up to the wonderful Comox Valley where I had the pleasure of staying with Leslie and John after the meeting. It was one of those not so common situations where you meet two very keen gardeners who both have a keen eye for a good plant but also know where to place it in the garden, many collectors of plants have a slight weakness in the design aspects, including myself, (although I often plant a bed with the desire to obtain stock plants so will treat the bed as a collection of mother plants rather than a intricately designed system) John rules in the back garden, the Duchess of Dirt in the front and this amicable arrangement seems to work brilliantly. Thank you to you both for your wonderful hospitality and thank you Comox Horticultural Society for a great evening.
At the moment I now seem to have more of a range of conifers than I have ever had and finally I have my hands on a favourite Ginkgo biloba 'Troll'. I have seen this one in the ground and appears to be a dwarf with a spreading low habit. I probably have around five cultivars of Ginkgo now. I am pleased to finally have saleable plants of the Taxus that thinks it is a Podocarpus: Taxus baccata 'Amersfoort' which was originally discovered in a Dutch Psychiatric Hospital.
More later.
Doing the presentations allows me to provide some teaching and I always learn something from the club members.

Sorbus is in

Celtic mythology states that a Sorbus ("Mountain Ash" or 'Rowan") planted near the entrance to a property will banish evil spirtits so I have finally planted a Sorbus vilmorinii near the front of the nursery.
This blog short as just got back form hospital after eye operation and currently wearing eye patch.
I have included photos clockwise from top left, all Sorbus: arranensis, poteriifolia, vilmorinii and reducta.
Sorbus reducta and poteriifolia are excellent subjects for the roch garden or trough.

Sorbus is in

Celtic mythology states thta a Sorbus ("Mountain Asb

More Solomons Seal

Polygonatum fever

I am slowly (perhaps quickly is more accurate) but very surely falling in love with the Genus Polygonatum, I will post a few pics. and hope to give more info on them later. I have posted Polygonatum hookeri (a true gem and hard to beat) on a previous post.
Here is: Polygonatum prattii, P.x hybridum 'Grace Barker', P. humile and P. odoratum 'Great Yellow River'

Native plants

Had the opportunity to leave the nursery today and get out into nature, a wonderful riverside walk and could not believe the amount of gorgeous native plants I saw, it was like I was looking through new eyes. Some of the things we encountered:

Trillium ovatum, Thalictrum, Lilium columbianum, Disporum, Viola (both the blue and the yellow), Wild Ginger, Devils Club, Erythronium(now in seed mode), Twin flower, Smilacena, Veratrum, Vanilla leaf, Linnaea, who needs banana plants when you can go into nature and admire skunk cabbage?

On another note I was listening to the radio about a study just completed on pesticide use and its affect on leading to Attention Deficit Disorder in children and other problems.
It mentioned that the organophosphorus pesticides have the most damaging effects.
After working in horticulture for twenty five years I am now finally realizing the impact and severity of these chemicals and want no involvement with them in my business.
I have always been reluctant about using some of the chemicals I was dealing with while working for other nurseries and glad that I eventually refused to use certain products.
There are safer and healthier ways and it is always worth looking into them. We owe it to the next generation.

More Salix

Wanted to add Salix breviserrata, S. candida and S. fargesii

Willows galore

I've been growing various species of Salix for a number of years now, particularly the dwarf alpine types as they really do look incredible in the rock garden and in troughs (except see below) and I hope to have some of these for sale this year. I will try and write more about each one later but for now I give you some images, these are my favourites so far but as I collect more I am sure my favourites list will grow!
Hopefully some of them will be available from my business, Alba Plants here in BC, Canada.
The only two that will be larger plants on the photos, eight to fifteen feet in time, are Salix magnifica (winter stems remind me of polished mahogany, as they say in Glasgow, 'pure dead brilliant'! and Salix magnifica, which has to be a great plant as it was discovered by the great man himself, Ernest Wilson.
I would welcome peoples comment on other species and cultivars that they have had success with.
I showed a picture of the famous stalwart of the rock garden Salix x boydii on a previous blog, discovered only once in the wilds of Scotland by Dr. Boyd. I am growing quite a few of these now in pots. From top:Salix magnifica,S. kurilensis, S.jejuna, S. hylematica and S. arctica

Fritillaria

I have really been enjoying many of the different bulbs this year, especially the Fritillarias. I nowhave a few of this one growing: Fritillaria affinis 'Wayne Roderick' discovered by Wayne in California.

A couple of gems, Salix x boydii and Polygonatum hookeri

Alpine House

Busy getting the alpine house ready, first blog entry, thanks to my bst friend Ted for helping me get going with this.
Ceanothus pumilus (top left) a lovely prostrate Ceanothus, this one originally for seed collected in Josephine County, Oregon. Thaks to Kenton, currently botanizing in Georgia, for taking the photos.