The last NGS Garden visit.

Our last NGS garden visit of the year took us just over the county border into Herefordshire to the Picton Gardens and Old Court Nursery, home of the Plant Heritage National Collection of Autumn Flowering Asters.

The garden features in my 'Worcestershire Gardens' on the blog's header bar, (it is only just over the border) and is open from August until October, including some days for the NGS.

 Old Court Nurseries developed a reputation for growing Michaelmas Daisy's when Percy Picton took it over. Today the nursery and garden is owned by Paul and Meriel Picton along with their daughter, Helen.

The one & half acre garden provides a riot of colour at this time of year...

...not just from the asters, there are many autumn colouring trees and shrubs...

...bamboos, ferns and other autumn flowering perennials...

...and acers.

The garden contains several willow and metal items of garden art.

You enter this area past pillars of Berberis ( thunbergii f. atropurpurea? ), which is also used as a hedging plant along the paths.

A spectacular, colourful view across this part of the garden.

 

In this area a new crevice garden is being created inside this raised bed along with a stumpery around the Acer griseum.

The garden was named The Picton Garden in 1985...

...when the Charity, 'Percy Picton Memorial Fund' was established...

...to provide grants to students of horticulture at Pershore Collage.

There are raised beds containing well labeled different asters to help you make your choice in the nursery. They are also involved in the RHS Symphyotrichum trial (the new name for Asters!) which you may have read about in The Patient Gardener: Here

A beautiful and colourful end to the NGS garden visiting season.

Now is the time to start planning for next years opening, the entries for the NGS Yellow Book 2016 had to be in by the end of September, ready for publishing and entry on the website:NGS

The Yellow Book should be available for purchase in February, £2.5 million was donated in 2014 to mainly nursing charities.

What plans do you have for your garden next year?

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Purple Patch.

Our youngest Granddaughter Louise, has helped me produce todays post, she had been poorly during the night, so was home from school today.

We are joining Cathy's meme: Vase on a Monday

The garden is going through a purple patch at the moment, which we have reflected in the flowers selected. Starting with the Dahlia 'Thomas A. Edison', which was very slow to get started in the spring and is now dominating the raised beds, alongside is the Aster a.n. 'Helen Picton', named after the daughter of Paul Picton, owner of Old Court Nurseries and the Picton Gardens. They are based just over the border from us in Herefordshire and are National Collection holders of Asters. 

The vase also contains three flowering stems of an unknown Miscanthus, given to us by a good friend.

The leaf at the base of the vase is from the Caster Oil plant, Ricinus communis.

D.'Thomas A. Edison'

Miscanthus

Aster a.n. 'Helen Picton'.

The props used today are the purple sleeved LP The Last Night of The Proms, reflecting the fact that we are nearing the last concert from these flowers for this year.
Toby the Tiger is Louise's special soft toy, she was given him by Father Christmas when she visited him on the Severn Valley Railway Santa Special.
He now goes everywhere with her.

Arrangement by Brian and Louise, Photographs by Louise.

The Fruits & Flowers of an Indian Summer.

John Keats described this time of year as the "Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness".

This year we have also been blessed with an 'Indian Summer'

In Our Garden@19 the Crab Apple 'Golden Hornet' is covered with fruit..

...the Pear 'Invincible' has not been as prolific as in previous years.

The Fuchsia 'Mrs Popple' is brightening up some of the more shady areas of the garden...

...leaving the Dahlias to strut their stuff in the sunshine.

D. Bishop of Llandaff

D. Thomas A. Edison

...along with the Cannas

One of the stalwarts of the autumn garden are the Asters, who have now undergone name reclassification, I think I will just call them 'Michaelmas Daisies'

This, I think is one of the best, Aster 'Little Carlow'...

...with A. 'Harringtons Pink' just coming into bloom.

No Autumn garden should be without Verbena bonariensis.

The annuals that I planted for summer/autumn are just beginning to bloom, this is Cobaea scandens, the cup and saucer plant, draped in fine cobwebs...

...with a Nasturtium from last years saved seed...

...and N. 'Black Velvet'...

...Convolvulus Major, Trumpet Mix is flowering in several different positions around the garden.

What I like about growing this plant is if someone mentions you have Bindweed in your garden you can reply, "No its Convolvulus" 

The other annual climber is Ipomea lobata, Spanish Flag.

Viola 'Heartsease always has a place in Our Garden@19

We finish with a true flower of autumn the Cyclamen hederifolium.

What fruits and flowers have you been enjoying in your garden during this 'Indian Summer'?

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Holidays, Mistakes and Impulse Buys!

We have just returned from an enjoyable holiday in the lovely town of Laugharne, Carmarthenshire, relaxing, following in the footsteps of Dylan Thomas, sampling the produce of the hostelries in the evening and visiting gardens by day, more of these in future blogs.

Laugharne Castle.

On returning home we welcomed a visit from Cathy and the 'Golfer' of  Rambling in the garden  fame who were visiting gardens around this part of Worcestershire. It was very enjoyable to meet another blogger and talk gardens.
Time to have a look around the garden and see what has been flowering during the end of August while we were away and now into September.

The Dahlias are of course the colour stars of the garden at this time of year, D. 'Twyning's After Eight' with its faint veining of pink along with dark foliage was particularly admired by Cathy...

...less so D. 'Thomas A. Edison', whilst admiring the colour, the heads are big and they can suffer from heavy rain and wind.

You can see more of the Dahlias growing in the garden Here

In the raised beds there was also Ricinus communis, the castor oil plant, providing interesting leaf shape and colour...



...along with a self sown sunflower from the bird feeders.

The pots by the raised beds are planted with Ipomoea lobata, Spanish Flag, which has been disappointing this year, they have only just started to flower in the one pot,...

...much more rewarding has been the 'Impulse Buy' these Petunias from M&S, they have flowered continuously for weeks.

The Helianthus 'Lemon Queen' has migrated through into the white & green garden, where the Iceberg rose is enjoying a second flowering...

...with Japanese Anenomones...

...the Phlox paniculata 'White Admiral'...

...and the Leucanthemum x super bum, Shasta Daisy blending in beautifully with the Glass Daisy behind.

Through the arch into the centre border...

...the first Aster is in flower...

...Aster divaricatus accompanied by...

...the sparkling Solidago 'Fireworks.'

A recent addition is the Cirsium rivulare 'Trevor's Blue Wonder' the bees were there as soon as I had finished planting them.

The Agapanthus in pots either side of the Banana Bench are just starting to go over...

...along with Lilium tigrinum 'Flore Plena'...

...and L.'Landini'. I liked this lily enough to order some more two years ago...

...and this is 'The Mistake'!......they did give me a refund.

Back on the patio 'Mrs Popple' is showing off in the old tin bath.

I hope you have enjoyed the Holiday season, what 'Mistakes' or 'Impulse Buys' do you have in your garden?