Hardy Tropicals UK

It seems a shame just to let the Trachycarpus suffer, could you not hoick it out and pot it up? That way when you eventually have your own place, it's one less thing you'll have to purchase

It's not worth the aggro from the parents who would be disappointed if I started making a mess. It might be ok but it doesn't look it at the moment

It is almost certain it was the overly wet conditions that caused the Trachycarpus to yellow, as we've had a break from the rain, it does look a little greener again.. probably suffocation. I suspect next week it will start to look rather yellow again as we have a lot of rain on the way.

On another note, as a member of Ness Gardens I'm entitled to free seeds so I put in my order yesterday for these;

Acacia saccaticupla (think thats a mistake though)

Agapanthus africanus

Roscoea cautleoides

Hesperanthus coccinea

Zephryanthes huastacana

Tricyrtis formosana

Watsonia spp

Habranthus texanus

Cyclamen graecum

Arsaema consanguineum

Arum italicum

Zephyranthes can be hardy as it the Arum Italicum (I do not have that yet - will get seed at some point). Watsonia is something that I am looking into as I want to bring some colour into the garden.

Ive got the seeds now, apparently Arisaema can be very difficult to propagate, and give I have no skill with these things, I think it'll be a case of bunging them in the soil, but they need cold stratification apparently.

Anyhow other than that, some are away now that my back garden is not the best place for an exotic garden, it's a frost hollow, its cold, it's basically rubbish. Well it would turn out the same cannot be said for the front garden.. which is free draining, actually mild, and everything is going well there. Interesting the front garden has only fell to 1C since December.. that's where I should be growing all my exotics!

My Agapanthus inapertus black magic is giving out new shoots so be quick Stevie sowing those seeds.

I did all the sowing today so hopefully they'll pop up in the next month!

Everythings good here, for now, though the frost will probably stall/check/cut things down.

Star performer in my garden at the moment is Euphorbia mellifera, but it's on borrowed time because I'm in the north and it's not a long term prospect.

Actually joking aside, Clivia miniata is growing well now, it's really started to grow, should flower this Spring.

stephenprudence wrote:Star performer in my garden at the moment is Euphorbia mellifera, but it's on borrowed time because I'm in the north and it's not a long term prospect.

Mine is flowering, lovely pale yellow next to the pale green of the foliage. Hardier than the neigh-sayers say IME.

For the sake of the Trachycarpus even by laying plastic sheeting around the ground below the palm would reduce the amount of water infiltrating around the palm and could help to keep it Un-saturated if you leave it there for a few weeks. If your worried about it killing the grass then use transparent sheets to let light in.

doncasterpalmguy123 wrote:For the sake of the Trachycarpus even by laying plastic sheeting around the ground below the palm would reduce the amount of water infiltrating around the palm and could help to keep it Un-saturated if you leave it there for a few weeks. If your worried about it killing the grass then use transparent sheets to let light in.

Covering soil with plastic kills the soil over time.

Everything will be fine..

I'm wondering if I've scored an own goal by started seeds and bulbs this early? There is due to be frosts next week and some hard ones too at times, and the days are supposed to be quite cool here, if not cold (under 10C), and the Greenhouse might not get sufficiently heated especially if there is no sun by day.. I imagine some bulbs could rot! Seeds will probably not germinate for a few months either, perhaps therefore many of them will fail if they don't sprout within a certain amount of time?

Best to remove the bulbs and dry store them again?

I have been out to buy plants today.. Ive kind of move away from the exotic theme a little, in order to sacrifice for super hardy. Well my dad commented on the need for native plants for wildlife, so I got some birdsfoot trefoil, and Malva sylvestris to keep the wildlife happy...Ive got a Lotus dorycnium to go alongside them as well, for something a little more exotic.

Other than that i got a Hemerocallis which ive been after for a while, Kniphofia also, small Agapanthus, a Hosta for the leaf effect.

You've not strayed that far from the exotic, Stephen. Those 'standard' perennials easily qualify for exotic status.

I wanted something relatable but hardy, as my garden isn't really the place for more frost sensitive plants like bananas, melianthus and gingers etc etc (in open ground except for a few trial plants), but yes, I also wanted something that is popular amongst the exotic gardeners, as they are clearly tried, tested, and some are really quite nice.

I do have to be realistic about my garden, aside from the side border which is just a fortunate situation, the garden is too cold and wet really for really exotic gardening like many members achieve (even Fatsias struggle in the ground), with anything other than hardy herbaceous plants, so that's the route I shall take.. though it might look a little cottage garden like in the long run.

On the positives though, today I also added an evergreen Hemerocallis to my collection.. bette davis' eyes it's called.

Well another happy surprise of that the seeds from some native Malva arborea (tree mallow) I collected by the beach, have germinated.. at the moment they're tiny, but it's great news. They won't make it through the winter in my garden, it's too cold and horrible conditions, however if I'm lucky enough I may see them flower in their first year. Apparently you can make a tree mallow a Perennial by cutting stems off if you're lucky enough to live where they will survive.

We have some Malva going wild round the pond area on my allotment half a mile away. I still feel guilty getting rid of the seedlings from my plots, though. One of our more exotic natives IMO.