New Year New Member

[wugga]

Hi everyone! Happy 2014!

After over a year lurking on this forum gathering advice and information and enjoying the posts and pictures of your fantastic plants and gardens, I made a New Year's resolution to finally say hello and introduce myself!

I live in Flintshire in North Wales and despite being an enthusiastic gardener for as long as I can remember I have only developed a passion for tropical, exotic and unusual plants in the last few years. Most of my garden could be described as 'traditional' with cottage style borders, lawns and patio. However, down the side of our bungalow we built a large deck which has given me the opportunity to grow a mixture of hardy and less hardy tropical plants in containers which I remove during the winter months and store in a heated greenhouse or in my unheated polytunnel. My collection of tropical plants is small at the moment but is growing all the time thanks to your posts and pictures! Every time I come on this forum I see something else that gets noted down on my 'Wanted List'!

My favourite plants at the moment are tree ferns, particularly cyatheas, Strelitzia, hedychiums and dasylirion. I can only afford relatively small sized examples and also enjoy growing from seed so I don't have any really impressive specimens - yet!

My major project in the garden this year will be to replace my greenhouse. I have outgrown my 6x8 and after ages searching for my dream greenhouse I finally dropped lucky last month and bought a vintage Hartley 10 greenhouse for the princely sum of £70! It's in bits at the moment but come the end of the spring it should be up and running with plenty of room to house more plants over winter!

Thanks for all your inspiration!

Charlotte

[Springy]

There is a nice little selection of plants you've got Charlotte!

Welcome to the site and well done in keeping your resolution!

[Deedee]

Welcome to HTUK Charlotte, took me a while to join as well Love your Decking and your plants, it looks Tropical, allso your lounger, Lucky you on buying the Greenhouse for £70, Ill admit i dont have a clue what a Hartley is but im going to google now

[fern Rob]

Hi,
im a big tree fern collector, what tree ferns have you got?
you can get some well priced rare Cyatheas from 'my fern shop'
a link to the web page below.
http://www.myfernshop.com/Cyathea

[Deedee]

WOW you did get a bargain, they double in price usually, will you have to build it onto brick?

[grub]

Welcome to the madhouse Charlotte

[Tom2006]

Welcome! A lovely looking deck with lots of interesting plants!

[GREVILLE]

Welcome, Charlotte So, you have resolved to lurk no more. All at HTUK approve

[kata]

Welcome to the forum Charlotte

[dino]

Welcome and Happy New Year

[doncasterpalmguy123]

Welcome to the forum charlotte, i know as a fairly new member that all the users are incredibly knowledgable and kind so hope you enjoy it as much as me! Nice selection of plants you've got there and a happy new year.

[wugga]

Hi everyone, thanks for your replies and such a large, friendly welcome! I'm sure I'll be picking your brains soon!

I may well build a low brick wall for the greenhouse to sit on - I'm not really sure yet. It would be great to have a bit of extra head height but the greenhouse is located quite close to our boundary with next door so I don't want to annoy anyone!

Thanks for the link Fern Rob but as I have been following your blog for the last year I am more than familiar with that website! I sometimes think you should be on commission from that company as every time you post pictures of your latest acquisitions from them it prompts me to take a look at their latest stock and I end up spending! I was lucky enough to receive some plant money for Christmas so bought from them a cyathea medullaris, dioon spinulosum, some fargesia, a blechnum brasiliense, a baby dicksonia spinulosum and a baby cyathea tomentossisima - I've included the photo of them. I also have cyathea dealbata, cunninghamii and cooperi and a dicksonia fibrosa, but strangely enough no dicksonia antarctica yet!

[fern Rob]

Hi everyone, thanks for your replies and such a large, friendly welcome! I'm sure I'll be picking your brains soon!

I may well build a low brick wall for the greenhouse to sit on - I'm not really sure yet. It would be great to have a bit of extra head height but the greenhouse is located quite close to our boundary with next door so I don't want to annoy anyone!

Thanks for the link Fern Rob but as I have been following your blog for the last year I am more than familiar with that website! I sometimes think you should be on commission from that company as every time you post pictures of your latest acquisitions from them it prompts me to take a look at their latest stock and I end up spending! I was lucky enough to receive some plant money for Christmas so bought from them a cyathea medullaris, dioon spinulosum, some fargesia, a blechnum brasiliense, a baby dicksonia spinulosum and a baby cyathea tomentossisima - I've included the photo of them. I also have cyathea dealbata, cunninghamii and cooperi and a dicksonia fibrosa, but strangely enough no dicksonia antarctica yet!

It would be great to see the other Cyatheas is the C medullaris one of the 60cm trunked ones? did your others come from (my palm shop)?
Keep the C medullaris frost free.

[Arlon Tishmarsh]

and bought a vintage Hartley 10 greenhouse for the princely sum of £70!
Charlotte

Welcome Charlotte........

Had to Google images of a Hartley 10 , what a snazzy greenhouse. I'd defo go with a sub wall to mount it on, the extra headroom is a real bonus. I built mine up (not a Hartley) and its now 11ft to the ridge. Overwintering taller plants is a doddle now .

[Dave Brown]

Hi Charlotte, and welcome or should I call you 'Lotte the lengthy lurker'

Glad the forum has been of use, and that you have decided to Lurk no longer