Anthony Curnow from Macdonalds Plants Plus Nursery in Bendigo is currently undertaking a program in Plant Centre Management Skills at the Royal Horticultural Societies flagship property, Wisley Gardens, UK. This is part of a series of articles documenting his experiences abroad.
Sir Harold Hillier gardens
Sir Harold Hillier Gardens lies close with Wisley as being one of the United Kingdoms leading ornamental gardens, incorporating a wide range of resources that act in promoting and developing horticulture. With a collection comprising of roughly 42,000 plants, about 12,000 different taxa which make up 11 National Plant Collections, there is little doubt as to its popularity.
I visited this garden with the purpose of seeing their well respected Winter Garden, which with more than 650 different cultivars is said to be the largest in Europe of its sort. The variety of plants selected for their form, colour, texture and scent is astonishing. Evergreen plants such as clipped Buxus and conifers are used as a backdrop to the fluorescent stems of Dogwoods (Cornus sp.) and the bright spider like flowers of Witchazels (Hamamellis sp.) Snowdrops (Galanthus sp.) at this time of the year dominate the lawns and gaps between deciduous shrubs, prior to the Daffodils emergence. If the showy display of Daphne bahlou ‘Jacqueline Postill’ is not enough to stop you in your tracks, then her scent alone is bound to bowl you right over. It is staggeringly sweet and you smell this plant well before you see it.
While most deciduous trees are waiting for warmer spring weather for bud burst, the light delicate pink petals of early cherry blossom (Prunus subhirtella ‘Autumnalis Rosea’) have been flowering successfully along its bare stems since early winter. The newly formed bark begins to be revealed from beneath the flaking sheath of the Birches, and the catkins hang at the tips of the branches in preparation for pollen distribution. There are varied outlines formed against the sky of the deciduous trees, such as Ginkgo with its knobbly spur like growth, the twisted branches of Corylus contorta and the classic Quercus growth habit. There is so much to see in this garden that one walks away addicted to the satisfaction gained in overloading ones senses.
Interpretation is incredibly positive in the gardens, with an evident desire to educate the public. Their A4 photocopied handouts provide seasonal interest guided walks, presenting visitors with detailed information on the cultivars and how to say them phonetically, eliminating the questionable Latin pronunciations. Reference to whether their garden centres also stock the plant is made, bringing a unified front to the public, something which RHS Wisley is at this stage working on developing. These are excellent, positive interpretative and marketing ideas for such gardens in promoting horticulture on a technical level without ‘dumbing’ it down.
Along with running a wide range of programme and events for the general public, the Garden maintains a long history in educating and producing some of the countries finest horticulturists. Catherine Withers, a current Wisley Diploma trainee spent a year there volunteering and learning:
‘There are many opportunities for studying at Hillier gardens. I had the pleasure of living in the student accommodation along with the resident cat and the other students, of course. We were rotated around the five areas of the garden on a fortnightly basis, which was a good way to see the whole garden over the different seasons. Every other Thursday was study day where we had a workshop in the morning, often given by the head gardener, on important skills in horticulture such as shrub pruning, propagation, and tree planting. The afternoon was spent going on themed identification walks, being shown 20 plants that we would then be tested on in two weeks time. We also had to produce a project on something related to the garden and give a presentation to all the staff. There are two - three paid placements offered every year, either for six months or the whole year. Applicants usually have to have some horticultural experience. As for volunteering, this can be done at any time and for anything from a couple of weeks to the whole year. The accommodation is free as long as there is space and students come from around the world. For more information on the garden look at the website http://www.hilliergardens.org.uk/’
Sir Harold Hillier Gardens is, like Wisley, a place of opportunity for both budding horticulturists and gardeners of all ages.
A Taste of Horticulture in Holland
In a recent trip to Holland for the weekend, I was provided with the opportunity to be shown around a unique nursery. It primarily grows a number of Hedera sp. of varying pot sizes and three or four varieties of Euonymus fortunei for the landscape and garden centre market.
The difference between this nursery and all the others in the country is its employees. With the exception of a small management team, the other 80 odd employees consist of people with special needs. It provides a good bridging opportunity for people of all abilities in providing them with the skills which will help them out in being employed elsewhere.
The nursery used to grow species such as Zamiocalus (ZZ Plants) and Spathiphyllum which required the houses to be heated, however given the cost to run the boiler and the lack of funding (primarily from government), a shift in species grown on site was made. Very little chemical spraying takes place, with the introduction of some beneficial insects to biologically control common pests such as aphid throughout the seasons. The plants generally look after themselves, with the majority of the worked working in propagation and potting and at the other of the production line at dispatch, where plants are cleaned up and staked.
With winter nearly gone now, the spring season is upon us, and a busy one it is bound to be with the world renowned Chelsea Flower Show in May and the peak season about to begin for all retailers.
Text and Photos by Anthony J Curnow
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