Early Spring In The Gardens

Changing Weather

Something we’re sure has been affecting everyone in their own gardens so far this year is the incredibly changeable weather we’ve been experiencing. This past February was the warmest on record for England, but that didn’t stop it from being one of the wettest, too. Those warm days encouraged many of our flowers to emerge early, only to be harmed by an onslaught of rain. The Lime Walk daffodil display was a particular victim to this weather and consequently many of the flower heads either didn’t flower properly, or were rained off before the display hit its full stride.

The roses in the Union Flag Garden are also much farther along than we would normally expect, and the Magnolia Garden display has already been and gone, though it was a pleasure to see whilst it was here!

The Rhododendron is now in its full display and looking very well - the large specimen can be found at the back of the Rose Garden but as it’s so tall, is also easy to spot from many of the other garden rooms.

Spring Arrivals

The pear blossom will soon be blooming, to be followed shortly after by the cherry trees and finally the apple trees. Fruit trees can be found in many of our garden rooms, so you’ll likely see a fluttering of these petals throughout the grounds over the next few weeks!

Our plants that have been grown in the greenhouses will be going out into the gardens shortly, starting with the more hardy plants such as dianthus. The more tender plants won’t be going out until there is a more likely chance that we are not going to see a late frost or even snow this year, as has happened in previous Aprils.

Elsewhere in the greenhouses, many types of annuals have been sown ready for the Jubilee Walk, George Carter Walk and the Grey and White Garden.

A New Prune For The Wisteria

The Nut Garden Wisteria and the Italian Garden Wisteria have this year undergone an experimental new style of pruning, Traditionally, we would cut back these varieties quite harshly, which causes the Wisteria to push its resources to forming flowers in tight clusters, creating a full look. However this means that the Wisteria grows quite slowly which can often leave gaps, most noticeably in the Nut Garden where it grows over the pergola. This year we have pruned in a more Japanese style, only removing what’s completely necessary and allowing the plant to grow through the wooden structure. We’re excited to see the difference in its appearance once it flowers this year and will feedback our thoughts on its new look!