Welcome to the April 2021 edition of Shade Monthly

First the bad news….

I am sure that you have been enjoying the editions that Beccy has been editing, and may I on behalf of you all thank her for the sterling effort that she has put in to make Shade Monthly such an excellent read month by month.

..and now the worse news… …and if you did not already know, you will have inferred from the previous paragraph that Beccy has passed the baton to a new editor..and that is me, Jon Segar. I am by no stretch of the imagination an expert in shade and woodland plants, but am looking forward to collating the wisdom of the group into the newsletter. I am still working (I have reached the ‘official’ retirement age) and am at my desk mainly in the afternoons and evenings with clients in North America. This leaves the mornings free to assist here in the garden. I also try to improve my plant and garden photography when I am not feeding prunings through the shredder. I was going to make a joke about mis-hearing and thinking that I was applying for the job of editing ‘Shed Monthly’, but maybe not. I will try hard to keep up the standard that you have been enjoying whilst Beccy was editor, and hope that you will feel sorry for the ‘new lad’ and pen a contribution for the journal. I have taken over the [email protected] account, so you can continue to send contributions there, or to [email protected] . Content received by the 26th of the month will make Shade Monthly for the following month.

The Index How do you feel about the Index – is it useful to you, or do you not make use of it? As you can imagine it takes a significant effort to keep updated, and we would be grateful if you could drop me (see contacts above) a short note - just a sentence maybe - if you find it

1 useful and would like to see it updated in the future. For a relative newcomer like me it is a great resource; let me know what you think.

Welcome returns. Text and photos by Peter Williams

Whilst early spring is the most joyous time in my gardening calendar because of the emergence of a multitude of reliable and well-loved plants, it is also a time of some anxiety as I wonder whether my cherished but more ‘fragile’ plants have survived another winter in the wild. For years I avoided this mental anguish by keeping my divas captive in a frost-free glasshouse, but those obsessive days are over, and plants are now released soon after purchase and I must say, that generally they performed better without my well-meaning attention. Even so, the days of late March and early April are when I begin to gently tease away the leaf litter and debris that has accumulated near my fragile friends to look for the first signs of life. I know that it would be safer not to engage in this compulsive probing, but I am afraid that I cannot stop myself. Podophyllums and their allies always make a good entrance and each year I marvel at the beauty of their emerging leaves. They are generally reliable, but it is always pleasurably reassuring to see their beautifully shiny, umbrella like leaves, thrusting through the soil or leaf litter in early spring.

Fig. 1 – Podophyllum aurantiocaule making its appearance

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Ichyoselmis macrantha always makes me smile when I see its new shoots emerging in spring. They appear to emerge from a blister like structure at the soil surface. The leaf petioles arch upward, serpent-like, and expand very quickly to bear compound leaves and five-cm long, pale lemon flowers in May. Perhaps I should not be worried about this species because it is probably far tougher than I give it credit for when established in a suitable situation.

Fig.2 - Ichyoselmis macrantha new leaves emerging in late March

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Fig.3 - Ichyoselmis macrantha in flower in late April

Pteridophyllum racemosum worried me for the first few years after planting out. I followed the recommendations of a well-known nursery and covered the plants with pine needles in late autumn. Now however, my garden population of this beautiful Japanese woodlander fends for itself and the fact that self-sown seedlings are popping up in unexpected places suggests it is quite happy doing so. The foliage gets to look rather ‘tired’ over winter and I am always pleased to see the tight mass of fresh, light-green foliage collected around emerging flowers in spring. Tidy gardeners might remove the old foliage but my plants remain scruffily au naturel.

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Fig.4 - Left, Pteridophyllum in late March 2021 showing a central mass of new leaves and flowers and right, the previous April

Perhaps the plant that I most want to succeed is Glaucidium palmatum. This beautiful Japanese woodland poppy is elegance personified and I am always anxious about its wellbeing until it appears. I have lost some individual Glaucidium subjects but one group of three plants has improved each year for the last three years. I looked for evidence of life about a week or so ago and was pleased to see that all was well.

Fig. 5 - Glaucidium palmatum emerging in late March 2021 and in flower in May 2020

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Adonis ramosa is another of my angst generating species and I was delighted to see that a number of shoots had emerged over the past few days to indicate that it too was a survivor once again. My initial delight was, however, tempered with a little sadness when I realised that the shoots were not bearing any flower buds this spring and the tips appeared to have been damaged by a hard frost that we recently experienced. The flowers should have formed last summer and perhaps conditions were not just right. Anyway, so long as it survived there is always next year to look forward too.

Fig.6 – Left Adonis ramosa emerging in 2021 with possible late frost damage and right, flowering in 2020

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Creating a stumpery from scratch All text and photos by Philip Ramsbottom

Hello, I am new to the HPS and this is my first contribution to the Shade and Woodland Plants group.

In October 2020 I started my dream job as a full-time head gardener of a 7-acre private garden in Devon. The job has turned out even better than I could have imagined when I found out the owner was interested in having a stumpery. I thought I would share my experience of creating one from scratch.

I have a long-held passion for stumperies and made my first one on a somewhat more domestic scale when I was about 10 years old with my dad. The only proper stumpery I had seen was at Biddulph Grange Garden. Whilst I do not have anything else to compare to Biddulph (except to my primitive 10 years old attempts), its imposing memories are hard to forget so I am not even going to try to compete.

Figure 1 Tricyrtis at Biddulph Grange

The area of the garden I picked for the stumpery is roughly 350 square meters. The garden is on a south-west facing slope, fairly sheltered from prevailing winds. The soil in the garden is heavy clay and flint. Light levels in the stumpery vary considerably due to mature trees and shrubs. Whilst small areas do receive full sun for a large proportion of the day, the majority of the space is in dappled, part shade and some areas in deep shade all day. As time goes by, I may thin out the

7 upper canopy to increase light levels if needed.

Figure 2– Left Taxus baccata stump, middle Quercus rubra branch, right getting ready to place I set myself a few simple goals when planning out the stumpery. Firstly for it to be a surprise when walking around the garden and secondly for it not just to be about ferns, but also other plants with seasonal colour and contrasting textures.

After designating the area, the next task was to find the stumps. Finding the stumps was the easy bit. The garden sits within a 4000-acre estate, with about a quarter being woodland so there are no shortage of stumps. The problem was finding accessible ones. Luckily, the best stumps were on the boundary of the garden and fortunately on the upper slopes of a track, so with the help of the mini garden tractor and gravity, I was able to slowly gather together a selection of 46 stumps, plus a selection other gnarly and characterful

Figure 3 Cutting free a stump/ Stump in transit / stump in final position branches. All the stumps were either beech, oak or yew which should hopefully mean they will not rot down too fast. It’s hard to get across in the photos quite how large some of the stumps are. The different sizes and shapes of the stumps should help create an atmospheric environment. Their diversity also offers variation in the planting conditions by providing different microclimates in the stumpery. Social distancing made it impossible to get assistance in moving the stumps, some weighing 100s of kilos. So I had to resort to lots of solo leverage and winching to get the stumps into their final positions. After lots of blood, sweat and tears (plus one crushed

8 finger resulting in a minor operation and two weeks off work) all the stumps are now near enough to where they will stay. I have no intention to rush into planting up the stumpery, allowing it to evolve and develop over time. Moving from Manchester to Devon for this job, I brought with me as many plants as I could reasonably dig up from my own garden and allotment. Without yet having my own garden to put them in, the garden owners have agreed for me to temporarily plant them in the stumpery and the surrounding garden, with the intention to be able to lift and divide when the time comes that I get my own personal garden here. Figure 4 Hardy Orchid - Calenthe striata

Obviously the first thing that comes to mind with stumpery is ferns. I have been a member of the British Pteridological Society for fern enthusiasts for a few years and I have a small collection of ferns that I have been raising from spores that I have got from the BPS spore exchange. There are ferns that I can potentially add here from the garden and the surrounding estate. Whilst ferns are my longest horticultural passion, their names can elude me so I will have to put some conscious effort into identifying those already in the garden as well as the ones I brought from home. Below is a list of what I have waiting in pots in the greenhouse, polytunnel and cold frames. Some of which will be planted into their final positions relatively soon, however a lot will be bulked up over the next year or two whilst I improve the growing conditions. Arisaema candidissimum, Asarum caudatum, Astilbe ‘Weisse Gloria’, Bergenia ‘Pink Ice’, Bergenia Tubby Andrews, Brunnera ‘Alexander the Great’, Brunnera ‘Jack Frost’, Cardiocrinum giganteum, Cornus Canadensis, Corydalis calycosa, Corydalis malkensis, Dactylorhiza majalis x Figure 5 Struthiopteris spicant and foliorella, Dactylorhiza majalis x maculate, Erythonium ‘White Dicksonia antartica Beauty ‘, E. ‘Pagoda’, E. dens-canis 'Dark', E. dens-canis 'snowflake', E.'Kinfauns Pink', E. revolutum, Ferns (lots), Hepatica transsilvanica, Hosta – ( 18 cultivars including - Wolverine, Stiletto, stained Glass, Fragrant Blue, Red October), Kirengeshoma palmata, Pachysandra terminalis, Pulmonaria 'Sissinghurst White', Rescoea ‘Kew Beauty’, Rodgersia ‘Chocolate wings’, Soldanella ‘Spring Symphony’, Tricyrtis hirta, Trillium grandifolium, T rivale, Uvularia grandiflora

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One of the main challenges is the heavy clay and flint soil which is hard to fork over so I did my best to limit soil compaction whilst placing the stumps. During my first eight weeks at the estate, I worked hard to create the biggest possible leaf mound to add as organic matter to help break up the clay, improve drainage in winter and help retain moisture in the summer. This will be a long-term process with no quick fix. The other main challenge comes from pests: slugs, rabbits, pheasants, deer, local game beaters. Whilst we have a very good rabbit fence, sadly rabbits got into the garden several years ago, and the rabbit fence is now preventing them from leaving and so they have lots of fun tasting anything new that is placed at nose height. Pests are another reason why I am in no rush to plant up the full area straight away whilst I weigh up my pest management plan of action. If things go to plan, I will do a follow up next year as things progress and plants fill out the space.

Figure 6 Anemone nemorosa

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Spring in my shady Sheffield garden Words and photos by Nicola Smith

There are many signs of Spring here in Sheffield despite the changeable weather. Brunnera Jack Frost and Omphalodes ‘Cherry Ingram’ both have lovely blue flowers and vibrant leaves.

Fig.1 Brunnera ‘Jack Frost’

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Fig 2. Omphalodes ‘Cherry Ingram’

I’m also pleased to see the less vigorous white flowered Omphalodes emerging intertwined with Pulmonaria. There is lots of lovely foliage too: a Thalictrum, which I’ve had for about fifteen years and has just been divided yet again, one of my numerous Geraniums, which has sadly lost its label and a Dicentra.

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Fig 3. White Omphalodes

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Fig 4. Thalictrum

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Fig 5. Dicentra

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Fig 6. Geranium Wlassovianum

I am also excited to have discovered Cardamine Glanduligera from the Beth Chatto gardens which has purple flowers, is said to be shade tolerant and good ground cover.

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Fig 7. Cardamine glanduligera

Just coming into flower is Lathyrus Vernus, also known as the Spring Sweet Pea and bought from Thornbridge Hall Nursery in Derbyshire 2 years ago. This is best in semi-shade and as slugs are partial to it, a pot is my preferred location where it seems quite happy. I should mention that Thornbridge Hall is an RHS Partner Garden and sells interesting and unusual plants at reasonable prices so well worth a visit.

Fig 8. Lathyrus Vernus

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My neighbour’s garden is similar to mine in having a large area of shade so over the years we’ve shared ideas and discoveries about what will thrive there. We really enjoy the results of our joint efforts - even more so over the past challenging year.

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