East Anglian Garden Group Newsletter 105 December 2012 http://eastangliangardengroup.onesuffolk.net 2013 LECTURE PROGRAMME Saturday 2nd February 2.30 pm Hitcham Ian Christie on Spring Treasures Ian and his wife Ann run Christies Alpine Nursery near Kirriemuir on Tayside. He has 35 years experience as a specialist grower with acclaimed collections of Galanthus, Trilliums, Meconopsis, Lilies, Nomocharis and Paris. Recently he was involved in the record breaking sale of a yellow snowdrop. www.ianchristiealpines.com/ Saturday 2nd March 2.30 pm Hitcham Richard Ford on Hostas: Why, where and how? A botanist and plant pathologist by training, Richard and his wife Mary set up Park Green Nurseries in 1983, soon specialising in Hostas. They have gained 180 Gold Medals. A frequent lecturer, he has appeared on TV and has written 'Hostas an Essential Guide'. www.parkgreen.co.uk Saturday 6th April 2.30 pm Hitcham Val Bourne on Colour in the Garden, season by season Award-winning and well known for her writing in The Telegraph and elsewhere, photographer, lecturer and author of 'The Natural Gardener' 'The Winter Garden', 'Colour in The Garden' and more recently ,The Ten-Minute Garden Diaries, Val has been gardening naturally for thirty years, currently in the Cotswolds. www.valbourne.co.uk Saturday October 5th 2.30 pm Hitcham Bob Brown on 60 years of Gardening Owner of the specialist nursery Cotswold Garden Flowers, at Badsey near Evesham, and Just Must Perennials, Bob Brown is renowned as a plantsman, speaker and garden writer and well known for his strong opinions. www.cgf.net After each lecture there will be tea and cake and an opportunity to chat and to find something interesting on fabulous Plant Stall (all contributions gratefully received) 2013 Activities Programme January - Saturday 5th - Car visit Anglesey Abbey, Quy Road, Lode, CB25 9EJ The traditional post Christmas meet-for-a-walk in the winter garden and a chat over tea. February - Saturday 16th - Car visit Chippenham Park, Ely, CB7 5PT Open day to see the massed naturalised snowdrops in the lakeside and woodland gardens, as well as aconites, dogwoods and other plants of seasonal interest. April - Saturday 27th - Coach visit to Two Essex Gardens Wickham Place Farm, Wickham Bishops 14 acre Wickham Place Farm with walled garden, and magnificent wisterias. Woodpeckers, Mangapp Chase, Burnham-on-Crouch. A 1.5 acre garden for all seasons, tulips, borders and kitchen garden. May - Monday 6th Bank Holiday morning The Spring Plant Fair on The Market Hill Sudbury. Grow something interesting for the EAGG Stall and/or fill your boot at this popular early plant fair. June - Thursday 20th - Coach visit NT Mottisfont Abbey, Romsey, Hants. For the national collection of old-fashioned roses in the walled garden, at this interesting house, gallery and estate by the River Test. July - Saturday 20th - Coach visit Beeches Nursery, a chance to buy at this specialist nursery. Kathy Brown's Garden, The Manor House, Stevington, Beds For the late flowering Clematis and 4.5 acre garden, not forgetting one of Kathy's famous afternoon teas. August - Social Event Details TBA September - Saturday 21st - Car visit Rosedale, 40 Colchester Road, Bures, Suffolk, CO8 5AE Colin and Ruth Lorking's well known plantsman's garden opens for NGS Chairman's Report. We were all so sad to see Heather standing down as Chairman at the November A.G.M. after many years of organising and leading the group so well that we needed cheering up. Maureen Thompson had a treat prepared for us though. Her talk on her creation of her magnificent garden at Lavenham was beautifully presented and illustrated with wonderful photographs. We all came away inspired. Maureen retired as President in November and we thank her for fulfilling her role so well. We are so glad that she is joining us on the committee. Margaret Thorpe is taking over as President and we feel very fortunate to have her. Michael Hawkins and Jim Marshall retired from the committee and will be much missed. We are delighted that Barbara Segall and Jackie Rocker have joined us and look forward to going into 2013 with an enthusiastic and capable team. As you will see we have a wonderful programme of talks and visits for you this year. Members were so appalled at the idea of not having the annual winter visit to Anglesey Abbey Gardens that we have re-instated it. So put the date, 5th January in your diaries. We have another winter treat planned for 16 th February, with a visit to Chippenham Park to see their carpets of early bulbs. In May there is no garden visit because we will be far too busy with our plant sale in Sudbury. We are going to be part of the May Bank Holiday Plant Sale in the market place. We hope you will all support us by providing unusual plants and then please come along on the big day. Please use our website to see what is going on and send us articles and photos to show us what is happening in your gardens. I hope you will all enjoy the forthcoming programme and I wish you a very Happy New Gardening Year. May the sun shine on your garden and the rain fall upon it, (but only at night.) Roses to rave about. Maureen Thompson I moved to Lavenham four years ago and had to start a new garden from scratch. JCB's, large mature plants and industrial quantities of compost and manure, have helped to transform it in to my garden paradise. In my talk at the AGM in November 2012 I mentioned many of the plants that I have enjoyed growing, in particular, the climbing roses. Much as I love the old varieties of rose there is no doubt that the modern disease-free repeat flowering climbers are very rewarding, as they have no black spot or mildew. One of my favourites is Rosa 'Parade', with its wonderfully scented bright cerise blooms. Another is 'Aloha' with an almost hybrid tea shape in bud but opening to sumptuous fragrant pink blooms. Other favourites, new and old, include 'Purple Sky Liner', 'New Dawn' 'Blush Noisette' and 'Penny Lane', At the end of my Lavender Walk I have a statue of the Goddess of Plenty. Around her is an arch on which I grow 'Crème de la Crème', an enchanting small double rose with clusters of white flowers that turn pale yellow, flowering continuously until November. In the lavender beds I grow mostly shrub roses including 'Graham Thomas', 'Jacqueline du Pre', 'Little White Pet', 'The Pilgrim' and the robust climber, 'The Alchemist'. Yes - I know it is not repeat flowering but it is too beautiful to leave out. One rose I wish I had never planted is 'Félicité Perpétue' which is a real thug and only suitable for large gardens. It throws out long branches everywhere (I swear it grows six inches in a night). Simon White of Peter Beales tells me it ought to be pruned three times a year, which is two times too many as far as I am concerned. Two other shrub roses I must mention. The first is 'St Ethelburga'. It was the only rose here when I moved to this house. A stunning plant with big fragrant pink blooms and red stems, it is continually in flower. It is a strong grower and I always have a bloom or two until November. The other shrub rose is 'Mme Isaac Perriere' which has glorious deep mauve- pink blooms that offer a perfume to swoon over. EAGG outing to Kent - 12th July 2012 Restoration House and Godinton The Rev. Canon Christopher Sansbury. (Photos Maggie Thorpe) Our outing began with what at the time was an almost inconceivable sight - blue skies and fine weather. Most of us being cautious travellers had brought some kind of wet weather kit, but Heather would have none of it. She called us pessimists and assured us it was going to be fine - which it was. So on July 12th we crossed the Thames to visit two houses in Kent. Restoration House in Rochester is so called because Charles ll stayed there on his way from Dover to London to claim the throne; at the time he couldn't be sure that everyone would accept him. That's why the State Bedroom had a number of escape routes. We were shown a corner with three doors one above the other and hidden behind a heavy cupboard was a chute down to ground level. Among the rooms were the Great Chamber (refitted by Sir Francis Cheke to show his importance as an MP and considered to be the original of Miss Havisham's room in Great Expectations), the King's Stair (actually dating from 1680 and so not available to Charles ll twenty years earlier), and the Eccentric Room, called that because it contains such a variety of styles. The Great Hall had among other things a dole cupboard where leftover food could be kept for any passing poor and homeless people - hence the expression being on the dole. It is a tribute to the talents of the present owners that none of the furniture is later than the 17th century, yet none of it was in the house when the present owners moved in 1994. A contrast to this is the house's collection of Gainsboroughs, including three portraits and eight landscapes - all of which made us from the hinterland of Sudbury feel very much at home. Godinton House near Ashford is surrounded by beautiful parkland. It was occupied by the Toke family from 1474 to 1896 and its outward appearance owes a great deal to Dutch influences.