Tags
Agave, container planting, garden visit, Oxford Botanic Garden, Pavonia, Saturday smile, six on saturday
Hello, my Six on Saturday this week are from a garden visit to the Oxford Botanic Garden on January 20th. The gardens are the oldest in the UK ( founded in 1621) with nearly 6,000 types of plants.
What strikes you about this first picture? The enviable dark brown soil or the vivid green grass? Or what about the bright blue sky, it was January after all. Then there is the obelisk, look at its height. All quite remarkable but what really struck me was the incredibly straight edges to the borders, so very crisp and smart. 
2. The straight edges are a strong feature of this part of the gardens, dictated perhaps by the garden wall. It may appear as if there is little to see in January and clearly it does looks rather bare, where are those 6,000 plants I hear you thinking, yet I really enjoyed seeing the crisp form of the space.
3. On closer inspection there are things happening in the borders. Witch Hazels, Willow, salix and Rainbow Chard. There are also these willow structures shaped as apples here. 
There were masses of snowdrops but I am no Galanthophile hence my next pictures are of the container planting. 
4. 
The combination of ferns and primula with Skimmia is lovely for Winter container planting. I especially liked the addition of birch which adds height, colour and catkins.
5. In the glasshouses the relief from the cold was very welcome and necessary for this exquisite beauty
Pavonia. Simply stunning.
6. I love cacti’s and succulents and always enjoy seeing the Agave. 
This one is a beautiful specimen. 
That’s it, my Six on Saturday about my garden visit to the immaculate Oxford Botanic Garden.
The propagator blog is our host for Six on Saturday. If you would like to join in please be sure to include a link to his blog. If you find yourself near Oxford I recommend a visit to the botanical gardens, an historical and beautiful space to walk around.
Have a good weekend. D.
I love those straight edges, they must take a lot of work to keep that way. The Oxford Botanical gardens were a a favourite lace for us to visit when we lived in Oxfordshire.
Mustn’t they. Hope that was a nice reminder for you then
My Agave like this one are outside and none of them look perfect like this! But they are tough and cold doesn’t do them much harm.
Too wet here for them Christina and perhaps too cold. I suspect I love Agave because they remind me of holidays in warmer climes
When I looked at that first photo before I read your post about it, I thought look how clean and sharp those edges are! I have never been to this garden so I will need to add it to my “list.” Thank you for sharing it today……I never thought about putting colorful sticks in my bigger pots, but now I will! I have some yellow dogwoods bushes that would be perfect!
Hello! Yellow dogwoods sound absolutely perfect.
Looks like they may have a metal strip under the grass edges. There’s nothing does more to make a garden look well maintained than good edges. It’s good to know there are still gardeners for whom such attention to detail is important. The beds look to be full of the sort of things that will flop over the edges and spoil them, it must be a struggle sometimes.
Hello! Well noticed, yes they did have a metal strip but even so, wowsers , they are crisp. So many hours of work then the pesky perennials……
That Pavonia – what a stunner! I’m rather fond of snowdrops so my 6 this week are a galanthophile’s dream – I suggest you don’t look!
Hello! I shall look as I do love them ( snowdrops) but just not in an obsessive way.
That’s some size Agave. Interesting that we both commented on the colour of my soil. Mine was as black as coal.
Soil is key to everything growing. No wonder we made comment .
Haha – yes, when we visited in a bitter December 2017 the greenhouses were very very welcome! No snowdrops then of course, but lots of clumps of grassses still
The photograph of the Agave is particularly fine, they combine an inviting velvety smoothness with ferocious spines. Nice to see a blue winter sky after a week of fierce wind and moody skies.
Thank you. As you know it was a very fine specimen and the photo only slightly captures its scale
How lovely to walk around the Oxford botanic gardens again, in your company. Great photos!
Lots to see and admire. I’ve never visited, so this was a lovely tantalizing post. I wonder how easy those willow apples are to make?
I was wondering the same thing. I don’t know how far away you are but they do have a day class. Or Probs on you tube somewhere
Before I noticed the obvious neatness, rich brown soil, lush green grass and clear blue sky in the first picture, I noticed that the obelisk resembles the San Jose Electric Light Tower. Then I noticed that is is not centered in the otherwise very neat and symmetrical landscape.
Are those willows that are pollarded back to single knuckles?
Having never seen the San Jose electric light tower I will have to take your word for its similarity.
Yes the willows are pollarded
Pollarding is SO shamed here. I still do it thought.
It’s perfect for Salix, cornus and catalpa.
‘I’ know that it is perfect for willows, fruitless mulberries and sycamores, but it is shamed nonetheless. Almost all of my colleagues go along with the crowd. I did it to the native red twig dogwood for the first time last winter, and it did not go so well. I think it will take a few years for them to take to it They need to build their knuckles, and some are just bypassing the old pollarded canes.
Looks a good day out
Yes definitely worth a visit Helen
I’ve been in the summer but never this tme of year
On a dry bright day the bones of the garden look beautiful. There were lots of snowdrops too. Worth a winter visit. I need to go in the summer too
A lovely post. Nice to see such tidy beds and green grass as well as the plants and flowers. 🙂
So tidy, but I certainly have soil envy
Must go one day, it’s not far away. The apple structures look to be plant supports for the emerging perennials at the base.
Worth a visit certainly. There are perennials emerging although I couldn’t quite work out what sort they are. Rather nice aren’t they