Tags
Acer palmatum, honey flower, Hosta Francee, Hosta Sum and Substance, melianthus major, Persicaria odorata, six on saturday, the generosity of partners, Vietnamese coriander, Vietnamese mint
Today has been another steaming hot day here. It was a day I had in the diary as plant moving day. Now I am officially pale and pasty as I have the sort of skin that burns and consequently I keep out of the sun so the prospect of the heat meant that we set off at 730am to load the pickup with plants.
My friend is relocating to North Yorkshire for six months and she wanted to give me her potted plants as they were too big to move and she couldn’t bear for them to die. Generous to a fault these are all beautiful. My six today are some of my new plants.
For the sunnier spot is this beauty:
Melianthus or honey flower can get to between 1.5m and 3m tall. It is semi evergreen and half hardy so it will need a good wrapping over winter in my exposed garden. It is coming from the protection of a walled garden so the poor thing is in for a shock. It looks as if its foliage has been created with pinking shears. It is a very handsome specimen in a pot and already about 50cm tall.
This is Vietnamese mint or confusingly Vietnamese coriander . It has pointed leaves with a dark reddish variegation. It needs heat and damp and is not hardy. Another plant that’s going to need careful attention here. Its leaves can be used in salads and stir fry. It is invasive in the right conditions but here it will be a battle to keep it overwinter.
I do have this Hosta but to be honest it has spectacular dinner plate sized leaves which are so impressive I can definitely home another one. The green is slightly lime depending on how much light it gets. A spectacular hosta.
I am not certain on the variety but I reckon it might be Hosta Francee. A large leaf Hosta with attractive white margins. This will be a very attractive addition to my hostas.
I do not know the exact species but it is certainly Acer palmatum and I am guessing here but from searching online it seems most likely to be ‘Sango -kaku’
One of the most challenging moves today was this stunning Acer. Liz purchased it five or six years ago for about £6 and has nurtured it into this.
Here it is free from its pot, lashed up against the garage bound up and wrapped in a blanket. The poor thing!
Nothing would give me more pleasure than to be able to plant this into my garden. Instant impact and a true beauty. However my garden is very exposed and I know that it would be miserable subjected to constant wind. So I am it’s guardian for a short while until my hapless colleague, who had the heavy end moving the pots today, finds an XL container to house it in his garden.
Is that six? Not quite. I have dozens of plants out of pots awaiting their new home. Hostas, lemon verbena, ferns, an olive, large Euonymus a hebe,and a lovely white hydrangea.
What a kind and generous gift but also what a responsibility. I need to get them in the ground at a time when my clay soil is like concrete. The watering will be onerous while they are out of the ground or awaiting pots. They are currently on a ground sheet in the shade of my garage. Yikes. I am going to be busy. But what a statement and addition they will be to the garden. Watch this space to see how they fare and where..
That’s it. Just time for me to thank Liz( I’ll do my best) and our host The Propagator
Enjoy the rest of your weekend wherever you are and thanks for reading. D.
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