THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Today brings to an end National Nurseries Week, a week showcasing some of the best British nurseries.
(The picture above is from another business we ran, growing cut flowers for florists… we loved growing these dahlias, but if you’re a florist go to Withypitts if you want the best dahlias in the country…)
It is good to support your local nurseries, as it creates a positive cycle – the better they do, the more they can offer you – leading to us all becoming better gardeners (and in a crazy dream world we like to live in, the better this countries gardeners, the more they will demand from their landscapes… until we all reap the health benefits of living in a riot of natural beauty… ahh, a crazy and lovely dream…)
To end the week, here are three more nurseries we recommend:
Run by former winner of Gardener of the Year Sue Beesley, all plants are grown in peat free compost and pots from plants purchased at the nursery can be returned.
A leading British nursery and specialists in Iris and Peonies. Fantastic source to use!
A large retail nursery celebrating its 75th year right now. Visit their Japanese Maple House to choose an acer, or find a clematis from their extensive choice.
Further Reading:
Iris: The Classic Bearded Varieties
EBTS Boxwood Growers Forum
Through the European Boxwood and Topiary Society I worked with Chris Poole and Sue Mesher, members of the EBTS board, and we set up a Boxwood Growers Forum. This was to discuss how to make sure this wonderful topiary plant stays in the public conscioussness – we know many growers, suppliers and distributors have stopped selling it as the cost of replacing boxwood that has blight, or is nibbled by the boxwood caterpillar, makes it unviable to offer to clients and gardeners. But Boxwood is a phoenix plant, and there are ways to deal with the problems associated with Buxus. …
Modern Topiarist @ Garden Masterclass Poland
My video on Modern Topiary for Garden Masterclass has been translated into Polish, for the keen gardeners (and happy pruners!) of Garedn Masterclass in Poland. Tickets for the first showing and q and a were available here. But it will become available on the Garden Masterclass Poland website at some point in the near future – so if you are a keen clipper and want to know more, but speak Polish and not English, then I suggest you visit the website and get watching. (Of course, if you don’t speak English, you may not be able to read this…. hmmm… …
Topiary Hotline
The European Boxwood & Topiary Society are to run a Topiary Hotline for keen gardeners and people who love to clip. Date is tomorrow, April 16th 2024, and you can get a ticket for the Zoom meeting here – Topiary Hotline. Run by Chris Poole and myself, we set this up as an antidote to the huge amount of questions we have to answer about topiary throughout the summer. The plus is that their is an excitement around topiary and pruning. The problem is we need to help people in a better way… … so we will be giving people …