I am Myrtle

Well, not really. But I do love Myrtles. In particular Myrtus luma, or Luma apiculata - sometimes known as Chilean Myrtle in England.

It is a species of tree, genus Luma, family Myrtaceae, native to the central Andes mountains between Chile and Arengentina.

Lumas grow very slowly, eventually forming a small tree. They are rarely more than 20 metres. They have a contorted trunk with a smooth, cinnamon coloured bark, which peels as the tree matures. It is evergreen, with small, oval leaves, and is covered with white blossoms late summer. It has edible, small berries, either black or blue, after flowering.

In their native landscape, these trees are known to live up to 650 years.

Myrtus luma is a common sight here in Cornwall, where it has naturalized.

A Plant a Day, Keeps the Baddies Away

Well, maybe not. But, it doesn't hurt. Honest.

Plants hardly ever hurt anyone, unless you eat them. (Except for Audrey II, in Little Shop of Horrors, he would eat anyone . . . ).

Good rule of thumb - find out if a plant is poisonous before eating it.

It is my personal rule and, I am still alive.

P. S. Okay, a few are toxic if you rub up against them, but not that many . . .

I Love Plant Hunters

Ernest 'Chinese' Wilson

I love plant hunters. I find it amazing how many plants that we take for granted come from far and exotic places.

One of my first, romantic plant hunter interests was with Ernest Wilson, better known as 'Chinese' Wilson (1876-1930).

Ernest was born in 1876 in the Cotswolds. At sixteen he was an apprentice gardener's boy. He then moved onto the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. He won the Queen's Prize for Botany.

He then began work at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, where he won the Hooker Prize (named for Joseph Hooker plant hunter extraordinaire) for an essay about conifers.

He turned down the opportunity to become a teacher to become a plant hunter in China for the Veitch & Son Nursery. The rest is history.

At that time, French missionaries had been collecting plants in China. They would dry and ship specimens back to their colleagues in Paris.

Wardian cases were unavailable to poor missionaries. Wardian cases were a type of transportable terrarium, invented by Dr Nataniel Bagshaw Ward, to enable the transport of live plants. Wardian cases would prove invaluable for later plant hunters. More about them later. . .

Wardian Case

Needless to say, the dried plant material arriving from the depths of mysterious China was whetting the appetite of nurserymen and botanists in Europe. They needed a knowledgeable, but tough and rugged man for the job of finding live specimens and seeds. Someone who could send back live plants and come back alive himself. Ernest Wilson was the perfect man for the job.

What a hero.

In 1899, on his first expedition, Wilson traveled west, via the Arnold Arboretum in Boston. Here he learned the latest techniques for shipping seeds and live plants under the guidance of Charles Sargent, who was to play an important role in Wilson's life from that point forward.

He arrived in in Hong Kong on June 3rd, 1899, along with an outbreak of plague. Although his journey was slow and the countryside was affected by political unrest, Wilson made his way towards the region of Szemao (Simao), looking for the legendary Dove Tree or Handkerchief Tree, Davidia involucrata. Having travelled halfway around the world, tasked with finding this extraordinary tree, Wilson was to find that it had been cut down in order to build a house.

It was the only one known of its type. According to his diary, he was devastated.

Davidia involucrata, Dove Tree, Handkerchief Tree

But, Wilson continued his search for new and interesting specimens. During this trip he discovered the Kiwi Vine/Fruit - Actinidia chinensis - a native of China, despite its common name (although it is sometimes called a Chinese gooseberry here in England).

Actinidia chinensis - Kiwi Vine/Fruit or Chinese Gooseberry

It was while Wilson was collecting other plant specimens, that he stumbled upon an entire grove of Davidia involucrata. He was able to send home a large quantity of seed. He arrived home safely in April, 1902.

Success.

All in all, Wilson collected thirty-five Wardian cases full of tubers, corms, bulbs, rhizomes, dried and live specimens, of over 900 plants species as wells as seeds from over 300 species. The list of his plant introductions runs into the thousands. And this was only his first trip.

It must be noted that, despite Wilson's heroic effort, the credit for the introduction of the Davidia involucrata was given to Pere Paul Guillaume Farges. He, too, returned to Europe with some seed (reputedly only 38 seeds) in 1897 and his germinated faster than Wilson's. Wilson and his patrons did not realize that it took eighteen months for Davidia seeds to germinate. Luckily they persevered and soon they had thousands of seedlings.

He married his sweetheart, Nellie, in June 1902, but . . .

Wilson was again commissioned to go to China. This time in pursuit of the Yellow Poppywort, Meconopsis integrifolia, reported to grow in the mountains of Tibet.

He left Britain again in January, 1903, on a two year expedition.

But, such was the life of a plant hunter. There is much, much more to tell . . .

I have had a Kiwi vine in my gardens for several years now but have yet to get any fruit. There is a massive and very old vine at the Duchy college in Redruth which is covered in fruit every year. I will try to get a photo next time I am there . . .

Myrtle.

P. S. I can highly recommend The Plant Hunters, by Toby and Will Musgrave and Chris Gardner.

Rain Rain, Go Away

It has been raining and raining and raining.

Good for the garden, but rather sad for the holiday makers.

View from the Three Mackeral

First born and I went out for lunch yesterday. We sat outside at a fashionable café overlooking Swanpool Beach. Whilst waiting for the waitress, the heavens opened.

There were raindrops the size of teacups. There was thunder and lightning. There were even a couple of diminutive tornadoes in Helston, the next town over, but we didn’t find that out until evening.

We sheltered and then dashed over to another fashionable café at another beach, which has more indoor tables. We laughed, as the sewers overflowed all over the beach. Victorian drainage systems struggle to cope with sudden downpours, as well as modern washing and toilet habits.

Anyway, on a lighter note, I have included some photos I took on the way to lunch. We walked through Queen Mary Gardens, which has a respectable display of late summer blooms.

Crinium Lilies

Sedums - just starting to turn pink


Salvias and Daisies

Cosmos, Salvia and Daisies

Myrtle x

P.S. Apologies for the lack of photos and posts lately. I have had a busy summer. Blogger is quite bogged down with its new beta-blogger service. There seem to be a lot of teething troubles. Mx

Slugs

I love many things.

Slugs are not one of them.

This is due to the swift damage they inflict on tiny, tender, or tasty plants: lettuces, lilies, lupins, dahlias, delphiniums, hostas, horseradish and sunflowers. And that’s just for starters.

Slugs are voracious, feeding machines. They are fierce and focused. They roam gardens in large packs, terrorizing their victims by night. They have a one track mind – food.

I know they cannot help themselves. It’s as if they have an eating disorder. They can’t just nibble a few leaves and go home, under a rock somewhere. My garden is a Smorgasbord, an All You Can Eat All Night establishment.

They have no shame. You will never see a skinny slug in Cornwall.

They can achieve mammoth proportions. I once met a big, beafy slug, six inches long. When I tried to take his photo, he grabbed my camera, ripped out the film and told me to get lost. I didn’t have to be told twice.

Even the cat is afraid of them.

Some slugs eat meat. I don’t know how I reached the age of 40, thinking that slugs were vegetarians.

I had nightmares for a week after hearing that. Just think, if you died suddenly in Death Valley, your body might be eaten by some sort of carrion eating bird or a scorpion or two. But if I pop my socks in my own back garden, with no one finding me for a day or two, it will be the slugs who get me.

They are also cannibals. I have heard that if you snip a slug, his mates rush over to finish him off. I have never seen this spectacle myself, but nothing surprises me anymore.

They don’t like me. I can tell. I don’t blame them really. I have resorted to every method known to man to reduce their presence in my garden. I may have won the odd skirmish, but they have won the war. There is just too many of them.

But hope does spring eternal.

It is an annual traditional in my garden for the slugs to eat ALL my sunflowers.

But fool that I am, I was weak and bought a few more at the garden centre a few weeks ago.

I have heard and read a lot about coffee being an effective deterrent – I have included a few links if anyone is interested.

Earth Easy

New Scientist

Self Sufficient - ish

I have put the plants into pots. I have put them up on the deck (the slugs aren’t keen on the decking). And I have been sprinkling them regularly with coffee – either a light sprinkle of instant or using the grounds from the pot. I have also sprinkled a circle of coffee around the base of the pots.

I feel as though I am protecting them from vampires. I have visions of the slugs circling my succulent baby sunflowers, hissing hideous things to them.

But, so far so good. The coffee seems to be working. I know this is very subjective and anecdotal. It is also possible that I bought some weird, genetically modified sunflowers that slugs don’t like. Maybe I will look out in the morning and find they have been cruelly cut down to their little stubs. They were about two feet high this evening when I last saw them. Wish them luck.

Not everyone dislikes slugs. I was intrigued to read that students at University of California at Santa Cruz have just elected the Banana Slug (which are gigantic and bright yellow) as their official mascot.

I know of many ways to kill a slug. I won’t use chemicals, so I have to think creatively.

Does anyone out there have horror stories of, views on or feelings for slugs? Drop me a line.

Myrtle x x x

P. S. Great photos at Middle-fork.org

Fruits and Berries

These are mine - we are doing well with apples this year. The girls love apple sauce for
breakfast, lunch and / or dessert. I love apples too.

St John's Wort Hypericum


And from the allotment . . ..

Elderberries, Sambucus nigra, for drinks . . .

Juicy raspberries - for dessert . . .

And heavenly figs. I must confess - I took this one home and ate it all myself.

Delightful Dahlias

Wandering around the allotments, I was impressed by the range of Dahlias.

I have not had much luck with Dahlias in the past - snails and slugs consume them with the same enthusiasm that I eat pepperoni pizza. And I love pepperoni pizza . . .

But, I am tempted to try again. Just look at these . . .

Dark Beauty

Red and White - these knocked me out

Orange Cactus type with pollinator

Red Cactus type

Fruits and berries next . . .

Allotment fever

Prize winning melons

Sorry folks, I lied to you all. I did not garden yesterday. I bumped into a gardening friend at the Co-op and she invited the kids and me to her allotment. It was great.

I didn't know that Falmouth had allotments - I had never seen them before. They are amazing. Melanie grows so much - soft fruits, raspberries, strawberries, black currants, there are tons of blackberries and elderberries. Apples, sweet, sugary plums, and figs. Sweet corn, celery, celeriac, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, melons, potatoes, leeks, lettuces, fennel, herbs, beans of many types, and squashes - lots and lots. And lots. There seems to be lots of everything.

The local allotment society had its annual show this past weekend. My friend won first prize for her veg box. Well done.

I now want an allotment. I would also like the time to tend it. Please.

Here are a few highlights . . .

Saucy

First Prize!!

Why, why, why, Dahlia?

More allotment photos to come . . .

We are back

We are back.

Early.

Yes, we are all okay. No, I don't want to talk about it. Thanks.

I was never a great Sinatra fan, but after this trip, I will no longer be able to hear his music without experiencing a considerable level of anxiety.

'My Way' indeed.

'Fool', I can hear many of you say. Perhaps you are right.

Life goes on. Today has been easy and quiet, walking with friends, drinking dry white at the local beach cafe, soaking up the sun.

We set out for our walk without swimsuits. Upon arriving at the cafe, Mad Dog suddenly wanted to swim - jumping into the sea, fully clothed. She is not the sort of little girl to let a little thing like clothing stop her from enjoying herself. Luckily, I am accustomed to her borderline boho behaviour and we do live close by.

In many ways I am relieved that I haven't planned a foreign holiday this summer. We have had such good weather and with all the extra security, delays and cancellations at airports since Thursday, it feels okay to be home.

I am going to garden tomorrow.

See you then. x x x

I Love Babies

We have good news. There are two new babies in our world.

My brother and his wife have had just had their first child - a beautiful baby boy, Tristan Cole.

My girlfriend and her husband have just had their second child, another beautiful
baby boy, Ruben Peter.

One Flamenco Dancer

Two flipper skippers

Three TinyTiggywinkles

Four in the Race for Life

I love babies, whether they be human or animal. These babies are a little reminder
of how cute each of us was when we were little. . .

Welcome to the human race, Tristan and Ruben.

Misty the Magnificent

I heard through the grapevine that Misty has apparently been feeling that she has not been getting enough air time. She wants more action shots and wants her fans to know that she doesn't use a stuntman or body double and that she still has all her own teeth.

So, without further ado, here is Misty, doing her thing.







We are away for a few days, off to the wild and crazy town of Dartmouth. Wish us luck.

See you when we return.

Myrtle. x x x

Whistle While you Work

After complaining that I haven't been spending enough time in the Garden, today I spent most of the day in it. Martin cut back a euphorbia that was bigger than a VW Beetle. We cut a tunnel through the under-bush of the middle bed.

And I started to free Big Banana from the clinging branches of an overly amorous buddleja. Buddlejas are very pretty and very friendly, but be warned. They are all a bit psycho. They never seem to realize when enough is enough. Anyway, couldn't finish that job as I need a bigger saw.

It's been a great day.

This wisteria is treating us to a second flush of blooms.
I love you, Wisteria.

Welcome Back

Whilst tunneling through the middle bed, I found this brave little Echinops, Globe Thistle. Haven't seen him for a long time.

Don't know how this photo ended up like this, but I thought it was hilarious. My friends tell me I need to get out more.

Mystery Plant Number 2

And, finally, another mystery plant is flowering. Again, I remember planting it years ago, but cannot remember its name and have yet to locate it in my books. Any guesses?


P.S. Thanks to Melissa and Lisa for suggesting both Solanum and Brugmansia. It could be a Solaum, but I am still unable to find it in any of my books. It does look like a Brugmansia, it's true, but it is too small. Brugmansias (or Daturas, as they were once known) are much bigger. Thanks girls.

Octopus's Garden

This is the Godrivey Lighthouse, on the Altantic side of Cornwall. Godrivey is part of a three mile stretch of beach, often called Gwithian Towans. It is a beautiful place and a favourite haunt.

We came here with friends on Friday. The children like to bodyboard and I like to look around.

At low tide is is possible to explore the rocks and rockpools. We saw lots of tiny fish, shrimp, mussels, limpets, anenomes, barnacles as well as many types of seaweed.

Underwater garden.

Bladder Wort

Summer is a busy time; friends popping in, festivals to go to, the children wanting to go to the beach, ice cream. . . My time in the garden, at the moment, is sparse - a few minutes at the beginning and, if I am lucky, at the end of the day.

Still, we are making the most of a lovely summer. We have been fortunate.

In the Evening

In the evening, I went out into the Garden.

I surveyed this mixed, round bed. There is so much going on in it, it needs thinning. The vigorous ones are smothering the dainty ones . . . But, the Agapanthus looks fantastic.

I also harvested my first beans - purple. I cannot remember the name and have thrown away the packet (shame on me). I only took a small handful - they were delicious.

Nicotiana Flowering Tobacco

I love Nicotiana, and was so happy to receive a few plants from a friend a while ago. I was even happier to see it blooming this evening - it smells divine.

Nicotiana box

And, finally, I planted this small shrub a number of years ago - and cannot remember its name (shame on me again). Any ideas????



P.S. Thanks to Carol of May Dreams Gardens. You are absolutely right - it is all coming back to me now. I must keep more accurate records.

Carol has recognized my mystery, flowering shrub as Summersweet, or, as it is known in the UK, Sweet Pepper Bush, Clethra alnifolia. Thanks for your help. I love your blog and am envious of your tools.

Japanese Garden

No, these are not the Simpsons, they are giant Koi from the Japanese Garden and Bonsai Centre in St Mawgan, near Newquay. It is a fabulous place, if you like Japanese Gardens. I love it. This was our excursion for the day. The children complained all the way there, but were very impressed by the huge fish, fat Buddhas stuffed with coins around every corner as well the graceful, miniature Bonsai trees everywhere. Alas, I had forgotten (again) to charge my camera, so these are all the photos I could get.

Show Trees

Zen Garden

Moss Garden

Garden Gate

Laughing Buddha (dream man number 3)

This is a little Chinese Elm tree I brought home in order to practice and learn the art of Bonsai. I am told the cultivation of Bonsai is 70% art and 30% horticulture. I have not had much luck with it in the past.

But, the owner of the garden was very helpful and gave me lots of tips and advice. First and foremost, use rainwater if you live in a hard water area and don't let them dry for more than a day or two. I will keep you posted on how my Chinese Elm and I get on. Wish us luck.