Joseph Atkin's latest Aberglasney column
Aberglasney’s Head Gardener Joseph Atkin continues his weekly column in the South Wales Evening Post -
The past few mornings have had that ominous coolness that reminds you autumn is not too far away.
With the change in season, it is a good time to think about what to grow indoors or in a conservatory.
At Aberglasney, we have recently revamped the Ninfarium (high walled atrium), which is very important during the winter as it provides shelter and interest for the hardier visitor.
The Ninfarium is kept relatively cool, never gets direct light and is heated to a minimum of 6OC, so it is very similar to conservatories, garage windows or utility rooms.
This environment can prove to be a very tricky place to grow plants as it is not tropical, but more mild temperate and very shady, especially in the winter.
The plants that grow there really have to earn their keep, as space is at a premium and they need to I provide a really good show or a long season of interest.
The ground cover, or to be more technical, understory plants, are particularly important and often need to cope with the most challenging spots to grow.
We have recently planted many new and unusual Begonia and Impatiens from the cooler rainforests of Asia and South America.
They seem to be doing particularly well, and what I like about them is very few visitors have seen them before.
Some people even think they are orchids, so it is very satisfying to know you are displaying something that is new to much of the public.
The real stars of the Ninfarium at the moment are the Streptocarpus.
Now these are stalwart house plants that we have all probably grown.
In recent years, a Streptocarpus has even won best plant award at the Chelsea Flower Show.
There has also been a lot of new breeding in recent years.
One of the particularly successful developments has been the Crystal Series Streptocarpus.
These are a range of smaller, more subtle, flowered types that, if conditions are right, will flower all year.
We have planted all 'six members of the range in the Ninfarium and they are thriving so far.
They seem perfectly happy in the conditions and look great planted en-masse as ground cover.
They should flower well into the winter, but will probably slow down in the darkest months and start to really flower again next spring.
Over time, they should develop into clumps about 30cm wide, at which point they can be divided and replanted probably every two years.
There are some very important tricks to growing Streptocarpus.
One is to avoid getting the leaves and crown wet, especially in direct sunlight or cooler periods.
The other is rigorous dead-heading to avoid them putting energy into seed or having dead flower heads attracting disease.
At Pershore College, we had a very large collection which needed dead-heading two to three times a week.
This job was carried out by the students, so during holiday periods when it was not done as often the difference in flowering and plant health was huge.
In the home situation, Streptocarpus make excellent house plants, having a very long flowering period and coping with the more shady conditions.
Dibleys Nursery in North Wales is probably the best place to source Streptocarpus as they have an excellent collection and have been growing them for years.
The unusual begonia can be sourced from Cotswold Garden flowers and the unusual Impatiens again from Dibleys.
Many of the Begonia will eventually be trialled outside as there is a good chance they will be hardy.
Above: Impatiens niamniamnensis
Above: Impatiens morsei Velvetea
Now’s the time to . . .
Order and plant bulbs for spring flowering
Keep cutting back the spent flowers of early flowering perennials
Keep staking the late flowering plants to prolong their season
Have a look at the lawn. If it is mossy, September is the month to scarify
Keep harvesting the vegetables as often as possible, especially courgettes. Letting them get big shorten the life of the plant.
The past few mornings have had that ominous coolness that reminds you autumn is not too far away.
With the change in season, it is a good time to think about what to grow indoors or in a conservatory.
At Aberglasney, we have recently revamped the Ninfarium (high walled atrium), which is very important during the winter as it provides shelter and interest for the hardier visitor.
The Ninfarium is kept relatively cool, never gets direct light and is heated to a minimum of 6OC, so it is very similar to conservatories, garage windows or utility rooms.
This environment can prove to be a very tricky place to grow plants as it is not tropical, but more mild temperate and very shady, especially in the winter.
The plants that grow there really have to earn their keep, as space is at a premium and they need to I provide a really good show or a long season of interest.
The ground cover, or to be more technical, understory plants, are particularly important and often need to cope with the most challenging spots to grow.
We have recently planted many new and unusual Begonia and Impatiens from the cooler rainforests of Asia and South America.
They seem to be doing particularly well, and what I like about them is very few visitors have seen them before.
Some people even think they are orchids, so it is very satisfying to know you are displaying something that is new to much of the public.
The real stars of the Ninfarium at the moment are the Streptocarpus.
Now these are stalwart house plants that we have all probably grown.
In recent years, a Streptocarpus has even won best plant award at the Chelsea Flower Show.
There has also been a lot of new breeding in recent years.
One of the particularly successful developments has been the Crystal Series Streptocarpus.
These are a range of smaller, more subtle, flowered types that, if conditions are right, will flower all year.
We have planted all 'six members of the range in the Ninfarium and they are thriving so far.
They seem perfectly happy in the conditions and look great planted en-masse as ground cover.
They should flower well into the winter, but will probably slow down in the darkest months and start to really flower again next spring.
Over time, they should develop into clumps about 30cm wide, at which point they can be divided and replanted probably every two years.
There are some very important tricks to growing Streptocarpus.
One is to avoid getting the leaves and crown wet, especially in direct sunlight or cooler periods.
The other is rigorous dead-heading to avoid them putting energy into seed or having dead flower heads attracting disease.
At Pershore College, we had a very large collection which needed dead-heading two to three times a week.
This job was carried out by the students, so during holiday periods when it was not done as often the difference in flowering and plant health was huge.
In the home situation, Streptocarpus make excellent house plants, having a very long flowering period and coping with the more shady conditions.
Dibleys Nursery in North Wales is probably the best place to source Streptocarpus as they have an excellent collection and have been growing them for years.
The unusual begonia can be sourced from Cotswold Garden flowers and the unusual Impatiens again from Dibleys.
Many of the Begonia will eventually be trialled outside as there is a good chance they will be hardy.
Above: Impatiens niamniamnensis
Above: Impatiens morsei Velvetea
Now’s the time to . . .
Order and plant bulbs for spring flowering
Keep cutting back the spent flowers of early flowering perennials
Keep staking the late flowering plants to prolong their season
Have a look at the lawn. If it is mossy, September is the month to scarify
Keep harvesting the vegetables as often as possible, especially courgettes. Letting them get big shorten the life of the plant.
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