Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Latest news from Aberglasney House and Gardens in the Tywi Valley -  Image by Nigel McCall Head Gardener's Update The winter collections at Aberglasney are just coming to their best. Snowdrops are appearing throughout the Gardens as one would expect. There are also excellent displays of early flowering Narcissus such as the renowned ‘Cedric Morris’ and the even earlier 'Rijnveld's Early Sensation' which is mass planted in a two thousand strong drift. One of the best partners for these bulbs is the Hellebore of which we have many types throughout the Gardens. There are mass planted drifts of the famous ‘Helen Ballard Strain’ and more recently a collection of the exciting ‘Harvington’ strains which have very clear colours from white to black or even spotted which are a favourite of visitors. Over the last two years we have tried many new Helleborus such as ‘Anna’s Red’ which are created with an exciting new method of propagation called micropropagation or Tissu...

Latest news from Aberglasney House and Gardens in the picturesque Tywi Valley -  Selection of lovely new plants in stock at only £4.95 each The choice includes Dahlia Gallery Bellini, Fuchsia Garden News, Fuchsia Tom Thumb and Lavandula Angustifolia Imperial Gem (all pictured above). At only £4.95 each, they are excellent value. The Rose Garden looking fantastic, as photographed by Nigel McCall Gower Crafts & Artisans exhibition In the Mansion until Thursday 14th July Find out more on the Gower Crafts & Artisans website One day photography course with Glyn Evans of Ffotoimage Photography Thursday 14th July ~ 10am to 3.30pm Find out more Peter Pan Friday 22nd July ~ gates open at 6.30pm for a 7pm performance Discount available on tickets bought at least 7 days in advance Tickets are available through our website Coachman's Cottage 29th July to 5th August ~ reduced from £750 to £500 5th August to 12th August ~ reduced from £750 to £500 Gardener's Cottage ...

Latest news from Aberglasney House and Gardens in the Tywi Valley -  Two year heritage horticulture training opportunity We are proud to be a host garden for the Historic and Botanic Garden Training Programme for a second two year placement starting in September 2016. Aberglasney joined the scheme last year, with the first placement being taken up by Jeanette Dunk (pictured above) in September 2015. Jeanette said: "The programme is a fantastic opportunity to gain experience in an historic garden. The diversity of plants and garden styles at Aberglasney makes training here interesting and varied. There is always a new challenge and I'm sure I'll finish my placement with a great all-round knowledge. It is a small and friendly gardening team at Aberglasney, so I get a lot of good quality supervision". Applications for 2016 placements are being accepted now and the closing date is 24th March. Applications must be made through the scheme's website at www.hbgt...

Latest news from the team at Aberglasney House and Gardens in the Tywi Valley - The weather of late has been exceptionally good and as a result the Gardens at Aberglasney are looking very good indeed. Our collection of Magnolias is in flower and Bishop Rudd’s Walk is at its best. Our tulip displays are even bigger this year and the sunshine ensures that the flowers open up to create a shimmering fanfare of colour. All in all, there really couldn’t be a better time to visit Aberglasney. Head Gardener Joseph Atkin says that the next few weeks are possibly the best of the year! Meanwhile, should you need any further encouragement our 2015 events programme has begun in earnest. Kick off the bank holiday weekend by joining us for live ‘Music in the Pool Garden’ on Friday May the 1st. Relax to the sounds of Jimi Webb “Wales’ King of Swing” while enjoying your own picnic or book a table on the Tearooms’ terrace and ‘Maryellen’s’ will take care of your supper – call them now...

Aberglasney Head Gardener Joseph Atkin tells the story of how a rare Orchid has flowered at the Tywi Valley gardens - Three years ago I had a call to say that Liverpool Botanic Gardens were closing some old glasshouses and rationalising their plant collections which included Orchids and Clivia. They kindly offered me the chance to take some of the plants back to Aberglasney as they were bound for homelessness and a rather gruesome end. So at 4.30am the next morning I was on my way to Liverpool in a hire van to collect/save what I could. On arrival, I found all sorts of treasures that would suit our Ninfarium and promptly filled the van to its rafters. This was followed by some really hard decisions about what I could and couldn’t take as there wasn’t enough room in the van. After much deliberation this Orchid Dendrobium speciosum made it onto the van as the last plant. This week I was overjoyed to see it bursting into full flower for the first time. This is some ...

Pupils from a Llanelli primary school are hoping to reap what they sow. Swiss Valley primary school will be at Llanelli Indoor market on Thursday, March 26 until 12.30pm, selling seeds and seedlings from their school garden. Representatives from the school’s eco council will be selling vegetable seeds including peas, broad beans, runner beans, onions and seed potatoes on their stand in Stepney Precinct. They will also have seedlings of broad beans, lettuce, cabbage and tomatoes. The garden was created in 2012 and currently has 15 raised beds, four glasshouses and two areas where children plant directly into the soil. Teacher and garden leader Neil Lane said: “The aim of the garden is to provide an opportunity for children to learn skills across the curriculum by providing them with opportunities to grow their own vegetables, buy and sell seeds, seedlings and vegetables as well as learning about the benefits of a healthy diet. “The project is also run as a business to introduce pupils...

It’s not just fruit and vegetables growing at Cefneithin’s community allotment – support for the scheme is growing too! The Growing Spaces project has certainly started to take root, with more people becoming involved to plant, tend for and pick fresh produce for their kitchens. Launched earlier this year, the allotment was a community initiative involving village residents, tenants and schoolchildren, with support from their local councillor and the Community Engagement Team from Carmarthenshire County Council’s housing department. Several raised beds were created, as well as sheds to store tools, and water butts to collect rainwater. And now, thanks to a £5,000 Awards for All grant and a £250 cheque from the Co-operative store in nearby Cross Hands, there’s more plans in the pipeline. Community Engagement Officer Janet Griffiths said: “The local community has really embraced this project, and you will often find people of all ages here working together to look after the fruit and...

From Colossal Cabbages to Mammoth Marrows, the Aberglasney Gardens Giant Vegetable Competition returns this October Some of the biggest vegetables in the World have been grown in Wales and in the past this has meant a titanic tomato weighing in at an astonishing 2.602kg (5.73lb), a super swede weighing 54kg (119lb) and a colossal carrot weighing 8.35kg (18.4lb). Aberglasney Gardens’ Giant Vegetable Competition which takes place on Sunday October 5 will be your chance to see some of these monsters ‘in the flesh’ as growers from near and far come together for the second time at this historic site. In charge of the official weigh-in will be gardening guru Medwyn Williams MBE. No one knows their vegetables like the 11 time Chelsea Flower Show gold medal winner. Medwyn also has a gold medal from the Hampton Court Flower Show and nine Gordon Lennox Trophies for the best vegetable of the year. He is president of the National Vegetable Society. The head gardener at Aberglasney, Joseph ...

Multi-millionaire and social entrepreneur Kevin Green took time out from his busy schedule to give a special talk to the children of Swiss Valley Primary School in Llanelli. Mr Green delighted the children by turning up for the talk in his Aston Martin car. He gave the children a 20-minute talk on how he's managed to turn his life around from being homeless in 1988 to running a property portfolio which makes him the UK's biggest private sector landlord. Mr Green stressed the importance of hard work in striving to achieve your dreams. He also gave the children some handy business tips. "There's a budding entrepreneur in everyone," Green said. "The children of Swiss Valley School have been working hard on a gardening project in the school and are now working on selling their produce and their seeds. "It's great to see first hand such enthusiasm and it's also great to see teachers like Neil Lane working so hard to develop children's ...

Youngsters have been getting their hands dirty in the garden this summer. Llanelli’s Maes Y Morfa ‘Grow Your Own’ gardening project saw children from 4 to 11 taking part in a range of activities including The local Communities First team came up with the project to focus on teaching children about healthy foods and the importance of sustainability, within an environment that is fun and friendly. Children who attended learned about gardening and the healthy foods they can grow for themselves. The food grown in the garden will also go right to the table, for the children get to take home and enjoy what they have helped to grow. Community First Health Promotion Worker, Llyr Lloyd, said:” This project gave children the opportunity to learn skills to grow their own healthy produce” The Communities’ First team aims to contribute, alongside other programmes, to narrowing the education, skills, economic and health gaps between disadvantaged and affluent areas. Anyone interested in finding o...

A Garnant garden is in full bloom, in special memory of a much-loved character who is sorely missed in the community. Bus driver Mark Withers sadly died in May 2013, after a brave fight against cancer. He was known and loved by many, and the whole community got behind him when he starred in the very first series of the popular TV programme The Great British Bake Off. So, when his wife Elaine and son Jethro decided to do something special in his memory, they were not short of helping hands. Their story features on the front cover of Carmarthenshire County Council’s Tenant 2 Tenant magazine , which is written by council tenants. Elaine wanted to talk about her garden project as part of the council’s Pride In Your Patch project, which is part of the council’s £220million Carmarthenshire Homes Standard investment. “My husband was quite a character locally, and people loved him wherever he went - to say it has been hard without him is an understatement, I miss him every day,” said Elain...

Today, Aberglasney is delighted to be holding its first Giant Vegetable Competition. If you would like to enter but haven’t returned an entry form then you’re still welcome to come along on Sunday morning with your vegetables (you’ll find a list of all the classes at the end of this email.) It’s free to enter the competition and the prizes in each class are well worth your efforts – 1st prize is £40 or a joint annual membership for Aberglasney worth £65; 2nd prize is £20 or a £30 gift voucher for Aberglasney’s shop and plant sales area; and 3rd prize is £10 or a copy of the beautiful book ‘The Flowering of Aberglasney’. There are also special prizes for the best Aberglasney Member exhibit and the best junior exhibit. If you’ve decided not to enter this year we would still love to see you at Aberglasney on Sunday. All visitors will receive a complimentary glass of mulled cider, you’ll be able to get advice from the experts on making the most of your vegetable garden (including from...

Aberglasney Gardens in Carmarthenshire is marking RHS National Gardening Week (April 15-21) with the launch of a giant vegetable growing competition. The team at these historic gardens is determined to encourage more of us to get gardening in 2013 and hopes to encourage rivalry on a mammoth scale! RHS Regional Development Manager Ali Boyd said: "National Gardening Week is all about reaching out and encouraging people throughout the UK to get involved in gardening. We’re delighted that Aberglasney, an RHS Partner Garden, is getting involved to help make the week a resounding success." All visitors to Aberglasney during National Gardening Week will be given a complimentary packet of seeds, thanks to Suttons, to get them started on the road to growing vegetables of larger than life proportions. Head gardener Joseph Atkin will also be on hand to offer plenty of advice. Speaking this week, he said: "While we’re going to be giving a selection of seeds away you’re not restri...

There will be a Heritage Horticulture Skills Scheme open day this month at Aberglasney Gardens in the Tywi Valley. The Heritage Lottery funded scheme provides training to improve the skill base of gardeners in heritage horticulture in Wales. The event takes place on November 23 from 10.30 am until 3pm. The day will include numerous horticultural demonstrations by the current students, guided tours of the gardens and the chance for to meet all the partner gardens involved. There will also be short presentations about the scheme and the partner gardens.

Now’s the perfect time to get gardening and ensure you get the most out of your patch next year - and the team at Aberglasney House and Gardens would like to help you! Aberglasney Gardens in the Tywi Valley in Carmarthenshire is currently selling a huge range of rare and unusual plants at greatly discounted prices. Many are surplus plants from the gardens themselves while others come from some of Wales’ top nurseries. What’s more. the garden's team of expert gardeners are on hand with help and advice on the plants on sale, as well as to answer your general gardening queries. Head gardener Joseph Atkin said: “The team at Aberglasney not only enjoy being able to inspire the tens of thousands of visitors who come here every year, but we like to be able to help them get the most of their gardens at home.” He added: “Our plant sales area is open all year and entry is free. Why not come along and see for yourselves the great range of plants that we have and let us help and advise you ...

Special week for volunteers | The National Botanic Garden of Wales The hard work done by volunteers at National Botanic Garden of Wales volunteers is being recognised with a special week. From Monday June 11 until Sunday June 17, all the Garden’s volunteers are invited to ‘Bring A Friend Free of Charge’ so they can show their friends and family the fruits of their labour. The garden is at Llanarthne, near Carmarthen.

The latest Carmarthen Journal gardening column from Aberglasney head gardener Joseph Atkin -  With the weather being kind and finally some dry weather spring has really begun in the garden. The bulbs and shrubs are out in force at Aberglasney and everything else is bursting into growth. With so much going on it’s almost impossible to keep up with everything that’s coming into flower. The Narcissus and even some Tulips are coming out the Magnolias have started to flower and everything seems to have appreciated the milder winter. Between all this elegance and spectacular flowers there are also some very interesting bulbs although they should technically be called tubers. The Arisaema which is related to Arum and Calla Lily is an excellent plant that deserves much more interest than it often gets. Often known as the Cobra Lily due to the sinister shape of the flowers they are something very different for spring and summer. For many years they have been really expensive ...

Joseph Atkin's latest Aberglasney gardening column was in the South Wales Evening Post yesterday.

The latest South Wales Evening Post gardening column by Aberglasney Head Gardener Joseph Atkin -   As we continue to enjoy this mild weather we are greeted with a succession of treats in the form of spring flowering bulbs and shrubs. The bees are out and there is even the odd glimpse of sun shine. While we are wondering if it’s safe to mow the grass especially as it’s romping away with this warm wet weather special attention should be paid to one spring flowering plant in particular. Crocus fills the gap between Daffodils and snowdrops really well. They also come in a fantastic colour range that contrast well with snowdrops and the supposedly later Daffodils. Before the Daffodils steal the show at Aberglasney the new plantings of Crocus are really looking good. Not only are they very easy to grow and relatively cheap to buy but they have a multitude of uses in the garden. On top of these different uses they also come in superb variety and have spring and autumn ...

Early hedge cutting advised to avoid bird nesting season | Dyfed Powys Police | Heddlu Dyfed Powys With spring on the way, police are warning gardeners to get their hedges cut before the bird nesting season to avoid breaking the law.