Cuckoos, camassias and a visit to a Pig
‘The cuckoo comes in April, sings the month of May, changes its tune in the middle of June, and in July he flies away.’
It was with immense relief that I heard the cuckoo call this morning. I was getting worried as time was slipping by and still no cuckoo. I’ve heard the cuckoo every year since moving to the farm 20 years ago, and it’s usually a little earlier than the 8th May. So, I just hope a female has made it back too. Unlike the call of the male, she makes a bubbling sound, so I am unlikely to know if she is around or not.
Like many, I have never actually seen a cuckoo, despite it being similar in size to a woodpigeon. On a good morning, I’ll hear it call from 6 or 7 different locations around our fields, so it must be flying around but I’ve never managed to spot it. Has anybody has any luck spotting it!
According to Birdspot (https://www.birdspot.co.uk/first-cuckoo), on hearing the first cuckoo in spring, it’s traditional to pen a letter to The Times. But its probably better to report your sightings to their website.
Still no camassia flowers
I’ve seen so many images of camassia flowers being shared on social media this spring, but mine are still to open their flowers. Its going to be a week at least, so like the cuckoo they are running late this year.
To make up for the lack of camassia flowers in my garden, I’ve included a photo of the gorgeous camassia display at Yeo Valley Organic Garden with the dead hedge and apiary taken two years ago, on the 24 April.
Spring has progressed very slowly in my walled garden after the promise of an early start. Walled gardens are said to have a sheltered microclimate, raising the ambient temperature a few degrees. But I’m finding this year odd. May be it’s the fact that I have clay soil and once it got wet and cold over winter, it’s just taken an age to warm up…
A shift to naturalising bulbs
Back in February, I attended the Garden Press Event and met the team from Rijnbeek based in Holland. They have their eye on the future climate and have teamed up with JUB holland and Keukenhof Gardens in Holland to create a new border in the famous gardens. Their Bulb Mania Mix is designed to naturalise, rebloom and flourish over many years, rather than a single year, as is the case with a traditional tulip display. So, alongside the tulips, they have planted perennials into the mix – euphorbia, pulmonaria, centauria, geranium, dicentra, and heuchera with the aim of creating a long flowering period that will get better each year. There are other bulbs in the mix too, including white late daffodils, anemone, camassia, fritillary and muscari etc.
I must say that I am liking this move away from annual bulb displays – so much more sustainable and resilient.
A visit to The Pig
I love visiting the Pig Hotels. I have been to several, with The Pig at Coombe near Honiton being the nearest. You can’t beat walking around their kitchen gardens and I always see something new or different. In fact, I now plan to arrive well in advance of my lunch reservation, so I have time to wander and take photos, rather than rush my lovely lunch, because I’m impatient to get outside.
Last week, I went to an Alitex Grow Club Coffee Morning hosted by The Pig near Brockenhurst. The Pig team and Alitex have teamed up to create an edible display at this year’s RHS Chelsea, demonstrating the plot-to-plate ethos of The Pig and showcasing how every ingredient cultivated at their hotels finds its way onto plates.
So, I joined a small group gathered by the greenhouse to enjoy a coffee and croissant before touring the kitchen garden with Head Kitchen Gardener, Alex.
As you would expect at this time of year, the greenhouse was jammed packed with seedlings and young plants. The demand for seedlings is too great for each kitchen garden to produce their own, so there is a central nursery that supplies all the Pigs in the group with their trays of seedlings, each Pig ordering what they want to suit their own menus.
There was much to see and I always come away with great ideas for my own plot, so here is a selection of images from my visit.
This got us all talking, a drift of low growing sweet woodruff under the apple tree. As well as being sweet smelling and edible (its used in syrups and their desserts), it provides great ground cover and copes well with shade.
As you will have seen from my posts, I love trained fruit trees and I really liked this idea - a free standing single U at the end of the long bed. There was a double U at the opposite end of the bed and at the corner was a rectangle! Brilliant ideas.
Beyond the walled garden is a further growing area with large fruit cage, more fruit trees and two polytunnels. with an edible hedge around the outside The sides of the fruit cage were formed from livestock wire fencing and chicken mesh, avoiding the need for plastic netting.
The tomatoes were getting established in one polytunnel, while the rest of the space was used for growing on lots and lots of plants, many planted in small terracotta pots. No doubt some of these will appear on tables in the dining room over the coming months.
And another neat idea. They have planted their mint in large plastic pots sunk into the ground so the roots don’t spread. This way they can grow many different varieties without them taking over. I’ll be try that idea!
And finally, what plant is growing in this bed ! Some hints in the poll below. Answer next week!
Go on a kitchen garden tour
Most of the Pig Hotels run daily tours of their kitchen garden at 11 am, so you just need to call and book, and you don’t need to be staying to enjoy the tour. Here’s the link
Happy gardening
Sally
Talks and Workshops
Talk 11 May Sally is speaking at the FarmED Literary Festival - the venue is brilliant and the speakers awesome
Talk 30 & 31 May Sally is giving a talk at the Bath and West Show, Shepton Mallet - 12noon on Thursday and 12.45 on Friday
Talk 15th June Kim is speaking at the BBC Gardeners World Live Show
Talk 4 July Both Sally and Kim are speaking at RHS Hampton Court. Sally’s slot is 4om on the How To stage
Talk 13 September Talk by Sally at Yeo Valley Gardens, Organic September Celebrations, nr Bristol
Love the U fruit trees! Will have a try
And hanging basket in the greenhouse Great idea to stop the slugs eating my baby plants
What a spectacular garden!