Abriachan Nurseries - The Garden On Loch Ness

Secrets of the selling beds

2012-03-18T04:59:00.001Z

BEHIND THE SCENES AT A FAMILY PLANT NURSERY

No. 1 - SECRETS OF THE SELLING BEDS

We runthe bathroom tap all winter to ensure the pipes do not freeze, (don't panic, itis our own water source, we are not wasting a drop, but it does still stressout Australian friends when they visit and watch all that precious watergushing endlessly down the drain) so when the day comes when we can turn offthe tap and feel with 95% confidence that it will not freeze again that night,why then, it must be about time to begin the season and start to fill up thenursery with the plants that have spent the winter cosy in their poly tunnelhomes.

Thefrosty winter of 2010 hit us hard, very hard, and we lost a lot of great stockplants that had come through many winters before. We have learned from ourmistakes, and this last winter we invested in more bubble wrap, fleece andpolystyrene insulation to ensure we were doing all we could to protect theplants if the thermometer hit -15 once again.
Thankfully it did not and with a relatively mild winter, the losses were farless.
Another change we made, which turned out to make a marked difference, wassimply moving certain plants between poly tunnels to conditions that seemed tosuit them more. For example, I took all the Bellis plants from the smallertunnel, to the larger airier tunnel and they have thrived on it, preferring tohave more air flow around them and less of a tight environment.

We havealso been lucky to survive without a great deal of mouse damage, and moresadly; with the loss of West in November; there was no vizsla damage either.His horticultural impact was never intentional; it is just inherently tricky tobury a venison bone underneath a tray of crocosmia without there being a fewcasualties.

So, wewalk the stock beds and select what is to be first out into the nursery, thenhoist up some trays of plants and take them to the shed; which is marginallywarmer and has marginally more chocolate hobnobs than the poly tunnel; andthere we do any required weeding, cutting back, removal of old foliage andgenerally ensuring it is looking its best before sale. Some plants will at thisstage get potted up to a larger size to go back to the tunnels for sale laterin the season.

A newlabel is written out by hand for each plant, (yes, by hand, we are still oldschool, and unless the original seedlings came with some snazzy colouredlabels, we still get hand cramp from writing out ‘Persicaria affinis campanulata £3.50’ fifty times) and then I channelmy inner Theroux to write up an evocative label to describe the appearance ofthe plant, explain its growing habits, soil preferences, size etc.

Beingeco-conscious, we recycle and reuse many of our pots, labels, trays and othermaterials necessary for running a nursery, and in this we are ably assisted byShelia our fabulous employee, who dedicates her own time to collecting andcleaning off plant labels for re-use. (We also have a collection point wherecustomers are encouraged to bring in all the plant pots they have accumulatedover the years, we will use what we can and pass on the rest for furtherrecycling.)

After theprettification step, the plants go out onto the nursery selling beds. As the nursery has grown, so to have thenumber of tables, and we now have a substantial amount which require yearlywinter maintenance by means of a scrub down with a wire brush to remove thegrime and moss, followed by a fresh layer of special varnish which protects thewood from rotting and prevents moss growth. A very tedious task I'm sure youcan appreciate, so one I do my best to delegate.

Now comesan attempt to delve into the psychology of the plant buyer - look into my eyes,you are feeling an irresistible urge to buy 17 meconopsis.

We do nothave a bag of tricks like the evil genius's at the supermarkets, and i'm not going to give everything away, but we havebeen known to watch customers out the corners of our eye to see which routesthey take between the tables and which areas are the focal points, or 'hotspots'. Into these spots I position those plants that are looking particularlygreat, are in full flower, or which are enjoying a season of fashionablepopularity.

Next out,some complementary plants - texture, colour, size, planting conditions - allcome into play when laying out the table.
Delicate marking displayed at eyelevel for maximum appreciation, big pots on the ground so they don’t have farto fall on the windy days. Climbers not too close to the trellis or you willnever be able to untangle them........

Then a few more mind games - theremoval of a couple of pots from each tray, (A full tray is too intimidating),position the descriptive label at a readable angle and job done.

Smoko time?

GUEST POST BY HAMISH DAVIDSON

Drumsticks of Delight

2012-03-14T01:31:00.000Z

PLANT OF THE MONTH
Primula Denticulata
(The Drumstick Primula)
Beautiful spherical flower heads.
Cheerful, early, and indestructible.
They grow almost anywhere and look lovely planted as a group.
We sell as seperate colours (Red/Pink, White and Violet/Blue)
£3 each - £10 for four

The Boiling Pond

2012-03-01T09:32:00.000Z

Like the GilbertWhite of Abriachan, I crept stealthily up the path towards the pond, cameraswitched on, lens extended, fingers hovering expectantly over the focus.
I was down-wind, I had deliberately neglected to put on potent midge repellentlest it disturb the still morning air, I was wearing my most woodland-blendingcombination of greens, greys and browns, surely this time they would not see mecoming!

SPLAsh SpISH SPlarg Gloop ShLUuop splOSH

bugger!

Once moreoutwitted by frogs, 16 frogs to be more accurate (at last count), the newestand most endearing residents of the pond.

(I promise they are in the photo somewhere)

Theymoved in last week and since then the water has been boiling with theiractivity, there are now several big patches of frog spawn floating like translucentsago pudding, yet despite my best efforts, my attempts to sneak up andphotograph them as they lounge on the banks and leaves have failed, and all Iam confronted with are 32 big eyes on teeny frog faces peeking up at me.

One of mywinter jobs was the transformation of what Margaret termed "The QuakingBog" into something that once more resembled a wildlife pond.
So with a set of waders, a spade and a look of steely determination in my eye,I went forth and did battle.

January/Februaryis the best time for you to tackle your ponds, as it is when you are going tocause least disturbance to wildlife which is at its lowest ebb in the wintermonths, and also when you are best able to divide your pond plants before theystart to grow away in the spring.

The rapidflow of water through our pond, (connected to a fast flowing burn) brought withit a great deal of silt and other detritus, so I had to dig a great deal ofcontent out, to return the pond to a depth of 3ft, restoring it to a suitableenvironment for wildlife and readying it for fresh planting in the comingmonths.
If you own a stand-alone pond which you refill/refresh/pump or otherwiseoxygenate, you will probably have far less content to clear out as there willonly be the fallen leaves and rotting plant material to deal with, however itis still a job that should be done tri-annually to benefit the health of thepond.

Here area few tips to help you in your endeavours:

Waders are a great investment - Digging out a pond from the bank is near impossible and you are like as not to strain your back, and receive no sympathy from friends and family as "You should have known better."
Also, a welly boot, once full of sludgly mud, tends to be more of a hindrance than a help and may lead to you becoming wedged in the gunge in the very centre of the pond, having to perform a complex manoeuvre where you use the spade to lever out one foot so you can make a lunge for the bank, leaving the other welly behind in its new watery home, where it looks at you smugly while you sit and wring out your socks.
Stop the flow of water into your pond while you are cleaning it, and if possible drain out most of the water to make your job easier.
I would imagine that if you have fish, transferring them elsewhere at this stage would be a pretty good idea.
As you dig out the contents of the pond, shovel it all onto the bank and leave it there for at least a few days, so anything that has been living in the murky depths can wriggle its way back down into the water.
Once the silt is wriggler-free, you can move it elsewhere.
I have used ours to fill a new bed which I will plant with Primulas later this year.
You may have to mix the pond contents with compost and additional feeding depending on the level of nutrients - I will be adding manure and leaf compost to ours.
Dig deep to get out the roots of all the plants you do not want in your pond. In our case, reeds, rushes and grasses which would, if left, invade the whole pond area.
You can keep a small patch of reeds for your wildlife if you like, but there are plenty of alternative plants which wildlife love and which are easier to keep under control.
Divide your lilies, irises and other abundant pond plants, plant them elsewhere, give them to your neighbours, sell them, donate them, barter them..... just ensure you leave enough for oxygenation and habitat.
Hold off on re-planting with new plants until after the last of the hard frosts.
Ensure your pond has at least one gradually graduated side, so frogs, toads, newts and other wildlife can get in and out easily.

Best ofluck with your own ponds, they are such a great addition to your garden and aswell as providing an environment for animals and insects to live, breed andfeed, they give many more birds and animals with a place to drink and bathe.
Our own wee Scottish food chain contains damselflies, dragonflies, water boatmen, pond skaters, whirligig beetles, caddis flies, water snails, frogs, toads,ducks, a visiting heron...... and recently observed, the lesser-spotted mud-encrustedScotsman.

Written by Donald
Frog graphic from the fabulous Graphics Fairy

Little drops of green & white

2012-02-18T03:39:00.000Z

Does any flower give more hope than snowdrops!

Pure white modest flowers with a chaste beauty, that belies there tough nature.

There they are each January, bravely emerging between the fallen leaves and ivy tendrils.

They are of course hardy, but they are not the fastest of bulbs to colonise a woodland or river bank.
Where you see drifts of snowdrops you are looking at decades or even centuries of growth.
Such plantings are some of the loveliest sights you will see.

Snowdrops are often found in burial grounds, and such plantings must be for hope and memory.
I have seen snowdrops in well kept town cemeteries and on wind blasted burial grounds full of old graves, and they always stir the heart.

In Drumnadrochit, a village close to Abriachan there is a very special area of woodland at the confluence of two rivers, called the Cover.

The Rivers that flow through the Cover to Loch Ness have regularly flooded in the past and have brought down plant material from gardens.
Hence we have had Japanese Knotweed (thankfully, hopefully eradicated now) and raspberry canes, but the one intruder I think is wonderful is the Snowdrop

Undisturbed under the trees they have multiplied and now give a lovely show each year.

I was there on Sunday, a lovely mild day with the feel of the approach of spring.

For anyone with a new house and garden, wait for the first January, February and see if you have snowdrops if not, then buy some, and as with tree planting it is for the next generation.

The magic of Witch Hazel

2012-02-06T09:49:00.000Z

Witch Hazel, I remember it from my childhood…..a transparent liquid in a half pint bottle, administered when I can home bruised after a day at the local park, a not infrequent event.
I think it is still around and I remember keeping a bottle in my fridge for years when my children were small.

Witch Hazel, Hamamelis mollis is a wonderful shrub, a thing of legend.

These beautiful shrubs flower on bare branches before the leaves.

Hamamelis mollis Pallida is a lovely sulphur yellow variant that flowers in the icy grip of January. The spidery petals are long and with a delicate perfume that rises when in the warmth of a room.
There are darker coloured variants, two of which we grow. Jalena with coppery yellow flowers and Diane, a coppery red.
They are very nice shrubs , but as they flower later in late February/March they somehow don’t seem to make the impact of the early flowering Pallida.
All make an impact in autumn with wonderful rich yellow and red colourings.

Witch hazel is one of those glorious shrubs that you dream of having in your garden.
At Abriachan we had the chance and we planted Hamamelis mollis Pallida about 15 years ago. It is not exactly slow growing, but seems to take to time and it is only this year that I have felt confident to take a branch or two for the house.

I love it, a beautiful, classical beauty.
M

Badger Shenanigans

2012-02-01T00:00:00.000Z

After much mud, sweat and tea (rs), the 2012 plant catalogue is off to the printers.
This years front cover shows the local badgers cavorting on the beehive during one of their midnight raids.
Does anyone else have badgers making themselves at home in your garden?

Cat

Winter woodland walk

2012-01-30T02:12:00.000Z

Since we have returned from New Zealand I have walked throughour garden and woodlands most days.
It is usually late afternoon before I start up the hill,well wrapped up against the cold with fleece and my wonderful possum hat from New Zealand.

Daylight is drawing out markedly now. I am still finding themornings very dark, but the evenings are stretching nicely and it is now wellafter five before it is dark. Hoorah!

This late afternoon light is special.
We are having a quiet cold spell justnow and the light on Loch Ness is great.
I always think of Loch Ness as steely grey and it looks wonderful, arctic coldglinting in moonlight and mirror glass calm by day.

December was very wet and the footpaths are still greasy inplaces
The last of the leaves are brown anddamp and the air is heavy with the humus smell of woodlands.
Bark and branch dominate the foreground, with pockets of darkholly and Blechnum spicant; the elegant hard fern; on dry banks.

Of course snow drops are through and the garden looks well,temperatures have not been below-4. Fingers crossed.

Rose Discoveries - Beauty in a Shattered City.

2011-12-28T04:44:00.000Z

If you know Christchurch as we do, it is very sad just now to see the cleared sites and demolition work that followed the Earthquakes earlier this year. However, walk down to Hagley Park, their botanic gardens and it is thriving.
In Mid December we walked into their rose garden and I was blown away. I am still seeing images of the garden in my mind's eye.
Usually, I walk into a rose garden and what do I see? Well it can be lovely , but all too often the garden can be dry soil, defoliation, spotty yellow leaves far too much bare earth
Not an enthusiast then?? Well all changed now. Christchurch showed me how it can be done,

Look at these arches, look at these red reds. Let me share some photographs with you.

What you don't get in a photograph, is the shimmering sunshine and the scented air around some of the rose beds...just lovely

Many Happy Returns

Large bed of "Many Happy Returns" white, pink bud.
It was the white roses that made the most impact. Fantastic.

Molly Kirby

Molly Kirby...a sizzling orange, clean shiny foliage.

A bright yellow bed of " Casino"

Casino.

The red voluptuous "Ingrid Bergman"

Ingrid Bergman

The roses were all looking wonderful. Why?
1. Well New Zealand has a kinder climate. Christchurch has milder winters and hotter summers that we have in UK, and certainly more than we have in Scotland.
And Roses love warmth. We sometimes forget that and wonder why we lose rose bushes, particularly Hybrid teas in a bad winter. At Abriachan we only grown shrub roses and climbers as others just can't take the cold.

2. The roses looked well pruned and well fed. Like all plants that you want to see bloom on the new growth you have to ensure they are well fed. Blood fish and bone or dehydrated Chicken manure are my favourites, followed by tomato feed to get lots of blooms.

Nancy Hayward

3. New Zealand breeds many of its own roses and they were well chosen, but there were also very good looking David Austin varieties and old well known varieties such as "Compassion" and "Iceberg" They looked great so I believe they are using good clean material for propagation.

Just wonderful. No wonder they call Christchurch the Garden City

The Badger and The Bees

2011-11-30T23:26:00.004Z

The Buzz from the Hive

Autumn and time for the beekeeper to relax a little, take stock of the honey crop and start to prepare the bees for the winter. However, there were one or two surprises in store for us yet at the Abriachan hive; never a dull moment with bees.

Pressing the Honey

In September there was an outbreak of American foulbrood in Inverness-shire, the beekeepers worst nightmare.
This is a virulent disease that decimates the developing larvae, will eventually wipe out the colony and is highly contagious.
As with foot and mouth, the infected hive, with its bees is destroyed and a standstill order placed on the apiary until further inspections are carried out.
Bees have a flying range of three miles and along with many others, we were within range of the infected apiary.
So we had a tense week while we waited for the Government Bee inspector to call. Thankfully we were given a clean bill of health.

A more recent threat to the hive has been of a larger and hairier kind.

For the first time the gardens have played host to badgers. Not only have they found the flowerbeds attractive but unfortunately the hive too and Don found it tipped right over and the roof removed earlier this month.
Even with the hive strapped up and weighted down with boulders, there has obviously been a return trip, as the metal mouse guard that covers the entrance (yes, mice love hibernating in hives!) has been ripped off in an effort to reach in side.
All is quiet at the moment but at list the intruder has inspired this years label for the honey jars!

AbriachanApiary 2011

(This Guest Blog written by our wonderful bee keeper Rebecca)

Loss of a great four legged friend

2011-11-23T23:33:00.004Z

It is a sad day at the nursery, our Viszla 'West' has come to the end of a long and happy life with us at Abriachan.
He was over 120 dog years and while he tried his best to stay with us a little longer, his poor wee heart could no longer cope.

We will miss him very much, he is part of the fabric of the nursery and part of the Davidson family.
He was always to be found somewhere, guiding visitors round the garden, excavating holes to try; unsuccessfully; to catch mice, pathetically shivering by the heater, even in the height of summer, burying today's lunch, searching for yesterdays lunch, chasing deer and endearing himself to all.

He made us laugh, he kept us company while weeding, he drove us mad with his door scratching skills. He was great.

We got 'West' as our second nursery rescue Vizsla, our first was 'Blue' and I think there are many visitors who didn't notice the change and may think we have had the same dog for 25 years. They had very different personalities, yet both loved the limelight and the attention of the nursery visitors. (Especially the women)

They would eat like horses and never gain a pound, West's ribs were always on display and on occasion we would get looks from people that suggested they were about to phone the RSPCA, unaware of the huge haunch of venison that he had inhaled that morning. I know, I know, venison! - he was spoilt rotten, turning his nose up at meat that other dogs would give their left leg for a sniff of.

Our lovely neighbour also has several beautiful vizslas and West would make frequent solo adventures through the woodland, somehow through/over/under??? the deer fencing, over the stream and once there, position himself under the window and cry piteously until allowed in to play with his girlfriends. If they were not at home, he would reappear 5 minutes later back on the nursery looking nonchalant, and would stroll insouciantly past you, as though he had been very busy helping in the polytunnels the whole time.

We have film crews come by the garden every few years and both Blue and West would pull out all the stops to get screen time. They would stand casually on top of a rock looking out over the loch, with the middle distance stare of a catalogue model, pretending not to notice as the cameraman lined them up for a tracking shot, or they would develop an overwhelming devotion to whoever was being filmed talking to the presenter, coming in with the trademark vizla-lean, where they stand very close and then gradually put all their weight on your legs until you buckle under the strain.

We hope you had a chance to meet him if you visited Abriachan, and thank you for all the attention and love you gave him over the years, it made him very happy.
He was a bouncing puppy one moment, a grave elder statesman the next. A companion, a watchdog, a ladies man, a hunter, a poser, a neurotic mess, a friend.
We will miss you West.

Cut flowers for Christmas?

2011-11-11T10:59:00.063Z

I remember about 12 years ago, when we had that run of mild winters., that I used to be able to cut a pick a bunch of late flowers for Christmas day.
Well certainly not the last 2 winters. But I am hopeful this year.
We have a lovely show of late blooms just now as November settles in.

The Schizostylis, Kaffir Lilies, have bloomed as never before, I take it to be the mild weather and lots of sunshine. They are South Africans so love the sun. Lovely satiny blooms of red and pink.

The annuals have not finished of course and you can still find blooms on the Larkspur (The few that the mice left in peace) and Cosmos.

Most showy is the old pot Marigold, Calendula. A lovely show or rich orange and yellow, planted with bright green parsley.

Of course Dahlias are at their best in autumn. We still have a good show of Bishop of Llandaff and Fascination, and the latter with its orange and red colouring looks lovely in autumn groups.

Rhododendrons have become confused and we have had a few flowers on a good few of them….cilipense, impeditum and Elizabeth.

And roses. I often had a rose bud in that Christmas bunch. The constitution of many roses is to repeat flower, but often they don’t get the chance. This year we had a lovely second flush of Shot Silk, the rose on our house wall and a few blooms on Madame Isaac Pereire .

The David Austin Roses Alan Titchmarch, Tam o Shanter. and Prospero have bloomed well, but I have struggled to Get the Alan Titchmarsh roses to open even in the house. They actually looked their best when the petals fell.

Luxury.

Next years roses have just arrived bare rooted from David Austin, they look excellent and Don is potting them today.

A Woodland in November

2011-11-08T23:25:00.000Z

I decided it would be good to walkthrough the garden once a month to share the highlights with you,
Often weeding, moving, lifting andsweeping..… you lose the wood for the trees. So this is my monthly exercise -finding the woodland.

I am starting near the bottom of oursteep drive. We have a row of beech trees near the road, planted when we camehere 28 years ago, they are now magnificent specimens. Each autumn they taketheir time, slowly, yellow, gold, a flash of red and then in October thecolours deepen to a wonderful glowing copper bronze. They have been wonderful.

The wind is now taking them away, butthere is still pleasure as they swirl and gather in groups at the edge of thetarmac.

Walking up the hill you pass themagnificent Acer Bloodgood. Can an Acer be too big? I see that it’s winning the battle with thewhite lilac next to it. It is being squeezed out.

Up the steps and into the woodland andthe first splendour that you meet is the Witch hazel. Our shrub is Hamamellispallida, which has lovely pale lemon spidery flowers each winter, on the barestems. The leaves are large and a clean acidic yellow, very noticeable thisautumn. As the leaves fall off I can see myriad swollen flower buds. It will bea great show.

Hamamelis mollis

Rodgersia aesulifolia

Collapsed Hosta

The Rodgersia are colouring andcollapsing, the Hostas are suddenly collapsing and they all flare with colourbefore they go down. As always the grasses are at their best before winter setsin. The most satisfying this year has been Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Karl Foerster', its bolt upright stemsstanding wonderfully well and mixing with Rudbeckia.

They lookwonderful together in vase.

As you wanderup the steps you can’t but see the evergreens. They take on a glossy glow thatlasts through the winter. Holly and Ivy both gaining prominence as the colourshow fades.

Finally up tothe big oak at the top of the garden. The most magnificent plants we have and a gorgeous deep bronzecolour. Just now it is full of Jays, whohave decided to turn up on Loch Ness and eat their way through the acorn crop.

They arenoisy. Screeching and airborne when you or the dog appear. They remind me ofscaled down Cockatoos. Squawk.

Making leaf mould & a recipe for potting compost

2011-11-03T01:40:00.001Z

Leaf mould is a lovely old fashionedterm, and brings to mind old Estate gardens and poorly paid, overworked gardenboys. It often appeared as a magicingredient alongside weathered soot and wood ash and ground up toe nails!

But for us it is a natural plentifulresource and a vital ingredient in our potting composts. Over the years we havesteadily reduced the amount of peat in our mixes and leaf mould is reallyuseful.

The native trees that shed their leavesfor us are Hazel, Birch and Oak, and of course we are a garden and we also havelots of Maples, Cercidiphyllum , Chestnut and Larch.

The leaves fall onto beds and along thepaths.
This make for easy pickings and any dryday from late October onwards, there is often someone out there, with a bucket, a rake and a collection oldcompost bags.

Rebecca hard at work with the rake

The leaves are poured out into compostbins constructed from wooden pallets and when we have a bumper year, we make wire netting cages to take themall.

There they sit for 2 years, slowlymouldering.
Each leaf has its own characteristics.
Oak is tough and takes 2 years to rotdown.
Hazel is much softer and takes a yearto 18 months.

Inevitably there is the odd holly leafin the mould. They are a pain, literally. They are always a surprise, and take forever to rot so they retain allof their prickles. Again natures wee joke.

Leaf mould is also a great mulch, in factit is nature’s mulch in our woodlands
We like to return some to the bedsevery year.

Here’s our recipe for general purposepotting compost

Sieved Leaf Mould 1/3^rd
John Innes No3 1/3^rd
Grit/Gravel 1/6^th dependingon the plants to use it
Fibrous Compost 1/6^th to 1/3^rd (You could use peat, but there are now many more sustainable alternatives available)

^{Happy gathering, M}

^{For more advice about the benefits of leaves read Donald's Autumn Blog from 2009}

^{Love Your Leaves}

The Turning of the Season

2011-10-29T06:22:00.000+01:00

It’s cold now. A depression roared infrom the Atlantic last week and westill have blustery showers, and the first snow on the tops. When I say snow on the tops I don’t mean Ben Nevis, the Ben has had snow for some weeks now, butsnow on the hills opposite us on south Loch Ness…...hills around 200ft

The mornings have become dark and Ihave become very sluggish getting out to the garden. In less than a week theclocks will go back and we will have some brighter mornings, though colder ofcourse.
No frost yet, but raw, wet mornings. Ikeep glancing at the met office forecasts looking for a mild settled spell tosee out the last of the autumn colour. No luck that I can see.

The colour is still wonderful and nowthat the flashy early reds of Acers and Horse Chestnuts and Geans are through,the colours are taking on russet depths that clothe and pillow the hills inbirch and oak.

A bright sunny day would be food forthe soul.

UCFZDU8RXQMZ

Oh to be a Movie Star

2011-10-21T00:34:00.000+01:00

InSeptember the production team arrived. Donald was on duty, smiling and informative and demonstrating amazingpatience as they take and retake and take again.

Itwas a crew from Tern TV and they came to film for a Gaelic TV gardeningprogramme. Donald, despite his Gaelic speaking roots stuck to English

Theexercise was to buy 3 plants for a garden on Skye. Not necessarily plants thatwould suit Skye, but something Interesting.

Theychose

Pseudowintera colorata

Eryngium bourgatii Graham Stuart Thomas

Eucryphia milliganii

Allof which will thrive in the wet warm west.

Theystarted about 2pm and worked througharound 4 hours…..no tea breaks. Theseguys are made of stern stuff.

Thiswas all done to the intermittent whining of a local chainsaw, the occasionallow flying aircraft and heavy lorries. All of this pleased the sound man.

Andlike TV crews we have dealt with before, they were a pleasure to meet and work with.Good fun

Youknow the old saying “Never work with Children and animals” . Well true to form,our old dog, West, was ready to make newfriends and hog the camera, but no go, they sent him home!

Butwatch out for him skulking in the bushes.

Thefinished product will be on TV Alba in January…such a long time away.

Autumn Offers

2011-09-01T05:11:00.000+01:00

With the first day of autumn upon us, we have managed to find time to get our Autumn Supplement for 2011 organised.
Every August I walk among our nursery standing grounds and choose out the plants that are looking great for our mail order supplement.
These plants are ones that I know will settle well when planted in autumn and give a great performance next year.
I like to offer plants that will bring your garden to life again as autumn sets in; there are Schizostylis and Kniphofia, Primroses and Thistles, ready now to settle into the warm soil.

ABRIACHAN NURSERIES AUTUMN SUPPLEMENT

I hope you find something to tempt you, and I hope the midges are not as bad in your garden as they are currently in ours.

Painting your garden with annuals

2011-08-15T13:03:00.001+01:00

Ah growing annuals I hear you think suspiciously. But they don’t come back.

Well no, but as I say to folks many times each year, They give you colour as no other plants will give you colour, and they last for months…usually to the first hard frosts or Christmas…and they are (relatively) cheap.

Well that’s my opinion, and I prove it by growing an annual border every year.

I love it, it is the place where you can plant and create fast growing colour, and try something different each year.

Each year I include some common ingredients, but always try to incorporate something new. I am always on the look out for new ideas and often peering into other peoples gardens as I walk around Inverness.

COSMOS
A great annual, beautiful feathery foliage and large weather proof cup shaped heads of pink, white, red and purple.
I grow it because it is fast and forms a mass of weed proof foliage in 4 weeks. Pest proof and a great backdrop and filler. Cosmos Sensation is the best seed strain.

NICOTIANA (Tobacco plants)
I usually grow majestic Nicotiana affinis, a tall clean white with strong foliage. What more can you ask! yet it gives even more, and an evening stroll will show how much moths are attracted to it. I vividly remember one warm late summer evening; I saw elephant hawk moths hovering at the flowers like huge humming birds – just wonderful.
I sometimes grow Nicotiana sylvestris or Nicotiana langsdorffii, which have elegant whorls of white flowers and are even taller. Occasionally I try the green flowered strain, but it is never completely satisfactory.
Never grow the dwarf bedding Nicotiana - they just do not cut the mustard.

RUDBECKIA Favourite yellow daisies that take the colour display on to November. I like the black eyed ones and the green eyes variety Irish Eyes.

CALENDULA (Pot Marigold)
Always good and in a wet year they retain their colour and vigour like no other . I like the big fat orange flowers.

POPPIES…..Lots of poppies.
ESCHOLTZIA (The Californian Poppies)
Such elegant funnel shaped flowers. When I am trying to paint a border with colour and imagining Monet in my mind’s eye, I love to use the single colours, however they can be hard to get.
The original orange Californian poppy and the white are lovely, and very impressive as a colour block.

Opium Poppies
You cannot help loving these big blousy poppies. Doubles are the most telling and I have had huge reds and pinks and this year black and white, all wonderful. They are short lived of course and will break you heart when you find them all lying down after wind and rain. But beauty is fleeting and always worth any effort.

MATTHIOLA (Night Scented Stock)
Thin straggling plants with lots of single pink and puce purple flowers, so why grow it? - for the most delicious scent in your garden. The scent begins to rise in the early evening and is like old fashioned scented sweeties, once smelt always desired.

GRASSES
Yes annual grasses are lovely, and wonderful with poppies growing through them. I love barley grass Hordeum jubatum, so elegant and you have the love the quivering heads of quaking grass, Briza maxima.

THISTLES
I have written about the magnificent Onopordum, the Scot’s Thistle, but I like growing others such as Milk Thistle, with its white splashed leaves and the lovely little Galactites. Lots to experiment with.

DAHLIAS
Dahlias were out of fashion for years and then Christopher Lloyd showed us all what a mound of dark foliage and bright flower can do.
Favourites for me are Arabian Night, tall and red flowered and it actually came through the winter for us for about 8 years before real winter returned.
Bishop of Llandaff is now everywhere, but this year I found his colleagues, Bishop of Canterbury, Bishop of Leeds and Bishop of Durham, great fun and all good.

This year my new (old plants) are annual Scabious, Larkspur (but the mice have eaten almost every one) and Double Stocks. It’s nice to rediscover old friends.

I learnt to love annuals when we lived in the Falkland Islands. There the gardens were a blaze of summer colour - Livingstone Daisies, Godetia and Nemesia. I have been trying to recreate that picture in my minds eye ever since.

An Imposing Imposter - Onopordum (The Scots' Thistle)

2011-08-05T02:30:00.001+01:00

Each year we see the magnificent stems of Onopordum Acanthium rise from the silver over-wintering rosette.
We carefully position the young plants each year so that they are near to the driveway where people walk up to the nursery. Many photographs have been taken of visitors standing beside a 2 metre high "Scots' Thistle".

But is it an impostor? If so, it is a very handsome one.

The silver cottony leaves are fiercely toothed and grow quickly into flat silver rosette in the first summer. It stays that way over the winter and in spring it begins to build. In June the silver stem rises, the mace like buds opening to a glorious purple thistle head.

It is also called Cotton Thistle and comes from Southern Europe & Asia, but believe me it looks magnificent growing in Scotland, and has long been naturalised and taken on the local accent.

Choose a sunny well drained spot and plant any time from April to August.

One for adventurous gardeners yes, but for beginners too, easy and satisfying.

It is our August 'Plant of the Month' at the nursery and available through our online catalogue.

Primula Propagation and Summer Snow

2011-07-25T12:02:00.001+01:00

Where have I been? Well here, but doing what?
Well it happens every July. I really look forward to the end of committee meetings and more time at home and in the garden, and what happens?

Well I spend more time in the garden, but not as we know it.

July is propagation month, first the Auricula and then the old fashioned primroses.
Almost two weeks are taken up with the task. It is rather satisfying, the rows of young plants grow, you get to meet some old plant friends and you listen to a lot of radio. All good fun.

The other thing that happens in July is that it rains. This year it has excelled itself and we have had torrential downpours and it is a surreal experience sitting in a poly tunnel propagating and seeing the sheets of rain cascading down the outside. When I looked out across the hill, the woodland was steaming and for a second I was on the wet west coast of New Zealand…except I was wearing a fleece in mid summer.

This week has been much dryer and I have been back in the garden real.

After several wet weeks absence, it is very scary to see weed growth and my first task is to tackle the ones that are about to seed….lesser willow herb and bittercress. That’s quite good fun as they come out readily, the only down side is the midges, who are now here in force.

And I have made a point of lifting my eyes from the soil. Many plants have grown rapidly this past month and often surprise you.
I love the corner where many Primula florindae have flourished and are now in full flower. Fragrant and very hardy, they have all come through the past two winters, they are excellent garden plants.
They are normally a rich yellow, and there is also a lovely rich dusky orange, and a rare and lovely red.

I also revisited some of the mid summer shrubs. Flowering shrubs are not so plentiful in summer after the riotous flush of rhododendrons and azaleas, but those we have are all the more appreciated for that.

I love the white flowering ones. Just now we have Deutzia glabra and several Hoheria . Both are lovely and stand out well against the lush dark green foliage of summer.

And then look down. Below the Deutzia the ground is covered as with a snow shower. And further along the path, Hoheria lyalli blossoms are scattered as confetti at a garden wedding. Just lovely.

Romping away after the rain

2011-06-14T03:44:00.003+01:00

It is grey and overcast today, but perhaps we are through the gales and lashing rain of the past two days.
It was very cool first thing and I left the house with five layers, It is now after 9am, and I am down to four.

There was fresh feel to the air, but none of the wonderful after rain smells that you get on a warm day. Is anything nicer than the peppery smell of your birch leaves, a pulse of wild garlic from the stream or the lovely sharp apple scent of Rosa eglanteria. I will wait for them to return with the warnth we are all missing.

'This is the time of year when you loose control'. I heard a character on the Archers say that, when I had it on in the car yesterday evening. He said that things race away from you, and they do. It is not so much the ever present weeds; though of course they are accelerating; it is the lush growth. Warmed in April and watered in May, many plants are romping away.

So I walk along a path, peering eagle eyed for weeds; wheeking out the seeding bittercress (I try not to hold botanical grudges, but bittercress comes near!) and than I stop think, "Were there primroses in this bed? well yes, when you look below the Geranium Jolly Bee and the Ferns, there are some yellowing primrose leaves.

Early in spring everything has its place and there is none of this exhuberant growth, but you have to adnmire it.
This is the time of year when you loose the heart to cut down and banish the Campanula lactiflora seedings and the just flowering Jacob's Ladder.

NO No No this is definately a case of less is more, the garden will be the better for less Campanula...but I'll just let it flower.

Some days I think if we went away for a year and returned we would find the garden populated by Campanula , Hardy Geraniums and Bittercress of course!

The Burning Bush - Combustible Weeding

2011-05-25T12:09:00.002+01:00

I have spoken of the tedium, nay obsession of searching out ground elder and racing to get to bittercress and dandelions before they seed, and I have confessed my loathing of bracken. Well now we are beyond the point of no return. Suddenly there are weeds running away everywhere…well not everywhere but with 4 acres of garden they can regularly surprise you.
Well we have one answer, a flamethrower. We have had this “flame gun” for some years now. I must admit to being enthusiastic about its non chemical based powers of weed destruction, ( I choose to ignore the LPG gas) years…but I do admit to being rather nervous of it.

My husband Donald is made of sterner stuff; after all he is the real gardener around here. He can be seen regularly lugging the gun and its accompanying LPG gas cylinder around the garden blasting away at offending noxious weeds.

I recently drew his attention to a footpath where Alchemilla mollis had seeded and there were thousands of seedlings. He suggested this was a job for the flame gun.

One bright afternoon he approached the path. Now April was a very dry month. What happened next is unsure. He was flaming the path next to a squat golden Cupressus and Wooosh!

Now Donald is a Queen’s scout, but he admits to a frisson of fear. The thing roared and burst and fire ran through the shrub like lightening. It was over almost as fast as it began and mercifully after consuming the Cupressus the fire put itself out.

We can only think that the heat and sunshine had encouraged volatile oils to rise and they just needed a flame to go off. Still, a useful lesson; if a lesson it is; about dry and flamible aromatic shrubs in dry, dry weather, we have learnt it.

All a bit scary. I know gorse can be like that but maybe there are more shrubs and trees that can become a potential torch.

Ah well here comes the rain this week and a whole new germination of weeds
That is unnecessarily cynical…the garden needs it and will benefit greatly.
Where is my brown jumper.

Walking in a Woodland Wonderland

2011-05-23T01:42:00.004+01:00

Walk along the tempting pathways. Dappled sunlight and bright foliage are everywhere. Just now the bluebells are out, they are fewer this year. Last year that the very air above them shimmered and they dissolved the daylight into a blue haze.

Instead of the blue we have a green lightness through the woods. The leaves of the rowans and birch are still fresh and salad green; the crosiers of the emerging ferns are elegant and beautiful. The oaks are a glistening bronzed green and out before the ash

Oak before Ash we are in for a splash
Ash before Oak we are in for a soak.

Good it is splash this year. , the ash are scarcely moving, even now in late May.
Throughout our woodland garden we have kept many native plants, but everywhere there are highlights and delights.

The subtle beauty of Solomon’s seal, tellima and the lovely sculptured form of emerging hostas. Hardy geraniums everywhere, but I particularly like the Irish Blue and Kashmir White at this time. Time for the pinks and magentas later.

Then there are bright islands of colour in the lighter glades. The Rhododendrons are magnificent these year and some of the large leaved forms that we have planted have done really well and are beginning to become a wonderful feature. And soon my favourites the deciduous azaleas will bloom…….. Golden Eagle, Fireball, Irene Koster and for the best scent of all, I am planting lots of Azalea luteum, the old fashioned yellow azalea found on many old estates.

Evergreens, that were very frightened by the winter are starting to shake off the brown disconsolate look; pieris has been wonderful, but osmanthus, eucryphia and even some Ilex have been very unhappy, they are much better now. It is a relief to see their new glossy leaves.

My Himalayan love affair - Meconopsis

2011-05-04T01:19:00.014+01:00

Blue poppies are things of dreams. They startle and spell bind each time you see them in flower.

The first blooms for this year, were there today. They are early; I usually expecting them late in May and into early June. The mild, sunny, dry spring has hastened their appearance.

I saw my first Meconopsis back in 1980’s at Jack Drake’s Nursery. John Lawson who ran the nursery then was a friend and mentor and a great plantsman. He knew how to grow plants to perfection, and a day discovering his trilliums and meconopsis was a rare and lasting treat.

Why are they so entrancing, it is the quality of the petals. They are large and satin textured. In a spring of white, yellow and then the pinks and reds of our early rhododendrons, suddenly they are there, a heart stopping blue.

There are various varieties and species of course, and it is always a surprise to remember our own common welsh poppy is a meconopsis, but these Himalayan beauties are sublime.

Over the years we have tried many meconopsis from seed. Some wonderful, many unsatisfactory

It is because of this latter state that I have just gone from this page, to the Meconopsis group web site and renewed our subscription. The Meconopsis group was founded in Scotland has undertaken the heroic task of sorting out the confusion of varieties and strains of Meconopsis that were throughout Scotland and UK gardens.

-
Now we grow Meconopsis sheldonii types, which settle and become perennial for us. We have some clumps of Slieve Donard that have grown well for years and a very old plant of Rogers’s nursery, which has thrived on benign neglect.

I always tell people to feed, feed, and feed them. They are gross feeders, loving animal manures if you can get it, or that wonderful smell of spring, dehydrated chicken manure; nothing like it.

Over the bank holiday weekend, I have spent the 2 sunniest days of the year so far in the dappled shade of the woodland area of the garden. This is where the blue poppies are happiest, shade but sunshine too. They like a place where they do not get too dry, and most summers we can provide that alright. Think of them amongst Bowles golden grass, Millium effusum, or amidst a stand of variegated Solomon’s seal Polygonatum oderatum variegatum

Definitely time to get back to seed exchange and visiting other gardens to continue this love affair.

Taming the Sneaky Weed - Ground Elder

2011-05-01T12:25:00.000+01:00

So it is now routine.
I rise around 7am and make my way to the kitchen to prepare coffee. I dress, still layers and wool, the early mornings are cool, and taking the hot coffee, go out to greet the day.

The days have been wonderful this spring. Dry, not freezing and bright, though often with a linger of mist on the Loch. The birds are of course so busy that they scarcely notice my passing. The dog is much slower getting up nowadays so they do not have to avoid his untargeted bounds and his nose poking through into bushes.

Most mornings I weed, I weed and weed and weed.

Ground elder is the target of my attention and there is something very satisfying, freeing a patch of ground from its encroaching spread. But is it is triumph of hope over experience. I know it will be back and I know I will miss some, but it still gives a glow of satisfaction as I drag another bag of weeds back towards the compost area. Yes we do compost it, but it needs to be in the centre of a heap and it needs to get Hot, so careful composting is the order of the day.

The other alterative is to leaves it to rot down in the bag. We turn all compost bags inside out so they are black side out, that means they not only look better they warm up better and so help composting start faster.

Of course you must be sure there are no holes in the bag…or it escapes. This is my secret fear, that ground elder will take over the entire woodland and strangle out all the bluebells and lady’s smock …this is the stuff of nightmares.

Hence I walk through the garden with my eyes downcast. I need to remind myself to breath and take in the fresh foliage and view, and I do, but I can’t afford to let the ground elder (or dandelions) slip.

Time for breakfast and as it is a bank holiday I will have some time to do some of that other most pleasurable part of gardening, planting.

Managing an Auricula Addiction!

2011-04-22T09:15:00.012+01:00

Auricula Bradmore Bluebell

The Auriculas this year have gone all out, dazzling us with their vibrant colours, their fabulous stripes and their delicate farina. I truly think they are looking the best I have ever seen them. Varieties we have that only seem to flower once every ten years have burst into bloom, ones I had given up hope of ever flowering, have exploded into show stopping rubies and yellows and silvers.

I wonder at the cause of this magnificent show, was it our cold winter? are they enjoying the warm spring? did they like the fact we kept them outdoors all last summer? Or was it our tiny wee earthquake last month that scared them all into flowering.
Whatever the cause, I am delighted to see them and have proudly assembled an Auricula theatre of our best looking stock plants at the nursery. I cant believe that anyone could view them and not desire one of their own. I can really see why they become so precious and are cherished in many old gardens.

Some of my personal favourites this year:
Janie Hill - Gold centred, red shading brown. Just show stopping this year.

Auricula Janie Hill

Sirius - Maroon and pale yellow with a gold centre. So unique. This year there have been some unusual brown colour breaks in the Sirius, so we shall propagate and fingers crossed may have some beautiful new colours to sell next year.

Auricula Sirius

CJ Hayson - Green with a good white edge. Lovely mealed leaves. An old variety, often painted for its classic looks.

Auricula C J Hayson

Blush Baby - Pink and tan stripes

Old Pink Dusty Miller - Lovely, fragrant washed pink blooms

So do grow some and see for yourself, they are very easy to grow just don’t starve them, put plenty grit in their compost and don’t keep them too hot or too wet.

We grow most of them in pots as they are easier to display and admire that way.

Keep them dry in winter and not too hot in summer. But, they are all hardy and some have done well in the open ground here with us in the Highlands for many years.

Apart from the Auriculas, this warm spring has also encouraged the not-so-delightful ground elder and a profusion of dandelions. I always remember the old adage, "One year seeding, is seven years weeding" and from a glance around the garden, feel that we must have let a patch of dandelions seed their merry way all over woodland. Early each morning I do my best to whisk them all out, but maybe I should try to promote dandelions as a fashionable border plant and stop fighting.

My walks now include a stick with which to beat the bracket into submission - I stride around thwacking the fresh curled shoots as they spring through the ground. It may be an impossible mission, but I feel I have to try.

(A full list of all the Auricula we are selling this year - http://www.lochnessgarden.com/catalogue/offers/Auriculas.htm - be quick to get the rarer varieties )

I have also just started up a flickr group for everyone with an interest in Auriculas to add their photographs, would be great to see what everyone has growing

http://www.flickr.com/groups/auriculas/

Plants in the post - The art of gardening by mailorder.

2011-04-11T07:45:00.005+01:00

Our Abriachan Nurseries 2011 plant catalogue came out in February, and is now in residence in sitting rooms around the UK; nestled under gardening books on the coffee table, shoved into a teetering pile of garden catalogues, hiding under the yellow pages never to be seen again; or more hopefully sitting well thumbed on the writing desk or perched on a stack of pots in the greenhouse with a multitude of grubby thumb prints to testify that it has been well browsed over a cup of tea and a digestive.

As spring is the time of year when you may be thinking about ordering from a garden catalogue (not just ours, but I will personally vouch for the fact that we are fabulous) I thought I would put together a blog on 'How to get the best out of your mail order', a topic that is hopefully not as dry as you might imagine.

So why buy mail order at all?

To find a bargain - yes, this is true, but always think before you buy, a hundred small tender plants early in the season will need careful looking after and therefore cost more in the long term. Also check the plant you are buying is the same size and variety as the one illustrated ( Fancy pictures may not match the listing)
To save time - You would rather spend your spare time out getting grubby in the garden, than getting to and searching through a garden centre. Moreover, ordering by catalogue can be done in the evening; with Radio 4 and the cat; when the garden is no longer an occupational option.
To find a specialist plant that you can’t find elsewhere easily - Most gardens will have a few speciality ranges and will have developed strong stock and hopefully reliable varieties and cultivars.
You live in the back of beyond and havn’t much choice, as you even order your underwear by mail order.
You like receiving parcels (And there is no shame in that)

So how to go about ordering

Catalogue type - The choice is now between a hardcopy catalogue or an online store, and many nurseries will have both available so it is down to personal preference.
You may prefer a hard catalogue as you can keep it handy and go through it, ticking as you go while having a dram, then you find you have spent a small fortune, or it needs to be vetted by the significant other. (We often find that many of our orders are written out by a women, but the cheques are from the husband, read into that what you will) You can then re-choose until your final decision is established and then move online if you wish to make the final purchase. (checking online can also be useful to see if a particular plant is still in stock)
Hardcopy catalogues are usually produced only once or twice a season, so can age quite quickly especially as regarding choice and the more unusual plants – the early bird gets the worm, so sooner you order after receiving the catalogue, the more likely you are to get your choice.
Pricing - when choosing your plants, weigh up such considerations as the size of the pot, the rarity of the plant and the ease of growth. These are all factors that may alter a plants cost. Watch out for inflated prices due to 'fashions' in the garden.
Read the ordering instructions at the front of the catalogue and follow them, if possible using the supplied order form, it may seem obvious, but we do get the most convoluted orders on occasion.
Payment - It is very advisable to either list alternative plants that you would be happy to receive if there are parts of your order that are unavailable, or if you would not like to receive alternatives, then to write a limit cheque (ie: Not to exceed the value of Sixty Pounds) this will make it easy for the nursery to alter your total and fill in the cheque to a lesser amount if necessary.
Postage - look at the catalogue to find amount that the postage costs and you will find it is usually set for a certain number of plants, or amount of ordering value. This is because the nursery will have a contract with their delivery service and will be charged the same if it is one plant or five that is being sent. For this reason it may not be economical to order small numbers of plants and you are best to take advantage of the maximum you can get in the one parcel before you move up to the next postage bracket.
Delivery - We always send e-mail or first class letter on the same day when parcel is sent to tell you of the imminent arrival of your plants. It is always a good idea to put a note on your order to inform of dates when you may not be at home to receive the parcel, the last thing you want is your plants dying on your doorstep due to lack of water and light. (We tend not sent out parcels in busy holiday periods as too many people are away from home, we also do not send if the weather is very cold, very hot or very dry as they will suffer in transit)
Seasons - Order with a common sense attitude to the seasons, ie: it may not be best to order galanthus in the middle of summer, however, some companies do send bare roots through winter.
Handwriting - Okay, so this is more from our perspective, please oh please oh please write your name and address in a readable hand, we spend many a hour squinting at the most beautifully illegible handwriting trying to work out if it says Mr or a Mrs, Claude or Claire, Norfolk or Suffolk, we have even had to call, to confirm an address to prevent it heading off to a non-existent garden, and that is just embarrassing for everyone.

So you have read the whole catalogue - highlighted your favourites - whittled it down to your final selection - written your limit cheque, allowable alternatives and 'dates not to send' on the order form.

I would recommend making a quick copy of your order for your own records and to prevent yourself double ordering from another catalogue, and congratulations, you are done, now comes that glorious anticipation as you wait for your order and the joy it contains to arrive.

Enjoy yourself, and if you would like to be added to our yearly mail order list please just drop us an email on info@lochnessgarden.com or give us a call on 01463 861 232
Our catalogue is also online at http://www.lochnessgarden.com/

Will it ever thaw?

2010-02-17T06:38:00.005Z

We are back from New Zealand full of the joys of life and ready to enter the Spring madhouse of seed planting, catalogue requests and garden maintenance.

Instead we were met with iron hard ground, minus 10 to minus 15 degrees C night temperatures. Then several inches of snow just to round things of - oh and our domestic water froze up for 5 days. So all systems have slowed down, but now on the 4th of March there are the glimmerings of hope that thaw and spring are on there way.

Listed in RHS "Six UK Exotic Gardens"

2010-02-09T12:01:00.010Z

I noticed an upsurge in traffic from the Royal Horticultural Society website lately, so had a wee look and was delighted to see that they have included us in a list of Six gardens that contained exotic plants from around the world

They highlight our use of such gems as osteospermum, gazanias, diaramas, crocosmia and schizostylus, all of which I love and which do so well with us on the Loch Side.

We are longtime RHS members and have always had a great relationship with the organisation and the people we have met through it. This was a lovely surprise, and will hopefully help a little as we release our new catalogue in the next few weeks. Every little helps.......

Gardening tasks that can still be done in all this snow

2010-01-09T19:50:00.023Z

The best laid Plans o' Mice an' Men, gang aft agley

Well the weather of the last three weeks couldn't have upset my garden plans much more.

Winter is when I get caught up with the garden, gather leaves, clean out streams, make new garden beds, remove old and dead branches from trees and shrubs..... but with at least a foot of hard snow over everything and glazed ice on the branches its no-go, so what can you do!!

Inside, the first seeds can be sown, onions and parsley need an early start in a heated propagater, and there are a number of seeds that benefit from a period of cold to get them to germinate.

You can also write the labels for all the other things you will be sowing when spring comes along, that will be a time consuming chore done, as long as you remember where you've put them.

Outside, after every new snowfall, gently shake the snow of your favourite shrubs and small trees so that
they dont break with the weight. If you have plastic tunnels, do the same, because even if your hoops can take the strain, a load of snow and ice will stretch the plastic and shorten its life. With weaker hoops, put some timber props under them, you can remove them when the snow is over so they wont get in the way.

My favourite job in these conditions is a bonfire.

All the years non-compostable branches have been piled and maybe even covered, and if you
knock the cap of snow off, they will be relatively dry underneath.

Here are some common sense do's and dont's to watch out for.

Don't burn the heap where it is, it might have creatures living in or under it.
Make sure you've got a spot to burn near your heap, but well clear of any sheds, fences, seats etc. Dead ferns, grasses, heather beds and conifers are all plants that are very combustable even under a cap of snow.
Check the wind direction, I have found that smoke is not welcomed in the house or washing line.
Check the forecast, you don't want a wind change or a gale getting up.
Check with your neighbours and offer to burn small amounts they may have, if they bring them over, its a fine excuse for finishing off the mulled wine and chrismas cake. (Not that I would be condoning combing fire and alcohol)
When lighting the fire, dont use petrol or artificial fire lighters, as apart from the safety aspect, you wont be able to use the ash as fertiliser.
When it is down to a glowing heap, use it for an impromptue BBQ, but dont be tempted to leave it over night, the wind can get up, sparks can fly, neighbours alarmed, fire brigade called, insurance agents panicked......
Cover the dead fire with a layer of soil and a piece of metal on top to keep the ash dry.
Save the ash in a dry place until spring when it can be applied around fruit trees and bushes where it will be of most benefit.
And of course my inner health and safety officer must remind you to supervise all pets and children at all times and never leave the fire unattended, now go forth and become pryromaniacs :o)

Making a beautiful christmas wreath

2009-12-09T22:09:00.045Z

Things you will need:

A wreath base - pre-padded is easiest and best, I find it is easiest if you work with it dry and soak it if you want to once you are finished. I use 12" diameter.
Florist wire - thin enough to twist easily. I cut mine into easy to use pieces about 30cm long. Also some thicker wire for hanging and adding accessories.

Foliage (Pine, Spruce, Cedar, Fir, Holly, (plain and variegated) Eucalyptus, Rosemary, Bay, Lavender, Tree Heather are all great, but just work with what you have around) think about your colour scheme before you start, silvers, golds, greens, try to stick to it as you go and the finished result is so much nicer
Ribbon, berries, pine cones ( sprayed gold or silver if you fancy it), cinnamon sticks, dried orange slices, flowers etc..

Secateurs

Gloves to protect your fingers - thin enough to give you flexibility, but thick enough to stop the worst of the prickles, I use gloves that they use on the oil rigs and they are awesome.

A large cup of tea and a radio ( Although the tea will soon be full of pine needles)

Start by building up a small bunch of foliage in your hand, As you can see in the photos below, I lay down the pine or spruce first, this gives a lovely spray that will cover the base. On top lay down some holly, lining up the spine of the holly with the spine of the underlying spruce, then build up from there with more colour, texture and bulk until you are holding a lovely little bunch in your hand.

If you are adding berries, do so last as they will be hidden by leaves.

Hold off on adding cones or flowers or ribbon until the end.

Take your small bunch and lay it along the curve of the wreath, don't worry if the excess stems lay off one side, they are easily cut off once you have tied the bunch on, but what you don't want is too much of the foliage hanging over, try and keep the majority of the bunch along the line of the wreath base.

Take a piece of wire and lay it over a point where it will tightly hold all the stems together, bend it round both sides of the wreath, trying to tuck it behind leaves so it is as invisible as possible. Turn the wreath over and twist the wire tightly together on the back. Cut off the ends or just bend them in out off the way.

Trim off the excess stems and then start on your second bunch.

In this example, I have continued the same foliage all the way round, but sometimes I alternate what i put in the first and second bunches, IE : berries on one, juniper on the next, Or eucalyptus on one, pytsphorum on the next. Yet I suggest you keep your base and your holly selection similar all the way round for a nice overall effect. Once you have you second bunch ready, place it carefully down so it covers the stems and the wire of the first bunch and continues round the curve of the wreath.

Continue the same process all the way round the wreath, it takes me 8-10 little bunch to cover the whole circle. You can do it in less if you are going for a more loose and sprayed out wreath, but i like mine tight and neat.

When you are adding the final bunch, trim the ends before you slot it in, then lift up the flap of foliage from the first bunch you laid down and carefully slide in the last bunch so the whole wreath is complete and there is no distinguishable gaps, stems or wire.

Observe your wreath from a critical arms length, trim any little bits that need tidied, then decide if you want to add more accessories.

To add pine cones, I use a thicker piece of wire, wind it around under the spines of the cone and then spike the remaining wire through the base to pull the cone tight into the spot you have chosen.

Remember that any extras you add will look more pleasing to the eye in 3's or 5's.

If you have plastic berries that you want to add, it is simple to make a 'pick' - lay a few berries out on their wires, twist the wires together and then attach the whole with a piece of thicker wire and spike it through the base. Plastic flowers and ribbons are simple to add in the same manner.

Be inventive, use tiny Xmas decorations, wrap thin ribbon all the way around the wreath, hang a star in the centre, spray the whole thing with sparkles ..........

To make a simple hook to hang your wreath up, choose where you want the top to be, and at this point on the back, thread a piece of the thicker wire through the wreath to make a loop, twist the ends tightly and it should be ready for you to show off and hang on your door.

You could try a few other shapes made with chicken wire filled with moss, such as the hearts above and the crescent bough below, made on the frame of a coathanger which makes a great alternative decoration for your door over christmas.

Good Luck - Merry Christmas :o)

Making an easy wreath bow

2009-11-30T22:54:00.017Z

For years and years I have been shredding my fingers on holly and making wreaths for the Christmas farmers' markets. During this time I have picked up a bunch of knowledge on what foliage works best and lasts longest, which colours look great together and how not to get wire under your fingernails.

So now that my speed and technique have improved, I thought I would pass on a wee bit of experience to anyone else venturing into the spiky but rewarding world of making your own wreaths. It is especially nice when you use all the greenery from your own garden.

I am running a workshop at the Nursery on Sunday, so I will post up the final 'How to..' when I take some photos that night, but till then I though I would put down a few tips on making the accessories, firstly the bows.

Now there are people out there, who can do a wee bit of dexterous origami with a piece of ribbon and wham bam hey presto, they have a tight neat bow, but i am not one of them, and find my attempts come out rather lopsided and loose. Therefore I have made my own method which is quick and neat and holds up to the tough Scottish weather.

So here we go - step by step, with three different colours so you can easily see what's what, though of course you use whatever you like. My ribbon is not cloth, but some florist plasticy style malarky that is very easy to tear to size length ways.

The longest piece(Red) is twice as long as you want your finished bow to be, ie: cut a big long piece for a big bow, or a wee piece for a wee bow, though there is a limit to how small you can get without it becoming ridiculously fiddly.

The second longest (Green) is going to be the tails of the bow, so again judge accordingly, but i find about 2/3 the size of the main piece is about right.

The wee piece (Gold) is to cover over the centre of the bow at the end, so as long as there is sufficient to tie, it doesn't need to be much.

And a wee piece of wire, thin and pliable is best, again I have some florist stuff, but e-bay is a great resource for cheap crafty stuff.

*
Fold the longest piece in half so the ends over lap and the holding the overlap in the centre of the bow, concertina the ribbon together till it is gathered tightly in the centre, but flaring out at the ends, it may take a wee bit of practise to get it the way you want, but i find the more folds the better for the end result.

(note my dirty gardeners fingernails - very attractive)

When you have it folded tight, use the piece of wire to wrap around the central point to bind it together, leave a tail of a few cm of wire sticking out the bottom.

Take your medium sized piece of ribbon and cut out a triangle off each end to make the points on the end of the tails, then pinch the ribbon together at the half way point and tie it in with piece of wire so it fits nicely under the bow, again jiggle it about until it lies the way you want and the wire is all wrapped round making the whole thing secure. You could stop at this stage and have a nice wee bow to use for decoration, wreaths etc, but to cover the wire and make the whole think even nicer, i use the smallest piece to cover over the join, tying it round the back and snipping off the ends. And you are done - Tah Dahhh!!!

Another wee piece of wire on the back to attach it to whatever you like, or string to hang it, or glue to stick it - go crazy!

Love your Leaves

2009-11-26T18:31:00.015Z

With the deluge of rain and the hurricane like winds that Scotland has been bestowed this weekend, the leaves are all well and truely down.

For some with small gardens or few trees, leaves are no issue and they are free to enjoy the beautiful colours and fantabulous crunching sounds, but for us and for many others, picking up the leaves is a necessary and slightly tedious autumn task.

For ourselves this is not garden vanity, on the many woodland paths that we have, the layer of wet leaves can get rather slushy, slippery and dangerous for our customers, and on the borders they can form such a dense layer that it can hinder growth of plants. A further side benefit of clearing up your leaves; other than the excellent leaf-mold it creates; is the removal of a means of possible transfer of disease.
- Remember that compost from leaves can be very weed free, but you can sometimes get birch, ash or elder seedlings coming up.

Here are a few guidelines that may help you in your own garden gathering.

* In a small garden, add leaves in layers to your compost heap, with your other autumn gatherings, big clumps will not break down well.

* In a big garden, gather your soft leaves (Elder, Birch, Hazel, Ash..) in their own bin for 12 months, then use as a soil improver or in your own compost mixes. Harder leaves (Oak, Beech, Alder, Holly)will take two years to break down sufficiantly.

*Be careful when raking or hoeing in Autumn, as snowdrops and narcissus are just below the surface and can be damaged.

*Those who had a little autumn forethought can haul in the nets they spread earlier over ponds and add the contents to the compost heap, it is a good idea to re-net, as the wind blow can bring more leaves back in. The rest of us must either drain and clean the pond or get busy with the waders and the rake.
- And while we are on the subject of ponds, plants in established ponds can get lifted and divided, give away the excess, or pot some up and protect them from frost and they will go down a charm at the spring charity sales.

*While clearing up leaves it can be a good time to clean up dead stems, I tend to prefer to do this in late Feb, early March as it gives some winter protection if the weather is hard, but many people prefer now to get it over with.

* With only XX amount of days to Christmas, the fine holly berries may well be a temptation to birds before you are ready for them, so protect some bunches with fleece or net bags.

Scandinavian Invasion

2009-11-14T20:56:00.013Z

Redwings, Blackbirds, Thrushes and Fieldfairs arrived from Scandinavia over night and we woke to a garden exploding with the movements of birds.

All our trees laden with glowing autumn berries were covered in hungry beaks and i wished i had the forethought to set up a camera to get a time delay sequence as the berries vanished at astonishing speed and branches which were so laden they had been boughed over almost touching the ground in the morning , were by the afternoon free of all their weight and bouncing up to the sky.

I watched the fluttering of wings and tails for hours, on this amazing sunny autumn day, fascinated as they swooped and dived, gorging themselves whilst all the time nervously watching there surroundings and vanishing like lightening whenever they sensed human movement. This made photographing them a wee bit tricky, so i had to take surreptitious blurry shots through the kitchen window.

Venturing outside, they vanished, hiding away in the foliage of the pines and bracken until I had gone by.

I used the scarce sunlight to go round the garden taking some photographs of the last vestiges of autumn colour and found the beautiful Red Admirals had also come back out from their temporary hibernation to bask on the ivy in the sun. If you look closely at the photo above you can see over 15 butterflies - just beautiful!

Farmers Markets - The Buildup To Christmas

2009-11-06T20:37:00.002Z

Most Saturdays, Hamish loads up the Trailer with a luchous assortment of plants and drives to various farmers markets around the Highlands. There is one in Dingwall on the second Saturday of each month, one on the Inverness high street (7th Nov; 5th Dec; 19th December ) and Elgin on the third Saturday of each month.
The plants are seasonally selected, with a selection of the best the nursery has to offer on display, as well as some old favourites among the shrubs and perrenials and any wee gems that Hamish chooses to sneek in.

This last market, the showoffs were the stunning orange flowers of the crocosmias, the wonderful feathery white flowers of the Saxifrage fortunii and amazing Desfontania spinosa (Chilean Holly)

We also did well on our great value six packs of polyanthus and winter pansies.

Now that we are leading up to Christmas we put in some plants that make ideal gifts and if we are feeling particulary festive attach some big red bows.
Tomorrow we are at the Inverness farmers market - Here's hoping for a good day with no rain and sufficient warmth that i will still be able to feel my toes after 8 hours standing on cold concrete. Do I aim too high?

St Columba's Font Stone - An Abriachan Mystery

2009-11-03T20:15:00.016Z

At Abriachan we have the wonderful and not very widely known St Columba’s Font Stone
Under the shady branches of the hazel trees, this mysterious hole sunk into granite schist, sits, surrounded in tales of religion and magic.
If you were to ask around and you’ll find no two people readily agree on the origins or intended use of this man-made hollow.
The most common tale attributes its beginnings to St. Columba, who passed our way in the 6th century.

Was it the base for a cross?
Was the water within used to anoint and purify?

Is there some darker and more pagan usage hidden in the mists of time?

Certainly, there is a belief that the water is of benefit to women in childbirth, and even until recent years, a few drops have been know to be added to baptismal bowls of infants!
There are also less romantic notions, that it is simply a foundation stone of a house, used to support the central wooden roof pole–or more functional still, a partially constructed millstone. You can see it is still attached to a much larger rock, maybe a work in progress

Decide for yourself! – For whilst its purpose may have faded into history, the stone still commands a mystical presence, adding to the wealth of folk-law and myth that penetrates Scotland.

A final thought – The hole, unattached to any underground spring, and sunk in the most impermeable of stone, has never been known to run dry! Even in the driest summers.

West can be frequently caught red handed slurping the water out of the stone - he just doesn't appreciate history. However he is already several years over the average Vizla age, so maybe he's on to something.

Accidental Artichokes For Tea

2009-10-29T17:21:00.006Z

We ate this years crop of Artichokes last night and mighty delicious they were too.

Dad had not intended to plant any of our own, put he threw the few remaining pots from the selling beds into the ground and ignored them from then on. The heads were large, the meat melting, the lemon and garlic butter a perfect accompaniment, I have urged him to plant a whole bed of them next year and perhaps with a little more love we may get an even larger, even more delicious crop.

However, Mum declared that she was not that impressed and that it seemed to her the perfect food if you were on a diet as it took, "so long to eat the darned thing"

The Polytunnel Saga

2009-10-22T21:53:00.012+01:00

At around 11.30 on New Year's Eve over ten years ago, while I rugging up in preparation for going out first footing on the Abriachan hill, Dad was in the bottom polytunnel tucking in some of the more delicate plants with fleece.

There was a hell of a gale blowing and the wind was roaring down the Loch and through the trees, whipping up the snow and slamming into the house. We have several huge fir trees that grow tight together in the wee Kilianan graveyard that nestles at the bottom of our garden, and they were being whipped back and forth by huge gusts of chilling wind until one huge breath caught one of the firs of guard and snapped the huge trunk sending the whole top half of over 30ft crashing down right on top of the tunnel where Dad stood.

He avoided being squashed like a pancake by only a few feet, the branches tore through the plastic of the tunnel and crushed the metal struts all around him, leaving him unharmed but a little surprised in the remains.

Years on, and the tunnel had been well patched up and repaired, though it was never quite the same again. This year, the hard wearing plastic was once more full of holes, though this time from age and weather more than sudden storm damage. So instead of replacing the plastic once again, Dad has decided to relocate the tunnel up the hill to a fresh sunny spot where he will be able to fill it with plants that require a little more light and warmth.

The trees in the graveyard now have a gaping hole where the tree fell, though as you can see in the lovely photograph above, it still looks rather grand.

So, for the last week, my fabulous Australian boyfriend and Dad have been flattening out a fresh spot, digging the required trenches and then rejigging the whole shebang to fit into the new spot.

Taking it Sloe

2009-10-18T22:48:00.013+01:00

Every year we try to find the time, we try to rustle up some sloe gin, and it is unbelievably delicious. It is wonderful how such a sour berry with little initial promise can flavour gin so perfectly, taking away the harsh alcoholic edge and making the most mellow fruity scrumptious warming winter drink I have ever come across.

This year the crop is outstanding, I have never seen such an enormous amount of sloe berries on the trees and it makes for relatively easy picking. The long spines that normally slow the whole process down are less of an issue when you can grab a whole handful of berries in one go and substantially decreases the picking to swearing ratio. One of our oldest birches was brought down by Hamish and his chainsaw this week, it had sadly given up the ghost in the summer and we thought it wise to bring her down before the winter winds did it for us and perhaps damaged the shed and anyone standing close by in the process. So now we have a gap in the garden and a big pile of birch wood for burning.
Whenever something dies in the garden it is a great opportunity to look at the space that it creates and think about new ideas, and maybe a makeover for the area around it.

Autumn arrives at Loch Ness

2009-10-16T15:16:00.017+01:00

Standing at the entrance to the garden and looking up into the lush foliage and native woodland, the changing colours of autumn simply make you smile.

There is the the Barbie pink of the Nerine set off by a backdrop of smoldering orange Acer leaves.

The Tulip Tree (Liriodendron) shows off its lemon yellow leaves, contrasting beautifully with the brilliant red berries of the rowan. And above the flashes of harvest yellow Rudbeckia, the shimmering mountain of white Eucryphia covered in dancing Red Admiral butterflies. It is just lovely.

We have had a run of mild sunny days, but with November starting to peek over the horizon it will not be long before the first frosts creep in.

At this time of the year Dad (better known as Don) has been propagating perennials, placing the most tender into the polytunnels for a little added protection.

With the help of our fabulous staff Jo, Shelia and Rebecca, He has also been doing the long and rather tedious annual stocktake, cleaning out some of the summer borders and doing what he calls 'General maintance and reflection'.

It seems to be a wonderfully abundant Autumn, the trees are all hanging heavy with berries, Rowan, Crabapple, the Cotoneaster, Pyrocantha, Hawthorn, Rosehips, Holly, Sloes and Elder have all got great clusters of fruit, still on the bough due to the late arrival of all the migratory birds who have normally stripped the trees bare by this time of the year. Although Daddy said he saw the blackbirds feasting today, so maybe by the end of the week there will be lots of fat birds and light branches.

Hamish has been attending farmers markets all year from Dingwall to Dundee. Next Saturday (the 24th Oct) we will be at a Highland Produce Market in Inverness Falcon Square as part of the Homecoming Scotland celebrations. We will be selling herbs to tie in with the theme of food and drink, and I have been painting terracotta pots with wee herb pictures that I will sell for people to plant their herbs in and keep them in the kitchens.