Abriachan Hydro scheme - March Update

Despite a cold, occasionally wintry month…there has been really good progress with the new Abriachan hydro scheme.   (Click here to read the first explanatory blog post)

The cement arrived for casting the base for the turbine and was pumped over the stream ( the Kilianan)  by a 120ft long elephant’s trunk.


The turbine building has been making steady progress and walls all in now. 

The pipe to carry the water was welded together in sections and dragged down the hill to lie in its ditch like a giant black anaconda. 

And most exciting, the new 99kw turbine arrived on a very sophisticated lorry and was craned into the new building and connected. The old turbine made its way out on the same day and was trucked away.  A small wistful glance from us all watching it go, when it operated well it was a good friend.

So, so far, good progress but quite a bit to go yet.

A New Abriachan Hydro Scheme

When we came to Abriachan in 1983 there was a small hydro electric scheme operating.

The stream it ran off is the Kilianan and has a fantastic 100ft plus head of water.
The scheme was put in in the late 1940’s, by the then owners the Woodwards and was installed by an engineer relative of theirs, Mr Mackenzie. He ran an ice factory in Inverness and was obviously very able and put the scheme together.
The piping was sources from pipes that were laid around Inverness in the 2^nd world war to provide emergency water supplies, when needed. Real post war imagination and innovation.

It gave about 20KW and was a Gilkes of Cumbria turbine. That was more than enough for our house and the nursery for about 9 months of the year

We kept the system going for quite a number of years, but the age of the systems and the increasing costs of repairs made it increasingly uneconomical, and we closed the system down in about 2005.

And then along came support for renewable energy and feed in tariffs and the whole economics of small hydro schemes changed. And now, DHG (Dulas) hydro is installing a new hydro scheme in the Kilianan. The design and capacity is now more advanced and it will be producing up to 100kw and feeding electricity into the grid.  It should be up and operational by the end of 2015.

All very exciting.  We will put up photographs as things progress.  Lots of folks are asking what’s going on….so here is the keep up to date space.

Margaret Davidson   

2015 Plant Catalogue Now Online

 

 The New 2015 Plant Catalogue for Abriachan Nurseries is now online and landing on doorsteps around the country.

We hope you enjoy this years selection, the plants we list in our catalogue have proven their worth as good garden plants, or are part of one of our collections such as Auricula & Helianthemum
We also like our plants to have a little “je ne sais quoi” whether that be lovely scent, a flash of subtle colour, or just looking right in the place or association where they grow.
Click here to download the pdf of the catalogue

 

This year has the addition of a new Falkland Island Page where we have increased our selection of plants from this remote, unique and beautiful part of the world.

 

And my garden ideas for this year, I am going to re-read the books of Christopher Lloyd. As his years matured he introduced more colour into his garden. And that is where I am in 2015, the year of colour. I love annuals and will be planting all I can, additionally Dahlias and Lilies and who knows what else.
Watch our Flickr site and my blogs for ideas and progress.
I am also working up some “planting recipes“, a selection of gardening ideas for you to consider trying, along with instructions and prices.  They will be on our web site.
Good gardening
Margaret Davidson

A snowy Spring

 February and we are open.

 

We actually had a couple of hardy souls visiting the garden today…but the snow showers beat them

Of course it is magic and tomorrow we are promised winter sunshine. We have the first of the snow drops and Aconites out for sale, even though they have a thin crust of snow on their pots.

Activity levels are pretty high. Hamish has been cutting down and chipping trees, in preparation for the start of the new hydroelectric scheme that will be installed by Dulas. All rather exciting and I will tell that story soon.  Donald has been tidying and burning (always favourite) and moving dead and fallen shrubs. 
 

 

Considering the post-Christmas gales we got off lightly……a lilac and a shallow rooted oak tree, and lots of branches.  

So we came back from New Zealand and have adjusted remarkably fast to cold and snow. Just so long as it does not go on too long! 

 

A walk through the garden shows the spears of snowdrops pushing through everywhere. The witch hazels are wonderful and the evergreens are looking splendid as they always do in mid-winter.

And me, I am finishing the catalogue…..Cat has done a great cover and we are almost go for 2015

Margaret Davidson

 

ROCK ROSES - The Helianthemums

The Sun loving Rock Roses
The rock roses have always been favourites of our and a look at our catalogue will show a whole range of varieties to choose from.

We love them because they thrive in our sandy, sunny beds and look just wonderful when the sun comes out through June and July. The yellow form is one of our native plants and that would explain a lot.

They grow fast and have a great mat-forming habit that excludes weeds.  What more can you ask?  Well to top it all they really put on a great show.
A couple of years ago we; well Donald really; decided we needed a new wall in the car park area and once neatly finished, we discussed what to grow there. Of course we could plant a new rockery, but knowing all too well how difficult it can be to keep up with weeding we came around to a Helianthemum wall.  It is a great success as you see.

My favourites are the vivid orange colours such as Henfield Brilliant and the rich yellows, like  Sterntaler, but there are days when the clear pink of Rhodanthe Carneum,. Or the modest double pink flowers of Annabel attract the eye.

There was a range of Helianthemum named for some of Scotland’s highest mountains, the Bens. Hence we have Ben Macdhui and Ben Mhor and Ben Ledi etc. You can collect them after you climb them 
Two other Scots specials are Broughty Beacon and Broughty Sunrise, both named for an area of Dundee and they really do have the bright flickering colours of the ends of the day as they would be seen along the Firth of Tay. 

Maybe the manufacturers of Iron Brew should sponsor a new variety as that particular orange would look very well as a rock rose colour.

Midges - Scotland's worst kept secret

Midges...Scotland's worst kept secret...but people still often looked surprised when first bitten.
Yet they are rather like childbirth, you forget about them when they are not about.

 

 

Well today is really odd...28 degrees in Scotland and no midges on 25th July.

It is too hot for them!

These are the three best things.......if it is too hot or too cold or too windy then  - NO MIDGES.

And what a relief. I get pretty sulky some evenings because I know we can't eat outside, as before we are even 20 minutes in, they will arrive en masse as uninvited dinner companions.
One of the best things about being on holiday in Australia or New Zealand is that you can eat outside, or even simply have the windows wide open in the evenings.
If the House & Garden magazines are to be believed, you can eat outside in the evenings in the cities and also sometimes in the stylishly quaint villages, I suppose there is less vegetation...but you definitely cannot do it in a garden close to water...so that us out, or rather in!


Her Revenge

So how do we live with them?

Well you do get used to them. So for instance if you are out for a walk, you do just that, keep moving briskly. That leaves them behind...except for the odd persistent one.
You use midge repellent and over the years we have tried them all. The citronella ones, the ones based on bog myrtle, that smelt nice and the ones with evil sounding DEET as the insecticide ingredient.
I can't say I have been impressed with any of them.
Having said that I am currently using one called SMIDGE.......it is the best yet and does seem to help. I just don't like using anything chemical on my skin too often.
This smidge has been researched and formatted by the guys behind the Scottish midge forecast ..so maybe they do know a thing about the wretched blighters

The other and preferable method of protection is the midge hood. This is a fine mesh hood , that keeps them out and you can see through.
Of course it darkens the world and gets a bit hot and sweaty after a while, but basically works well. They work well and we have had a couple for some years now, and still going strong.
When our daughter Cathy came back from working in Canada she bought a gift of a full ...or any way half-body net protector.
This will be designed for mosquitoes; and the mossies in the Arctic Circle do sound like man-eaters . It works well and Donald as you see rather suits it. However I have seen more than one startled visitor come across him suited up in the garden.

Beyond that, tuck your trousers in your socks, wear long sleeved and high necked tops, all methods not really designed for the heat and so it is as well they go away over about 25 degrees.

There is also the midge catcher idea and I recall we bought one about 6 years ago. It only works, and only partially and over a small area and you have to keep replacing the propane gas as it is the CO2 they are attracted to.  We gave up on that.  Jo who works for us always offers to do any summer barbeques...as the smoke is a great midge repellent. Of course she will end up smell like a smoked kipper, but you cant have it all ways.

But don't let the rotten old midges put you off coming to Scotland,. Some years are worse than others and this summer is pretty good. But if you wonder why Highlanders retreat indoors and close the windows on summer evenings...now you know.

The Year of The Poppy

Back in winter I clearly recall saying to Donald ”This is 2014 and if ever there was one, this is the year of the poppy”
And so it is. We have the 100 year anniversary of the outbreak of the 1st world war, and as August approaches we will all be swept up in the reflection and memories that the date and its attendant ceremonies will awaken.
Anyone of my post 2nd world war generation will be steeped in family stories and memories of the 1914-1918 war. They were 50 year old memories when I was a teenager, and my grandfather was gone, at a younger age than necessary as the long shadow of the trenches and gassing and the whole experience took its long slow toll on many British men.
The memories and reflections have freshened in recent years, and the annual Memorial Day ceremonies are now very well attended, and red poppies are a potent symbol in our lives.

Looking around the nursery and the garden, it has been surprising and pleasing to see the range of poppies we grow and Donald has responded to my never ending desire to add more.
I’ll keep the reporting coming over the summer and autumn as they come into flower, but here is the first instalment and they look terrific.

Californian Poppy  (Escholtzia californica)
These are fabulous and without peer on a warm sunny day. We grow the single orange, no mixtures or frilled varieties as I find they just do not have the impact and sheer exuberance of the orange. They now self-seed for us, and that gets things moving after a mild winter.

Iceland Poppies (Papaver nudicaule)
A favourite as we used to grow lots in The Falkland Islands, where they seemed to thrive on cool summers and sea spray. Well they would wouldn’t they.
Best grown as seed & growth year 1 (sown in March/April or even May) and up to flower year 2. A good percentage carries on into years 3 and 4. 
They make really good cut flowers, plunge them into a deep jug of water.

Welsh Poppies  (Meconopsis cambrica)
Tough, easy to grow poppies. We like to create areas of the garden where they are all yellow or all orange, and I love the red ones that pop up unexpectedly in many corners. Very tolerant of woodland shade and hence extremely useful to brighten dull corners. 

Oriental Poppies (Papaver orientale)
These are the huge early summer poppies. They have large heads and centres of quivering black stamens. All colours are wonderful, but the reds and pinks stand out for us with performance and you have to love the huge whites with black thumb prints at the base of the petals and the striking black centres. Feed well and have a nearby perennial or some annuals to take over the space as these die down.  Show stoppers!

Himalayan Poppies (Meconopsis)
Any gardener will have heart stopping moments of pleasure when they see these superb blue poppies growing well.  We have acid sandy soil, and provided we keep them well fed, and watch they do not dry out, these aristocratic, elegant plants do wonderfully  well for us.  

There are a range of cultivars and some very nice coloured variants like Hensol Violet. 
I’ll try and guide you through them and all our other poppies, including the fabulous ladybird poppies, in another Blog another time.
MD

David Austin Rose Special

2014 Catalogue - Now Online

So our daughter Cat and her partner Brad are on The Falkland Islands…that is bringing back so many memories. Memories of the Camp, the wildlife and the vivid gardens full of sun loving annuals. 

The Falkland Islands were sunny, cool and windy too of course but I remember many, many sunny days. 
The new 2014 catalogue cover that Cat has done is great, showing three wonderful Falkland icons , Rockhopper Penguins, Islander planes and the Falkland island slipper plant Calceolaria fothergillii.

Our trips to New Zealand continue too, and so our love affair with the southern hemisphere goes on.

Back here On Loch Ness it has been an extraordinary mild winter. We have been spared much of the rain and storms that have plagued the south of England and Wales. It will be very interesting to see how things grow away, with so little check to their growth.

The February garden at Abriachan is a delight of snowdrops, snowflakes and the Daphne bholua sends a long trail of intoxicating scent along the pathways. The evergreens are slick and healthy and the flower buds on the Rhododendrons and Camellias are fat and full of promise, the soil is heaving with bulbs emerging as we move the leaf fall aside.

Spring is on the move.


Margaret

View our 2014 Plant Catalogue Online
Download the 2014 Plant Catalogue

Autumn Shrub Sale - 2013

2013 Plant Catalogue - Now Online

ABRIACHAN 30 YEARS ON

 

So, how did that happen? Suddenly it is 30 years on.

We arrived at Abriachan in 1983 after 12 years living and working in the Falkland Islands. It took us time to settle, but somehow, setting up the nursery and beginning the garden did the job.

We began as all gardens should, by planting vegetables and soft fruit, but the stony soil and the oak and hazel woodlands drew us on up the hill.

So what began with a few alpines, swiftly gained momentum? Don sweated away creating dry stone walls and paths, criss-crossing the hill side and gradually our woodland and dry slope garden took shape.

I believe gardens are always a reflection of their owners and we are no different. We have lived overseas in New Zealand and the Falklands and we grow plants from both places as they mean something to us and also do pretty well in our climate.  Living in Scotland we must accept the limitations of the weather, but nevertheless we find ourselves pushing the boundaries of hardiness all of the time.

Every year we do something new in the garden, and there is still so much to learn. Like many gardeners, we have some favourites and start collections, my personal passions are the old fashion primroses and auricula, and there will be more yet.

It has been 30 years of huge interest and fun.  All of our family have contributed in so many ways and together with our staff and the many in our community who have encouraged us over the years; and not least you, our customers who have made our imaginings come true. We have made something beautiful between us.

Thank you all.

Margaret Davidson

The 2013 Abriachan Nurseries Plant Catalogue is now online  to download as a pdf and to purchase online through paypal
Hardcopies will be sent out in the post in the next weeks, please contact us if you would like to be added to the mailing list

Spring in Scotland

We are home in Abriachan and this morning was a perfect winter day.
The sunlight came across the Loch and lit up all the golden yellow and glistening dark green of evergreens. It rained overnight and drops of water were glistening along branches and giving a zest to the air.

It has been cold this past week and grey, so to see so many shrubs with flower is a real lift for the sprit.
The early Witch Hazel, Hamamelis x intermedia Pallida is wonderful. It is close by the house, looking magnificent against a blue winter sky.

Walking through the garden yesterday, it is always a surprise how good the moss looks on the stone walls. When the leaves are off the trees, the moss seems to take centre arena and is a perfect foil for winter blooms and early bulbs.

I walked up through the steps and into the woodland, elated to see the upright stems and flowers of Mahonia x media Charity. These branches pull the arch of the sky down within reach.

The Sarcococca confusa; sweet box; behind the Font Stone wall brought a gasp of pleasure as I have never seen it looking so well and with lots of the small dizzily, fragrant flowers amongst the leaves.

The final surprise yesterday was Ilex…..a wonderful variegated holly…..dripping with berries and outlined against the sky.

It’s good to be home and how great is it that our garden greets us with such splendour.

Autumn Supplement

It is Autumn at Abriachan and that means it is time for our Autumn Supplement crammed full of great offers.

Primula Scotica

At the end of summer we have rows and rows of plants that we have propagated over the summer. We like to offer them at a really good price before we pot on.

I also know that many of you have been waiting for some of the precious Auriculas and Primroses, as we sold out early in the spring.

So Voilà!

Auricula Grey Monarch

Alongside them are some plants that really appreciate being planted in autumn, Digitalis ( Foxgloves), Hellebores and Candelabra Primroses.



Digitalis purpurea alba



We are also selling good range of Schizostylis (Kaffir Lilies) These blooms are wonderful in the autumn garden, glowing and providing border colour to catch the eye in the late summer sunlight.
Once owned always  loved.

Schizostylus coccinea major

 We hope you find something to tempt you,

Click here to go direct to the website where you can order online,
Click here to download the autumn supplement pdf (order form included)

Don has done a wonderful job taking photographs of the auriculas this year and the website is looking a lot more colourful with all the thumbnail photos (Click on a thumbnail to see a larger photo of the plant), we hope this is a helpful aid to choosing some new plants, sometimes reading descriptive text only can be a bit dry, so we are doing our best to  gradually add photos of every plant we sell.

 

Best Wishes,
The Davidson Family