Gardeners Blog – December

The new Alpine Garden is almost ready

There may not be much in the way of gardening tasks to do at this time of year, we’re still finding plenty of jobs to keep us occupied as we lead up to Christmas.

While many of us are thinking about Christmas shopping, parties and the all important food that we enjoy, there are still a few exciting things happening here at the Gardens.

You may recall that we’ve been working on the new Alan King Alpine Garden, creating a refreshed and renewed space for all things Alpine. The far western side of the garden is to open mid-December – a pre-festive treat for anyone who loves these delicate species – which will include the new tufa cliff-landscaped house, which is busily being planted with Alpines from across the mountains of Europe and Asia.

We’re absolutely thrilled with how it is looking, thanks to the team’s hard work and their incredible attention to detail, and we’re really looking forward to showing off this most impressive feature to visitors. Let us know what you think when you have a look round.

Less glamorously, but still crucially, we’ll continue to rake up the final autumn leaves from around the gardens – from both the lawns and the borders. It’s always a huge task that we do over a few weeks as the leaves fall, but it’s one that is incredibly rewarding: in just a few months’ time, we’ll have rich and nutritious leaf mould to use in the borders. It’s one of the best soil conditioners to use.

We’ll be getting into the Christmas mood this month as we change our 21-metre long floral display in the Mediterranean House. We’ll be planting a gorgeous seasonal display of poinsettias, Christmas trees, plus Christmas flowering narcissus and hyacinth – it’s always a beautiful and colourful display. We hope it brings a smile to your face over the next few weeks.

 

Don’t forget that the Gardens are open every day of the year, except Christmas Day and Boxing Day (we close at 3pm on Christmas Eve), so if you need an excuse to recharge your batteries and walk off those mince pies and brandy butter, pop in and enjoy the sights and sounds in the 15 acres. See here for opening times over the festive period.

 

Whatever your plans for Christmas and the new year, we hope you have a great time and open some great horticultural gifts. See you in 2020!