As far removed from an English cottage garden as you can travel, the passion flower (Passiflora) is one of the most theatrical and exotic of plants. The weird and wonderful blooms are embellished with many showy parts that together remind you of peering into a kaleidoscope as a child: in the centre, the anthers, stigmas, and ovary protrude over the filament rays, which are marked with circles of incredible colour.
This peacock of flowers hails mainly from the Neotropical realm of Central and South America, where it grows in mountainous terrain and rainforest. It is a rampant evergreen that uses tendrils to either climb or scramble along the ground or through thickets. The genus comprises around 600 species, which bloom in shades of purple, blue, yellow, red, or white and produce fruits. Passiflora edulis is the most edible and widely cultivated for its fruit juice, while the foliage, roots, and fruit of some species are used in herbal and folk medicine as a sedative or to induce hypnotic euphoria. Passion flowers are pollinated by a range of wildlife, including bees, bats, and hummingbirds, and have a fascinating symbiotic relationship with ants, who feed on the plants and protect them from predators.
Passiflora were introduced to Europe in the eighteenth century and became popular with the Victorians, who grew hybrids of them in gardens and hothouses. Being tricky to cultivate outdoors, they fell out of favour, but have enjoyed a surge in popularity in recent years, as gardeners look for exotic plants to create jungle-style borders.
The name is said to relate to the crucifixion, since passion stems from the Latin passio, meaning suffering. Spanish missionaries in South America during the 15th and 16th centuries regarded
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Sparrowhawks are one of the most agile birds of prey in the UK. They evolved to nip, dive and swerve around trees to hunt in forests, and this means they’re also well-adapted to hunt amongst the buildings in our urban centres. I’ve seen them several times in my garden in urban Cambridge. Either perched on my fence, streaking across in a blur, or, on one memorable occasion, swiping a Starling from the bird feeder and plucking it on the ground.
When not in flower, it’s fair to say dahlia plants rarely command a second glance. In fact, to the uninitiated, they could be easily mistaken for potatoes, not that surprising when you consider that these two fast-growing, frost-tender tuberous species share a surprising amount of common ground regarding their geographical range in the wild and their fondness for a certain set of growing conditions that includes a rich, moist but free-draining soil in full sun or light shade. But the comparison ends there. Unlike potatoes, which are valued solely as a tasty food crop, dahlias are generally prized for the otherworldly beauty of their often large and vividly colourful flowers.
Traditionally, greenhouses can be quite energy and water intensive, running on fossil fuels which are detrimental to the environment. This is why more and more UK homeowners and gardening enthusiasts are designing their greenhouses with sustainability in mind. In this article, we’ll talk you through the different areas where you can consider improving the sustainability of your greenhouse and how these could benefit you – so that you can garden with a green conscience as well as a green thumb.
Potato blight, also known as late blight, attacks the foliage and tubers of potatoes, eventually causing the crop to rot. Caused by the same fungus responsible for tomato blight, it is a particular problem in wet summers. Potato blight was responsible for the Irish potato famine in the 19th century, devastating crops in the ground, and those in storage too.
Hailing from South Africa, agapanthus can be evergreen or deciduous; the deciduous varieties are the most hardy in this country. The evergreen varieties grow in the southern Cape in milder areas, so will need frost protection in the UK – or they can be grown in pots and brought inside.
The British have a bit of an obsession with the Mediterranean. It's tantalisingly close, yet sufficiently different that the moment the EasyJet tyres hit the tarmac, we feel transformed and instantly a bit more glamorous.
For my Masters dissertation last year I did some research into gardeners who choose to grow unusual edible crops. I settled on two species to investigate, achocha and oca. In the past I’ve written about how to grow achocha – it’s a nice, easy plant and in a temperate climate you should have no problems getting a significant yield. You may have more of a problem dealing with the glut….
The Body Shop has announced that it is creating its first show garden at RHS Chelsea this year. It’s called The Lady Garden, designed to pay homage to its “founding feminist principles and activist roots”.
A lot of new gardening and plant books have landed on my mat this spring, and I need to up my book reviewing game! I like to do them justice, and spend some time reading them before I write a review, so that does create a bit of a backlog. Right at the time when the garden is demanding my attention. Anyway, the book that has found itself at the top of the list is one that really encompasses the gardening zeitgeist – The Community Gardening Handbook, by Ben Raskin. I looked him up, and he has impeccable credentials. He’s currently Head of Horticulture for the Soil Association; prior experiences include working for Garden Organic, running a walled garden and being a Horticultural Advisor for the Community Farm near Bristol.