A cactus called 'Adolf Hitler' - or perhaps not

Epiphyllum 'Reichskanzler Adolph Hitler' or 'Sherman E. Beahm'

My former employer in Holland, the late Kees Sahin, in addition to being an incredibly knowledgeable plantsman, had a fertile and mischievous mind, with a penchant for doing or saying outrageous things that would throw people off balance, usually to his advantage. Another passion was plant names: with a flood of introductions coming from the Sahin stable each year this was something we had to give a lot of thought to and would frequently be the subject of conversation on car journeys up and down The Netherlands. On one such journey he suddenly recalled that there had been an Epiphyllum named after Adolf Hitler, which appealed to his sense of shock value. Once back at home he wrote to his friend Gordon Rowley, the great cactus and succulent expert (and another highly idiosyncratic individual), for information. By return came an envelope containing two shoots with the name 'Adolf Hitler' written on them.

These were promptly rooted and grown on, and as a memory of two great plantsmen and an amusing conservation I kept one of them. It is now in flower on my bedroom windowsill. It has bloomed before, but for some reason I've missed the flowers, so this is the first time I've seen it in full - rather gaudy - glory. Last night it was sweetly scented, but now (mid-morning) there is nothing to detect.

A little research online tells an interesting story. It was raised by Curt Knebel, a great German breeder (information available here), and introduced in 1935 under the name 'Reichskanzler Adolph Hitler'- usually shortened and anglicised as 'Adolf Hitler'. This name having become unacceptable after the Second World War, it was 'officially' changed to 'Sherman E. Beahm', commemorating another Epiphyllum breeder and nurseryman) from Pasadena, California. One does have to wonder how he liked the designation 'Sherman E. Beahm' (syn. 'Adolf Hitler').

It is not an invasive plant.

All go at the Yorkshire Arboretum

It's a busy time at the Yorkshire Arboretum, with lots going on in every way. Most importantly, spring is surging ahead and the trees are at their most beautiful stage - the optimistic greens of spring.

We are putting in a new drain to try to reduce waterlogging problems in wet periods.: Mike Hainsworth operating the digger with great precision.

Nicola Hall and the Tree Team of volunteers spent today planting trees on the approach to the visitor centre - it looks so much better already.

A glory of dandelions in our wildflower meadow areas.

Male cones of Abies procera 'Glauca'

Bird Cherry, Prunus padus, is in full flower.

A beautiful but unnamed Rhododendron in the arboretum ('Hotei' x 'Skipper')

And the show goes on in Ray Wood...

Eranthis seed

Ripe seed of Eranthis hyemalis - in this case 'Zitronenfalter'

Each year there seems to be one day when the seed of Winter Aconites ripens, the follicles open, and one has to get out with bags or envelopes to gather it before it sheds. Yesterday was that day here and despite the poor weather at flowering time a reasonable quantity of seed had been set on some cultivars. Today I've sown the seed, in a gritty loam-based compost, topped with a good layer of grit, which I'll keep in an out-of-the-way corner of the garden until germination occurs next spring. The urgency is because the seed rapidly loses its viability if it becomes dried out, and sowing from pod to pot guarantees a good crop of seedlings next year. In the first year all one gets is a pair of cotyledons, which make a tiny tuber; in the second season a small peltate leaf with the characteristically lobed margin is produced, and from then it will be another couple of seasons before flowering size is reached. So one needs to get going with them, and not miss the chance for another year.

Pots sown today with seed from different Eranthis cultivars

In the garden this weekend

Tulipa 'Green Star': need more of this next year.

A lovely ivory-coloured daffodil from Janis Ruksans many years ago - the label is lost. It's always very late to flower.

Fritillaria graeca

Gentiana acaulis (Mrs Wayne's clone from Colesbourne) flowering happily in its pot.

At last I've been able to spend a decent amount of time in the my own garden, in more than decent weather, enjoying plants that are either established in the ground from planting last autumn, or still in pots, but also being able to get on with developing the garden.  With the main border dug and prepared I've been able to plant a lot of perennials, some from pots, but the majority were bare-rooted clumps. I was very fortunate in being able to leave the perennials I'd propagated last spring lined out in the vegetable patch at Colesbourne Park, so they established good root systems and made plenty of growth, while causing no bother to anyone. I brought them here in February and got them heeled in - this was the first chance I've had to move them. The long winter and dry weather have together delayed growth, so they were in perfect condition for lifting and replanting, with new roots emerging and the shoots beginning to get going. Comparing these plants with those that have been in pots there is no contest as to which are the better.

Part of the main border on Saturday: I have left some of the previous plantings in place.

A clump of Symphyotrichum ' Ochtendgloren', just beginning to get itself moving and perfect for replanting.

The border this evening.

 

It is lovely to have Philip back with me again, now occupying the aviary at the end of the border.



Lamprocapnos spectabilis 'Valentine is an amazing new introduction: it was one of the plants I shouldn't have bought last year, but I'm very glad I did.

Ray Wood rhododendrons on show

One of the largest rhododendrons in the collection, R. basilicum

One of the smallest: R. petrocharis, Jim Russell's own collection from Fan Jin Shan, October 1985,
under the number GUIZ 120. A very rare plant in cultivation, it seems.

An excellent example of Jim Russell's planting in Ray Wood - a beautiful mix of colours.

The collection of rhododendrons planted by Jim Russsell in Ray Wood at Castle Howard during the 1970s and 80s has long been regarded as being of exceptional interest - not only for its diversity but for its location. North-eastern England is not generally regarded as the best place to grow good rhododendrons, but Jim knew what he was doing, choosing a cool north-facing site with constantly moist rich soil, with remarkable results. Unfortunately this treasure trove was badly neglected after he died, until the Castle Howard Arboretum Trust received a very generous grant from the Monument Trust to undertake its restoration. This began in 2010, with Jan Hoyland as Curator. Together with her assistant Jonathan Watkinson , and a dedicated group of volunteers, she rescued the woodland garden in Ray Wood from oblivion under the closed canopy of increasingly large oaks, and from being swallowed under laurels and brambles. The work is still going on, now under my guidance, but the past couple of years' hard work is showing in the current superb display of a diversity of rhododendrons in full flower.


Cut stems for the show  brought down from Ray Wood.

To celebrate this resurgence, and help tell a wider audience that Ray Wood is worth visiting again, I took a selection of cut stems to the RHS Late Rhododendron Competition being held at Harlow Carr, Harrogate, this weekend. Nicola Hall, our Plant Records Manager, helped gather the flowers yesterday, and I staged them on behalf of the Ray Wood Volunteers this morning. I learnt a lot in a hurry about staging rhododendrons to the satisfacton of the judges, but we were awarded two firsts (for a trio of hybrids, and a single truss of a hybrid) a second, a third, a fourth and a disqualified (a magnificent stem of R. basilicum deemed to have three trusses instead of the permitted one). Not too bad for a first attempt!

Part of the Late Rhododendron Competion at RHS Harlow Carr today. Five Ray Wood specimens are visible on the front table (not the pale one on the right)

The first prize-winning trio of hybrids (fron to back): 'Juanita', 'Carita' and 'Ibex'

card for 'Taurus'

'Taurus' in situ.





Pleione

Pleione Britannia 'Doreen'

I came home from the arboretum this afternoonn to find that the pots of Pleione in the 'conservatory' were catching the sun, so I spent some time trying to catch the effect with the camera. Here are a few of the results.

Pleione Irazu 'Cheryl'

Pleione Tongariro

Tongariro

The full pot of Tongariro - an outstanding plant.

Birthday party flowers

Magnolia 'Star Wars'

 Flowers in my parents' garden today, where we have been celebrating my mother's birthday.

Gladiolus cunonius

Scadoxus puniceus

Cowslips (Primula veris) in the lawn

Viola from Morrisons

Muscari neglectum (selected)

Lithodora zahnii

Narcissus papyraceus

Leucojum aestivum 'Gravetye'

Convallaria majalis 'Vic Pawlowski's Gold'

Trillium chloropetalum (Primrose Warburg's clone)