Orange lillies
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complementing bridesmaids' bouquets - 07430005.jpg
Asim Shah posted a photo:
Many people have commented that the trade stands at this year's shows have been every bit as good as some of the gardens themselves, and at Tatton I have to agree. Many of the gardens created outside some of the nursery stands were exquisite and beautifully done.
I was particularly impressed with the display outside Brooklands nursery stand, which featured a swathe of perennials in a range of pastel colours. It was just the thing to entice visitors into the stand to buy plants (that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it). I try to resist buying things, but I always like to take home something from the flower shows I work at, and in the end I chose a Dierama. I purchased a large plant from the plant societies marquee, which was accompanied by plenty of useful advice from the grower. Hopefully it will do well in a sunny free-draining spot I have in my new garden. I got at lot of attention as I walked back to our tent with it, I don't think I've had so many admiring glances in a long while. If you're ever at a flower show and want to get attract attention, forget waving a coloured umbrella and choose a large Dierama instead. Hmm, I think a little flowerbed reshuffle is on the cards when I get home or possibly even flowerbed creation. I might have been suffering from the gardeners' affliction of my eyes being bigger than my garden. The car looked like a mobile greenhouse on the way back down the M6 but I bet we weren't the only car on the motorway adorned with foliage. Clematis x aromatica and C. flammula mysteriously found their way into my jute shopping bag, along with a really pretty Nepeta govaniana that I'll have to sneak into the back of a border. I find that yellow flowers divide gardeners in the same way as the variegated/non variegated debate but I can't resist yellow. I don't mind if it's a perfect sunshine yellow, wholesome and cheery or an acid greeny yellow, I'm quite happy with anything in between. The N. govaniana has delicate pale, lemony yellow flowers and is perfection in plant form. Lobelia tupa is a plant that I have been hankering after for a long time and now I am the proud owner of one. Carol Klein warned me about its hallucinogenic properties when she spied it my bag. Everyday's a school day at these shows... A tiny little blackcurrant sage completed my purchases, Salvia microphylla var. microphylla I couldn't resist its tiny little magenta pink flowers and scented foliage, I know that it'll thrive in my garden and it was a bargain, that's my excuse!
One item I would have loved to have brought home with me was this chap. My soon-to-be-husband and I have a little Russian tortoise called Claude so I am very fond of these slightly grumpy shelled creatures. Even though Claude has an uncanny habit of homing in and munching on any plant that I have struggled to grow or is very rare or special, I don't know how he does it! On second thoughts perhaps a stone version is a brilliant idea... Info from:
Private Club
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