Surrey Homes | SH66 | April 2020 | Gardens supplement

SH Gardens Supplement sponsored by
leaves shaped like ‘pointed shields’
up the stems, decreasing in size as
they ascend. The plant reminds you
of limey yellow euphorbias and has
the airy habit of cow parsley.
Another wonderful plant for unusual
shape and form would be the giant
fennel, Ferula communis. These are
related to the common culinary fennel
but belong to a different genus. Ferula
communis are in the carrot family but
decidedly more spectacular. Their native
habitat is in the Mediterranean region
and interestingly in the shrublands of
East Africa. From a huge clump of finely
dissected foliage a 3m-high inflorescence
unfurls, eventually producing wonderful
yellow umbels. It is such a stunning
plant and insect friendly too.
There’s a subspecies called ‘Glauca’
which gets to the same height, the
difference being glaucous, bluey leaves.
And Beth Chatto named the Tangier
fennel, Ferula communis tingitana
‘Cedric Morris’ after her friend,
Cedric Morris, the plantsman who
originally collected the seed. This one
is slightly shorter – but still comes
in at 1½m – the difference being the
shiny leaves and green umbels. They
all flower in June but are exciting at all
times of the year; in winter spectacular
silhouettes tower over the borders.
If you could only grow one tree, Tilia
henryana would surely be a candidate.
I’ve probably written about this absolute
favourite more than once. Henry’s Lime
originates from China and was first
discovered by the Irish plant hunter,
Augustine Henry. However, it wasn’t
introduced to the West until 1901 when
Ernest Wilson brought it in. It deserves
to be more widely planted and there
are suppliers now who have them in
stock, although it still seems to be a rare
tree. It has huge, bristled ovate leaves
which start the season tinged with red.
By the autumn the ‘sea-green’ leaves
start to turn golden yellow. Added to
this, the creamy white flowers arrive
late in the season providing an absolute
feast for all manner of insects. Last
year, I had some girls in for bed and
breakfast over a really hot weekend.
They decided to sunbathe near the tree
and woke to a really loud humming
and buzzing only to see that the flowers
were absolutely smothered with insects
having a high old time. Including a
few hornets if truth be known, but
they, along with all the others, were
so busy feasting that we didn’t disturb
them and they didn’t disturb us.
And of all the huge number of ilex,
or hollies, that there are in the world
with their myriad shapes, forms and
habits, one of the most lovely and
unusual is one which was discovered
as a sport of I. ‘Golden King’ in the
garden of Dargle Cottage, County
Wicklow, home of Lord and Lady
Goulding. From 12 cuttings taken in
1976 there were enough plants to start
selling them by 1988. In Ireland this
plant is often called Ilex x altaclerensis
‘Lady Valerie’ but in England it is more
widely known as ‘Ripley Gold’. Do
look out for it as it is so brilliant as a
winter evergreen shrub. Its distinctively
twisted leaves are glossy and have
mottled splashes of a primrose yellow.
I love the way that the Irish Garden
Plant Society described it: ‘the variable
beauty of these is like a soft, sweet song
to all who have an eye for leaf form
and colour in the wintry landscape’.
And finally, Tibouchina urvilleana,
the Glory Bush native to Brazil,
a perennial on the tender side in
this country, which is fabulous as
long as you can give it over-winter
protection. This winter has been so
mild that it has survived an unheated
greenhouse but in a ‘normal’ winter
it would need some winter warmth.
It makes a great pot grown specimen
unless you live somewhere like Penzance
in Cornwall where it can grow to up
to 10ft in a sheltered spot outdoors.
I think it would be marvellous in a
sheltered, sensory garden as everything
about it is soft to the touch. The
stems are red and hairy and the large
leaves, too, are hairy and textured.
Late in the summer, it produces satiny
reddish purple flowers which look blue
until you get closer to them. There’s
a variegated form with leaves edged
with pinky red which I think needs to
go on the ‘must have one day’ list.
Sue Whigham can be contacted on
07810 457948 for gardening advice
and help in the sourcing and supply of
interesting garden plants.
13 surrey-homes.co.uk