Galanthophiles
What a difference a week makes! Last week I was gazing at a solitary snowdrop in the Museum of Homelessness garden, this week the team have been hard at work planting 2000 snowdrops ‘in the green’. Sean Harkin head gardener at the Inner Temple where I used to volunteer, spent the day with Jess and the gang and I love this photo of the two of them. This is a really special community garden and seeing the way that people come to help is just so lovely. The work will go on at the weekend with ‘Snowdrop Sunday: a chance to beat the Winter blues by planting snowdrops together’.
Jess and Sean, the snowdrop planting has begun.
On Tuesday I published the Offshoot episode with Emma Thick. If you haven’t heard it but would like to listen I will post it below. It appears to be a very popular subject with lots of lovely comments in Galanthophile Facebook pages about Emma’s knowledge and passion. As one friend said “I could listen to her all day”. Just a word of warning that could be very expensive if you find yourself craving the rare bulbs, especially if they turn out to be miffy…you’ll need to check out the episode for the definition of a miffy snowdrop!
I happened to be in the Lake District at the weekend and yes I found myself on my knees inspecting the snowdrops so much more closely than I had ever done before. (Thanks to the tolerant friends who waited for me to catch them up!) Inspired by Emma and the MOH garden I have ordered some in the green to put into my own garden. Making this podcast is quite dangerous because everytime someone is passionate about a plant, there is the temptation to give it a go. At least snowdrops are quite small!
In other podcast news, I met and recorded a lovely plant story this week involving seeds. These particular seeds are very precious to Richard who has inherited them and who hopes he may be able to grow some of them and I am excited to see how he gets on this year. Some he hasn’t yet identified but there are definitely some sweetpea seeds which have been carefully stored in an old red Oxo cube tin. Other seeds are stored in old matchboxes or tiny paper envelopes, one stamped “Pickering Rural Deanery magazine subscription for 1959”!
Have I mentioned the Bald Cypress here before? I know it is in the trailer for the series. Well I have now found Harvey in Louisana who for the past 22 years has been tracking down Bald Cypress trees that were alive in the state in 1803 the date of the Louisiana purchase. (The purchase nearly doubled the size of the United States!) So an interview is now set up between France, the USA and the UK to talk Bald Cypresses! I will not be trying to grow one of those in my garden!
I was just interrupted by the door bell and I confess I was hoping it might be my snowdrops in the green - sadly it wasn’t but hopefully they will appeal soon and then I too will be out planting at the weekend.
I hope you have a lovely weekend too.
Sally
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