Brimsmore Garden Centre (self drive)

A bit of a mix up with our Gold Membership meant that our September meeting was at Brimsmore Garden Centre instead of as advertised. Many apologies to anyone who had been looking forward to the advertised talk. The good news is that this will now take place on November 21st (see end of article).

Due to the late notice, there was only a small turnout at the Garden Centre, but the earlier starting time meant that we had the opportunity to browse the plant selection outside before the light went. We then enjoyed refreshments and were treated to a very interesting and informative talk by the head of the hardy plants section who introduced us to his choice of the 50 best plants for early autumn. Here are some of them.

Nandina domestica ‘Obsessed’: the foliage of this compact shrub emerges fiery red before turning fresh green, and then red again as autumn takes hold. In summer it has pretty clusters of white flowers. It is perfect for a sunny spot in a small garden, and can also be grown in containers.

Heucherella ‘Tapestry’: blue-green leaves which mature to silvery green with purple veins. Pink flowers are borne in summer. Plants have a good spreading habit and make excellent ground-cover at the front of a shady border. They are also suited to growing in pots. 

Amerine ‘Belladiva’: a cross between an Amaryllis and a Nerine, originally bred for the cut flower market. One bulb can produce up to 10 slender-petalled, pink lily-like flowers on each upright stem.

Cornus alba ‘Aurea’: has deep red stems, vibrant gold-green leaves, small, creamy-white flowers and clusters of white berries. It’s tolerant of a wide range of soil types, and produces the brightest winter bark when planted in full sun. Cut it down every other February to keep the best colour.

Physalis: with its orange lanterns it is a good Halloween plant and then you can eat the round fruit with its sweet/sour flavour.

Chilli ‘Medusa’: is an extremely ornamental variety, bearing masses of long, thin peppers in shades of yellow, orange and red. The peppers are very mild in flavour and Medusa is perfect for growing on a sunny windowsill or outside in a sunny, sheltered spot.

Cyclamen persicum (bedding cyclamen): can be used in hanging baskets and containers or planted into the ground. They don’t like heavy rain so try to keep the foliage dry to avoid botrytis. A sheltered site in dappled shade with dry soil is perfect and they are fairly hardy, tolerating frost down to about -3 to -4C

If you love Camellias, try one of the autumn flowering Camellia sasanqua such as ‘Dwarf Shishi’ with small dark pink rose form flowers, ideal for containers and pots.

‘Easydendron’ with white flowers; is a new rhododendron which will grow in alkaline soil. It is however more tender and will need fleecing if frost threatens so I’m not sure if it is that easy!

Carex buchananii ‘Red Rooster’: is a superb evergreen clump forming grass, bearing long, triangular, fine-textured leaves, which flex gracefully in the breeze.

Callicarpa bodinieri ‘Profusion’: with its delicate lilac flowers followed by vibrant purple berries, much loved by song thrushes. Plants will flower and berry more profusely when planted in groups.

Cranberry ‘Pilgrim’, is an ericaceous loving, trailing ground cover plant… If you grow blueberries, try underplanting with a cranberry or two. I planted several plants last autumn in a raised bed under blueberry bushes and was rewarded this year with a small but good quality crop of cranberries for our Christmas dinner. They are also delicious with apple in a crumble, but I will have to wait for the plants to bulk up!

There was a wide variety of heucheras, sedums, Michaelmas daisies and japanese anemones to choose from too.

Having already chosen our shrubs, perennials and climbers earlier, we were then given the run of the garden centre and the bonus of 25% off everything with free delivery. We had a lovely time!

Pauline Bartlett