MANY years ago, we had a National Collection of Primulas that we assembled under the auspices of Plant Heritage, an august horticultural organisation that was, at that time, called the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens (NCCPG).
We enjoyed making the collection enormously and the generosity of our fellow enthusiasts was immensely cockle-warming.
Our primula collection was limited to European species and cultivars, but they turned out to be legion. My main interest centred on the Vernales section of the genus Primula, which includes our native primroses, cowslips and oxlips. I raised thousands of their hybrid seedlings; some were the result of deliberate crosses, but most of them were open-pollinated foundlings freely produced by this most promiscuous of garden flowers.
I had it in mind that, by crossing super-hardy species such as the Alpine oxlip P. elatior with the Caucasian P. juliae, I might breed a garden-worthy strain that would flourish in such climates as Ontario and the American Midwest and so make my fortune.
The NCCPG was keen that its collection holders should study their plants and make their own contribution to horticultural literature. We soon discovered, however, that so many brilliant botanists and gardeners had worked with the genus that we’d never be able to add to the existing corpus of knowledge.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 22 2017 من Country Life UK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 22 2017 من Country Life UK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
