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Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charleston?
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Posted by Jane_of_The_Gable Co Durham UK (My Page) on Tue, May 24, 05 at 9:42
| I am a very keen gardener (born in Mississippi and brought up in the Charleston area)and have lived in England for the past 21 years. It would be lovely to be able to exchange gardening ideas with anyone from the area near where I grew up, so all replies gratefully appreciated. I am passionate about roses, clematis, hellebores and many more. We have a wonderful climate here for gardening and I can usually find an aspect suitable for most plants. I have a south-facing garden with pond in the front and a sheltered walled garden in the back which allows me to grow slightly tender (for this area) plants eg. solanum crispum 'glasnevin' and clematis armandii. Please let me know about your favourite plants or if there is anything you would like to know about gardening in this area. We have a season of interest throughout the year and I am always looking for the right balance at all times of the year. Look forward to hearing from you. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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- Posted by jim2k mississippi (My Page) on
Wed, May 25, 05 at 11:04
| Not sure where Charleston is but I'm from just north of vicksburg like roses and herbs.Also grow vegtables.Good luck Jim |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Thanks Jim Charleston is in Tallahatchie County in the northwest. There must be one or two others who live nearby. What are your favourite plants? I remember a wonderful mimosa (that's what we called it anyway) tree covered with pink spidery flowers in my grandmother's front yard when I was a kid. I have looked in books and can't find it. Does anyone know what it could be? |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| try here.... http://hybridpoplars.com Let me know if it works out for you. sincerely,
englishivy |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Thanks englishivy I had no idea that mimosas grew so quickly. Could be a bit tender as well, but at least I know they are still around. |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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Hi Jane!
Can't be of much help as
I'm in Louisiana but i lived in Sentobia, Miss. for a while and i have an Aunt who lives in Batesville. I have been to Charleston a couple of times. Just wanted to say Hi and welcome! |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Thanks Tater, its always nice to feel welcome. I lived in Baton Rouge for a short while and the people there were really friendly. Happy gardening! Jane |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Hi Jane, I live in neighboring Panola County -- the southern part of the county actually, so Charleston is very close. The actor, Morgan Freeman, has a home just outside Charleston. It must be wonderful living in England. What brought you there? Do you ever visit Mississippi? |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Hello Oubliette,the climate here is perfect for gardening and it is a nation of garden lovers. My husband is English and we don't get to visit often, no family left in Charleston now, so it is really nice to talk to other keen gardeners close to where I grew up. What are your favorite plants? |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Azaleas and camellias have always been favorites. This year I am trying to add lots of plants for hummingbirds. It has been a bit of a challenge because my three acres are wooded and there isn't much sun. I added columbine, astilbe, toad lilies, and lots more hosta in the shade, and for the few sunny patches I am trying several different salvias, agastache, and Monarda 'Jacob Cline'. Do any of these do well in England? Your garden sounds beautiful. Clematis is one of my favorites, too. I had some when I lived in town in a sunnier location. Roses are a challenge because of black spot. Do you have to deal with black spot? The honeysuckle has been blooming for over a month now and the woods are full of its sweet scent. Poisen ivy is also a challenge. I'll bet you don't have to deal with that! I don't really know many people from Charleston -- mainly the Sayle family. |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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I love hummingbirds, which is something that I have not seen here, but I can remember one in my uncle's garden in Greenwood, Ms. when I was a child. They are beautiful, aren't they? It sounds as though they like sun-loving plants. We like camellias as well and rhododendrons which we have had some success with in certain parts of our garden. We also have an area for shade loving plants where we grow hostas, ferns, hellebores, toad lilies and epimediums. Have you tried epimediums? I love their beautiful heart-shaped leaves. I would also like to try smilicena racemosa which has lovely scented spring flowers and does well in shade. I am currently looking for suppliers in my area.
We have some blackspot on the roses but not as bad as further south, usually keep it under control. And yes, you are right, poison ivy is not something that we have to deal with, but stinging nettles can cause a nasty sting! |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Hi Oubliette Just to let you know I misspelled the plant I mentioned to you, it should be smilacina racemosum. I found one supplier but they won't have them ready until spring of next year. I still have one or two other leads though. Good luck with your hummingbirds. |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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Hi, Jane, I'm not very close to any of the places you mention, except Baton Rouge about an hour east, but I grew up in the Pacific Northwest. We were always told our climate was more like England than the rest of the United States, and I even subscribed to an English gardening magazine because it was so much more relevant than the national ones. I grew a lot of different kinds of primulas and miss them a lot--they melt here! Do you grow them? Grew other alpines too, and rhododendrons, and my mother grew every hellebore she could find, and epimediums. I didn't think hellebores would make it here and I don't like to torture plants, but the last few years I've begun to read things that make me think I should try a few to see if they can take it. You sure remind me of a lot of plants I love!
Nancy |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| Glad to hear from you Nancy. The Pacific Northwest sounds wonderful. Do you miss it? We do have lots of primulas here and they make their presence known here particularly in Spring, when their colorful displays are very welcome. I do love hellebores and their beautiful flowers can last from January well into April here in moist, shady areas. I would be tempted to try at least one, if I were you, maybe take some advice from someone in your area. Let me know how you get on. Jane |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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I have mixed feelings about missing the PNW. Miss some of the plants I could grow there that won't grow here, but then I can grow things here that I couldn't there. Guess I'm a believer in that old saw 'bloom where they plant you!' I've really gotten hooked the last few years on semi-tropicals that love the heat and humidity, and I try not to think about primulas (and other beautiful things that love that cool drizzle.) There's always a new kind of plant or a new adjustment to challenge me, I found, as we moved from there to high mountains to northern plains, and then here. Each with its own beauty--and oh so different! When I lived in the high mountains garden club ladies told me I should learn to love plastic flowers as 'that's all that grows here'. It wasn't, and I still don't like plastic flowers!
Nancy |
RE: Hello from England - Any gardeners near my hometown Charlesto
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| I guess you're probably right. We certainly don't do too well here with semi-tropicals (mimosas are out of the question) but I'm not complaining. Every morning when I look out of the window I see something new and exciting. We also have a lot of birds and other wildlife that like to visit, which adds to the pleasure even more. Happy gardening! |
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