RAMBLING GARDEN BLUES - Part 2
To quote Kevin Coyne: “Hello friends, Hello everyone.” Welcome to Rambling Garden Blues part 2. This edition travels through early August with a trip back to late July. But firstly early August and the Chelsea Physics Garden. I have paid two visits there recently. On Sundays 5th and 12th August. For me it is a nice place to spend a Sunday afternoon. On the 5th the weather was extremely hot. On the 12th there were scattered showers. But it was still quite hot. The gardens history dates back to 1673 when it was opened to grow medicinal plants and study their uses. I will tell you more about it’s history in a future edition. For now I will tell you about its plants. The garden is deep in the heart of sunny Chelsea. It is surrounded by three streets, Royal Hospital Road, Swan Walk and the Albert Embankment. On the west side there are some tall houses and back gardens. The garden is surrounded by walls and, on the Albert Embankment side, railings and a thicket of trees and shrubs; this has created a little micro climate. For example along the east side of the garden, the Swan Walk end, there are some plants from the Canary Islands. One example being Echium Wildpretti. This plant forms a rosette of grey green leaves. The rosettes are terminal which means that in springtime it becomes a huge flower spike producing, if I remember right, many blue flowers, however around the base will be new rosettes. So the plant keeps on going.
As the gardens name suggests, one of the main themes of the gardens is the use of plants in medicine, be it conventional medicine, alternative medicine, or third world medicine; examples being medicine used by American Indians or Zulus. This theme keeps reappearing. For example some of our houseplants can also be used to cure certain ailments if we have all the right scientific knowledge. Sometimes a plant may be poisonous, but might also have healing properties. However one needs to be knowledgeable about these things.
The gardens are entered by a gate on Swan Walk, taking a path through the herb and vegetable garden we come to the north of the garden and the green houses. On the south side of the path is a greenhouse with a Pelargonium collection. This is the correct name of the flowering bedding plants and scented plants, which we often buy as Geraniums; they come from the Geraniance family. Scented Pelargonium are often used in scented oils. The collection includes a number of different species, and some hybrids. Amongst the different species are some with quite succulent stems which reminds us that these plants come from bush land and semi arid areas of South Africa. Just beyond the Pelargonium are a collection of South African plants that have healing properties that can be used as cures for certain ailments. Under the middle bench are a group of Clivias, Lilly like plants from forest regions of South Africa.
These plants seem to be growing in much shade. However sunlight does come through the main door. On top of the middle bench is an interesting selection of plants from different countries. On the east bench is a collection of Salvias. They come North, Central and South America, and are upright bushy plants. However there is one species from Iran and Iraq that looks quite different. It looks more like a primrose, one unifying fact being the flowers. Why is it that one member of a plant family should grow in a different part of the world from other members of its family, and look so different? This is a subject that we will return to before we leave the gardens. Underneath the west and east benches there were some plants growing. There were a couple of Oxalis species with their clover shaped leaves. Also some Corsican Moss, more commonly known as Mind Your Own Business. This used to be one of the pleasing aspects of the old greenhouses at Wisely gardens. In the more humid parts of the greenhouses you would find Maidenhair Ferns growing under the benches. On the north side of the path are two greenhouses that apart from a collection of South African bulbs (plants related to Lilly’s and Hyacinths) display plants from the Mediterranean and Canary Islands. Linking the two houses together is a corridor containing tropical plants some more Clivias are growing here, again in the shade but in more light than the previously mentioned Clivias.
Leaving these greenhouses and walking along the north path, past the shop that sells nice postcards, past the display of plants on sale, mostly garden plants, but always in good condition, past the tea house that sells nice cakes, we come to a greenhouse with cacti and succulents on one side and insect eating plants on the other. The cacti and succulents are in pots but it is a varied selection and includes some epetypic cacti, cacti that grow on rainforest trees without taking any moisture from the tree, just using the tree for support, getting moisture from the humid atmosphere of their habitat, the Christmas Cacti being the most common example. These plants often have flattened or slim pencil like stems. The insect eating plants are laid out with a little stream running past. These plants often come from marshy areas of the world. The reason they eat insects is because where they come from the soil is poor and the insects they eat give them the extra nutriments they need. Turning south down the east path we come to the historic beds. These beds contain some of the plants brought to us by some of our famous plant explorers. I tend to forget the names of these gentlemen but I should try to remember as they made their way through all sorts of conditions to bring our houseplants, (and many of our garden plants) to us. However this is an interesting display of different plants. Traveling on we pass a nice big Hydrangea bush, and we come to the greenhouse with the fern collection. Amongst the ferns is a Fuchsia from New Zealand. Most Fuchsias are from the Cloud Forest regions of South America and are bushy upright plants. This particular Fuchsia is a creeping plant with small round leaves. This again brings up the question. Why does one species live so far away from the rest of its family and look so different? The fern house is cool and humid. Outside the greenhouse are a number of more temperate ferns.
I am now strolling along the south path by the Albert Embankment. On the south side of the path are some bushes; on the north side are some beds with different plants and shrubs. In the Autumn, Crocus come up on the grass. While we associate Crocus with Spring there are species that flower in the Autumn. On the other side of the middle path is a pond with aquatic plants. We turn north again past a bed filled with plants from California. Then we come to the systematic beds. The beds contain many different plant families. There is one bed containing plants from the Crasulace family. The plants here are stonecrops, Sedums from Alpine regions.
However there is one bushy species “Sedum Praeteltum” which comes from Mexico but has naturalised itself in the Mediterranean. It is also quite hardy in sheltered conditions in Southern England. The rosettes become small plain green and weather-beaten in winter, but get bigger and take on a golden glow in summer. This year however, probably due to the poor summer weather the plant is still in its winter state. The beds contain many delights. My favourites were the Asters from the daisy family, their flowers were of differing sizes and colours but I love those daisy like flowers.
There were also two beds of plants that can be irritants to the skin if touched in hot weather but once we understand our plants we can get on with them. Beyond the systematic beds are the beds with plants that are used in medicine. Then we come to another pond. This has a rockery around it and some insect eating plants in the middle. The rockery itself contains a varied collection of plants. After this it is out into Royal Hospital Road and across the road to the bus stop. The Chelsea Physics Garden costs £7 admission. So it is good to get there early, (they open at mid day), and spend the whole afternoon there. If the garden appeals to you then it may be worth becoming a member. Membership is around £35 for the year. I am a member but I can’t remember the exact amount. One little quibble is that the garden doesn’t seem to have proper access for wheelchair users. There are steps at the main entrance. Wheelchair users can get in through the exit but this would mean manoeuvring through the shop. This does seem to be an area that could be improved but yes it is an extremely interesting garden.
Back in late July when the weather brightened up for a while. I took a trip to visit my sister who lives in Sittingbourne Kent. This is near the Isle of Sheppey. We went to visit a nearby garden, Beech Court Gardens at a place called Challock which is near Faversham and Ashford. It is a small but beautiful garden. As it was the end of the period of heavy rain some paths were muddy but the sun was out and it was fairly bright. One of the points of beauty in the garden were the many Hydrangea bushes, their flowers in different shades of pink and blue. There were also some Lace Hydrangeas so called because of the lace like appearance of the flowers. Hydrangea flowers are small, the showy bits are the things around the flowers called bracts. Lace Hydrangeas have less bracts, hence the flowers giving a lace like appearance.
Other things of interest in this garden include the many different kinds of Roses on display. I used to have a stereotyped view of Roses. That they are all these upright thorny shrubs that we grow in our gardens. Here it shows how wrong I was. Some of these Roses are scrambling plants with thinner stems. Some species weren’t so thorny. I believe there was once a song called Rambling Rose. I can’t remember who sang it. I learnt something new here. Something that I have only noticed recently are members of the Rose family in the systematic beds at the Chelsea Physics Gardens that look very unlike Roses. I would like to visit the Beech Court Gardens in the springtime when the Rhododendrons are in flower. The garden is surrounded by fields and itself used to be a farm. This explains why there are a lot of Roosters running around. “I’m A Little Red Rooster,” Howling Wolf starts singing. I can’t remember how much the admission was but the garden is well worth visiting. You may however need a car to get there. I don’t know if there is a bus route that goes there.
As well as being the Garden Of England parts of Kent have always been quite industrial. You may remember the coal mines that used to be near Dover, then there is the Medway Towns, also the industry that stands along the Thames estuary, alongside some interesting marshland with interesting plants and birdlife. In the years before the Second World War poor families from London used to come to Kent in the Summer to do hop picking. My mother grew up in a large family in the Nine Elms area of Battersea, then a poor area with a lot of industry, they used to go hop picking in the summer. The older children would help the adults while the younger children found room to play. People worked hard and stayed in crowded accommodation but they earned some money, and it was a trip away from the smoky atmosphere of London into the country air.
Next month I will be telling you about the Oxford Botanic Gardens. And wherever else my garden wanderings take me.
Peace and Love
Frank
Chelsea Physics Garden: www.chelseaphysicgarden.co.uk
Beech Court Gardens: www.beechcourtgardens.co.uk
www.clivias.com this site is dedicated to those interested in the South African flowering plant, Clivia
"Ramblin' Rose" was written by Noel Sherman and Joe Sherman and popularised by Nat King Cole whose recording of the song reached Number 2 on both the Billboard and Cash Box charts and sold over a million copies as a single.
Howlin Wolfs Little Red Rooster is currently available on the CD Blues Masters – Living the Blues.
Some of our friends' websites
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kevincoynepage.tk
9-pmrecords.de
trashville.co.uk
lovelyrecovery.com
kioski.de
