Alliums

Various kinds of these ornamental onions have proved to be at home in the glade, including a. aflatunense, a. cristophii, a. hollandicum Purple Sensation and a. giganteum.

Nectaroscordum

Nectaroscordum siculum subspecies bulgaricum is a bulb related to the alliums, flowering in late spring and early summer. It grows happily in the shade of shrubs and bamboos. The stitchwort in the picture is an English wild flower that earns its place in an informal garden like this.

Astrantia and Philadelphus

Astrantia major and philadelphus Minnesota Snowflake. This philadelphus is not as scented as some of its relatives, (some of them can be almost overpowering), but its flowers are exceptionally beautiful. It is also among the hardiest of its kind.

Astrantia major is the kind of tough perennial that copes well with dry shade. The one pictured is a seedling of one of the Hadspen cultivars.

Cephalaria gigantea

The yellow scabious, or giant scabious, is another tough perennial for the big border or wild garden, but a striking feature in any garden when its big pincushion flowers appear in early summer. It grows up to two metres tall, and is loved by bees.

Cercis siliquastrum

Cercis siliquastrum, the Judas Tree, is so named because, by tradition, Judas hanged himself on one. But a beautiful tree nonetheless.

Deciduous, in mid-spring it covers itself with clusters of bright pink flowers, some of them springing directly from the trunk, before or together with the lovely heart shaped leaves. A relative of the popular c. canadensis Forest Pansy.

Fritillaries

Fritillaria is the snake's head fritillary, a British native bulb flowering in spring. It is usually recommended you plant this species to naturalise in damp grass, though here it survives in dry gravelly shade. The hanging checkered heads can vary in colour, and completely white ones occur occasionally.

Rosemary Majorcan Pink

Rosmarinus Majorcan Pink is a big and sturdy pink form of the herb, and is thriving here in one of the few sunny spots in the glade. It flowers at the same time as the bluebells in the shady patch across the path, and the leaves have the familiar rosemary scent, so it is planted close to a path where people may brush against it.

Aquilegias

Aquilegias, columbines, or granny's bonnet, are the quintessential cottage garden flower. They are short-lived perennials that prefer a well-drained open sunny site. But they can't get that here.

They cross-breed easily, and are left to find their own places in the glade, which they do with abandon.

Pseudosasa japonica

A very hardy, very tough, spreading bamboo that makes a fine screen or hedge. It likes to run along the foot of a wall. Up to five metres tall. A slightly smaller variegated leaf form, Pseudosasa japonica Akebonosuji, can also be seen in the glade.

Trilliums

Trilliums are North American woodland plants, that perhaps occupy the same niche as the bluebell does in British woods. But unlike the bluebell, we find them very slow to establish and increase.

There are several kinds of trillium in the glade, of which the one pictured, trillium sessile, is the only one yet to reach any size.

Dicentra spectabilis

Dicentra spectabilis, bleeding heart, or Dutchman's trousers, is a leafy shade-loving perennial, ideal for a woodland setting, bearing pendant heart-shaped pink or white flowers in late spring and summer.

Here it grows under acers, along with the low self-seeding pink-flowered montia sibirica.

Acer and Viburnum

The Japanese maple in this picture is acer palmatum var. heptalobum, flowering at the same time in late spring as the very fragrant viburnum carlcephalum.

Other viburnums in the glade include viburnum x burkwoodii and its very scented form Park Farm Hybrid.

Echium and Ziziphus

The tall flowering echium pininana is growing up through a ziziphus jujuba. The echium, a less hardy relative of the viper's bugloss, will die after flowering, but set numerous seedlings, which will come into flower in two or three years time if they survive the ravages of winter.The ziziphus is a spiny Chinese fruit tree, sometimes called the Chinese date, and is really too tender for English gardens, but has managed to cling on to life so far in this sheltered position.

Acer griseum

A leaf of the Chinese fan palm trachycarpus fortunei, the hardiest of all palm trees, reaches out towards the paper bark maple, acer griseum.

Behind is a stand of fargesia robusta, a fine non-invasive hardy bamboo.

Through the Arch

Back through the arch. We hope hope you enjoyed this stroll through the glade.