The weather has taken a dramatic turn for the better, this past week, in the South of the UK so we decided to make the most of it and take a visit to Nyman's Garden a National Trust property that's close to where we live.
I was expecting there to be lots of croci about and not much else but I was very surprised to see just how much colour there was, given that it's still early March.
So much so that I was pushed for choice when it came to deciding which photos to display in this post. I took so many.
Hopefully you enjoy the ones I settled on.
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This scene is a classic entrance to a National Trust Garden. A blackboard that lists and displays some of the plants currently in bloom and tells you where in the gardens you can find them. A little taste of what delights await you. I always take the time to stop and see what I might see.
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This is the stunning sight that awaits you when you first turn onto the path that walks you through the mass croci planting. I took this photo to give you an idea of the scoop of the thousands of flowers here.
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And a closer view of the croci drawing your eye into the distant view.
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And an even closer view of some individual clumps of croci. I'm particularly fond of this colour combination.
Every now and then some yellow bulbs have slipped in (as you can see in the earlier photo) but I much prefer the purple and white. I'm generally not such a fan of hot coloured plants, preferring the more subtle pinks, purples and whites.
Although I make a couple of exceptions later. 😁
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Towards the end of the path we come across the first of the narcissi or are they daffodils? I'm not sure. Most are not yet in bloom so we will return in a couple of weeks to get the full effect of their mass planting.
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I couldn't decide which of my pictures of the mini cylamens to include in the post. I have some that show them more on mass but, me being me, I decided to go for the art farty one.
Either way they make a truly stunning display.
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Here's an example of some hot colouring that I love. This is basically a bed of mixed heathers and the vibrant red and orange plant is a dogwood I believe.
The photo doesn't really do it justice but I felt the skillful planting here created a living work of art.
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This is another shot where it's hard to do justice to the subject matter when using a phone. These are minature irises and their deep blue/purple colour made an imposing contrast with the green of the grass and the white of the snowdrops.
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Anyone know what this is?
It's Daphne Bholua and, for some reason I've been seeing it all over the place this year. It's not that these shrubs are newly planted it's just that I've never noticed them before.
I first became aware of them a few weeks ago in the centre of town and it was their scent that I noticed initally. It was late in the afternoon and a bit grey and as I walked along the perfume was so powerful it sent me in search of it's source.
Having been made aware of this beautiful shrub I now see it frequently.
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This is another display of early narcissi but this time they are miniatures. They are growing in a classic position - a grassy bank.
And then we have the arbiters of Spring - the camillia. Nymans will be full of these for a few weeks now and they will shortly be joined by hundreds of rhododendrons.
A bit like daffodils and narcissi, each year I learn to tell the difference between them and each year I forget which is which. 😂 If I remember rightly the easiest way to tell them apart is their leaf structure.
Since I know this is a camillia it must be those that have single leaves off the stem whilst rhododendrons have a more umbrella like leaf arrangement.
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I'm not sure of the formal name of these plants but I know them as Christmas Roses. Again, I wasn't able to do them justice in the photograph but seeing them on mass like that was literally breathtaking.
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And last but certainly not least this shrub was a new discovery for me. It's called Edgworthia Crysantha and like the Daphne Bholua above it has an incredible scent. If I had a garden I would definitely plant one of these to cheer me up after dark, damp Februaries.
So there we have it. A selection of my favourite plant photos from my walk through Nyman's Gardens.
I hope you enjoyed the stroll and that you are able to visit similar places wherever you are in the world.