Lower Coombe Royal

September 2010

2010-10-28T01:56:00.000-07:00

September didn't exactly bring us the Indian summer we were hoping for, but still reasonably warm with some nice sunny days.
Most of the blooms around the grounds are fading now, with just a few of the Hydrangeas and Fuchsias still in flower.
It certainly feels as though Autumn is on its way.

August 2010

2010-09-01T01:21:00.000-07:00

I don't think I will mention the weather this month!
Most things around the Estate are looking very lush indeed. The Hydrangeas down the side of the drive are still providing us and our guests with a fantastic display of colour as you enter Lower Coombe Royal.
I've been busy this month digging up some 40 - 50 Camellias from an old nursery bed. These are now being relocated around the grounds but mainly down driveways which will in time provide a fantastic flood of early colour.
After being cleaned out last Autumn, the ponds appear to have revived beautifully and are full of life and activity. I wasn't too sure how the Water Lillies would cope with the disturbance, but are now looking much better and healthier.

July 2010

2010-07-31T01:49:00.000-07:00

Here we are at the end of July, I can't believe where the year is going.
After a very hot, dry June, July has been a good few degrees cooler with some much needed rain. Everything around the Estate is looking beautifully lush again. The Estate is now buzzing with wildlife in abundance. Whilst working out on the grounds, I'm accompanied by the almost constant cry of juvenile Buzzards in the woods.
The Hydrangeas are now almost in full bloom with a spectacular display of blue, pink and white down the side of the main drive. Even some of the Rhododendrons have given us a second burst of colour this month.

June 2010

2010-07-03T01:10:00.000-07:00

What an incredibly hot, dry June it has been. I think we have only had one day of light rain during the whole of the month to the point where the flow of water through the ponds has reduced to a mere trickle at the moment.
After looking as though they had suffered quite badly from the cold winter and the heavy frosts we had had, the Cornus capitata around the grounds seem to have suddenly burst into life giving us wonderful displays of yellow. The Hydrangea are just about starting to flower so hopefully we will have a fantastic display next month and an abundant supply for our Housekeeper to cut for vases.
One thing about the warm weather, it brings out so much of the wildlife with the buzzards calling to each other as they rise on thermals and slow worms and grass snakes out basking in the sun.

May 2010

2010-06-05T00:55:00.000-07:00

After a very warm, dry April, May started off on a rather cooler note. 'Never shed a clout till may be out' was quite correct this year. However, towards the end of the month, temperatures started increasing so that by the end of the month, it really did feel as though Summer had arrived.
The Camellias, Magnolias and Cherries have all but finished. Now it's the turn of the Rhododendrons to fill the grounds with their wonderful spectacular colours. The herbaceous borders around the Formal Lawn are bursting into bloom to.
Here's hoping for a long warm summer!

April 2010

2010-05-01T01:07:00.000-07:00

What a glorious month April has been. I'm not quite sure what happened to the 'April Showers', it has been so dry with some wonderful warm, sunny days.
Things seem to have been a little late coming into leaf and bloom this year, probably something to do with the long cold winter we had but this last week has suddenly seen everything bursting into life. We are starting to see lush shades of green all around the estate now.
The Magnolias and Cherries have been absolutely splendid this month, and thankfully, unlike previous years, the winds have not been too bad thus prolonging their displays.
I was lucky enough earlier in the month to spot a Common Lizard basking in the warm sun. I know, as the name suggests, that they are relatively common, but it is fantastic to know that we have them here.

December '09 - March '10

2010-04-03T03:33:00.000-07:00

Here we are at the end of March with my first writings for the year.

Having been my first Winter at Lower Coombe Royal it has been interesting to see how the estate changes over the seasons. It has been one of the coldest winters we have had in 30 years with the estate seeing quite a substantial covering of snow early on in January providing us with a very picturesque scene for a couple of days. Although the vast majority of the estate has been in dormancy for the last few months, we have been busy with maintenance and additions such as a newly planted mixed deciduous hedge along one side of the paddock which will in time provide a wonderful habitat and feeding ground for birds and insects. The ponds have been cleaned out and repairs made to a couple of the water falls, and have now attracted a number of Mallard ducks and a pair of Moorhens, so fingers crossed for ducklings and chicks this spring.

February saw a fantastic display of snow drops in the orchard which have now been replaced with an abundant show of daffodils signalling that spring really is on the way. The Camellias are starting to come into their own now giving us some much awaited early colour, and couple of Magnolias are starting to show signs of bursting into life. After such a cold winter it really is wonderful to see everything beginning to come into leaf again.
Richard Giles
Estate Manager

2010-01-07T08:46:00.000-08:00

November 2009

All the deciduous trees are almost completely bare now just with the last few leaves hanging on. That wet and windy weather has continued almost throughout the whole month with wet days far outweighing the dry ones. However, up until the last few days of the month, it has remained really mild. So much so, we still have Penstemons and Fuchsias still in flower, with odd Hydrangea still blooming, and now, in the last week of November, Primula and two of our Camellias are in flower.
It really has been bad this month with some of the worst gales for ages which, unfortunately, have brought down two of our apple trees in the orchard.
On a more upbeat note, the fruit of the Cornus capitata, which we have dotted around the grounds has given us a beautiful display and provided Blackbirds, Thrushes, Finches and Squirrels with a feast.
Another wonderful sighting for me this month of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos minor) flying into one of the old Monterey Cypress trees. Haven’t seen it again but I will be keeping my eyes peeled.
Richard Giles, Estate Manager

2009-12-01T05:54:00.000-08:00

November 2009

All the deciduous trees are almost completely bare now just with the last few leaves hanging on. The wet and windy weather has continued almost throughout the whole month with wet days far outweighing the dry ones. However, up until the last few days of the month, it has remained really mild. So much so, we still have Penstemons and Fuchsias still in flower, with the odd Hydrangea still blooming, and now, in the last week of November, Primula and two of our Camellias are in flower.
It really has been bad this month with some of the worst gales for ages which, unfortunately, have brought down 2 of our apple trees in the orchard.

On a more upbeat note, the fruit of the Cornus Capitata which we have dotted around the grounds, have given us a beautiful display and provided blackbirds, thrushes, finches and squirrels with a feast.

Another wonderful sighting for me this month of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos minor) flying into one of our old Monterey Cypress. Haven’t seen it again but I will be keeping my eyes peeled!
Richard Giles, Estate Manager

2009-11-15T22:40:00.000-08:00

October 2009
Autumn seemed to be quite slow coming in after the lovely warm September that we had had. Then suddenly the winds and rain were upon us bringing leaves down in their thousands, with the Maple by the pond providing us with the most beautiful red carpet.

I’ve written before about sightings of wild deer in the grounds but had never actually seen them myself. Well, at the beginning of this month that changed. Whilst waiting for some guests who were arriving late, as dusk was starting to fall, around 6pm, I had the most fantastic sighting of two Roe deer just at the entrance to the woodland by the Coach House. This job just gets more and more wonderful.
Estate Manager, Richard Giles

Has summer been and gone?!

2009-08-10T15:37:00.000-07:00

8th August '09

Just as we thought we had got a nice warm sunny summer, it was gone again! This mix of wet and warm weather really is helping everything to grow at a tremendous rate. However, things seem to be getting a little confused. We have Hellebore flowering again along with some of the Magnolias and Rhododendrons in bloom for a second time. Still waiting for a personal siting of the deer.....

Deer siting

2009-08-10T15:36:00.000-07:00

11th July '09

From a plant point of view, things are very much the same this week. However, with this mix of rain and warm/hot sunshine we are having, everything is really lush with the different tones of green looking absolutely wonderful. Charlotte, the Housekeeper, managed to sight a deer near to the Coach house yesterday. How lucky! I shall be keeping my eyes peeled when I'm working in that area.

Heat wave.....

2009-08-10T15:35:00.000-07:00

4th July 2009

Another glorious week. In fact, in true British style, I would say it was too hot this week with highs of over 28 deg C. but it meant I had the opportunity to see a grass snake (Natrix natrix), out basking in the sun in one of the old cold frames, something I have never seen before. The Hydrangeas really are coming into bloom now with the blues and whites being especially showy. ...........on with the grass cutting!

Is summer on it's way?

2009-08-10T15:34:00.000-07:00

27th June

What a fantastic week. Looks like summer is finally here. It's been warm and sunny everyday. The Rhododendrons seem to be hanging on to the last of their blooms as the Hydrangeas start to flower. The vegetable patch is starting to yield some goodies for our guests, but of course, with this wonderful weather comes the need to irrigate more and more. Looking forward to this weather continuing.

April showers

2009-08-10T15:32:00.000-07:00

18th April '09

Again very mixed weather this week. Wednesday had some of the darkest skies and heaviest rain I've seen for years. The Camellias are finishing their glorious display and now the Rhododendrons are coming into their own. Work is now underway preping the vegetable beds. Susi is a bit worried about the absense of the Mallard Ducks but they have thankfully made a re-appearance this morning.

25th April '09

What a fantastic week we have had with the exception of today we have had glorious sunshine all week. The rabbit fence is now installed around the veg beds and a lot of the planting is underway. I have yet to see them but Susi tells me that the ducks have 5 ducklings with them now. A real feeling of Spring at last with the blossom coming on the apple trees the orchard should soon look spectacular.

Since I arrived I've heard Woodpeckers both pecking and 'laughing' and today I have seen a very handsome male Green woodpecker (Picus viridus) feeding on the lawn around the children's play area.

Arrival of new Estate Manager - Richard Giles

2009-08-10T15:29:00.000-07:00

11th April ‘09
You find me at the end of my first week at Lower Coombe Royal, and what a magnificent place. First impressions are almost of the Lost Gardens of Heligan, but on a smaller scale.
The weather has been a bit of a mixed bag this week, but absolutely gorgeous for the Easter weekend with the Camellias out in full force and the Magnolias and Rhododendrons breaking bud. It really is quite spectacular.
Just a little introduction to myself. After a number of years within the Hotel and Wines & Spirits industries, I decided to go back to college. I studied Horticulture at Pershore college, specialising in Landscape Design and Amenity Management, my final year being under the tutorship of Chris Beardshaw. After leaving college, I worked for a number of Nurseries and Garden Centres until my wife and I moved to Devon 4 ½ years ago. All of this time has been spent at Burgh Island where I was responsible for Landscaping and Grounds maintenance.
Now at Lower Coombe Royal, I feel it is an honour and responsibility to continue the fine work of the owner and Rose Wood in nurturing these wonderful historic gardens.

2009-04-27T12:20:00.000-07:00

25th April 2009

What a fantastic week we have had with the exception of today, we have had glorious sunshine all week. The rabbit fence is now installed around the veg beds and a lot of the planting is underway. I have yet to see them, but Susi tells me that the ducks have 5 ducklings with them now. A real feeling of Spring at last with the blossom coming on the apple trees, the Orchard should soon look spectacular.

Since I arrived I've heard Woodpeckers both pecking and 'laughing' and today I have seen a very handsome male Green woodpecker (Picus viridus) feeding on the lawn around the children's play area.
Richard

2009-04-27T12:17:00.000-07:00

18th April 2009

Again very mixed weather this week. Wednesday had some of the darkest skies and heaviest rain I've seen for years. The Camellias are finishing their glorious display and now the Rhododendrons are coming into their own. Work is now underway preping the vegetable beds. Susi is a bit worried about the abscense of the Mallard Ducks but they have thankfully made a re-appearance this morning.
Richard Giles

2009-04-27T12:15:00.000-07:00

11th April 2009
You find me at the end of my first week at Lower Coombe Royal, and what a magnificent place. First impressions are almost of the Lost Gardens of Heligan, but on a smaller scale.

The weather has been a bit of a mixed bag this week, but absolutely gorgeous for the Easter weekend with the Camellias out in full force and the Magnolias and Rhododendrons breaking bud. It really is quite spectacular.

Just a little introduction to myself. After a number of years within the Hotel and Wines & Spirits industries, I decided to go back to college. I studied Horticulture at Pershore college, specialising in Landscape Design and Amenity Management, my final year being under the tutorship of Chris Beardshaw. After leaving college, I worked for a number of Nurseries and Garden Centres until my wife and I moved to Devon 4 ½ years ago. All of this time has been spent at Burgh Island where I was responsible for Landscaping and Grounds maintenance.

Now at Lower Coombe Royal, I feel it is an honour and responsibility to continue the fine work of the owner and Rose Wood in nurturing these wonderful historic gardens.
Yours, Richard Giles

Spring is here!

2009-04-27T12:02:00.000-07:00

Everywhere you look in the gardens of Lower Coombe Royal, there is evidence of spring - the magnolias and camellias are magnifiscent and all the new leaves slowly uncurling on our countless trees is so rewarding after a cold winter.

The most rewarding event, however, has been the arrival of five little ducklings. For the last couple of years we have had a pair of ducks visiting our pond. Last year the mother had twelve ducklings and they all disappeared the following day. This year we have our duck house complete with straw, courtesey of our children Amber and Barney! As a result the ducklings and mum are still with us and appear to be growing and having fun playing in the pond. They are such a delight to watch, yet nature is both beautiful and cruel at the same time - these fluffy little things present a meal to the local buzzards, crows and fox family! Well, I shall keep you posted.......

Another exciting event, is Richard Giles joining us from early April as our Estate Manager. Richard has both an hotel and horticulture background and joins us after five years at the Burgh Island Hotel. Richard is responsible for looking after our gardens, our guests and accommodation maintenance - a very talented man! So please look out for him if you come to stay. A photograph will shortly appear once I have had the chance to catch him unaware of my camera!

So, Richard, will be compiling a regular garden blog for you to read, so I shall hand over to him now.....

Best wishes,
Susi

2009-02-10T02:30:00.000-08:00

Monday, 26th Jan, 2009
It must have been a wild weekend - the wind has broken 4 pains of glass in the glasshouse. I think the south westerly roars up the estuary and on up the valley and sneaks its fingers in under the edges of the panes and pops them out. It's a dreary, damp, drizzly, grey day and with minus 2C on the minimum side of the the glasshouse thermometer there's a deathly hush as I open the door. Still, the cheery green shoots of the alstoemerias look perky enough. Snowdrops everywhere I look. Finish mulching with woodchip under the Cornus and it looks really smart. Spent the rest of the day pruning and weeding.

Wednesday, 28th Jan, 2009
What a contrast! It's turned warm (still wet!) and it sounds as though EVERY bird in the garden is singing its lungs out - what a glorious sound. I'm scrubbing the deck and outdoor furniture in readiness for guests when I lift my head to listen to the chirpings and the sun actually shines! The garden glows with a green-gold glimmer and I am spell-bound.

Friday, 30th Jan, 2009
The Hellebores are looking really good at the moment - if you can get to them, bend down to them and turn their faces up to meet yours. Even if you cut them and put them in a vase they still gaze shyly downwards. Here's a tip a florist friend of mine passed on: if you have plenty (seems cruel to cut their heads off if you only have a few) cut them with about 2-3cm / 1" of stem and float them on the surface of water in a pretty china bowl. Float one or two tea-lights amongst them for a magical centrepiece . I do the same with camellia flowers - one per small fingerbowl; group two or three together.

Monday, 2nd Feb, 2009
OUCH frozen fingers despite two pairs of gloves. Spent the morning clearing rubbish from around the potting shed and clearing odd plants back into the cold (freezing) frames. It's one of those 'roundtuit' jobs that never gets done, but once it is done, it looks great and you wonder why you didn't do it ages ago. You can buy 'roundtuits' in Cornwall by the way. I spent the rest of the day clearing the top (h)edge of the American Garden. It is rimmed with self-sown Osmunda regalis, the 'royal' fern. They have fabulous dinosaur-skin leaves, like tough green leather (you've never stroked a dinosaur? where have you been?). The fern contrasts beautifully with the pink and greeny-gold of Camellia 'Gold Spangles' and the ubiquitous snowdrops.

Tuesday, 3rd Feb, 2009
World of blizzards and snow so changed my day off and stayed indoors today looking at the material for my open university course ... 'S189 Understanding the Weather'...
Watched the redwings and fieldfares being blown around the fields behind my house, poor things.

Wednesday, 4th Feb, 2009
Much warmer today, so it's a world of water! More clearing - this time a steep slope covered in brambles, Vinca, ivy etc. the strimmer won't go through the brambles and self-sown haw- and blackthorn so I'm beating it back with loppers and secateurs. Had plenty of help from the robins.

Thursday, 5th Feb, 2009
It's really cold, but it's not raining - hooray! The sky is white with a promise of brightening. My husband says he'll get me t-shirt with 'I think it's brightening up' printed on it - it's one of my favourite sayings. The green woodpeckers are hammering and yaffling up and down the garden; the guests had a good view of one on the lawn.
Time for another hot tip: take one nice cup of tea and a radio and get into the glasshouse and give it a good spring clean; clear out any pots, plants, debris etc and with a bucket of hot water, some environmentally-friendly cleaner and a stiff brush, scrub EVERYTHING - especially the corners where pests overwinter; banish those pesky red spider mite, whitefly and aphids! And while you are at it, if you have a grape vine in your glasshouse, now is the time to prune it - don't leave it any later.

Friday, 6th, Feb, 2009
I should have taken my own advice and got into the glasshouse - instead I spent the day out in the blizzard and thick snow raking leaves and debris of the lower lawns - what was I doing in Autumn?!

Rose's Ramblings - The New Year

2009-01-19T05:27:00.000-08:00

05-01-09
First working day of the brand new year. A sharp, frosty morning, with bright sunshine. It's been shivery in the glasshouse - down to -3C. Some camellias have braved the cold and opened their buds; what a welcome splash of colour. Great clumps of snowdrops are poking through the rock-hard soil - temporarily strangled until a thaw releases them to carry growing.

07-01-09
Wow! It's positively Arctic - all is white, with a very heavy frost after a beautiful velvet night. With no heating in the glasshouse, overnight temperatures dropped to an all-time-low of -7C. Virtually nothing has survived - I was too shocked to cry! The large water tanks had an inch of ice on them. The day stayed cold and still, overhung by a heavy white sky. One of the green woodpeckers was hammering loudly up the garden, which cheered me up, as did the fabulous scent of the Sarcococca down by the pond.

09-01-09
Another bright and frosty start, but not quite as harsh as Wednesday. Only -4C in the glasshouse! Had a good day, clearing ivy and brambles off a beautiful old wall. The vertical stonework looks lovely. Jules worked hard in the orchard - clearing brash, so that when Ben comes to prune the apple trees he'll be able to get to the trees without going through an assault course, like last time! The orchard is looking superb since it was last strimmed and now cleared - you should see it in Spring - it's gorgeous; full of daffodils, snowdrops, violets, red campions and a blushing froth of apple blossom. I daydream of hives full of golden bees...

13-01-09
What a lovely warm day (relatively). Pretty cold in the glasshouse again over the past three days (-3C) and a pane of glass broken. Spent the day raking leaves from the lower lawn and around the pond. It's the first time in what seems an age that I have been able to get back to this overdue job.

14-01-09
Bbbrrrr husband's long-johns on again today! Fantastic news from the glasshouse...the Alstromeria seeds I collected and sowed on 12th Feb last year, have germinated - the tiny green spears are poking up through the gravel - so I did a brief celebratory dance! Even the Echiums (E. pininana 'Pink Fountain') have perked up a little; maybe all is not lost in this charnel-house! I strimmed under one of the beautiful Cornus capitata trees down on the drive, then dug out the triffid-sized bramble roots. I'll mulch under it with composted woodchip and the pretty little vinca (V. major 'Dartington Star' syn. 'Knightshayes') can recolonise it. The weather deteriorated drastically at lunchtime, so waterproofs on and back to wall clearing and drive raking and when the rain got inside the waterproofs, I took an hour's refuge in the potting shed and cleaned and serviced the two strimmers.

16-01-09
who knows what tomorrow will bring - lots of rain and high winds judging by the forecast!

2008-12-12T07:16:00.000-08:00

Rose's Ramblings / Potting Shed Ponderings
Mon 24th Nov
A typical bitter and blustery November day - overcast and dull all day. Spent the day weeding and planting hydrangeas and other shrubs (too cold to mulch now) whilst my mind wandered to next Summer - picturing the blowzy beauty I'm planting for now in these grey days.

Tues 25th Nov
What a contrast! Today has been glorious - cerulean skies and sun at full volume all day. The lack of breeze meant a change to the work plan and I mowed the paddock - how pleasing the baizey*stripes look! (*don't reach for the dictionary, I just made it up). The rest of the day was spent raking crunchy, copper beech leaves and filling the newly-made leaf bins. I had two assistant gardeners, both well turned out in their glossy brown jackets and scarlet waistcoats, but they didn't do a stroke of work between them, preferring to pick amongst the leaves for worms and sing sweetly.

Wed 26th
Another glorious day after an icy, star-spangled night. Lots more leaf raking!

Fri 28th Nov
Bbbbrrr teeth-chatteringly cold and frosty this morning - more raking on the paths and drives so as to stay off the frozen garden

Mon 1st Dec
December arrives in style - azure skies and sunshine all the way! The jays play catch around the pond - their snowy rumps flashing as they skim through the trees to sit in the star magnolia (Magnolia stellata). At eve, as the owls start calling, I search the dark-velvet sky for the two bright stars I've admired for the past nine or ten nights. Only one there! Then I notice the silvery sliver of moon is sitting on the other - how beautiful they look.

Wed 3rd Dec
Spent the morning outwitting the pesky bunnies - giving each of the newly planted camellias a chicken mesh cage. As each little stump has bravely sprouted its new green buds, so brer rabbit has chewed them off. We need a Bun-Vac 6000!! Later MORE leaf raking to the tune of mewling buzzards.

Fri 5th Nov
Breezy, wet and cold - what a horrible combination for the outdoor labourer! Late pm raking tea-plate sized ochre magnolia leaves from the lower lawn and the fat,bruised clouds burst and drench the South Hams and me in particular. Clearing the leaves is very satisfying - letting the grass breathe again.

Wed 10th Dec
Nose-numbingly cold again and Jack Frost has waved his crystal wand around. A bright and shiny morn, nonetheless. Very pleased to see that the wren has taken up residence in the potting shed again - she's been eating the food I put out for her. She's pooped on my old chair - how ungrateful! The blackbirds are busy - they look spectacular amongst the sugared grass and shrubs in their glossy jet coats with their golden beaks and eyes.

Thurs 11th Dec
Can I say it again? Another eye-wateringly cold day, but at least large parts of the garden have defrosted. It's wonderful to see so many flowers still out - hydrangeas in antiqued pinks and blues, roses and terracotta abutilons; passion flowers on the wall still telling their story. Under the cherry trees, the ferns are glossy and mysterious and the butchers' broom is studded with scarlet berries. Must remember to cover the Gunnera crowns.

Fri 12th Dec
Yet to come!

Rose's Weekly Ramblings - A week in November

2008-12-02T14:55:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful day! The jays were cackling all morning on Monday and the buzzards wailed all afternoon. Spent the morning potting up hostas (H.Sieboldi). Checked the veggie patch and said 'hello' to the beautiful warty, chocolate-coloured toad who has taken up residence under a piece of slate I put in the 'three systems' bed.

Tuesday brought another beautiful day- blue skies and hot sun! When clearing the drive around the front gate, I found a beautiful young bronze glow-worm - it must be a teenager as it got really annoyed when I moved it to a safe place!! At 17.30 we stood back and looked - what an improvement! It pays to lift your head up once in a while!

Thursday - another beautiful day in paradise! Mending the broken glass in the glasshouse before all gets too cold. Maintaining a Victorian glass house has its challenges, yet it has moved on incredibly from when I started here at Lower Coombe Royal two years ago.....

Welcome to our first Blog!

2008-12-02T14:31:00.000-08:00

It is just three weeks to Christmas, I cannot believe how fast this year has travelled! The colours around us in the garden just now are amazing, especially the Cornus Capitata (Indian Strawberry tree to most of us!) pictured here, with its scrumptious strawberries hanging from its branches. Each day I hear and see from my office window a shrieking of black birds and squirrels as they compete for the juiciest fruit!

It is such a relief to have finished all the building work, including the flood damage (in early June!) that came to haunt us just as we had finished restoring the Royal House! Now we can concentrate on enjoying the business and the gardens.

Now I need to turn my attention to marketing - especially in this interesting economic climate. That combined with the increased awareness of our deteriorating environment, our carbon footprint and the weakening pound, there could be a cloud with a silver lining for businesses like ours!

Well, I need to sign off now as I can see one of Rose Wood's (our organic gardener) weekly Ramblings about to be published.....