My gardening year in a 10 minute timelapse

Well I hope you enjoy watching this as much as I have making it. 

Ok lets introduce my latest and most demanding video to date. This is a full seasons growth of my main tropical bed from April to the November. Over 20,000 photos were taken to make this 10 minute film. It shows palms, colocasia, dahlias, grasses, gingers etc.

There are points in the film were the wind movement makes it hard to see the growth but at other times it's still and every thing can be seen pushing upwards.

There is a LOT to keep your eyes on in this film as plants grow at varying rates so you might have to watch bits many times over.

Flowers come and go and there is a surprise ending........

Anyway let me know what you think, please watch in HD for the full effect!

Some alpine oddities but still very exotic

Life is getting very hectic at the moment but I've still found time to revist RHS Harlow Carr, Harrogate.  It's not really the place to see a wide range of exotic and certainly not tropical plants, but there are a few hidden gems. 

 

There is a nice area showing garden styles through the ages, including a vivid, purple-walled modern garden with ferns and a chunky Trachycarpus fortunei.  (Unfortunately is was chucking it down and therefore too wet to get the camera out) 

 

There are some good sized Gunneras and bamboo at Harlow Carr as well as some nice Dawn Redwoods

 

 

Sasa bamboo by the waterside on a very wet day

 

 

 

 

 

But the the real gems can be found in the relatively new Alpine house which is totally unheated and well ventilated.  Below are a few of the treasures that I found.

 

 

 

 

A very small specimen

 

 

Here's a nice yellow edged variety

 

 

Maybe I can tempt you with this beauty?    These Aciphyllas are evergreen, frost-hardy plants from New Zealand.  They are also very spikey so not good for bordering paths or near children.

 

Now for a very beautiful plant, Saxifraga longifolia which produces rossettes up to 20 cm across.

 

 

 

And finally a plant I no nothing about but it looks rather bizzare and interesting so I thought I would take it's picture

 

 

 

SO it's worth visiting your local gardens, even if you think it's full of "run of the mill" plantsvas there's always a few hidden gems.  The  Saxifraga longifolia is one that I will grow in the future.