Friday, December 11, 2009

Good news, bad news

Good news - thanks to Hortulus I now know that the mystery oleander is called Nerium 'Splendens Foleis Variegata' and that it is available from Olivier Filippi.
Bad news - Filippi ranks it as one of the most tender and frost sensitive oleanders that he grows and it will not tolerate any frost at all.
Perhaps I should try it in a pot and bring it in during the winter? It has to be worth it.
Y

10 comments:

janie said...

Yes, put it in a pot. If that is the case, I could not grow it in the ground here, even, because we do have frosts. Nobody would understand why I would be dragging an oleander in and out, as they are so common here. Glad you found it.

Jana said...

We can grow oleanders only in pots in the Czech Republic and they are really wonderful potted plants, perhaps the best.

Jana said...

But to complete - from my experience the most simple, tried varieties (not the specialities within certain species) behave mostly best, but if you really want to grow variegated oleander, surely go it.

maría cecilia said...

Hi Ivonne, yes, I think any sensitive plant is worth to move it inside and out to preserve is life during frost. I´m always moving my pots depending on the season.
Muchos cariños
Maria Cecilia

maría cecilia said...

Dear Ivonne, I would like to wish you a very,very HAPPY christmas together with the ones you love and love you... may this time bring to you lots of harmony, peace and Love to you and your family.
Blessings
maria cecilia

orchis said...

I have one that looks exactly the same. It has been exposed to -3 C with no damage at all. There may be several varigated varieties, though...? Lovely plant. Good luck with it.

H said...

I was searching for info on ponds (I have v modest one) when I discovered your blog which reads like an RHS handbook - maybe you could publish it!

The pond itself is a massive project not to mention the rest of your garden. You must have lots of time and cash to spare!

It is quite a lot of work to get that perfect natural look, isn't it? One wonders how Nature does it all so effortlessly.

The pond construction looks like a Manchester Waterworks reservoir on steroids! But the end result is just fine. Well done.

One small observation: why did you build the pond before drilling for water, I wonder? Maybe I am just being technical...

H

bare-faced gardener said...

One of the problems of buying plants from Filippi – numerous & wonderful as they are – is that they are propagated & grown by the coast. He does mark them in the catalogue with rusticity ratings (how cold / drought tolerant), but buying from local nurseries will usually ensure that plants will survive in your conditions.

However, not many local nurseries will have anything like the choice of plants that could survive in our gardens.

We seem to have similar climatic conditions (argilo-calcaire rocky soil !) and many of my gardening chums swear by plants from a small nursery where only the toughest survive. I don’t know whether he ships plants and he doesn’t speak (much) English, but it’s always an excuse to travel … If you ever come in this direction for MGS visits etc, do let me know.

http://www.pepiniere-armalette.fr/
at Sillans-la-Cascade in the Var

Yvonne said...

Hello H,
Sorry I cannot reply to you directly. Your remarks are very knind and much appreciated - thank you. Interesting your observation of the Manchester reservoir: my father was a manager in Manchester Water before it became part of the bigger municipal corporation!
Regarding water supply for the pond: we of course had to think about it right from the outset but we did have a good well and a system of pipes to connect it to a massive storage tank up on the hill. Then the next door neighbour decided to drill their own well RIGHT NEXT to it. Result - no water for either them or us as they had ruined the aquifer by using ancient and destructive drilling equipment. SO we had to drill another in a location where nobody could interfer with it. A geology survey confirmed that the aquifer extended across to the other side of the pond and that was suffieicent to make an application to the local authority for a new well. When we finally got to drill, the pond was laready well into construction. But lo and behold we struck water, albeit rather deep. We used modern drilling kit (like they use to drill oil wells) so the borehole is clean and the water flow very generous. A bit expensive and nerve racking though and I wish we had not had to go through all that.
Y

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