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The Garden House (Devon, England)

The destinations are beginning to blur but looking at the tour guide booklet, I see that we are now in Plymouth. Today, we visited two gardens designed by Keith Wiley.  The first is The Garden House , where Wiley worked as Head Gardener for 25 years (from 1978-2003). The 10-acre estate was purchased in the 1940s by former Eton schoolmaster Lionel Fortescue and his wife Katherine. It was formerly home to the  vicars of Buckland Monachronum. The Fortescue's renovated the gardens and ran a market garden business and raised cattle.  The remains of some of the original buildings in the vicarage still stand in the garden and serve as a romantic backdrop in the Walled Garden - I loved the way they had massed ferns together. Just stunning! Surrounding the walled garden and venturing out away from the house are more naturalistic plantings  - Today, the head gardener is Nick Haworth, who was previously head gardener at Greenway , which we visited earlier.  Keith Wiley lef...
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Armand's Clematis


The Armand's Clematis (aka Evergreen Clematis) is just finishing up after putting on a spectacular show this year. It started blooming way back in early March. A few cold snaps along the way didn't seem to faze it much and the blooms just kept opening. This photo was taken in mid-March and the bloom was actually heavier a few weeks later. 

I had tried to grow this clematis before but failed. It is hardy only to zone 7 and very cold winters, which we haven't had much of lately, can do it in. Like most clematis, it takes about 3 years to get going. You've heard the saying - "First year it sleeps, second year it creeps and third year it leaps" - this certainly applies here. 

Clematis armandii is a vigorous climber and can quickly scramble into trees or cover a small structure.  Occasional pruning may be required to keep it in check. The lovely fragrant flowers are beautiful but the long, narrow glossy leaves are highly attractive as well. This is a good vine for providing shade under a seating area or patio.

 Clematis like their roots in the shade and their heads in the sun. You can provide shade for the base of the vine by mulching or using rocks or pieces of broken pots. They prefer evenly moist soil but can tolerate drought once established. Be careful around young plants because the woody stems are fragile. Once the vine takes off, it is fairly low maintenance. 

 I have not seen the pink flowered variety but there are some available ("Apple Blossom" is one and there are others).

 
Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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  1. Lisa at GreenbowApril 26, 2013 at 10:10 AM

    What a beauty. Wish I could grow it.

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  2. HolleyGardenApril 27, 2013 at 8:13 AM

    Wow - it looks fabulous over your gazebo. It has really "leaped"!

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  3. F CameronApril 28, 2013 at 12:27 PM

    An amazing clematis, but after pulling out Lady Banks Rose and yellow jasmine, I'm not brave enough to plant another evergreen vine! My Confederate Jasmin is enough to handle, so I've switched over to deciduous clematis this year for other spaces that need vines.

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  4. RandyApril 29, 2013 at 12:10 PM

    Just beautiful, Phillip. Mine keeps trying to climb into the maple tree next to it. It really takes off this time a year. I wish I had a space it could just go wild and crazy.

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