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Agatha Christie's Greenway (Devon, England) - The House

I can think of two places that we visited where I enjoyed the house more than the gardens. The first was Greenway, not for the house itself, which was surprisingly small and cramped, but for the history behind it and the fascinating mementos on display. Agatha Christie and her husband Max Mallowan were enthusiastic collectors. You can see their collections on display throughout the house - European and Oriental ceramics, pottery, African tribal masks, Egyptian artifacts, Tunbridge ware, china, trinkets, and books. The Morning Room has a portrait of Agatha Christie as a child and her doll Rosie, sitting in a chair - The Drawing Room was where the family would gather in the evenings. Christie would entertain guests by reading chapters from manuscripts of her latest books.  Agatha Christie's bedroom. Max always slept on a smaller portable traveling cot (you can see part of it in the foreground). It was his favorite bed and he carried it with him on all of his archaeological travels. N...

A Conifer Inventory

Pinus mugo 'Aurea' (Mugo Pine)


Strolling through the wet garden today, I concluded that we have a lot of conifers. Most are still very small and this is not an exhaustive list. These are all in the front garden. I didn't photograph any in the back yet...

Cedrus deodara 'Feelin' Blue'



Chamacyparis O. 'Maiesii'

Juniperus conferta 'All Gold'


Picea abies 'Pusch' (Norway Spruce)

Picea orientalis 'Tom Thumb'

Pinus contorta 'Taylor's Sunburst'

Pinus longa 'Sherwood Compact'

Pinus mugo 'Valley Cushion'

Pinus parviflora 'Catherine Elizabeth' (White Pine)

Pinus strobus 'Nana Blue Shag'

Pinus sylvestris 'Hillside Creeper'

Sequoia sempervirens 'Kelly's Prostrate' (Prostrate coast redwood)

Abies pinsapo ‘Glauca’ (Blue Spanish Fir)

Tsuga canadensis 'MonKinn' 'Golden Duchess' (Eastern Hemlock)

Tsuga canadensis 'Monler' (Canadian Hemlock 'Emerald Fountain')




And there is this one which was here when we moved in. I moved it the first year. It was located next to the front foundation. I am not sure as to the identity.





Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

Comments

  1. What a delightful cornucopia of evergreens. Each and every are charming in their own way. I really like the small norway pine with those little cones on it and the shaggy blue shrub. Nothing like giving me a bad case of the wants.

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  2. You have some really lovely specimens! I admired Cedrus deodara very much when we first moved here, but I was afraid of how big it might get.

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    1. Alison, this particular one is not supposed to get that big (4' I think).

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  3. I adore conifers. They MAKE the northwest winter garden. There is such a verity of size color and shape I never tire of them. I can never name any of them, including the unnamed specimen you moved the first year. A couple of times I try to relocate a conifer, but it didn't survive. You should feel proud; your move seem to have been very successful!

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  4. They're all gorgeous ! Did you get them from Y&G ?

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    1. I just did a count and they all came from YnG except for five. The sequoia came from Gossler Farms and some of the larger plants (like the Spanish Fir) came from a nursery that is no longer in business. I bought a lot of things there before I even knew YnG existed.

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  5. I followed a photo when researching Catherine Elizabeth and was pleased to find your lovely conifer collection. I have oodles of them. Two hopefully useful comments: I have a Kelly's Prostrate that is over 3' tall and 6-7' wide, from a 10" tall x 3' wide 10 gallon after 10 years. It's still growing several inches a year! And the yellow one at the end of your post looks just like my new Chamaecyparis lawsoniana "Treasure Island". Thanks for sharing your beautiful conifers with us. Steve

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    1. Hi Steven, thank you! Oh my, I may need to consider moving Kelly's Prostrate if it gets that big. I had no idea!

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