Queuing up to buy plantsĪnd it was all hands to the pump to man the gate, the sales table and the all important refreshments – delicious lemon drizzle cake and date and walnut loaf. Garden News, Saga magazine and the RHS Garden magazine have all covered the Collections recently, so there was plenty of interest in the plants and buying them. These have been used for centuries as a way of protecting the blooms from the rain, particularly the Show Auriculas with their farina, or paste, on the petals and sometimes leaves. Getting ready for despatchĪpart from the large covered area displaying the Collections and plants for sale, there are two Auricula theatres in the garden, displaying specimens to their best advantage and at eye level. Have a look at their website for more information on the history and types of Primula auricula. Lesley explained that as a ‘florists’ flower Auriculas have their own very strict rules about naming plants, with a new cultivar having to be exhibited at an Auricula show in order to register a name. ![]() A news journalist by profession she has been growing Auriculas for thirty years and is a keen and good communicator on her subject. Regular exhibitors at RHS and specialist shows they have also built up a significant following on the internet, with much of their business done by mail order and 25% of sales going abroad with regular customers in the USA, Japan and Alaska. Lesley Roberts and Gil Dawson run the nursery and while Gil was packing up some plants for transport to the Isle of Wight, Lesley spent some time with us talking about the plants, all 12oo of them. So on Saturday morning, despite the weather, I spent a wonderful few hours down on the Hampshire/Wiltshire border at the Pops Plants Open Day. Since then the resultant seedlings have been propagated, given away to friends and generally brought a lot of pleasure. ![]() In 2003 when I saw my first display of Auriculas, childhood memories prompted me to buy a packet of seeds from Pops Plants and according to my label, I sowed them on May 21st of that year. I used to cry when it was ‘time to go home’ for Andy and Teddy and they were waving Goodbye, but my favourite was Bill and Ben with their co-star Weed in their kingdom of clay pots. After lunch my face would be washed and my hair brushed and I would go over the road to the home of two sisters who were happy to entertain me for the duration of the programme. This was a week’s TV viewing for me as a child in a family which didn’t own a televison set. Sometimes these categories can be a little hard to understand so here follows a description of each to help de-mystify.Friday – The Woodentops, with the very biggest spotty dog you ever did see ![]() There are various categories of auricula and a mixture of these in your theatre provides interest and contrast. Which auriculas to choose for your theatre. If you just want to show off one plant individually you might consider putting a frame around it as we have done here as part of this display. The best place to put your theatre is on a cool, northerly wall out of strong sunlight. Plants should not be permanently kept in the theatre throughout the year as this environment does not provide enough all-round light, but they can be put into position when a plant is just about to come into flower. It is important to consider the ultimate height of the flower stem when designing your theatre as you do not want blooms to be crushed by the upper shelf. Wooden wine boxes would also make wonderful mini-theatres. We rescued it, sanded it down, and gave it a few coats of paint and some feet to steady it. ![]() The theatre pictured above began life as the top half of a dresser which we found on a bonfire just about to be burned. Then decide how big a theatre you need and what you want to make it out of.
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