On 2009-06-17 10:27:16 +0100, June Hughes
said:

In message , Sacha
writes


It was a short but really lovely visit ending with a family lunch for
20 at a super local restaurant (Café de la Poste, Derek, though off
your beaten track!) We were intrigued to see how far ahead some
plants were but on the other hand, the Embothrium in my son's garden is
still flowering, while ours went over a couple of weeks ago. I don't
understand that because CI gardens are usually about 4 weeks or more
ahead of UK gardens. Their veg garden is yielding loads of courgettes,
carrots, potatoes (of course!) and the sweet peas are flowering
magnificently. Ray found some huge 'apples' on some of the Camellias
and has brought them home in the faint hope they'll ripen. He took
some cuttings from a Salvia we'd given them but have since 'lost' and
he hopes that their Stauntonia will fruit again this year so that we
get lots of lovely seeds. We're also promised more of their ever-green
Agapanthus. My son and daughter in law can't abide them and I adore
them, so lucky us!

Sounds lovely Sacha. I have only seen Jersey from the air and you have
tempted me.

Avoid July and August, IMO because it's terribly crowded then and the
Battle of Flowers is always held on the second Thursday in August,
ensuring great crowds. I think the 'shoulder' months are loveliest,
April, May, September, October. In October Jersey can get some really
beautiful weather, and if it's been a good summer the sea is still
warm. From a gardening pov, not many of the really good gardens are
open to the public regularly, though Samares Manor is worth seeing. In
the summer months there used to be a charity open-garden scheme for an
organisation called the Jersey Association for Youth and Friendship.
If JAYF is still doing it, this opens some wonderful private gardens up
for one Sunday and there's usually around 10 or 12 of them, IIRC.
Derek will know if that's still running. Strangely - and I've never
understood why - Jersey has no botanic garden and it really should
have. It was mooted at one point but the authorities wouldn't cough up
the cash, or so I understand and it never got off the ground.
--
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Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
Shrubs & perennials. Tender & exotics.
South Devon