This month has been dominated by the Hastings International Piano Concerto Competition 2024. The event lasts from 22nd February to 2nd March and happens every other year. The garden and estate teams have been busy working hard, getting the site weeded and preened in advance of the guests and contestants’ arrival, many of who will be staying at the hall for the duration of the event.
With plenty of guests at the Hall, there is a need for a regular supply of flowers for the house, all cut and sourced from the garden. Thankfully we have a good show of Hellebore and Daffodils to call upon for all the displays. The individual vases only last a few days so it’s a full on keeping the hall supplied. Jane, Caroline and Kerry three of our regular and multi-talented garden volunteers, together with Hannah one of the Fairlight gardeners and myself, have been busy creating wonderful and varied flower displays for the guests.
VOLUNTEER JANE AND CAROLYN CUT FLOWERS DISPLAYS
VOLUNTEER JANE AND KERRY CUT FLOWER DISPLAYS FOR THE TABLE
HANNAH’S CUT FLOWER DISPLAYS
DAFFODILD AND HELLIBORE
MATT’S CUT FLOWER DISPLAY
JANE’S PITS OF MIMOSA AND DAFODIL
JOBS IN THE GARDEN THIS MONTH
Cutting and clearing on the herbaceous border
With the mild winter weather, and very little in the way of frost. It is already it is possible to see new shoots of bulbs and young plants popping up out of the soil. The gardeners have been sweeping through the beds removing last years old stalks and stems, and removing any old brush wood structures, in readiness for new ones to be made.
Fruit Cage
The garden team have also been busy fruit pruning. Some fruit pruning happens in midsummer such as the pruning of Cherries and Apricots, these fruiting trees and shrubs suffer from bacterial bleeding canker and so are best pruned mid-summer when the canker is inactive. Fruiting Fig, Kiwi and Apples can be pruned any time from late autumn to early spring. This month the team have been busy tidying and clearing through the fruit cage. Pruning back Summer and Autumn fruiting raspberries, the red currants, black currants and gooseberries. Giving a good feed of fish, blood and bone after pruning. These fruiting bushes are best kept under nets as birds can strip the fruit from the bushes before the gardeners can get to them. Pruning is mainly about opening up centres, removing old wood, to encourage light and air movement in order to deter pests.
PRUNING GOOSEBERRY BUSHES IN FRUIT CAGE
Support Day and Structures
In an ideal world, by February most of the flower beds have been cut back and most roses have been pruned. Once the beds have been cleared and the emerging herbaceous perennial buds are beginning to show themselves. Now is a good time to start building supports for plants. Supports can be build from a wide variety of materials, bamboo canes, birch, willow or hazel brushwood. Ideally more costly but durable metal supports such as metal hoops, or metal wigwams can be re-used year after year. With this in mind on Friday the 23rd December we held a Plant Support Skills Day for the WFGA. Where WFGA members can pay to attend a workshop to learn all about making structures and supports. Eight people booked onto the course, where after first receiving some instruction, they were let loose on the garden. The group was divided up across there areas of the garden, each supported by a gardener. Some course goers-built birch wigwams in the walled garden, in which we will grow cornflower and sweet peas up. Some course goers joined one of the gardeners Hannah in the cut flower garden to make bamboo supports for the Dahlia and Chrysanthemum beds. The group also received a tutorial from out estate manager on how to build hazel peony structures. Despite the heavy rain everyone seemed to enjoy themselves an learnt a lot. Many thanks for the WFGA coordinator in helping us organise the day.
UNHARVESTED HAZEL COPPICE
COMPLETED HAZEL PEONY SUPPORTS
Volunteers
We now have 6 fantastic volunteers that are coming regularly, keen to learn the ropes. Where possibly we try to mix the volunteer tasks up week by week. Recently they have been doing cutting back herbaceous beds, seed sowing in the glasshouse, having a go at making flower displays for the house, pruning vines and climbers.