Latest News from the Garden
Well, what lovely weather we are having so far this year. It does of course mean that everything is very dry and we are busy watering plants in the nursery to keep them in good condition for you to plant on at home. As May approaches I am looking forward to leading the first Garden Walk of the summer on May 7th. I am getting around slowly after my accident, so it will be a steady stroll to see the highlights of the garden, which at this time of year includes our lovely wildflower meadow and Rosa banksiae (pictured) which is just coming out this week. Did you know that our meadow is a typical lowland hay meadow, ancient grassland that is perfect for pollinators? Join me on the 7th May to find out more. We are also busy working behind the scenes to organise our annual family wildlife day on 29th June, which will…
I am delighted to say that I am getting back on my feet and out and about in the garden, which is a joy as spring is well and truly on its way. I am looking forward to seeing you all again this summer – we open on Wednesday 2nd April at 13:00. Our normal opening times are every Wednesday and Friday afternoon and the first and third weekend of the month right through to the end of September. You can see our full opening times for 2025 here. This means that we will be open over Easter weekend this year. We will not have Easter Egg hunts, but we will have Simnel cake! So, if you are looking for somewhere peaceful to visit for a day out, we are a good option. Whilst I am talking about Easter, there is still time to order Season Tickets or Gift Vouchers…
As you may have read on social media, I have been ‘in the wars’ and have only just arrived home from hospital. As you can imagine, I am fed up as I am unable to get out into the garden to enjoy the arrival of spring. But, I am on the mend and looking forward to being back on my feet ready for us opening in April. I hope that you have had a happier start to 2025 and are enjoying the snowdrops and aconites which seem to be thriving this year. One of my favourite ‘harbingers of spring’ is when the song thrushes start to sing and I am anticipating hearing one any time now. Luckily we did a lot of the planning work for 2025 at the end of 2024, so there is plenty to look forward to this summer. The garden will be open on our regular…
We are still very busy in the garden and you will be pleased to know that our plans for 2025 are well underway, starting with the apple pruning workshop in February. Now that October half term and Halloween are behind us, it is full steam ahead to Christmas. This means that we have a range of ideas for Christmas gifts such as Season Tickets for 2025, Gift Vouchers and places on our workshops. You can see all the confirmed workshops over on the website here, and I have highlighted some of the most popular ones below. The plant catalogue for 2025 has now been published online, and we have some excellent new plants to choose from, such as Aquilegia ‘Rose Queen,’ Aster pyrenaeus ‘Lutetia,’ Astrantia ‘Burgundy Manor,’ Centranthus ruber ‘Albus,’ Digitalis purpurea ‘Snow Thistle’ and Geranium ‘Fielding’s Folly.’ You can order plants throughout the winter and arrange a convenient time…
It feels like we have blinked and missed the summer of 2024, there are just 6 opportunities left to vists us before the end of September (including this weekend) but it looks like the sun is finally going to shine! Despite the weather, our 40th anniversary year has been a busy one with quite a lot of media interest – I was even the subject of a photoshoot. We are delighted to be part of York Environment Weeks this year and if you are interested in joining a free walk round the garden tomorrow morning (18th) there are still some spaces, meet me at the entrance hut at either 10:00 or 11:00. More details here. We are also opening exclusively to season ticket holders in October, more details below. The 2025 season tickets are already on sale, so if you would like to join us for our October event it would be lovely…
Our plant nursery celebrates 40 years of trading this summer and continues to supply unusual herbaceous plants that are particularly suited to the Yorkshire climate. Back in the early 1980s I was made redundant from her job, so decided to learn something new and attend Askham Bryan Horticultural College. I started propagating plants here and set up a poly tunnel in the garden. Thanks to a Government Enterprise Scheme I was able to open up the budding plant nursery on a commercial basis in 1984. Read more about the history of the garden and plant nursery here Plant Catalogue Today the plant catalogue, which you can see here, lists over 800 varieties, 90% of which are grown here and can be seen in-situ by our visitors. You can also see the well-filled stock beds where herbaceous plants are grown-on after splitting from larger plants in the garden. I am so…
We were delighted that David Baker and David Laughlin were able to return during 2023 to set their moth traps in our garden. This is the 11th year they have carried out moth trapping in the garden and we are now up to 117 micro species and 253 macro species having been recorded here. You can see a full moth list on this link. I am always amazed at the beauty and diversity of the moths we get in the garden, just one example is the canary shouldered thorn moth pictured here. David B has once again provided us with a full report of the moths trapped in 2023 – thank you so much. Night 2023/1 After a long run of dismal results throughout the early spring period we delayed our initial visit until Saturday 26th May when things appeared to be be improving in our home traps. Temperatures were…
If you are looking for the perfect Christmas gifts for gardeners, why not choose from the following ideas: A 2024 Season Ticket – snap one up at the early bird price of £20 before 21st December when they will go up to £26. Season tickets give you: Free entry to the garden during our regular opening times in 2024. (Excludes NGS and Wildlife Day) Discounts on selected workshops Additional open days outside the regular season. You can buy your season ticket here Gift vouchers – available in multiples of £10. They can be used in our plant nursery, which specialises in unusual perennial plants. We offer one of the largest ranges of hardy Geraniums in the UK and also have a huge selection of plants that thrive in the shade, such as Pulmonaria and Brunnera. Gift vouchers are an excellent way to help keen gardeners find something a bit unusual for…
It’s not every day that someone writes a song about your garden! But to our delight we received this lovely song and accompanying video from singer/songwriter Paula Ryan who was inspired by our flowers and trees. I think the lines: “Summer still leads to autumn, Dark winter still leads to spring” are particularly appropriate given that we have now closed for the winter, but are already preparing for spring. Paula Ryan Although she lives in York, Paula was born and bred in Tipperary Ireland and her songs are inspired by the lyricism and passion of her Irish routes. She describes herself as a Gaelic “Funkstress” using rhythmic influences and instruments from other cultures. Hear more of her music and find out where you can see her live over on her website here. Behind the Scenes in the Garden We never really get a breather here as our closed season…
With the focus on the wildlife day we were delighted to receive more press coverage about wildlife gardening across a range of publications. The Yorkshire Post ran the article “A Showcase for Nature and Wildlife” at the end of June where I spoke to Sally Clifford about my passion for gardening. The wildlife day was included as a diary event in June’s Yorkshire Living Magazine and this was followed up by a splendid feature in the July edition. You can read the article in full here or subscribe to the full magazine for free here. We also had mentions in Local Link, York Mix, Best Things to Do in York, Mumbler and MagNorth.
