The Professional Gardeners’ Guild Three Years Traineeship in Horticultural Practices

INTERIM REPORT on Osborne House by Giulio Veronese

Period of traineeship

2011 – 2014

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© Giulio Veronese

Printed: April 2014, 1 Highgrove Cottages.

All photographs and pictures used in this report are by Giulio Veronese.

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[…] and I, partly forester, partly builder,

partly farmer and partly gardener, expect to be a good deal upon my legs

and in the open air.

Prince Albert

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Contents Report The possibility of an Island 9 The Grand Tour 9 Professionalism 10 An English Heritage Gardener 10 Private Diversions 11 Appendices Photos 15 Ten and a half months at Osborne House 19 Osborne House Family Tree 21 Walled Garden Annual Bedding 23 Acknowledgments 27

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The possibility of an Island It all began underneath a narrow shelter just outside Petersfield train station. It was a dull day in the last week of September, and a light drizzle damped the wax of my Barbour and the few leaves on the concreted pavement. The two sliding doors at the entrance of the station worked without apparent rules. I had left my summer job just two weeks before. I was employed as a gardener in Rome, but really we were contractors rather than amenity gardeners. It was hard-going work, but good money too. My plans for the future were basically split in two: a three year traineeship in horticulture in the UK or a masters in landscape architecture, two years to spend between Genoa and Turin. Preference was secretly given to the Professional Gardeners’ Guild scheme but there was only one vacancy left and all the trainees had already started six weeks before. I was at a crossroads. At a crossroads, underneath a narrow shelter just outside Petersfield train station. Finally the PGG president, John Humphris, arrived. My first impression was a tall man with a handshake worthy of a head gardener. We went to the Isle of Wight and I had an informal interview for the placement at Osborne House. On the way back to the mainland my eyes investigated the shore of the Solent. The ferryboat floated placidly out to the possibility of an island. The Grand Tour Two weeks later I sat in my new room in a flat West Cowes, Isle of Wight. There was a big window facing North-West. The fading light was so dramatic. I let my thoughts flutter aimlessly like Constable’s clouds. My first working day at Osborne House was over. I finally gained the PGG placement but it was really by the skin of my teeth: it was the last vacancy available and six weeks later than the usual start. I missed the annual seminar of the traineeship. At Osborne they didn’t wait for me either: the spring bedding in the terraces was already started, the winter pruning of the roses in the pergola was finished and the Estonian students had just flown away. I stopped wandering about Constable and his clouds studies and focused more seriously on my plans for the near future. I started analyzing the exact meaning of the words Professional Gardeners’ Guild. “Well” I thought “Here we have three words and three years. It will be better to take it step-by-step”. For the first year, my target will be to understand and be able to work professionally in a top-level British garden, like Osborne House. My second year will be spent in understanding intimately what kind of gardener I’d like to be: be it a contractor, an amenity gardener, an arboriculturist, or a plantsman. The target will be to specialize my skills in a specific direction. My final year will be for inspiration and finding the garden, association or Country I’d like to work in. I called this my Grand Tour of the UK.

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Professionalism From the very first day at Osborne I knew my first aim should be to catch up on lost time as well as to match the English Heritage Behaviours and high professionalism of the rest of the team. The first step was wearing the official uniform and the correct professional protective equipment (PPE) at all times. Then came understanding the importance of completing any relevant paperwork. In English Heritage properties records of the use and maintenance of machinery are regularly kept. Pre-start check lists of all the machinery are carried out daily, including fuel and oil levels, visual inspection, etc. The target for me was to gain new awareness with regard to working with and around machinery and understanding the need to work in a safe manner at all times. The real introduction for me was the Daily Vibration Log Book . This is a personal record of the number of vibrations while using machinery, any member of the team being allowed to reach 400 max points per day. All the machineries have an inventory number and are checked and tested for vibration yearly. I soon appreciated that there are two results of such care being taken: machinery that is always in perfect condition and a minimum number of employees off sick. This was a different kettle of fish with respect to my previous employment in Rome! In English Heritage properties the most important document for the workers is probably the Performance and Development Review (PDR). This form should be used to help the employed to discuss and agree the objectives. It provides a record of the ongoing development and the performance against objectives and EH Behaviors through the year. The final column of the PDR is to record how the objectives were met. “Fully” was the explicit target of mine. An English Heritage Gardener The Osborne estate covers around 350 acres which can roughly be broken down to 100 acres of woodland, 100 acres of meadows and grassland, 100 acres of golf course and about 50 acres of garden. These 50 acres are under the care and responsibility of nine EH gardeners and can be considered in three main areas: the Italian Terraces, the Pleasure Grounds (which include the Walled Garden) and the Swiss Cottage Garden. Osborne House is a historic property and all the gardens are looked after according to conservative standards. This is about the choice of the plants and also the design. As a first-year trainee as well as a foreign student, I considered this specific kind of garden as an ideal angle for understanding and appreciating British history and its gardening tradition. The Italian Terraces – two upper and two lower – were designed to complement the house and are filled with signature features of classical Italian gardens. Formal beds are laid out in sharp geometric patterns in-filled with Victorian-fashioned plants or bulbs which are changed twice yearly.

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The spring and summer beddings are probably the crucial part of the garden. An absolutely perfect display is the best calling card for the whole gardeners team. Last year’s spring bedding was designed using annual or short-lived perennials, a few plants from the Osborne nurseries and a vast selection of bulbs. The colour scheme was in orange, yellow, cream and white. It was a traditional but really effective display including wallflowers, forget-me-not, pansies, daisies, tulips, daffodils and hyacinths. It was planted with a stunning selection of old-fashioned bulbs, such as Tulipa “Apeldoorn Elite”, T. “William of Orange”, T. “Queen of Marvel”, T. “Mona Lisa”, “Ballerina”, Narcissus “Carbineer”, N. “St. Patrick’s Day”, N. “Grande Soleil D’Or” and Hyacinth “City of Harleem”. At the end of the seven weeks planting-out, about 19.000 bulbs were planted: a real back-breaking experience. The summer bedding was dedicated to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. The colour scheme was in red, yellow, blue and white (colour from The Royal Standard Flag). Popular Victorian plants were largely used: exotic-looking palms (such as Phoenix canariensis or Agave victoriae-reginae), broad-foliage plants (Ricinus, Canna sp.), old-fashioned dahlias, pelargoniums and salvias, Amarathus caudatus, Cineraria maritima, Agapanthus preacox, Coleus sp. (now Solenostemon!). By the second week of July more than 14.000 plants were in place. The Walled Garden is unusual because (almost) no vegetables are grown there. The reality is that its size, just one acre, was far too small to support the royal family, but also there was a vast kitchen garden nearby which supplied all the royal households with fresh produce. Queen Victoria demanded that the house was to be decorated with floral displays so the Walled Garden was (and still is) mainly used for growing cut flowers. Here I was given a project to plan, plant and maintain a 14x21 meter bed mainly using annual plants. My own annual bedding design has been the most challenging venture of my horticultural career so far. In matter of fact, to design and maintain an annual bed involves a number of skills for a continuous period. It’s about indoor jobs as well as outdoor. My first idea was to use plants named after famous Victorians. I spent many hours searching adequate plants and also double checking the availability from catalogues. Soon I realized the theme was too limiting and so I went back to the drawing board to develop a second and definitive plan. The new theme was “Colour Temperatures”. I basically created a display presenting two distinct borders to illustrate the hot and cold effect of colour in a space small enough to be able to compare the two approaches. The Swiss Cottage - a two storey timber building in vernacular style – at its sides are a paddock, an orchard and rectangular beds for growing vegetables and fruits. This whole area is looked after by a single man, the senior gardener Adrian Wright. I joined him for one week in July where I was involved in a number of different jobs. The walking tours and identification walks through Osborne estate with my head gardener, Toby Beasley, were unforgettable experiences. Part of his job was to lead themed tours for the visitors through the garden and he kindly involved me. The walking tours were important occasions to understand the real genius loci of Osborne, as well as a precious moment for broadening the view and appreciation of our work in the gardens.

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In February the whole team took part in a course in order to gain the certificate of wood chipping (NPTC Level 2 Certificate of Competence in Manually Fed Wood Chipper Operations). This course covered several units, both theoretical and practical. We were expected to know how to inspect, maintain and prepare the wood chipper for operation, as well as to show confidence in practical operating. After about one month on the course and many hours quizzing each other in, we finally took the exam. All the members of the team passed with high marks. In our office we kept a small but very interesting bookshelf packed with gardening books and magazines. Soon I became fond of them (sometimes I think the soul of a librarian must live in me) and considered reading that material as a vital part of my working activities as well as the perfect companion for my tea breaks. My favorite book and main reference became W. J. Bean’s Tree and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles, which represents - I think - the valuable account of a true connoisseur. If I wasn’t able to find exhaustive information there, I went through the RHS Dictionary of Gardening (1951 edition in four volumes). Of course both these titles are now in my personal gardening book collection. The magazines on the table of the mess room were also useful and contained (more) updated material. We had subscriptions for The Garden, Horticulture Week and AME (Amenity Machinery and Equipment) which all give information and advice from different points of view. Private Diversions People often think that the every-day routine in the garden can be quite repetitive but a real gardener knows how to make the most of his position. As a trainee, I enjoyed every single job that was given to me (even considering hand-weeding as a cultural experience) but also searched continuously ways to change my scenery. A funded trip with The Alpine Garden Society trip to the Taurus Mountain (Turkey) was an extraordinary experience for me. The expedition took place in mid-April and was lead by Rannveig and Robert Wallis. It was designed to show all the incredible features of the Turkish flora, paying particular attention to the diversity of bulbous species. Taking the first steps from the Mediterranean port of Antalaya, we crossed the Taurus from East to West, finishing at the Anti-Taurus and the Anatolian region. There were two weeks of real plant-hunting, botanizing a wide range of habitats rich in native bulbs (oak scrub, garrigue, melting snow and serpentine slops), as well as visiting ancient archeological sites. Our objective was to observe and photograph the maximum number possible of the beautiful bulbs of the Taurus, such as Crocus, Colchicum, Fritillaria, Gagea, Galanthus, Corydalis, Iris, Muscari, Hyachintella species. The trip to Turkey gave me the opportunity to discover a new world and its flora. It was just like opening a treasure chest and finding a kaleidoscope of jewels.

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On the way back from Turkey, I joined my brother in Amsterdam for a beautiful week-end. I visited the Amsterdam Tulip Museum, which really is small jewel set in the heart of historic centre. Exploring the tulip's history and discovering the remarkable journey it has taken from the wilds of the Himalayan highlands to the gardens has been just the exemplar accomplishment of my expedition to Turkey. Apart from funded trips, another advantage in being a young trainee gardener is having plenty of gardens still to visit. Being on the Isle of Wight, it wasn’t easy to have days out on the mainland but I was able to see a decent number of gardens anyway. The Sir Harold Hillier Gardens were the first to be visited in the beginning of February. This worldwide-known garden has a variety of themed landscapes and it is enjoyable all year around. First we walked through the three acres Winter Garden. This is likely to be the largest winter garden in Europe. It has been planted to show a wide range of plants that are at their best from November until March. A period that many assume, erroneously, is a 'quiet' time for gardens. I was particularly impressed by the Magnolia Avenue. Of course they were not in bloom but the Heather Garden nearby and the overall lay-out of the composition was stunning. I also had the opportunity to see the Centenary Walk under construction. This is going to be the longest double border in the UK (over 250meters long and 30.000 plants) and an iconic new attraction in two years time. The last week-end of March I was in London to attend the annual seminar of the London Gardens Network. The study day was set in the wonderful scenery of Chelsea Physic Garden and the theme of the seminar was about “The Value of Conservation Management Plans”. Lecturers discussed the concept from the most different angles, expressing it of wellness at its best. At the end of seminar, we had a walk around Chelsea Physic Garden with the head gardener Nick Bailey. It wasn’t my first time there, but from certain places you always have something to learn. In May I went to Wrest Park in Bedfordshire with my head gardener Toby Beasley. This is a recently acquired English Heritage property and Toby had to go there for a meeting among EH head gardeners. Once he finished his meeting, we enjoyed a stroll through the vast historic landscape, huge walled garden and even the French-style mansion. We also visited the recently restored Italian and Rose Gardens. That drizzly day I basically learnt two things. First of all, how instructive it is to visit a garden in the company of a head gardener. Secondly, where the head gardener actually put his preference attending meetings or getting his boots muddy in a British garden. In mid June I went the National Botanic Gardens of Wales to discuss my second year PGG placement. In that occasion I meet the present PGG trainee, Sam Hawthorne, who was my Cicerone through the gardens. That was only a short visit but the impression was indelible. The great greenhouse (the world largest single span greenhouse) is just a dream for every horticulturalist. In a sunny day in August I visited Ventnor Botanic Garden. The “warmest English garden” nests in a unique microclimate at the heart of the famous Ventnor “Undercliff”.

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Surrounded by the remarkable subtropical and exotic plant collection of Ventnor, I really could breathe the Mediterranean atmosphere. Last year I went back to Italy on three occasions. In the countryside just outside my hometown Ferrara, my father is now running a farm holidays since few months. This place is called La Misericordia and things are still developing. The extra-jobs in the allotment have been for me the best way to keep me trained and, perhaps - to look distantly into the future. The distance learning course in Garden Design from The English Gardening School has been my way of carrying on my interest in landscape architecture and garden design through the year. Finally a mention about an activity which really enthuses me. This is the creation of my personal gardening books collection. Apart from the two books previously mentioned and few datum points (Russel Page’s The Education of a Garden, Percy Cane’s The Creative Art of Garden Design and Christopher Tunnard’s Garden in the Modern Landscape), I got myself books in order to focus both my main interests in plantsmanship and garden design. My most-consulted books are now Piet Oudolf’s Designign with Plants and Gardening with Grasses, the series by Martin Ryx and Roger Phillips (with those superb illustrations), Geoffrey and Susan Gellicoe’ The Landascape of Man (to me, the world’s undervalue book). All the Collins guides, RHS manuals and any other title by Adrian and Alan Bloom, Penelope Hobhouse, Getrude Jekyll, Rosemary Verey and Chrystopher Lloyd, I was able to find out in the charity shops, are now part and parcel of the collection.

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Winter pruning of the apple espaliers

Winter pruning of the climber roses

The team planting out of a conifer

Walking guided tour through the garden

The Pleasure Grounds

Topiary just trimmed on the walk to the beach

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Definitive plan of my annual bedding

Ordering, labeling, sowing in the potting shed

Marking the single patches with sand

Overview from the cherry picker

Panoramic view of the annual bed (midspring)

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Spring bedding, Upper Terrace

Spring bedding, Lower Terrace

Displaying the Queen’s Jubilee summer bedding

Summer bedding, Upper Terrace

Working on the camelia bed, Lower Terrace

The magnolia bed in the Pleasure Grounds

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London Gardens Network annual seminar

Visit at Wrest Park (Bedfordshire)

Alpine Garden Society trip to Turkey

Ground work in Italy

Distance learning course in Garden Design

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Ten and a half months at Osborne House

Seasonal jobs Special occurrences Personal projects Oct. mild dry

borders maintenance (stripping off, cutting down, tiding up) leaves blowing and collecting

terraces spring bedding

Nov. mild dry

borders maintenance (stripping off, cutting down, tiding up) leaves blowing and collecting edge trimming and pruning bonfire making collecting greeneries for Christmas

spring bedding in the terraces

annual bedding (designing) identification walk: plants of autumn interest

Dec. mild dry no frosts

border maintenance (mulching, stripping off, cutting down) leaves blowing and collecting storing plants indoors collecting greeneries for Christmas

introducing the “Big Red” (new Manitou MLA628 tractor)

annual bedding (designing, sand marking, seeds ordering)

Jan. mild few frosts

borders maintenance (mulching) winter pruning: climbing roses raking up leaves and twigs woodchipping others (bonfires making, planting out, turfing)

new metal edges in the terraces

annual bedding (labeling, plating out the hardies) identification walk: plants of winter interest

Feb. finally cold

borders maintenance (mulching, edging) winter pruning (apples espaliers) woodchipping raking up leaves and twigs others (turfing, salting)

concreting the compost area installing reed bed risk assessment procedure course

annual bedding (planting hardies out, sowing the hardies) woodchipping certificate visit at Sir Harold Hillier Gardens historic guided tour

Mar. dull, showery

borders maintenance (mulching) raking up leaves and twigs displaying the glasshouse

Health and Safety training day

annual bedding (potting on the halfhardies, sowing the hardies) conference “the value of conservation management plans” Chelsea Physic Garden visit

Apr. wet

borders maintenance (edging, weeding, deadheading) woodland jobs

EH Behavior training day course

AGS trip to Turkey annual bedding (first weeding, pinching out the halfhardies in the nurseries, sowing hardies)

May dull start bright later

borders maintenance (edging, weeding, hoeing) greenhousing (potting on) others (tree pitting, plating out)

terraces summer bedding (stripping off, digging, plants ordering) interim PDR meeting

annual bedding (building wig whams, hardening off seedlings, planting out ha, hha, perennials) visit a Wrest Park walking tour “spring colours”

June really wet

borders maintenance greenhousing (watering, potting on, organic pests control)

terraces summer bedding (planting) Duke of Gloucester visit

second PGG year interview and visit at National Botanic Gardens of Wales summer holidays in Italy

July dull

hedge trimming strimming mowing flower arrangements

terraces summer bedding (finishing off, vases, pinching off) Osborne beach opening

annual bedding (tying climbers, staking, weeding) one week at the Swiss Cottage (tree pitting, allotment maintenance, bordering)

Aug. variable

summer pruning (apples espaliers, roses pergola) greenhousing (watering, potting on, organic pests control) mowing trimming topiaries

final PDR meeting annual bedding (tying climbers, weeding) getting ready for growing my own vegetables

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Osborne House Family Tree

Alan Hickey

Garden Supervisor

(Osborne House)

TERRACES

PLEASURE GROUNDS

MACHINERY

TRAINING

Nigel Brown

(Senior Gardener)

Phil Brown

(Gardener)

Reese Toogood

(Gardener)

Janet Beasley (Part-time

Gardener)

Giulio Veronese

(PGG trainee)

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Toby Beasley

Head Gardener

Alan Hickey

Garden Supervisor

(Osborne House)

WALLED GARDEN

GREENHOUSES

VOLUNTEERS

Jen Mcintosh

(Senior Gardener)

SWISS COTTAGE

WOODLAND VOLUNTEERS

Adrian Wright

(Senior Gardener)

Charlotte Lock

Garden Supervisor

(Carisbrooke Castle)

SWISS COTTAGE

WOODLAND VOLUNTEERS

Adrian Wright

(Senior Gardener)

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Walled Garden Annual Bedding (West Block) “Colours Temperature” by Giulio Veronese (2012) OSBORNE HOUSE NURSERIES

Plant Notes Intro Origin Agrostemma githago One very big packet, two normal (2009) - - Allium schoenoprasum Plant as soon as possible (HA) - Native Amaranthus caudatus If more are required, Kings Seeds (chipper) 1596 Tropics Angelica archangelica Seedlings in the walled garden - Native Canna indica “Shenandoah” Plant after frost (HHA) 1570 India Brugmansia knightii Plant after frost (HHA) - Mexico Convolvulus cneorum Plant as soon as possible (HA) 1640 South.

Europe Godetia “Single” Mixed 6 packets “Sow by Jul ‘10” (Suffolk Herbs) - - Lathyrus odorosus “America” - -- Linum usitatissimum 4 packets (from 2010 harvest) - Native Nicotiana langsdorfii 4 packets (from different years) 1819 Brazil Rudbeckia “Rustic” Dwarf Mixed 4 packets “Sow by Jul 2010” (Suffolk Herbs) - - Verbena bonariensis Plant as soon as possible (HA) 1737 Brazil

Paraguay Argentina

THOMPSON & MORGAN 2012

Plant Pag Code Seeds £ Pack H Intro Origin Antirrhinum nanum “Peaches and Cream” 23 GA1867 300 2.89 3 HHA - - Clarkia elegans “Apple Blossom” 38 GA7639 750 2.69 3 HA 1832 California Cosmos bipinnatus “Antiquity” 40 GA4579 40 2.99 3 HHA 1799 Mexico Helianthus annuus “Italian White” 104 GA6301 40 2.29 3 HA 1596 South/West

America Zinnia “Queen Lime” 121 GA9127 20 2.69 3 HA - -

KINGS SEEDS 2012

Plant Pag Code Seeds £ Pack H Intro Origin Agrostis nebulosa 85 50901 150 1.15 3 HA 1834 - Alyssum maritimum “Carpet of Snow” 70 51301 900 1.10 3 HA 1722 SouthEurope

West Asia Brachycome iberidifolia “Brachy Blue” 73 54601 250 1.85 4 HHA 1843 Australia Carthamnus tinctorius “Goldtuft” 75 56001 45 1.80 5 HA 1551 Egypt Cerienthe majus purpurascens 75 56402 12 1.95 7 HHA 1596 SouthFrance

Switzerland Cineraria maritima “Cirrus” 77 56704 150 1.65 3 HHA - SouthEurope Cosmos bipinnatus “Pied Piper Red” 79 58103 100 1.25 3 HHA 1799 Mexico Gazania rigens “Red Stripe” 83 61904 30 2.00 5 HHA 1755 Unknown Gypsophila elegans “Covent Garden” 84 63101 1350 1.10 3 HA 1825 Crimea Lagurus ovatus 85 63001 500 1.10 3 HA - Native Mina lobata “Exotic Love” 94 68325 20 1.65 3 HHA 1842 Mexico Moluccella laevis 73 54501 200 1.25 3 HHA 1852 Syria Nigella damaescena “Miss Jekyll” 97 69301 500 1.10 3 HA 1570 SouthEurope Pennisetum glaucum “Purple Majesty” 94 68150 10 2.75 3 HHA - - Silene colorata “Pink Pirouette” 106 73903 250 2.25 3 HA 1819 Morocco Tagetes patula “Solan” 93 67633 30 1.45 5 HHA - - Tithonia rotundifolia “Fiesta del Sol” 122 75225 50 1.45 3 HHA 1733 Mexico

S. America Tropaeolum peregrinum 74 55551 25 1.25 3 HHA 1810 NewGraneda

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DT. BROWN 2012

Plant Pag Code Seeds £ Pack H Intro Origin Beta vulgaris “Charlotte” 25 14678 125 1.39 3 HA 1548 SouthEurope Centaurea cyanus “Black Ball” 106 16427 250 1.29 5 HA - Native Centaurea cyanus “Blue Ball” 106 11900 500 1.29 3 HA - Native Delphinum consolida “Moody Blues” 111 19824 200 1.49 4 HA - - Helianthus annuus “Chianti” 120 11930 20 1.79 3 HA 1596 W.S. USA Helianthus annuus “Autumn time” 120 13582 30 1.59 4 HA 1596 W.S. USA Lobelia erinus “Cristal Palace” 112 10359 2000 0.99 3 HHA 1752 Cape of

Good Hope Ipomea tricolor “Heavenly blue” 114 11342 50 1.49 4 HHA - - Matthiola bicornis “Night Scented” 120 14641 2000 0.99 3 HA - Greece Nicotiana alata “Lime Green” 115 11809 1000 1.29 3 HHA 1829 N. America Ocium basilicum “Purple” 28 20653 300 1.09 3 HHA 1548 East India Rudbeckia hirta “Praire Sun” 119 15068 30 1.99 4 HHA - - Tagetes tenuifolia “Lemon Gem” 113 13138 35 2.99 4 HHA - - Tropaeolum majus “Salmon baby” 115 19833 25 1.49 4 HA - - Tropaeolum majus “Alaska” Mixed 115 19830 25 1.39 4 HA 1686 Peru

CHILTERN SEEDS 2012

Plant Pag Code Seeds £ Pack H Intro Origin Ageratum houstonianum “Dondo white” 10 63W - 2.80 HHA 1822 Mexico Ageratum houstonianum “Blue Horizon” 10 63J - 1.70 HHA 1822 Mexico Ammi majus 15 85C - 1.99 HA - Old World Amaranthus tricolor “Splendens Perfecta” 14 84K - 1.79 HHA - - Antirrhinum majus “Monarch” Mixed 19 107W - 1.80 HHA - - Celosia cristata Tall Variety Mixed 299B - 1.70 HHA 1570 Asia Cleome spinosa “Cherry” 58 366F - 1.68 HHA - West India Cleome spinosa “Violet” 58 366K - 1.68 HHA - West India Cleome spinosa “Rose” 58 366W - 1.68 HHA - West India Coreopsis basalis “Golden Crown” 385F - 2.10 HA - - Cosmos bipinnatus “Gloria” 397Q - 2.34 HHA - - Limonium sinuatum “Midnight Blue” 133 811G - 1.87 HHA - Mediterran.

Regions Mirabilis jalapa “Red Glow” 145 880H - 2.16 HHA - - Ricinus communis“New Zealand Purple” 180 1114K - 3.45 HHA - America

Tropical Salvia coccinea 183 1136A - 2.10 HHA 1772 S. America Salvia farinacea “Reference” 183 1136H - 3.35 HHA 1847 Texas Scabiosa atropurpurea “Chat Noir” 187 1148C - 2.84 HHA 1629 East India Schizopetalon walkeri 189 1150B - 2.58 HHA 1822 Chili

MR FOTHERGILL’S

Plant Pag Code Seeds £ Pack H Intro Origin Panicum elegans “Frosted explosion” 16245 25 2.45 3 HA - - NICKY’S NURSERY

Plant Pag Code Seeds £ Pack H Intro Origin Capsicum annum “Purple Flash” web FS-

CA003 8 2.80 HHA 1548 India

Capsicum annum “Medusa” web FS-CA022

8 2.95 HHA 1548 India

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Acknowledgments My year working at Osborne House and the consequent preparation of this report has depended heavily on the help and support of a great people and organizations. My debts to the PGG Traineeship and the RHS Bursaries are obvious and unrepayable. I would also like to thank the Merlin Trust and Garden Alpine Society. Without their generous assistance, traveling to Turkey and climbing the Taurus Mountains would not have been possible. Thanks also go to… John, for the handshake. Toby, for sharing a passion for local beers. Janet, for the rhubarb cake recipe. Charlotte, for appreciating the cake. Alen, for taking that desktop in his stride. Nigel, for the exemplar definition of amenity. Jen, for The Old Man and the Sea. Adrian, for the unique way to say pampepato. Phil, for at least a couple of new interesting words. Reese, for sincerely supporting Newcastle United. Susanna, for a day-out in Sainsbury’s. Andrea, for supporting my gardener equipment. Ruggero, for the twentieth gram. Abramo, for being present at Pirlo’s penalty. China, for the Homeric patience. Ian, for the fishing knots and gears. Kate, for one whole year of saucepans. Jenny, for wordsmithing.