Until Next Year

Bye bye from The Team!

Giggles all round at the end of a long day finishing building our two gardens

Silver Gilt

And we won a Silver gilt Medal for Kellie's Readers Imagination Garden!
Again, we are delighted!

Kellie in the outdoor library, and Jim from the Beechgrove having a wee sit doon in the Chesterfield

Silver Medal

We won a silver for Susan's In the Knitted Garden.
In spite of the troubles we had with some of the plants (Gossypium doesn't really like the climate in Scotland, sadly), we are delighted!
Roll on next year!

Susan explaining to George for the Beechgrove that sheep can't actually knit...their hooves catch on the yarn too much! 

Last Day of preparation

Just popping up a few photos of our last build day.  The show starts tomorrow.  Hope you can make it to Gardening Scotland.

Beech Grove garden

Both the gardens are nearly finished now and looking good.  The Beechgrove Garden team were at Ingleston today for filming, however it was just too wet for them to film outdoors.  We had a wee chat with Jim though.

 

Kellie and Janet chatting about the garden with Jim.  Janet is just starting to stock the outdoor book shelf.

Plant List for 'In the Knitted Garden

Information is given below about the plants included in the knitted garden. They are all linked to fibre, and cotton production.

In the Knitted Garden – Plant list

Visit our Show Gardens blog at http://srucshowgarden.blogspot.co.uk/ or scan the QR code

 Lavatera × clementii 'Silver Barnsley'  Gossypium hirsutum (seedlings of hirsutum, Kundan, Red Beauty, Black Beauty)  Cyperus diffusus  Cyperus esculentus  Cyperus alternifolius  Phyllostachys aurea  Phyllostachys aureosulcata aureocaulis

 Urtica dioica  Lamium maculatum  Libertia peregrinans 'Taupo Sunset'  Carex elata  Uncinia rubra  Linum grandiflorum var rubra  Linum grandiflorum 'Bright Eyes'  Linum usitatissimum  Dipsacus fullonum

Bamboo

Phyllostachys ssp are amazing plants that can be used in many ways: Leaves and stems can be woven, or fibres can be extracted and spun into fine yarns. A type of Viscose can be manufactured from bamboo. A quick growing, prolific plant, it holds promise for being a very sustainable fibre crop.



Flax
 Scotland used to be famous for its textile industries, especially for Linum ssp. The industry was stimulated by an act of Parliament of 1686 stipulating that everyone had to be "buried in linen winding sheets made from materials which had been grown, spun and woven in Scotland"!



Nettles
 Before Flax production Urtica dioica, or 'Stinging nettle' was used to to produce the finest yarn. It was known as "Scotch Cloth".

Whilst Urtica dioica is great for biodiversity (being a food plant for many insects and birds), due to its stings it's not so nice as a garden plant! Therefore it has been confined to a pot and we have used a garden-worthy substitute - the 'Dead nettle' (no stings) otherwise known as Lamium maculatum. It is a useful ground cover plant available in several leaf varieties & flower colours.

Urtica dioica can also be drunk as a tea or used in soup!



Grasses
 Grasses and sedges have been used for basket weaving, rope making and fibres since at least 3000BC (Ötzi, the mummified man found in the Ötztal Alps in 1991, wore a cloak woven from grasses.)
 We have included several garden-worthy varieties, chosen for their foliage colour. These include: Carex elata; Uncinia rubra; Libertia peregrinans.



Papyrus
 Cyperus, perhaps better known as a House plant or a plant of the Egyptian Nile, has also long been used for its fibres, producing both textiles and for making paper. It is a great plant for an ornamental pond, though not always hardy in Scotland.



Cotton
 Probably the most well-known fiber plant, Gossypium ssp are the world’s biggest non-food crop. Cotton can be grown in Britain as a bedding plant, though light levels and rainfall in Scotland hamper its growth. We have chosen Lavatera ‘Silver Barnsley’, also a member of the Malvaceae family, to represent Cotton. A beautiful garden plant, it closely resembles the leave shape and flower of Gossypium.

We also have a pot of Gossypium seedlings and a vase of dried ‘cotton bolls’ on display.



Teasel
 Dipsacus fullonum are still used today in the textile industry for preparation of various fibres into yarn. An interesting garden plant that is native to the British Isles. It is appreciated by wildlife for its seeds and pollen. In the Knitted Garden it is used for its architectural, fresh green foliage.

Planting list for 'The Readers Imaginatin Garden'

We hope you find the planting list of Interest.  We have certainly enjoyed planning the plants, and then buying them from local nurseries.  Thanks to Mac Plants and Binny Plants for their help and advice.

Plants for ‘The Readers Imagination Garden’

A shaded/semi-shaded, woodland glade style garden Trees Alnus glutinosa Betula pubescens Pinus sylvestris Sorbus aucuparia (plus saplings) Shrubs Amelanchier canadensis Corylus maxima ‘Purpurea’ Rosa canina Sambucus nigra Viburnum opulus Ferns Adiantum pedatum Asplenium scolopendrium Dryopteris erythrosora var. prolifica Dryopteris filix-mas Metteuccia struthiopteris Polystrichum setiferum Climbers Hedera helix Lonicera periclymenum

Plants, grasses, rushes Anemanthele lessoniana Anthriscus sylvestris ‘Raven's wing’ Aquilegia vulgaris var. stellata 'Ruby Port' Arum italicum ‘Pictum’ Asarum europaeum Astrantia major ‘Super Star' and 'Ruby Wedding' Dicentra formosa 'Cox's Dark Red' Digitalis purpurea 'Alba' Epimedium x perralchicum 'Frohnleiten' Epimedium 'Spine Tingler' Epimedium x rubrum Geranium phaeum var . samobor Geum marika Geum rivale 'Leonard's variety' Hostas - Mixed Lamium maculatum 'White Nancy' Lamium orvala Lilium martagon album Luzula nivea Myrrhis odorata Polygonatum giganteum Pulmonaria ‘Sissinghurst White’ Rodgerisia' Bronze Peacock' Rodgersia aesculifolia Rodgersia ‘Hercules’ Stipa arundinacea Symphytum officinale

f interest.

Plants, props and walls

A few more photos for both the show gardens from the first build day-

Plants, props and walls

Plants for 'The Readers Imagination Garden'

Posts with literary references

Walls just finished

Laying out 'In the Knitted Garden'

In the Knitted garden, just prior to moving off  the college site

It's begun!

The Team are on site at Ingliston today, beginning to build the plots. How exciting! First off is the Reader's Garden, reassembling the base & outdoor library which had been constructed on Campus, whilst the lovely folk from the DSWA build the wall.

"SRUC Students in a Spin Over Plans for Gardening Scotland"

Garden Design students from Scotland’s Rural College turned to a group of Model Engineers to help them build one of the show gardens planned for Gardening Scotland at Ingliston from 29th-31st May.












Read the full News article here about the help we are getting from ESME:  http://www.sruc.ac.uk/news/article/1237/sruc_students_in_a_spin_over_plans_for_gardening_scotland 

Constructive Fun

Another busy day yesterday preparing the show gardens. Lots of problems solved!

Construction Team were busy beavers very kindly helped by Chris the Builder, who has sorted how to make the bookshelves for the outdoor library for #ReadersGarden15.

Thank you Chris!














Glasgow Botanics have kindly donated some mature papyrus to #KnittedGarden15. Susan and Penny went over to collect, and then we got them potted up and fed to get them in tip top condition for the Show (the plants that is, not Susan & Penny)

Another Trip to Almondell to see ESME and look at how the turntable is progressing. Nearly there with a very elegant yet simple solution! Thanks to the guys!















The Plant Team brought together a lot of the #ReadersGarden15 plants to see how they were all looking together. Have to say they were looking gorgeous! What a lovely woodland glade it is going to be. Photos don't do the plants justice!

Sunshine for the soul

First session back after Easter, and we had a very productive day down at the greenhouse with the whole team. 

Some of the plant team went off to R&B to purchase some more sapling trees whilst the rest began the construction for Readers Garden. Some lovely sedges were potted up from the gardens to bring them on for the Knitted Garden.

We then gave lots of TLC to all our plants for both gardens, and generally enjoyed being out in some warm sunshine for the morning, as did the trees.

The Papyrus has arrived by post for 'In the Knitted Garden'.  It has been planted up and is now sitting happily in the greenhouse with its feet nice and wet!

Panda spotting

Lovely big bamboos for the Knitted Garden. I wonder if we can do some spinning and weaving out of these once the Show is done... ;)

Phllostachys aureosulcata “Aureocaulis”

Happy in the greenhouse.

Some more nice big bamboos at R&B, destined for the Knitted Garden

Cosy Tree

What has Susan been up to!

The girls taking a well earned lunch

The Artist (Susan) contemplating the best way to work in all those ends... 

Cosy tree!

It's very colourful too, amongst the drab of the granite paving.

In a Woodland Glade

Beautiful woodland glade plants - see them in May at Gardening Scotland in The Readers Garden.

Lilium martagon 'Album'

Fern with spores

Pinus sylvestris

Anthriscis sylvestris 'Ravenswing'

Astrantia major

Digitalis purpurea 'Alba'

Geranium phaeum

Author confirmed for Readings in the Readers Imagination Garden

Janice Galloway

We have been in touch with a number of publishers and authors so that we can have 'Author Reading Events' from the garden during the period of Gardening Scotland.  We are delighted that Janice Galloway has accepted our invitation, and several publishers are interested.  All very exciting!

Scottish Gardener Article

A page from this months 'The Scottish Gardener' Magazine, with information about some of the show gardens this year.  The SRUC gardens are top left and bottom left.

Plant Arrivals

About 250 plants have arrived for 'The Readers Imagination Garden' today.  They will need to be carefully tended now to bring them up to Show Garden standard, and to be flowering at the right time.  We have also been able to use many plants from the college nursery, and are expecting another delivery of plants on Monday-so It is all go!




Show Plants setting into the greenhouse at SRUC

Every little helps...

We are still searching for a little bit more sponsorship, or donations, to purchase good quality plants, so if you have any spare change maybe you could...

"Help fund our student Show Garden"?

http://www.gofundme.com/IntheKnittedGarden

Much appreciated!

We're in the News!

"SRUC Designers’ Double Entry for Gardening Scotland"

Talks about both our entries.












Article can be found at: http://www.sruc.ac.uk/news/article/1182/sruc_designers_double_entry_for_gardening_scotland

Tiger nuts

Cyperus esculentus is a perennial growing to 0.9 m (3ft) at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone (UK) 8. The flowers are hermaphrodite. 

Exciting to see things germinating already, in preparation for the Show!

The 'nuts' are actually a tuber from the roots. They are edible, and quite tasty too!

Read more about Tiger nuts: http://www.pfaf.org/user/plant.aspx?LatinName=Cyperus+esculentus