Author Archives: jonathan trustram

garden notes 33, ivy, words of warning, pruning clematis, an apology

Posted on October 11, 2020 by jonathan trustram

I’ve mentioned events in the garden before. Like when the snowdrops open. Events which mark a particular moment in the year and often carry emotional associations. For some reason I’ve been more aware of them this year. The last one … Continue reading →

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garden notes 32 pruning

Posted on October 4, 2020 by jonathan trustram

I’ve been avoiding the subject of pruning. I know many people find it difficult. But here’s a start: It always comes down to: don’t try to learn about gardening, learn about plants. Gardening is too often reduced to silly rules … Continue reading →

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garden notes 31, giving up the inula, salvias patens and uliginosa, scientists, Heathrow, myrtle – old wood and new wood

Posted on September 5, 2020 by jonathan trustram

 At Heathrow airport, in Terminal 5 departures a series of glass cases show artefacts and copies of artefacts which were found during the building works. One of the biggest archaeological investigations in history. Obviously, since Terminal 5 goes on for … Continue reading →

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garden notes no. 30 Allium angulosum, morning glory, cleansing cobwebs, bees and bulbs

Posted on August 10, 2020 by jonathan trustram

Red hot pokers are named for their unattractive orangey-red nakedness. But this yellow one is nice, and in a social gathering, clustered, not theatrically isolated. This little clump has been growing at St John’s for years, and stands up well … Continue reading →

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garden notes no 29, dahlias, bees, Keats again, a little rant, a mountain memory

Posted on August 7, 2020 by jonathan trustram

What bees and sparrows have in common is their ability to ignore the human presence. This makes it easier to “take part in their existence”. (Keats, see Garden Notes no 21, picking about the gravel. Verbascum, foxglove, Koelreuteria, etc. but here … Continue reading →

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garden notes no 28, inside the lily: naming of parts

Posted on July 24, 2020 by jonathan trustram

Here are the pollen laden anthers of a newly opened flower of Lilium longifolium. They are attached to a slender thread called a filament. (I’m writing this out to teach myself as much as you.) Together, anther and filament make … Continue reading →

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garden notes no 27, repetition, moralising, looking, the dying of the light

Posted on July 20, 2020 by jonathan trustram

So what do they ‘really look like’? see  Garden notes no 25, Clematis jackmanii, coming true from seed, white variants, ways of seeing(no 25) For an interesting image the photographer often squats or kneels or even lies flat. Down low … Continue reading →

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garden notes no 26, myrtle

Posted on July 20, 2020 by jonathan trustram

People sometimes want a small tree, but they don’t know what they’re asking for. They have in mind maybe a young magnolia or cherry or crab apple such as you may see in many front gardens. Alas, they all grow … Continue reading →

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Garden notes no 25, Clematis jackmanii, coming true from seed, white variants, ways of seeing

Posted on July 15, 2020 by jonathan trustram

Poor old Dad. No one said, he loved this place, let’s give him a bench. I remember vividly, although maybe it’s the photo that I remember, over the compost heap at Tufnell Park Road was draped my father’s old dressing … Continue reading →

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Garden notes no 24, lilies, eryngiums and companions, Salvia patens, the Kardashian building

Posted on July 11, 2020 by jonathan trustram

Spring is intoxicating but summer brings headaches.  The leaves on one of my lovely Salvia patens look like a cross section through a diseased lung. After the hot spring, exile from the greenhouse for the morning glories was like going … Continue reading →

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