Plant List

LIST OF PLANTS PAGE

Before you look at the plant list, (which I promise to update very soon) take a glance at this picture. It shows, again how close to the Atlantic Ocean the garden is. The brown bit on the right is part of the "Forest" which was being planted in 1999 when this photograph was taken. The darker green bits surrounding the garden are ferns. The blue bit is the sea.

Notice to photographers: Would you believe this picture was taken with a Canon Eos, using f16 at 1/1000 sec. at the top of a VERY long ladder ?

I thought you wouldn't...... 1/1000 sec. is far too fast.

Interesting

Aonium, Lampranthus, Echeverias, Watsonias, Mysotidium hortensia, a favourite with it's beautiful blue forget-me-not flowers, Solanium Rantonetti,and Escalonia bifida.

Unusual

Restios, Chioundro petalum, Eligia, Metrosiderous, Lophomythus pixie and L. ungi, Fabiana, Correas, Carpenteria and Acantopanax "Gold splash".

This is a view of part of front of the garden.

Our New "Extension"

In 1999 we began an extension to the one and a half acre's of the garden. This was another job for the

While we worried about our sanity, we began planting the "Forest", an area of just under two acres.

Over sixty oak trees form the basis of this part of the garden. If you are four or five years old NOW, you will stand a good chance of seeing them as full sized trees. If you are older than that you will just have to try to imagine what they will be like. Also planted were a few Acacias, an Oxydendrum, a couple of Lilacs, an Euchriphia, a Mellaluca, an Umbrella pine, a Witcheriana pina, a purple maple and many many more.

This new area has a natural stream running through it, but of course, nature being what it is, this dries out in summer .... just when you want it to sparkle and bubble over the rocks. You don't have to be told, if you know West Cork, that the place is full of rocks. (In case you don't know West Cork, the place is full of rocks).

The plan is to keep this area as a semi-wild garden. This is really an excuse for not cutting the grass, pulling weeds, slashing down gorse and shifting boulders.

Just in case you get the impression the garden is a totally unkempt, unloved, rock-strewn place, which it isn't, this may be the time to invite you to have a look at what the garden has achieved since 1992.

Garden was featured in B.B.C. television "Gardeners World" a few years ago.

The magazines "World of Hibernia" and "Woman and Home" also did features on it.

"Garden Heaven" featured it on Irish National Television (R.T.E.) in July 2000.

Garden was awarded FIRST in the "Shamrock" All-Ireland competition in the "Large Summer Garden" section in September 2000.

In the January 2001 edition, the English magazine "COUNTRY LIVING" recommended this web site as "one of the top gardening sites around at the moment". Frankly, this has astounded me more than it has you. To make this recommendation even more astounding Ms. Sue Little, who wrote the article, is not even a relation of mine, nor have I ever met her. She is obviously an outstanding journalist of impeccable taste and erudition.

An R.T.E Radio programme, by Frieda McGough did a half- hour feature on it in 2002.

In August 2002 we were visited by the "Flying Gardener" team from B.B.C.2..... Chris Beardshaw and all !!! (He really impressed the head gardener. Personally I thought the two Michelles were smashing) In any case the entire crew were very professional and efficient. The only negative feed-back came from a neighbour whose sheep were terrified by the low flying helicopter. We are looking forward to seeing the programme on television during the Spring of 2003.

September 2002 marked a visit by our most famous gardening guest to date. I say this, with all respect to ALL our other visitors. I am sure they will agree that a visit to one's garden by CHRISTOPHER LLOYD is both an honour and a privilege. Here he is , having a cup of tea with the gardener.

In 2004 the IRISH TIMES featured the garden, with an article by Jane Powers.

In the July 2007 issue, MON JARDIN & MA MAISON, a prestigious French magazine devoted six pages to the garden.

Finally, "a Promise" .... you will be assured of a decent welcome when you come here. There will be no sales talk, no rushing around ....but plenty of knowledge of matters horticultural (Wheelbarrow maintenance instruction, will however be very expensive). You will almost certainly get a few ideas to use in your own garden.

Looking forward to seeing you.

Finally, really finally. If you have time, have a look at the pictures on the next page. To make up for the lack of them (the pictures) on other pages there are nothing but Garden Pictures there.

UPDATE FOR 2002 Plant of the week Garden Pictures 2003 News JUNE 2004 2005 2006 Update 2006 update:part 2 Update for 2007