April 27, 2005

'Y GWYLLT' Portmeirion Gardens March 2005

Rhododendron macabeanum hybrid Shelter Valley	Drimys winteri var. andina Shelter Valley	Narcissus 'February Gold' and Saxifraga hirsuta Top of Shelter Valley	Rhododendron lutescens bottom of Battery Ridge	Rhododendron moupinense Dwarf Rhododendron Bank
Maytenus boaria flowers Salutation	Maytenus boaria flower buds	Magnolia campellii Salutation Wood	Magnolia campellii Maytenus boaria in background	Magnolia sprengeri var. diva
Magnolia sprengeri var. diva close up bud	Magnolia sprengeri var. diva detail
March is a forerunner, a taste of what is to come in the Gwyllt. Just the beginnings are evident and towards the end of the month some of the Magnolias have just begun their albeit brief, spectacular shows. Camellias have a few flowers and Rhododendron arboreum Group and Rhododendron 'Choremia' are at their best. Rhododendron 'Choremia' with its intense vermillion flowers and glaucous backed leaves is a Bodnant cross. One suspects that some of them may be seedlings of this original cross from Bodnant as they are obviously old plants with beautifully marked trunks and they show some variation as well. Now the cold spell has broken (16th March), the range of Camellias and Rhododendrons flowering will increase day by day. Until now there have been just the odd few flowers, many of them of poor quality being badly affected by frosts. Frosts of the severity (down to -3°C) that we have just had are rare, but certainly not unheard of. There was even a thin layer of ice on the shady side of the Chinese Lake. Below is a list of Rhododendrons flowering and where they can be found:
Dwarf Rhododendron Bank - above Shelter Valley	Rhododendron moupinense, R. leucapsis. R.spiculiferum, R. chrysodoron, R. sulfureum, R. valentianum,