Posted on April 13th, 2012 by admin
After years of trying to tackle the problem of murky water in the beautiful waterlily canal at Waterperry Gardens, we may have found a solution!
The canal has been plagued by algae and weed clogging it up and spoiling the look of this popular water feature.
Part of the problem has been caused by lime, leaching from the plinth on which our lovely statue Miranda stands. She’s now been removed, at least for the time being and the whole canal completely emptied and cleaned down.
We’ve now discovered a new product which promises to raise the PH of the water which will tackle the leaced lime problem and kill any floating algae. If all goes to plan it will improve the clarity of the water and the environment for our fish and waterlilies.
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Posted on April 11th, 2012 by admin
Returning cold weather is never welcome and that’s certainly true of the last few nights when temperatures have dropped to minus 3 or 4.
The biggest problem is the affect the frost has on our plum, pear and apple tree blossom. Tempted into early flower by the beautiful weather of a few weeks ago, they’re now at the critical stage when the fruit sets – something that can’t happen if the blossom has become damaged.
Chris reckons the precious Victoria plum crop has been decimated and although the other plum varieties – Opal and Marjories Seedling look to have escaped the worst at the moment, more bad weather could affect them equally badly.
The Conference, Beurre Hardy and Merton Pride Pears have also been badly hit along with the Bramley Apples. These generally have a very poor tolerance to frost and around 60% of the flowers have been affected, but Chris says there’s still enough flower left for a fairly decent crop – so far!
It’s all a bit of a weather lottery unfortunately but we’re keeping our fingers crossed the worst of the cold snap may be over for good now!
We can dream, can’t we?!
Continuing cold weather affects the fruit blossom
Posted on April 4th, 2012 by admin
It’s on the radio and television and you can’t open a newspaper without being reminded that from today, a hosepipe ban is in force in our area!
So how is a gardener going to cope with the much talked-about dry conditions this summer?
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Posted on April 3rd, 2012 by Susie Hunt
There’s just something so cathartic about spring cleaning and when you’re doing it on the scale our gardeners have been doing it – you feel more virtuous than ever!
Over the past few months they’ve removed all the fish and waterlilies, emptied the whole thing and spent long hours cleaning the beautiful garden feature out.
Why you might ask? Well we’ve had lime problems – mainly caused by our statue Miranda who some visitors may remember used to grace this stretch of water. Lime from her plinth was leaching into the water – changing the PH and affecting both the lilies ability to flourish and the fish’s ability to survive!
Over the past week though, after one of the harshest spring cleans I’ve ever seen, everything’s started going back in again – so far water and lilies, the fish will follow! Horticultural Manager Rob Jacobs and gardener Andrew MacAllistair took advantage of this weeks warm weather to re-introduce the lilies to their lovely new environment and we hope they’ll settle in well enough to bloom this June as normal.
As for Miranda, we’re hoping some remedial work will allow us to put her back in her rightful place – in the meantime, watch this space!
Time to re-introduce our waterlilies to their newly cleaned canal.
Posted on March 13th, 2012 by Rob Jacobs
The moment has arrived and we now face a hosepipe ban from April 5th – but there’s no reason to stop planting!
You just need to put a lot more thought into the variety of plants you choose, where you put them and how you look after them and we’ve some top tips for keeping them looking good this summer – despite the water restrictions.
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Beat the hosepipe ban with careful planting
Posted on February 22nd, 2012 by Susie Hunt
Recent news about parts of the country already facing drought restrictions is a definite concern for the gardeners at Waterperry.
Horticultural Manager Rob Jacobs says the River Thame, which runs through the far eastern end of the gardens is lower than he can ever remember and unless we get some rain soon, there could be very difficult times ahead.
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Posted on January 26th, 2012 by admin
Waterperry’s Orchard team have begun the mammoth task of pruning our 1500 apple and pear trees in the five acre orchards to the west of the main estate and this year it’s more important than ever they move fast!
Orchard Manager Chris Lanczak and his second in command Jules Watling are a dab hand at the intricacies of apple pruning – which is an art all of its own.
But tackling such a huge number in such a short space of time is no mean feat. Apple and pear trees should be pruned between December and the end of February while the trees are still dormant. But this year’s mild weather means the sap is already starting to rise so they’re having to get their skates on!
Chris says it means the season could be earlier, with the trees blossoming sooner than we’d like because it would make them more susceptible to late frosts – and that can wipe out an entire crop!
So there’s more pressure than normal on the orchard duo to complete the task as quickly as possible.
If you’d like to find out more about fruit pruning, we run regular courses. Find out more in the gardening course section of our website at http://www.waterperrygardens.co.uk/whats-on-gardening-courses-category.php?cat=23
Jules Watling and Chris Lanczak with their major pruning job!
Posted on January 25th, 2012 by Susie Hunt
Our Open Weekend at Waterperry is living proof that from tiny acorns, giant oaks can grow!
About 4 years ago, our Orchard Manager Chris Lanczak came up with the idea of opening up the whole estate to visitors for just one day each January.
We were amazed at the incredible response and it became clear straight away that one day just wasn’t enough.
The following year it became our Open Weekend – and continues to attract more and more people, both Waterperry regulars and new visitors.
This weekend was no exception with hundreds coming along to take part in free tours of the Gardens, Nurseries, Orchards and Frescoes.
What we love about the event is it gives us a chance to find out more about why people come to Waterperry and what we can do to make their visit even better.
The good news is we seem to be doing a good job already but rest assured we’re not complacent and are always working our hardest to improve your experience.
In the meantime if you came along last weekend we hope you had a great day out and look forward to seeing you again soon at Waterperry.
Nursery Manager Andrew Chapman behind the scenes at Open Weekend
Posted on January 6th, 2012 by Susie Hunt
And we’re back! After a lovely Christmas break, Waterperry Gardens are open again every day from 10am to 5pm.
It’s a really interesting time in the gardens too – not only are snowdrops starting to flower a month earlier than usual – there’s even some blossom on the trees and the poor old shrubs don’t know whether they’re coming or going.
This weekend looks set fair so if you’re interested in seeing the affects of so much mild weather or late – why not pop over for a visit? There’ll be some gorgeous winter warming food in the teashop too as well as fabulously tempting cakes!
Posted on December 22nd, 2011 by Susie Hunt
So another year has been and gone. Is it just me or has this one disappeared particularly fast? One minute we’re getting all excited about the spring appearance of beautiful Waterperry-grown plants in the plant centre – the next it’s ho ho ho and we’re waving goodbye to another successful year!
And it has been successful – despite all the prophets of doom predicting an continued hard times for retailers – we’ve been lucky enough to see even more customers at Waterperry in 2011 – both hardy perennials and new stock!
Next year’s looking good too! We take centre stage in a brand new leaflet featuring the best gardens in Oxfordshire and it’s available now from visitoxfordandoxfordshire.com – so pick up a copy and start planning your garden visits for 2012.
To all our customers, thank you for your continued support in 2011 and we wish you a healthy, happy and plant-filled 2012. Whatever you’re up to over the festive season, a very Merry Christmas from all the staff at Waterperry Gardens.
P.S. We will be closing our gates on Christmas Eve and enjoying a well-earned rest – reopening on Tuesday 3rd January.
