Garden conifers for me still conjure up images of the 1970s, a conifer bed, surrounded by heathers and in front of a house with stone cladding. Maybe I need to move on, forget the past, after all I was only there (in the 70s) for the latter few years.
One conifer that breaks that mould is Sciadopitys verticillata, the umbrella pine, a fabulous looking conifer that really is at home in an exotic theme.
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| Sciadopitys verticillata |
We have one in a pot on the steps just as you leave the conservatory, and it never fails to capture my gaze as I step out of the house. It has been remarkably unfussy for us, and perhaps at some point we will need to consider finding it a more permanent home in the ground, but for now a pot in a prime spot allows us to enjoy it.
Hailing from Japan, it should be perfectly hardy for most of the UK, however it is famously slow growing and usually relatively expensive as a result. But worth tracking down a nice specimen.
So with out a heather or stone clad house in sight, perhaps I should re-evaluate how I think of conifers!
Gaz
This gardening blog follows our journey as we create our Tropical and Exotic themed garden. We hope you'll enjoy the journey as much as we do. We started our Exotic Garden in 2005 and this site will show its development, as well as our travels, both abroad and within the UK to gardens, nurseries and friends.
Fabulous texture! What was that George Michael album, Listen Without Prejudice? We all need a Garden Without Prejudice anthem, because those old prejudices die hard! Truth is, even trad conifer gardens get my heart beating a little fast because they are such beautiful plants.
ReplyDeleteIndeed Denise, there are so many beautiful and exotic looking conifers out there. And so are conifer gardens
DeleteIt's a beautiful plant and one I've never seen here. I agree with Denise that we all need to shake off the plant prejudices we carry with us form childhood. I grew up disparaging Callistemons and considering Agapanthus boring.
ReplyDeleteIndeed. And it is also liberating to be free of that plant prejudice and appreciate their beauty beyond their plant names
DeleteA gorgeous plant. Worth admiration on every walk-by. I had to go read about it--27 meters tall in less than 700 years.
ReplyDeleteHere in SoCal there was a craze for a large, coarse, initially low growing juniper in the 1960's and 70's as a "low maintenance" solution to "yard work". They can still be seen occasionally in front gardens that have not been changed since the '60s.
Just shows how conifers had their hey day in the seventies, a reputation they still find hard to shake off
DeleteExotic looking pine! I've seen it recently in some nursery here, little cute plants, but didn't get brave enough to buy it after seeing giant S.v. trees in European gardens. Slow growth is a good feature in this case! It looks great in your garden!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely worth going for, their slow growth is an advantage really
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