How lucky we were to be
educated and entertained last evening by Yorkshire lass, Stella
Exley.
www.harespringcottageplants.co.uk
For many of us Stella
needs little introduction as she was the key plant supplier for Chris
Beardshaw's Gold Medal Winning Show Garden for Morgan Stanley at the
RHS's Chelsea Show in 2015: supplying some 2,000 camassias in
flower!
Gardening
has always been part of Stella's life from early childhood. She
attributes this passion and her 'moral
compass'
in life to the guidance received from both her parents and Granddad
George. She clearly recalls halcyon days of being wheeled along in a
squeaky barrow from her Dad's allotment bearing sprays of
chrysanthemums for her mum.
Though initially
training as a garden designer, Stella quickly recognised that she was
an 'out doors' / 'hands on girl' and opened her plant nursery, where
she is still both chief executive and rookie labourer!
In
her nursery Stella grows a range of hardy perennials but has special
interests in Camassias, Sidalceas & Uvularias. Producing
commercial plants in the harsh climate of the eastern Pennines has
made her opt for 'tough' plants that don't need staking etc. Though
loving plants like sweet peas, she does not have the time to
'shilly-shally'
around such 'emotional'
plants.
Whilst in Devon Stella
fell in love when she saw a garden naturally planted with drifts of
camassias. That was twenty eight years ago. She now has eighty five
varieties and indeed since 2016 has the UK's National Collection of
Camassias. (In 2014 Stella worked with plants-man, Chris Saunders to
ensure that the rare camassias from the late Margaret Owen's National
Collection were not lost.)
The History of
Camassias
“
The
camassia is one of North America's little-known
natives that belongs in every wild-flower garden. The beautiful
purplish-blue Camassia 'Lily', sometimes called American Hyacinth, is
native to the northern plains and mountain states, and figured
prominently in Native American history. The lilies carpet open areas
in the northern plains, and the bulbs were used for both food and
medicine. The plant was 'discovered' by Lewis and Clark as they
ventured west, and found the Indians harvesting thousands of Camassia
bulbs. Lewis tried the meal made from the bulbs, and found it didn't
agree with him, but that's fine. You probably don't plan on eating
your Camassia bulbs. Just plant them in your wild-flower meadow and
enjoy their blue beauty for years to come.”
(Camassia
was collected by the Lewis and Clark Expedition on the Weippe Prairie
along Jim Ford Creek just south of Weippe, Clearwater Co., Idaho, on
23 Jun 1806.)
Common names include Camas,
Wild hyacinth, Indian hyacinth, Quamash. Though Native Western
Americans relied on Camas for their sustenance and travelled great
distances to attain it, DO NOT attempt to eat bulbs from the
wild. Their deadly look-alike s, Death Camas (Zigadenus Venenosus),
often grows alongside them.
With
judicious planting in the UK and 'good' growing weather, camassias
can be in bloom for some ten weeks, from mid April to June. The blue
varieties bloom first and the ivory coloured ones later.
They
crave damp, heavy soils and though they cope in full sun are
appreciative of shade. (In their native habitat, much water will be
derived from the dramatic snow melt in the Rockies.) They vary in
height from 35 com to 1.2 m. They can been grown in pots (ideally
three per 1litre), in tubs and in the ground. They are resistant to
slugs & snails. They can be part of a scheme and look fabulous
with other 'woodlanders'.
 |
| Stella & Chris at Chorley Show, Lancashire |
Stella
met Chris Beardshaw in 2013 at a flower show at Arley Hall. He wanted
to meet local growers and Stella was chosen to meet him. Little did
she know that in under two years he would present her with a huge
challenge and trust her into the limelight!
'Horticulturally'
speaking, the time with Chris proved more than testing. There was
much snow in 2015 and 2,000 perfect camassias had to be ready to
perform with sequential blooming; all for the third week in May. And
of course there were transportation logistics; getting the plants
conveyed along tiny, farm tracks for a few miles to the waiting
juggernaut!
In
the 2018 May edition of Country Living, Stella was featured in a
series entitled, The Passionate Gardener. You can read this article
via the following link;
There was plenty of advice and treats for us too.
Written by PMR
Various reference
sources used
