Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

A collection such as this alerts you to the diversity of snowdrops tall, short, slender, fat, single, double, glaucous or green-leaved and of their myriad markings, as well as how long a flowering season they have. G. reginae-olgae is out in the autumn, G. elwesii Hiemalis Group at Christmas, 'Atkinsii in January and 'Straffan right at the end of February, he says. Since Sales likes to have his garden full of interest at all times of year, he relishes this contribution.

Now, at their midseason climax, the snowdrops are accompanied by a lemon yellow witch hazel (Hamamelis x intermedia 'Pallida) in full flush, and pools of pink Cyclamen coum, growing in small circular beds around the trees in the lawn. In one of these beds, the cyclamen share ground with crocus, white bluebells, self-seeding love-in-a-mist (Nigella), and Cyclamen neapolitanum, giving an all-year flower display entirely on its own.

Elsewhere, Sales has his snowdrops under shrub roses and tree peonies, between summer perennials and pushing through wild strawberry and other ground cover all crisply presented against a thin mulch of dark home-made compost.

I wondered which of the many varieties he would especially recommend. If you were going for only one snowdrop, it would have to be 'S. Arnott a group gives you a lovely honey scent in the air. 'Atkinsii and 'Magnet are old favourites. 'Galatea I love, 'Ailwyn is the best double, and 'Armine is a good late one. He also shows me 'Lyn, named after his wife and found by her in a nearby wood. Tall like a very early-flowering Atkinsii and quick to colonise, it looks terrific. With other snowdrops he has introduced, his naming has been more playful: 'January Sales and 'Compu.Ted (named after his grandson Ted, a computer buff).

Snowdrop 'Lyn' named after John's wife (Heathcliff O'Malley)

Sales is still involved in the management of historic gardens as a consultant for private estates such as Chatsworth. But when not busy with this, or entertaining his grandchildren, retirement has allowed him time to develop his garden into a plantsmans paradise. The maintenance is immaculate, including in the two covered glasshouses, which sport a 'Cornish Snow camellia and pots of South African bulbs, including a fat clump of pink, poker-like Veltheimia bracteata this last plant producing a spectacle that I am going to try to emulate in my own frost-free porch next winter.

A life in gardens

John Sales joined the National Trust in the early Seventies as an assistant to Graham Stuart Thomas (1909-2003), one of the countrys greatest plantsmen and garden writers. Sales has just finished writing his memoirs, so I asked him about his days with the Trust.

In those days, the Trust was run by aesthetes. It had very low membership and visitor numbers, and yet they would still take on properties such as West Wycombe Park with an endowment of just 5,000, says Sales. With inflation, that was hopeless. At that time, most gardens were viewed by many in the Trust rather as a stage-set for the house instead of having an intrinsic worth.

Since they had to be run on a tight budget and there was little opportunity to do much research into them, making them presentable was the main thing. But there was some great talent among the head gardeners men such as Mike Snowden at Erddig and Jimmy Hancock at Powis Castle. With gardeners such as Pamela Schwerdt and Sibylle Kreutzberger at Sissinghurst, who had each other to bounce ideas off, the visits with Graham and myself were more like conversations, but elsewhere we could be mentors to the head gardeners and help address weaknesses organising for them to go on a particular course or work in another garden to help raise standards. Such interactions are vital: people are not born good gardeners, they are made good gardeners through contact with experts.

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Snowdrop paradise: a collector's dream

The other day I passed through regular "Old" trail going up and the DENR "New" trail going down Pico de Loro on a hike with Agot Isidro - her second on the mountain (see Hiking matters #179 for the first one). It was a very nice trek; we started trekking just before 0800H and 0945H we were at the summit. Agot finally went up the 'Monolith'. By 1230H we were having lunch in Lolo Claro's in Maragondon. It was very nice to be back in Pico after one and a half years!

Since I've blogged extensively about the mountain, let me focus on my preliminary opinions about the New Trail. I'm sure the DENR Protected Area Management Board has its reasons for making a new trail and I will not wade into the debate on whether it was necessary to make a new trail in the first place.

The trail begins from the DENR itself. From the parking area following the trail on the right that leads to a small cement bridge, some gazebos, and a brook. The trail starts from the brook. Initially the forests are have a spacious feel, akin to the lower reaches of Manabu Peak.

As goes higher, however, it feels like Mt. Maculot's New Trail. It is narrow, its surface undifferentiated from the rest of the ground, its environs lacking the depth of the forests in the Old Trail. Because it is still new, there are a lot of loose roots and ground vines that may cause you to trip.

After a mostly continuous ascent, It reaches a height of 596 meters (1413'7.57" N, 12030'9.62" E) on a peak that offers a view of Mt. Marami and the Maragondon Range. At this point the trail is mostly bamboo; a bit further from the viewpoint you can see the summit area ahead. However, you have to make a descent into a junction that is 15 minutes away from the campsite, which is in turn 15 minutes before the summit.

In Batulao, I quickly fell in love with the New Trail when it opened way back in 2009. In Pico de Loro, however, it's a different story. Personally, I still like the Old Trail more because I generally like old trails: they have a character molded through time and you can see it in the smoothness of the roots and the branches, the logics of the trail itself, and its peaceful co-existence with the forest. On the other hand the New Trail offers a faster, more straightforward ascent or descent - though if you have a fast pace the difference is marginal.

Time will tell what will happen to the New Trail -and the Old. At the moment the policies have not yet been clarified. Already, there are signs of trash in the New Trail and I do hope that the DENR, having created it, will be proactive in maintaining its cleanliness - but of course this also largely depends on the hikers themselves.

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Hiking matters #448: The New DENR Trail up Pico de Loro

Feng Shui tips for Year of the Goat / Sheep 2015
Feng Shui tips for Year of Wood Goat/Sheep - year 2015, prepared by Malgorzata Galkowska-Bladek - FSRC Poland 🙂 Enjoy!

By: Feng Shui Research Center Poland

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Bhavishyavani | February 14, 2015
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Bhavishyavani | February 14, 2015 - Video

DINGDONG Dantes and Marian Rivera

Since its still the Love Month and Chinese New Year is fast approaching, I sought feng shui master and mi amiga Marites Allens advice for celeb couples this year, so they will remain each others yin and yang. (Check out your own monthly forecast on the Frigga Charmed Life fan page and the lucky fashion website, http://www.frigga.co.uk.)

May there be no black sheep or wolf in sheeps clothing in your life in this Year of the Sheep!

Dingdong Dantes (Monkey), Marian Rivera (Rat)

Wonderful things await the Monkey and Rat, either individually, or as a couple. As astrological allies, you complement, and are compatible with, each other. You inspire and, at the same time, challenge each other, which makes things even more exciting. The Monkey will be confident and the Rat will enjoy many positive indications this year. Whats even more important is that both of you share the same values and ambitions.

John Lloyd Cruz (Boar), Angelica Panganiban (Tiger)

Great love, great time, good year for the fun-loving Tiger and Boar. Both know how to enjoy life and are demonstrative of their affections. Completion luck is indicated for both of youthis means a generally good and productive year. You bring out the best in each other and, being both generous and outgoing, you will always be surrounded by like-minded friends and colleagues. Socializing figures well this year.

Matteo Guidicelli (Snake), Sarah Geronimo (Dragon)

Gerald Anderson (Snake), Maja Salvador (Dragon)

MAJA Salvador and Gerald Anderson

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Feng shui love advice for celeb couples

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The Duck Chronicles Episode Eighteen Now They Know What The Fences Mean
In The Duck Chronicles Episode Eighteen Now They Know What The Fences Mean we start off with the baby ducks that are not quite so baby any more. Likely Friday we will do a weigh...

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The Duck Chronicles Episode Eighteen Now They Know What The Fences Mean - Video