On the 4th of April I was lucky enough to attend the talk on the Delights of Delphiniums by Greg Venesse of the Front Gardeners’ Nursery. It was lovely to hear from such an passionate and knowledgeable grower. I especially enjoyed hearing the story of how he began with a few ‘borrowed’ seeds and went on to develop such a deep interest that it lead to the establishment of his nursery. He had a very chatty and informal style and yet managed to get across so much useful information about how to grow and care for these beautiful plants.
I was pleased to finally discover that the reason for my failures with so many delphiniums in the past was due to choosing Pacific hybrids such as the Magic Fountain series which are the types most often sold in garden centres and are not reliably perennial. Delphinium elatum varieties, as sold by Greg and other specialist nurseries, however, are fully hardy and reliable in the garden. They cope with freezing temperatures in winter and can grow up to 8 feet tall. These are the magnificent specimens that we see at Chelsea.
I was interested to learn that these are relatively easy to grow from seed. Seed can be sewn as early as January and these early sowings can flower in the first year. Of course growing from seed means that one won’t get a clone of the parent plant but I am definitely going try using seed from my own plants. Greg recommended taking basal cuttings from favourite varieties. The plants produce large crowns as they mature and a fresh new shoot taken with a small piece of this crown will go on to produce a clone of your chosen variety.
The talk was illustrated lovely photos and one showing Greg surrounded by wonderful tall spikes of delphiniums towering over his head clearly demonstrated the need for providing good supports for these flowers using a simple three cane system.
I know many of us were unable to leave without buying at least one of the plants that Greg had bought for sale and I can’t wait to see mine blooming in my garden later this summer.