Garden Guests
We recently had the privilege to welcome some special guests from the National Trust. We enjoyed showing Andrew Jasper, Pam Smith, Rebecca Bevan and Alison Crook around the garden and we sent them back with a special gift that we propagated at Morton Hall.
One of the more unusual plants we grow at Morton Hall is Sorbaria aitchisonii. This elegant, deciduous shrub is native to Afghanistan, Pakistan and Kashmir and was discovered in 1879 by Dr Aitchison before being sent back to Kew the following year. It has delicate, finely cut leaves that are reddish when young and large pyramid panicles of creamy white flowers in July and August. Last year we successful rooted cuttings from the single plant we have in the garden and potted them up. Several of these plants found new homes in the garden but we chose to offer our final new plant to the National Trust.
It will be taken to the National Trust plant conservation centre where it will be propagated and distributed to selected National Trust gardens where we hope that it will be conserved, admired, and enjoyed for many years to come.