Friday, February 04, 2011
Mark and Gaz
We had the pleasure of visiting Mike Bell last May and seeing his bamboo collection which he maintains on a dedicated site. He is the President Emeritus of The European Bamboo Society (EBS Great Britain) and regarded as the top most expert when it comes to growing and cultivating bamboo in the UK.
A very knowledgeable and down to earth man, we had a lovely time looking at his collection whilst chatting about the bamboos and all sorts of other exotic plants. Most of his specimens are stunning and well maintained solely by him. And lots of rare specimens and new introductions too!
Here are just some of the photos we took during our visit. There will be some that I don't have a label for as I've forgotten what they were but most will have, but bamboo aficionados might be able to ID them just by looking :)
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| Phyllostachys aureosulcata 'Harbin' |
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| Phyllostachys aureosulcata 'Harbin Inversa' |
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| Mike Bell showing us his specimen of Borinda lushuiensis (Yunnan 4) which was severely cut back from last winter |
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| Borinda (Yunnan 3B) |
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| Chusquea nigricans |
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| Chusquea gigantea |
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| Chusquea culeou |
A very knowledgeable and down to earth man, we had a lovely time looking at his collection whilst chatting about the bamboos and all sorts of other exotic plants. Most of his specimens are stunning and well maintained solely by him. And lots of rare specimens and new introductions too!
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.
