The Exotic Roadtrip

My first post for a while!

Not really a roadtrip but a drive around the local are in search of exotic and unusual plants. Not sure whether anyone else does this, or whether it's just something weird people do, but it seems the sort of thing for exotic enthusiasts to do, not so sure about different gardening styles, I suspect not since typical gardening, would see species grown in gardens as so common it wouldn't be worth taking a look.. maybe I'm wrong though.

Anyway enough of the babble, so a friend and I took a drive around the local area, for anyone who doesn't know, it's around Wirral and Northeast Wales. For those who don't know Wirral it's a peninsula between Liverpool and North Wales.

So here's what we found on the exotic plant hunt (some people from other forums may have seen these).

In Prestatyn, North Wales, the council like to plant interesting things, such as this Cycad. A nice bedding arrangement, bordered by Chlorophytum - it's like the old days!


Up in the hilly parts, Prestatyn has an excellent climate.. now anyone living in London will know, Canary Island Date Palms are everywhere - in fact, anywhere in the UK where a decent climate exists, there are lots of these date palms, except in Prestatyn where this one seem to be the only young one around - poor lonely palm!


For those that live inland, with those cold chilly frosts, you're probably used to seeing these Yuccas in conservatories or in the houseplant section in B&Q.. here on the coast, we grow them outside.. well why not? This one at Prestatyn enjoying their nice moderate climate.


Until December 2010, green Cordylines were common as roses, and no-one really thought anything of them.. just another plant.. less so where these red Cordylines which are kind of tender.. coastal fodder as I like to call them.. nice.


After that we went back to Wirral (aka home), where the tally of exotic plants far outcompetes Prestatyn.. perhaps surprisingly.

First we went to a town called West Kirby, which is on the opposite shore of the River Dee to Prestatyn. There are a nice grove (yes that's right, a grove) of Canary Island Date palms.. Can they survive in the Wirral climate.. these 6 don't lie? ps check out the Bay tree behind them.. monster!


Next we headed towards New Brighton, an old defunct seaside town on Wirral's northeast corner, facing the shore of Liverpool where the Irish sea meets the River Mersey.

A giant houseplant Yucca aka those ones in B&Q and in conservatories on the way to New Brighton.. very impressive I thought, certainly not for a small courtyard garden. Just remember the only thing stopping this from developing into a monster in your conservatory is the pot that it's in!


So here's the interesting but, we come to New Brighton, this is one of two large Canary Island Palms.. whilst these aren't the most northerly permanently planted out Canary Island Date Palms in the world (that title belongs to Northern Ireland), they almost certainly the biggest most northerly situation CIDPs in the world.


Here's the other one.. possibly bigger. This one might be more marginally more north, making this the largest CIDP in the most northerly position in the world.


Also in New Brighton in the grounds of this weird surrealist colonial mock up house was this European Fan Palm, a native of the Mediterranean, and more likely to be more widespread around the British Isles in cultivation


Last one.. another houseplant Yucca (outside) down the coast!


Thanks for reading!

 

How does one tell a Yucca from a Cordyline (at a distance) ?

 

You just kind of do, mostly.

 

I am just outside Prestatyn at the mo so can look out for these tomorrow. What fun! Climate not feeling too mild however - positively autumnal.

 

Only photos 1-4 were of Prestatyn, the Cycad should be easy to find as it's in the centre of Prestatyn.

 

OK, so not just me that thinks they look alike

 

I dunno really, but all the photos of Stephens yuccas are most likely Y. elephantipes, it just looks different from a Cordyline.
For starters you rarely get arching foliage, old foliage tends to stay straight, but just lowers.

Most Yuccas have stiffer leaves, the ones that dont rarely get very tall.

 

Hiya Stephen, nice to see you back and just loved the visit with you.

Be in touch soon. xx

 

You lot got me at it now

 

that's a nice piccie Ziggy....