Ultimate Conservatory Garden

That's great Kristen. I am going to have to read that carefully.

The drawback that I see, is that you can produce large numbers of the same thing. Whereas what we really want is small numbers of lots of different things.

For Christmas, I think I would really like a random genome generator. A machine that re-assembled DNA in random order and grew (or tried to grow) one plant from each. But I think we need to find the plant gene first. You might create a fatal virus disease, or perhaps worse - an alien predator.

 

Lots of Banana aeae would be fine by me ... eBay gold-digger here I come!

 

Slippery slope ... I have bought:


http://www.amazon.co.uk/Plants-Test-Tubes-Introduction-Micropropagation/dp/1604692065/

Revised 4th edition published only a couple of months ago

 

Lolimac - many thanks for your suggestion of a Star Jasmine. I was at first a bit luke warm as I already have a couple of Jasmines - nudiflorum and beesianum and the flowers are very small and insignificant.

I hadn't realised Star Jasmine is not a Jasmine at all. As you know its Trachelospermum jasminoides. Its a bit tender which is not a problem as I am heating my garden room to 10C over the winter. Its flower size is pretty small and not that significant, but I will be sitting in the garden room and hence very much closer to it than you would be in a garden. Its evergreen, which is a strong point, and I believe it has a strong scent, which will be even stronger in an enclosed space.

So I have just bought one on E-bay for £5 + £4 postage. I see large plants can sell for £50 - but I understand its fast growing so I am very happy with the price. Its not variegated, but I am not generally a fan of variegated plants.

So many thanks for the suggestion. Evergreen and scent sound just right.

 

Bit of propagation and you and I will have paid for our garden rooms in a year or two !!

 

@PeterS .....I think you'll be really pleased with the Trachelospermum Jasminoides,yes the flowers are pretty small but the fabulous scent more than makes up for them...plus you have the extra benefit of it being in your Garden room to really get the most of it

 

Climbers;
Solandra maxima
Hardenbergia
Thunbergia gregorii
Aristolachia

What about bulbs? You can move and store them out of season;
Eucharis
Hymenocallis
Scadoxus
Ferraria
Lachenalia
Albuca nelsonii

Generally interesting suggestions;
Cubanola domingensis - ultimately a smallish bush, uber fragrant.
Mackaya bella
Cantua buxifolia
Species Impatiens


For a long blooming period, that's easy - Salvia discolor. Mine is still blooming in the (still) unheated greenhouse. Of all the plants I've ever grown, S.discolor is one of the very best doers!

 

Nobody has mentioned bougainvillea They're colourful, long-flowering, easy to train on wires and have one big advantage..the papery bracts drop but don't go gooey or stain furniture and floors!

 

If I could, I would try one or two of the more tender/exotic types...

 

Passiflora alata.......................


Or P.antioquensis........................

 

Plumbago is worth thinking about too

 

wow loads of ideas for you new place , PeterS it look great and really hope will work .
mine was a fail , even with the heating the plant didn`t survive the lack of light and the cold humidity .
that was my happy place 3 years ago



now is just a plant stash .

I would really suggest to cut down on average pants and start to collect rare and expencive ( ) plants , plants that will make you happy anytime you look at them .

 

I have a nice one (relatively Dark colour) which came from Jungle Plants. Not tried to propagate it, as yet, but happy to have a go

 

I had a beauty but killed it i went away for a week and the temperature unexspectedly rocketed in the conservatory

 

I'll try for two cuttings then