Ultimate Conservatory Garden

Many thanks all of you for your ideas.

A few thoughts are crystalising. One is that, maybe, I don't want too many plants. As Sal said there is a temptation to cram too much stuff in and turn an elegant space into a storage room. The other is that its difficult to plant with ideas only. It may be better to wait until the summer and just try different things by moving plants about. My thoughts for the main groups are :-

Specimens - ie large plants to reach the roof this coming summer.
I already have several bananas, Brugmansia, Canna altensteinii and I recently bought two reduced bamboos Phyllostachys aurea. I wouldn't dare plant then outside because of their invasiveness, but they could do well in a very large pot. I don't have a big tree fern - but they look nice in some of the pictures - and look expensive.

Climbers
I am going to take Kristen's idea and cover the back wall with vine eyes and wire. Current thoughts are to grow Lolimac's idea of Trachelospermum jasminoides, also Cobea scandens, which grew well for me this year but never flowered. Also Asarina scandens, which was lovely this year. And Rhodochiton atrosanguineum, which was superb last year; and perhaps an Ipomea, which did well outside one hot summer but badly in a cool summer. These are all well tried, simple, fast growers to get me started.

I would love to try other climbers like LongK's suggestions. Solandea has been on my list, as has a blue Thunbergia. I have an Aristolachia grandiflora from Sal's seed (many thanks) . I don't know Hardenbergia - but that does look nice. But these will all take time to grow to a reasonable size - so I would regard them as a second generation.

Mid sized
Yes Noisette, thanks - I have three small Bougainvillea, which as you say should be a prime candidate. I also have Plumbago (thanks Lolimac and thanks for the offer Kristen - but I have two, which is enough), Cantua (thanks LongK) and loads of other plants. But they are all small, and I have a feeling that a good garden needs a small number of larger plants, rather than a collection of small plants.

But for sheer outrageous colour, I would like to try Streptosolen (above) again. My small one died last winter, but a higher greenhouse temperature might keep another going.

Scented plants
Lolimac has given me a great idea for another category - scented plants. I don't bother too much in the garden itself, as most scents are not that strong in the open air. But an enclosed space is another matter. Any ideas of good candidates?

LongK and Freddy - yes a red Passiflora is also on my list as a dangler. Hill House nursery have a huge, superb, red one. I was going to ask them what it is. However I am not sure at the moment how I can have wires across the roof for a dangler without drilling into the metal bars, which I am loothe to do at present.

 

I can't wait to see your Garden room evolve PeterS...

For scent IMO you can't go wrong with Nemesia,Verbena,Laurentia,I think they have a wonderful scent and in an enclosed place you'd really get the benefit from them...not exactly exotics but little beauties all the same

 

For scent;
Hymenocallis
Eucharis
Ferraria
Cubanola
Various Clerodendrum species
Hoya

I think that you need one of these (or something similar) Peter........................


Great way to display smaller specimen plants on a smaller floor area which can be rotated during the year.