Clumber Park Walled Kitchen Garden in April

On Saturday we took advantage of the good weather and went over to Clumber Park. After some sessions of rounders and football we took our picnic over to the cricket pitch. Despite the best efforts of the English rainmakers the sun shone and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. I couldn't resist a visit to the Walled Kitchen Garden. It closes to the public at the end of October but reopens at Easter so this was my first visit of the year.

Last year the east wing of the Long Range glasshouse was subject to a massive and very expensive restoration project. It is now fully open and being used for its original intention. Walking through you can see plenty of seeds and plants already looking strong and healthy. The peas are starting to wind themselves up some natural pea sticks.

There's enough tomato plants on the go to make sure the café and The Garden Tea House won't go short throughout the summer.

At the far end of the glasshouse is a nursery roped off from the public. You can view what's going on and it seems the team of gardeners will be very busy soon planting out all the crops. The glasshouse at Clumber is the longest one that the National Trust is responsible for.

Outside the National Collection of rhubarb seems to be progressing nicely. On the 9^th and 10^th of May it is Clumber's annual Rhubarb weekend so I'm sure we'll see more of it then. Most the fruit trees are in blossom including the kiwi in the soft fruit garden. Underneath are rows of neatly arranged strawberries.

Whatever the time of year the Walled Kitchen Garden is open there is always a good selection of flowers. In the height of summer the herbaceous borders are full and the three separate sections are colour coded. The bottom area is white, the middle goes through pink, purples and blue while at the top it is the hot yellows, oranges and red. In spring there this is also the case but it is tulips and daffodils that provide the colour. Filling up the beds in the vegetable garden is an equally impressive range of tulips. One thing I learnt this week was that the reason tulips droop so quickly after being put in a vase it that they are one of the few flowers that keep growing after being cut. I think I prefer them in the garden anyway.