Think in the box

I had been bought an auricula by my mother when we visited a plant fair at Newburgh Priory. It is an exquisite thing, but needed to be displayed somewhere it could be seen in isolation rather than lost among more dominant plants.

Reflecting on the problem, I remembered seeing some auricula theatres at Chelsea Flower Show a few years back. These were amazing things, shelves covered in black velvet on which the terracotta potted plants sat to show off their wonderful blooms.

Only having the one plant, such a setting would be a little ambitious, but thinking around the problem I decided an old wooden wine crate would do. A couple were found at a local wine merchant and they sat at home waiting to be sorted out. In the meantime, Toby Buckland on Gardeners’ World in his dubious “30 Minute Job” slot created, yes you’ve guessed, an Auricula Theatre.

He used an old drawer but the principle was the same and I felt disturbingly cross all evening.

Mood restored by a night’s sleep, I set to creating my own mini-theatre, putting a protective coat of varnish on the exterior of the boxes and a couple of coats of cream paint on the inside.

Pride swallowed, I stole an idea from Toby and made a sloping roof from old lead that had been in the garden for years. A couple of drill holes in the back completed the job and the boxes were ready to be fixed to the wall. Although a relatively easy task, 30 minutes is an optimistic time for something like this to be carried out. It takes an hour or so for one coat of quick dry varnish to dry.

Auricula ‘Wincha’ in its hand-thrown terracotta pot complete with thumb prints looks great in its new home. Placed at eye level in a sunny spot by the backdoor, it is easy to take a moment to admire the perfection of the petals and powdered leaves.

The second box is in situ but empty, waiting for its own jewel. Perhaps one will be found tomorrow at the Harrogate Spring Flower Show.

‘Wincha’ is a self auricular, which means it has single colour petals, in this case almost black with a hue of very deep red and a ring of ‘paste’ around the central stamens. The leaves turn upwards around the flower stem and are a lightish green with a dusty covering.

There was a craze for collecting auriculas from the 17th to 19th centuries, not as bankrupting as Tulipomania, but with some plants still costing more than a week’s wage for less well off collectors.

However, the popularity of auriculas waned towards the end of the 1800s, with many varieties becoming extinct after the First World War. Between the wars, auricula societies were instrumental in keeping the species going and by the end of the war, interest was once again ignited.

Since then many new varieties have appeared with ‘Wincha’ a result of a cross between dark flowered ‘Barbarella’ and maroon bloomed ‘Harry O’ in 1985.

Weekend catch-up

IT IS time to harden off seedlings germinated and grown on indoors. Start by putting them outside for a couple of hours at the warmest part of the day, gradually increasing the time over the next few weeks.

Hardy annuals will quickly adapt to the outdoors, but more tender specimens need to be acclimatised more slowly. Watch out for forecasts of sudden drops in temperature and especially late frosts, and bring tender plants back inside.

The danger of frost is usually past by the end of May when summer plants can be planted outside.

Harrogate Spring Flower Show

THE show continues over the weekend at the Great Yorkshire Showground today from 9.30am to 5.30pm and tomorrow from 9.30am to 4.30pm. Tickets are available at the gate price £14 adult today and £12 tomorrow. Under 16s are free and there is plenty of free car parking on site with courtesy buses to the gate.

Cemetery walk

DAVID Poole will lead a walk around York Cemetery tomorrow starting at 2pm entitled Monuments and Masons, looking at the variety of tombstones to be found in the cemetery. Meet at the gatehouse a few minutes before the start of the walk. Tickets, which include tea/coffee and biscuits are £2.50 for adults, £1 for Friends of the Cemetery and £1 for children.

Gardening TV and Radio

Tomorrow.

8am, BBC Radio Humberside, Gardening Phone-in. With Blair Jacobs and Doug Stewart telephone number 01482 225959.

9am, BBC Radio Leeds, Gardening. With Tim Crowther and Joe Maiden.

2pm, BBC Radio 4, Gardeners’ Question Time. A postbag edition with Matthew Biggs, Bob Flowerdew, Pippa Greenwood and chairman Peter Gibbs. The gardening weather forecast is at 2.40pm. (Repeated from Friday).

Friday.

3pm, BBC Radio 4, Gardeners’ Question Time. This week the programme is from Kent where Matthew Biggs, Bob Flowerdew, Pippa Greenwood and chairman Peter Gibbs help members of Tunstall Gardeners Society in Sittingbourne with their horticultural problems. Plus a report on growing olives in the UK and the gardening weather forecast at 3.40pm.