Index

The point of this post is to easily direct you to information within my blog NEW at Kew.  The following indices are organized by chronological order, topic, and my British treat of the week.  Direct links to relevant information from Kew are provided immediately below this paragraph.

Kew Gardens
Internship Program
Apprenticeship Program
Horticulture Diploma

Chronological Order
Introduction
Week One
Week Two
Week Three
Week Four
Week Five
Week Six
Week Seven
Week Eight
Week Nine
Week Ten
Week Eleven
Conclusion

By Topic
Aquatic Garden
Collection Verification 
Edging 
Financial Conserations
Housing Considerations
Irrigation
Grass Garden
Labels
Order Beds
Propagation
Rose Pergola
Salvia Border
Wildlife
Wisteria Pruning

By Treats
Baked Good Debate
Bakewell Tart
Cornish Scone with Clotted Cream and Jam
Hobnob Biscuits 
Mince Pie
Parkin Cake
Scone with Clotted Cream and Jam (or vice-versa)
Steak and Ale Pie
Tea and Biscuits

Treacle Tart
White Chocolate and Pistachio Cake

Conclusion

I arrived home to Tennessee around midnight on Monday, and I’m already missing the routine at Kew.  It’s taken a little while to get adjusted to being back in the Eastern Standard Time zone, and I’ve had a few very early mornings to reflect on my time with Kew.

Back to the Bottom of the Totem Pole

Our last day at Kew was the graduating
students' prank day.  They had chalked
hopscotch the whole length of the Broad Walk

Before arriving to Kew, I had graduated with my Master’s in Plant Sciences from the University of Tennessee.  Part of my assistantship requirements involved managing student assistants and interns in the department.  Before then, I had worked as the horticultural coordinator for “Every Child Outdoors” Knoxville.  We were a small youth gardening project, but we had two part time interns to help us with garden maintenance and educational programs.  I haven’t been an intern since the early days of my undergraduate studies, where I worked part time at the University of Tennessee Gardens. 

I decided to go into the Kew internship as a dry sponge, ready to soak up any drops of knowledge the staff, students, and fellow interns felt like sharing with me.  Although I knew how to do just about most of the basic gardening tasks, if I had interrupted and said, “I already know how to do that,” I would have missed out on learning how Kew does it.  And learning how Kew operates was the most interesting part of the whole internship.

Monday edging could get a little dull, but it was a
great time to gab about what we did over the weekend

Shelley and my other superiors did a fantastic job of keeping our work varied.  Although basic maintenance chores – like weeding and deadheading – filled a large portion of our work time, Shelley did a great job of including Daisy and myself on fun activities – like cleaning the aquatic garden – to break the monotony.  Shelley and the other team members also did a great job of emphasizing the importance of each chore to garden operations.  Weeding can be boring, but removing a noxious pest that will spread through the garden if not properly eradicated is pretty close to thrilling (at least for a while).  

This summer, I learned a fair bit about maintaining a corner of a large historic garden, how Kew monitors and maintains collections, a few tricks to keep interns engaged and productive, and some ways Kew instills comradery in their staff.

You Get Out What You Put In

The internship program is definitely a worthwhile experience for folks who are still relatively new to horticulture.  I think that this would be perfect for a junior, senior, or a recent graduate of a four-year horticulture program who has had limited experience working in a botanic garden, nursery, or other garden setting. 

I was so fortunate to be able to work
with Daisy, a fellow intern with Kew

This can also be a rewarding experience for slightly more experienced horticulturalists.  Even if you have experience working in a garden setting, a degree, and management experience, you get out what you put in.  Kew is one of the finest botanic gardens on earth, with the largest collection of live plants, fantastic conservation work, a rich history, and a really interesting organizational structure.  If you want to learn more about any of those areas, you’ll absolutely have the opportunity to explore your interests in addition to fulfilling internship requirements. 

For instance, I supplemented the basic internship experience by conducting staff interviews to learn more about Kew’s organization, I shadowed a school visit program, and I spent virtually all of my free time exploring neighboring gardens.  The key is that you have to put forth the effort to get the experience you want.  Be proactive and you won’t be disappointed.

Financial Considerations

Friday internship tour of the Palm House

London is one of the most expensive cities on earth, and the U.S. dollar is not strong there.  I would not have been able to afford to participate in Kew’s internship without financial assistance from the Botanical Research Institute of Texas’ Ian LeeseFellowship in Horticulture.  Their investment in my future helped offset the costs of visa processing (about $350 USD for biometrics, $170 for priority status), airfare (about $1200), housing (about £1000 or $1600), groceries (about £250 or $400), and commuting (about £600 or $975).  The internship is unpaid, so participants should budget for at least $5000 just to get there and cover basic living expenses before committing to the internship. 

Also, Europe and the UK is switching to a “chip-in”credit / debit card system.  Regardless of what your bank tells you before you go, you need to try to get a card with a chip in it.  A basic US credit or debit card that only has a magnetic strip will only go so far.  I was able to withdraw money from Barclay’s ATM and pay cash for most things this summer, but I’d have much preferred to carry a card rather than all that cash around with me. 

Living Arrangements

Keep in mind that Kew does not currently offer intern housing, so you need to get that sorted out before you arrive.  Check spareroom.co.uk, gumtree.co.uk, and ask the internship coordinator for leads on where to stay.  Avoid craigslist and don’t wire or transfer any money before you have the chance to visit the flat.  Consider staying in a hostel the first week and apartment hunting on evenings.

Friday internship tour of Kew's
micropropagation facility

Don’t just settle for the cheapest flat you can find, because the cost of commuting may be higher.  For example, I paid about £440 (about $700) / month for a flatshare in Surbiton, but when factoring in the cost of commuting I was really paying about £660 (about $1000).  Kew, Brentford, and Richmond are within walking or biking distance of work.  Ealing and Kingston are one bus journey away.

This summer gave me fresh perspectives on several facets of the horticulture industry, I grew personally and professionally, and made some fantastic new friends.  Although I’m glad to be back in Knoxville, I do miss Kew and I’m looking forward to returning one day.  If you’re considering an internship with Kew, please feel welcome to shoot me an email to learn more at aplante88@gmail.com .

Thanks to all of my readers for joining me on this summer’s adventure! 

Week Eleven

Daisy and I just wrapped up our last full day of the internship with Kew.  We did the daily 4:00 tool shuffle for the final time.  Then I stayed in the shed a bit later to clean and sharpen my secateurs for the next person.  I would do it tomorrow morning, but I wasn't sure if I'd have time.  However, we did too many interesting things this week to write a pensive, thoughtful, last week post.  I'll save the conclusion of this blog for when I get home to Tennessee.  Let me tell you about our week.

The Salvia Border is divided into two groups --
"old world" ad "new world" sages.  Those closest
in the photo are "new world" selections.

Daisy and I both took Monday off.  I was in Edinburgh until Monday night, and Daisy was preparing for the fall semester of her master's program.  I felt a tinge of regret to miss our last edging day (little did I know...), but it was nice to have a holiday outside of London for a bit.

Stunning Salvia
Tuesday morning, India had a special treat for us.  Daisy and I were going to assist with a Salvia propagation request.  We've done a fair bit of work in the salvia border this summer, and it seems fitting to write a bit more about this beautiful border as this week's topic.

A quick background
The salvia border runs along the western side of a brick wall that borders the order beds and the rock garden areas.  The border is divided in two by a path that connects these two areas.  The section that is closest to the School of Horticulture building contains "old world" salvia species.  These are sages that are native to Europe, Asia, and Africa.  The section nearest to the woodland garden has the "new world" salvia collection.  These are all native to North and South America.

Although the Salvia Border is only
about nine years old, the brick wall
behind it dates back to the 1700's

India tells me that the border was planted sometime around 2005.  Kew's salvia border is quite new when you consider how old the gardens are.  However, the brick wall that runs behind the border is actually very old.  It is the only remaining boundary wall that separated the historic Botanic Garden and Pleasure Grounds areas.  This section of the wall served as one part of the perimeter for the Royal Kitchen Garden.  The other sections of the boundary wall were demolished by then director Sir William Hooker in the 1800's (Desmond, 373).

Like any truly old structure, this wall has has been added to and patched up on occasion.  The attractive window-like design at the top was added in the 1870's.  The largest repair job was done in 1965 after a gale blew down a 60 foot section of it (Desmond, 373).

Maintenance
My regular readers may be familiar with some of the chores we do in the salvia border.  Most of what we've done this summer has been deadheading and watering.  I mentioned a few weeks ago that although many sages are extremely drought tolerant, the specimens at Kew have adapted to London's normally frequent rain showers.  The month long drought this summer stressed out many of the plants in this area.  Daisy and India watered with hoses and watering cans, but sometimes that still wasn't enough.  There were occasions when the drip irrigation had to be left on all day or overnight before the plants would perk up.

Most of the maintenance that I've done in with salvia is deadheading.  For anyone who doesn't know, deadheading is the process where the finished flower heads are cut back to encourage another flush of blooms.  Busy gardeners may just hack "new world" sages back to about a foot after they've finished flowering mid-summer.  The plants will recover in time for another show in the fall.

This summer we had enough staff available to properly deadhead.  About once a week a small group of us would spent some time carefully snipping back to spots on the stem that had new buds emerging.  Although this took a fair bit of time, the "fiddly" work paid off with virtually non-stop flowering.

Propagation
Hobby gardeners and professionals alike relish the opportunity to grow plants from cuttings.  It's intensely rewarding to take a sprig of stem and encourage roots to sprout from the base.  You would think that with the size of Kew, many of the staff would have the chance to propagate plants pretty frequently.  The surprising truth is that Kew is so massive that they have an entire team whose only job is plant propagation.  When an area needs new plant material, they submit a "prop request" to the team and receive the plants when they're ready to go out.

Joanna demonstrates how to collect
Salvia cuttings to propagate

Joanna, a member of this propagation crew, showed Daisy, India and the ropes as she carried out India's prop request for the salvia border.  The first step was to go through some health and safety training for the chemicals and tools that we would be using.  This involved reading some paperwork and signing forms.  After that, we went out to the salvia border.

Joanna provided us with sterile secateurs to use rather than our own.  We also had to re-sterilize the pruners between accessions to prevent spreading disease through the collection.  Many of the salvia were infested with leafhoppers, so we also had to carefully remove any foliage that had leafhopper damage.  "We don't know where they've laid their eggs," Joanna told us, "But we know they were on the damaged foliage."  Leafhoppers can be extremely difficult to control once they become established in the propagation house, so Joanna and her crew do as much as they can to prevent them from getting in.

We transported the stem sections from the salvia border to the propagation area in moist plastic bags.  We added a bit of water to the bags, then shook them to spread the droplets around, then emptied what remained so there would be no standing water to soak the plants at the bottom of the bag.  We placed two labels, complete with scientific name and accession numbers, in each bag at the time of collection.  This helped to keep us from mixing up the specimens.  When we arrived to the propagation house, Joanna placed our collections in a refrigerator.  This prevented the plants from drying out while we were working.

This Salvia is just about
the right size for rooting

Joanna and I pushed a clean table out of the propagation house to a flat area nearby.  We worked outside of the propagation house to help keep any leafhoppers still on our material from escaping into the greenhouse.  We were given sterile knives and cutting boards and went to work.  We prepared a second moist bag and placed one of the labels in each bag.

First we cut the stems into sections that had four nodes.  The bottom-most node was cut flat, and the leaves and buds were carefully removed from the bottom two buds.  Joanna explained that roots were more likely to spring from the meristematic tissue present at the nodes.

Next we removed excess foliage.  If you remember from your science classes in school, leaves photosynthesize, and water is required for photosynthesis.  Water is absorbed from the roots, but cuttings don't have any roots.  Removing some foliage or cutting large leaves in half reduces the amount of water needed by the stem, which improves the chances of developing roots successfully.

When we had prepared enough cuttings, we soaked them for a short period in a diluted ammonia mixture. This would suffocate any remaining pests and sterilize the plant material.  Then we gently stuck each stem cutting along the rim of a pot.  They were 5 inch pots that had a nice perlite / coir mixture that would hold water and air.  We added the date to the labels, and a label was placed in each pot.  We also marked the number of cuttings we stuck and the date on a form.

Next, we brought the cuttings to the propagation house.  The prop house used to have a misting bench, but new health and safety regulations mandated that it be dismantled.  Now they use a plastic covered bench in the greenhouse.  Plants are kept under a second layer of plastic on the bench.  At least once a day one of the propagation team mists the plants manually with a spray bottle.  This can get quite hot during the summer, and sometimes they need to relocate to a shadier spot.

We sterilized our knives between accessions.  Each of us propagated three accessions before returning to work in the order beds.

Joanna demonstrates how to sterilize,
then stick the cuttings

An intern's perspective on Kew's propagation
Kew's propagation procedure is way more intensive than what I've done in the past with the University of Tennessee Gardens, UT's Department of Plant Sciences, and "Every Child Outdoors".  But that's because Kew is massive, and the propagation team has to process a huge amount of material throughout the year.

Sterilization is of utmost importance to prevent infestations, and their procedures are perfectly reasonable for good integrated pest management practices in an operation of their magnitude.  I was most surprised to learn that, in addition to good cultural practices, they rely heavily on biological controls to keep pests in check.  Buckwheat grows outside beneath the ventilation windows of the propagation house to attract beneficial insects that will eat pests, like aphids and whiteflies.

Although I agree that the propagation team is essential to streamline horticulture operations through the gardens, I have to admit that it's a little sad that the other horticulturalists don't usually get the opportunity to grow their own plants.  This means adds another layer of bureaucracy to garden operations, in that teams have to submit propagation requests, wait until the prop team gets to their order (which is usually within a reasonable amount of time), then wait until the plants are grown the Kew's specifications before planting out.  However, I think this can be convenient, it definitely frees horticulturalists up for other important tasks, and its necessary for a garden Kew's size.

The rest of the week...
Wednesday morning we dug some Heuchera 'Chocolate Ruffles' from the long border and transplanted into the peony border.  We used the Heuchera to fill the gaps around the Hemerocallis that we had dug last week.  The rest of the day was spent weeding in the Lamiaceae (mint) beds.

Kew's makeshift humidity chamber
for rooting cuttings

Thursday was spent preparing the landscape for the horticulture student graduation on Friday.  We did get some edging in after all, since the graduation photos would be taken in the aquatic and grass gardens, and the edges there had gotten a bit scruffy.  After that Daisy and I tied in roses on the pergola.  The last full day was actually quite a bit like our first day at Kew, with some differences.  We were more confident with pruning and tying the roses, and definitely faster and more effective with the edging shears.  What a difference eleven weeks can make!

I'll be working with the crew tomorrow morning, then I'll join Kew's School Visits Programme to shadow some classes on the journey through the gardens.  It should be exciting, but I regret not having that last bit with my team.  That afternoon I plan to have one last wander through the garden and enjoy the privileges of having my intern pass one last time.

Thanks for reading, and check back to read the dramatic conclusion of NEW at Kew.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel welcome to leave a comment or send me an email.

To see more photos from this week, be sure to check out the album "Week Eleven" on the Plante on Plants Facebook page.  "Likes", shares and comments are appreciated. 

This week's British treat was two whole slices of a traditional parkin cake.  Really dense, flavorful, and filling -- perfect for morning tea!  Thanks Martin and Charlotte!  It was fantastic!

All photos were taken by Amanda Plante at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew unless otherwise stated in the caption.

Sources:

• Desmond, Ray.  (2007).  The History of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (2nd Edition).  London: Kew Publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 
• The Plant List website
• The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew website and staff

Week Ten

There's only one more week left in this internship with Kew.  Wow!  That's hard to believe.  This week was a short week because there was a "bank holiday" across the country on Monday.  I spent the weekend touring some really fantastic Hosta collections near Wokingham and visiting with some friends from Tennessee.

Tuesday
Tuesday we were back to work.  As you know, Monday is normally our edging day, and the grass had gotten a bit shaggy.  Shelley decided to have the whole lot of us tackle edging in the order beds and grass garden and get it done that morning.  Our crew was back up to seven people, because we got a new apprentice and Martin returned from paternity leave.

Daisy and I were hard at work digging
Hemerocallis in the peony border

It was a bit rainy that day, and both of our normal volunteers called in because of the poor weather.  We finished by lunch time, and then the skies opened up and began to really "chuck it down".  There just wasn't enough room for all of us to be sharpening tools in the shed that afternoon, so Daisy and I spent the rest of the day working on internship assignments from the School of Horticulture computer lab.

Wednesday
Nearly all of us spent the entire day Wednesday working in the peony beds.  The peony beds are large mixed borders that contain a great deal of Paeonia between the order beds and the woodland garden.  We were doing what Shelley calls a "general tidy", which means we were weeding, deadheading, and removing dead foliage and spent biennials.

Leadership Experience
Shelley used the time to encourage Beth, one of the horticulture students, to get some personnel management experience.  Beth oversaw Daisy and me for a while, which involved explaining the tasks we were needed to do, how to do them, and why they needed to be done.  My understanding was this is a normal part of the students' work experience placement, so they're not only learning how to be horticulturalists, but also leaders in horticulture.  Beth did a great job!

Dealing with Daylilies
While Daisy and I were working under Beth, I overheard Shelley and India discussing the layout of an adjacent bed.  It was interesting to hear them work through the changes they would be making to improve a few spots.  There was one section that had a huge patch of Hemerocallis flava (1998-2335, MAFA).  India and I had recently spent some time removing the dead foliage and pulling the old flower stalks.

Kew staff decided to add some
splashes of color and texture at the
corners of this bed by removing
daylily  and planting Heuchera

Shelley and India decided the area would be more attractive if there were something a bit lower and more evergreen towards the front rather than just daylilies.  Shelley later explained that something perennial and evergreen, like Heuchera, would also help control some of the soil erosion in the bed.  She pointed out the plants that they had decided to remove, gave some guidance on the method, and let us get to it.

As someone who trained in horticulture in Knoxville, Tennessee, I didn't feel that I needed a great deal of oversight on this task.  If there's one thing this Tennessee girl knows how to do, it's digging and dividing Hemerocallis.  The H. 'Stella D'Oro' craze hit our area pretty hard, which made these plants wildly popular in residential and commercial landscapes.

But Shelley wouldn't be doing her job if she just let two interns loose in the garden without more specific direction, so she walked us through the following steps.  First we removed all the old, strappy foliage so that digging would be cleaner and easier.  However, these plants would be planted elsewhere at Kew, so the second flush of new growth needed to be kept intact as much as possible.  Then we had to use our forks to maneuver the plants loose of the soil.  Shelley suggested we work a circle around the plant before digging up so that we wouldn't break the shaft.  We set the plants in a secluded area near the tool shed, then leveled the soil in the beds and swept the paths.

If there's one thing this Tennessee
girl knows how to do, it's digging
and dividing daylilies.  These will
be planted elsewhere at Kew.

Thursday
Daisy and I spent the day continuing to tidy up around the order beds.  There were some plants that had "gone over", which means they were done for the year.  We cut back perennials and pulled up annuals.  There was a large Euphorbia that had completely flopped.  We cut it back to some new basal growth, and it may pluck up a bit before the end of the season. Euphorbia sap is a skin irritant, so Daisy and I wore gloves and handled the trimmed branches with care.

Friday
Tomorrow, the whole cohort of interns is heading to Wakehurst Place for the entire day.  Unfortunately I won't be able to attend.  The date of the trip had to be rescheduled, and I had already gotten nonrefundable or exchangeable train tickets to see the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh that day.  Kate and Shelley made arrangements for me to go last week, but I'm still a little bummed that I'm missing out on seeing Wakehurst with the rest of the group.


Thanks for reading, and check back to read what happens the LAST week of my internship with Kew.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel welcome to leave a comment or send me an email.

To see more photos from this week, be sure to check out the album "Week Ten" on the Plante on Plants Facebook page.  "Likes", shares and comments are appreciated. 

This week's British treat a cup of English breakfast tea and a Hobnob biscuit. You just can't get more English than that...

Believe it or not, this is also the first cup of tea I've had in England.  Consumed reluctantly at the insistence of a coworker, this was actually quite good.  I still prefer coffee though.

All photos were taken by Amanda Plante at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew unless otherwise stated in the caption.

Sources:

• The Plant List website
• The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew website and staff

Week Seven

Although we did a wealth of different activities this week, I'm going to hone in on our work this Friday in Kew's aquatics garden.  Now that the internship is more than halfway over (where has the time gone?), I wanted to make sure that I wrote about this interesting spot just in case we don't have the chance to work in there again this summer.  Although I mentioned a bit about this in my second week's post, I think it would be worthwhile to go into a bit more detail about this section of the gardens.

All about the aquatics garden

A quick history

Water lily surrounded by duckweed (Lemna)

Although Kew has had aquatic displays in and surrounding man-made, in-ground lakes and ponds since the beginning, it wasn't until the directorship of Sir William Hooker that tanks were constructed to display hardy aquatic plants (Desmond, 148).  A somewhat small tank was installed near the northern side of the herbaceous beds in 1841, and was used for that purpose until at least 1873.  In 1879, Sir William's son and successor Sir Joseph Hooker replaced the tank with a larger brick tank that spanned 80 feet (Desmond, 211).

The improved tank was replaced in 1909 by a large central tank flanked by two rectangular tanks to the sides and four smaller ones on the corners (Desmond, 351).  According to some material that Shelley gave us earlier in the internship, the "new" aquatic garden was originally known as "White City" because it was made of bright, new concrete.  Needless to say, the appearance is quite different today.

Aquatics garden prior to weeding

White City had only cost £600 to build.  When the surrounding pavement was relaid in 2002, the improvements cost £5,000.  That's more than eight times the cost of the original construction!  This design is still in use today, although the central tank was raised up to give more depth for larger lilies in 1935 (Desmond, 353).

Much of the original plumbing is still in use, which means that its prone to leaks and breaks.  Five weeks ago, Shelley discovered that a pipe no longer filled one of the long tanks with water.  She immediately shut the tap off (because the water had to be going somewhere) and called maintenance.  The problem with fixing this system, as is true with all of Kew's irrigation, is that it is difficult finding the parts for such old plumbing.

Keeping it clean
Weeding is an important part of any garden maintenance plan.  For some reason, before I started at Kew I figured that water gardens would require less weeding than traditional beds.  Boy, was I wrong.  Duckweed (Lemna) and blanket weed need to be removed regularly to keep the desirable plants from being overcrowded and to ensure the surface of the water remains a dark, reflective surface.

Daisy demonstrates how to remove
blanketweed algae with a rake

Kew tries to prevent blanket weed algae from forming by dyeing the water blue.  The idea is that this type of algae forms below the water surface.  If the water is darkened, this reduces the amount of sunlight the plants receive, which should reduce growth.  The practice is effective in combination with regular weeding.  Algae can be removed by scooping it out of the tank with a rake or by simply harvesting it by hand.  Usually blanket weed will come up in a huge, continuous mass.  It actually resembles a blanket, which is why it's called blanket weed.

Duckweed is a whole different problem altogether.  It's brought into the tanks on the feet of aquatic birds (thus the common name "duckweed"), plant containers, and even tools.  The water dyeing trick doesn't work on Lemna because it naturally grows along the surface of the water.  That's why making the water dark doesn't slow growth.  Unlike blanket weed, duckweed doesn't stay in one big mass when you try to remove it.  Although it may look like a big, unbroken sheet from above, it's actually a collection of thousands upon thousands of itty bitty plants.  Try to scoop it out with a rake and you'll see all the pieces scatter away.  That's why we use nets to remove Lemna, but even then it's just impossible to get it all.

Bugging out
In addition to weeding, we also do pest control.  Although the water lilies were relatively healthy last time we worked in this area, they've developed a pest problem since then.  The water lily leaf beetle lays its eggs on the foliage.  When the eggs hatch, small black larvae emerge and begin chomping voraciously on the leaves.  They cut tunnels through the pads, which stress the plants out and look very unattractive.  It also doesn't help that the adults feed on the plants too.

Damage caused by water lily beetle larvae

There's not much that we can do to control the pests beyond simply spraying the eggs, larvae, and adults off of the plants with a water hose.  However, removing aquatic pests on aquatic plants with a spray of water into a tank of water isn't super effective.  Most of what we do is remove the damaged foliage so that the plants look cleaner and some of the pests are removed with the green waste.

This is nothing new
The information packet Shelley gave us for the aquatic garden contained a page from the Kew Guild Journal from 1909 to 1910.  The author was describing the new plans for the aquatic garden, and wrote about Sir Joseph Hooker's older garden.  "The old tank in the herbaceous ground, of which some of our readers will remain very muddy memories appertaining to its annual clean out, has been cleared away."  Although Daisy and I are only at Kew for a short time, it feels really special to share this murky experience with gardeners across Kew's past and into the future.

An intern's perspective
I think everyone enjoys working in the aquatic garden at this time of year.  When it's hot, humid, and sunny outside, this is a very cool activity.  Chasing after the Lemna is always a bit disappointing for me, because I really do want to get all of it out.  But that's impossible for reasons already stated.  The important thing is that the gardens look much better at the end of the day than they did at the beginning.

What else did we do this week?

We skipped edging the order beds on Monday, because the grass simply hadn't grown.  London's been in the grip of a drought since I arrived in June, and I guess the grass just couldn't handle it anymore.  This week much of the grass when from a dry green to a crunchy brown.  So there was no point in edging because nothing had grown.

Aquatics garden after weeding

Our crew spent a day and a half cutting and cleaning up the long grass along the boundary wall between the order beds and Kew Road.  This was intensely interesting, but I think I'm going to save what I was going to write about it for next week's post.  I don't want to overwhelm folks with too much information, and I'd also like a bit more time to observe how this difference affects the wildlife in our area.

Hitching my wagon to her star
Friday afternoon, Daisy was struck with a brilliant idea.  We've both been a bit distressed that we haven't been able to see much of the gardens, even though we've been working here for seven whole weeks.  It's hard to work up enough stamina for a romp through the 300+ acre property after a hard day of manual labor.

But Friday, Daisy proposed a fine solution.  Instead of walking through the gardens, she suggested that we hop on the Kew Explorer tram.  The tour guide was clear and informative, we saw loads of new things, and had a fun time!  I'd recommend the journey as a good way to start a visit to Kew.  It's only 40 minutes long, you get an idea of where everything is and of what you want to see.

Thanks for reading, and check back to read what happens next week in my internship with Kew.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel welcome to leave a comment or send me an email.

To see more photos from this week, be sure to check out the album "Week Seven" on the Plante on Plants Facebook page.  "Likes", shares and comments are appreciated. 

This week's British treat is India's homemade white chocolate and pistachio cake.  Moist, smooth, and flavorful.  That girl knows how to bake!

 

India's tasty and delicious white chocolate pistachio cake.  Oh so good!

A nice, cool way to spend a Friday!  Photo by Daisy.

Sources:

• Desmond, Ray.  (2007).  The History of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (2nd Edition).  London: Kew Publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.  177-179, 345-346.
• The Plant List website
• The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew website and staff

 

Week Six

As of Thursday, I have officially been an intern at Kew for one full month.  July completely flew by!  I can't believe that Daisy and I are at the halfway point of our internship.

I can't believe I've been in England
for a full month already!  Time flies.

If you've been following this blog, then you've read that we've been doing a great deal of deadheading all over our section, including in the order beds, birch border, DNA spiral, and secluded garden.  Weeks of deadheading has promoted new flushes of flowers in some specimens.  Others are still preparing for another show later in the fall.

All this deadheading and cutting back has changed the appearance of these spots pretty dramatically.  I walked through the order beds and tried to capture images in the same spot as some from my first week.  The colors and feel have changed quite a bit!  Scroll to the bottom of this post to see what I mean.

What did I do this week?

Monday was edging day, followed by weeding and deadheading. 

I spent the entire day Tuesday deadheading Sisyrinchium striatum around the DNA spiral next to the Jodrell Laboratory.  That's an activity where I really wish I'd taken "before" and "after" photos, because the difference is pretty dramatic.  I had mixed feelings about the task because the Sisyrinchium had really interesting seed heads, but they really did look quite messy.

A week or two ago I spent a whole day deadheading the Sisyrinchium in the secluded garden too.  I've decided that this is a fiddly plant, and those who want to grow it in their home landscapes should either have enough time to tidy it, or they should be happy to let it behave as it would naturally.

To read more about how Kew handles
pruner maintenance, check
out the Thrifty Gardener

Thursday was spent maintaining the rose pillars.  I would write more about that, but I went into a great deal of detail about this activity in the first week's post.  However, India did show Daisy and I how to disassemble, clean, lubricate, sharpen, and assemble our secateurs (bypass hand pruners).  I've been in horticulture since 2006, and somehow never learned how to do this.  What a handy thing to know!  I've dedicated a whole post titled "Hand Pruner Maintenance 101" in the Thrifty Gardener to this activity.  If you want to learn how to do it, I'd recommend having a read.

Friday morning Daisy and I took turns mowing around the rose pillars with the cylinder push mower.  I also detailed this activity the first week.

On irrigation

Drought tolerant?

Quite a few "drought tolerant" plants, like Salvia, Rudbeckia, and some grasses, have been struggling over the past few weeks.  Although these species are very water wise choices in dry areas, these particular specimens have been acting a bit wimpy in London's droughty weather.  The reason for this is that these plants have been spoiled by the rainy English climate.  The normally frequent rain has caused them to develop shallow root systems.  Now that the top of the soil is dry, these plants are flagging.

Normally many Salvia are pretty drought
tolerant.  The ones at Kew have been spoiled
by the normally rainy climate.

We have been trying to water deeply so the roots will grow down, but the whole area has needed a lot of TLC.  Martin, one of the diploma students, has been spearheading the watering brigade.  If you walked through the order beds at any point last week, you probably saw Martin lugging hoses, setting up sprinklers, and making adjustments.

Shelley and the water box

Although our activities this week were somewhat routine, Shelley was working on something really interesting.  There's a water box at the corner by the lavender beds that was prone to flooding and had filled up with silt and gravel.  While I was deadheading at the birch border, she kept me updated on what she was doing to make repairs.

Photo of a different water box than the one that
Shelley was working on, but you get the idea

First, she scooped out all of the soil and gravel from inside the box, until she hit the cement bottom.  Next, she replaced all of the rubber gasket fittings in each of the connectors and caps.  When she attached a hose to water the DNA spiral, the hose was very loose on the attachment.  She determined that larger gauge hoses won't fit correctly on that heading for some reason.  She switched to a smaller gauge hose, and it seemed to fit okay.  She let the drip irrigation run overnight, and the next morning there was only four or five inches of standing water in the water box.

It was really interesting to watch this trouble shooting process!  Like I've mentioned before, the irrigation system at Kew is really quite old.  As one of the premier gardens in the world, Kew has been on the forefront of cutting edge technology in horticulture.  As a result, it seems like they get these elaborate systems before the industry has had the time to work all the bugs out.  Once something like an irrigation system is in place, they can do small scale improvements, but a total overhaul isn't really feasible.

Thanks for reading, and check back to read what happens next week in my internship with Kew.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel welcome to leave a comment or send me an email.

To see more photos from this week, be sure to check out the album "Week Six" on the Plante on Plants Facebook page.  "Likes", shares and comments are appreciated. 

This week's British treat is the warm and tasty bakewell tart, served with berries and vanilla ice cream.  Mmm...

 

Last week of June

First week of August

Last week of June

First week of August

The Great Baked Good Debate, UK vs US

The very first week of my internship with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, one of the horticulture students asked me to name one iconic dish from the Southeast United States.  Without missing a step I said, "Biscuits n' gravy."  Blank faces.  Then I was asked twice to confirm that yes, those two words are "biscuit" and "gravy".  The interest in the conversation increased.  I was quizzed about the gravy and whether it means the same thing in Tennessee as it does in London.  When I described the gravy as made from sausage grease, flour, milk and pepper, curiosity turned into open disgust.  I didn't understand. 

Just look at this and tell me that it's not a cookie.
That looks nothing like a proper biscuit!

That week I picked up some McVitie's Digestive Biscuits for my first "British treat of the week".  I basically inhaled the package without pausing to wonder why the word "biscuit" was on a package of cookies.  

It was another week or so before someone explained that biscuits in the UK are completely different from the ones I grew up with.  That opened a whole Pandora's box, and made everyone involved question, not only what culinary qualities constitute a biscuit versus a cookie, but also in defining scones, crackers and cakes.  I expected some cultural differences, but this was a bit more than I had anticipated.  I mean, these folks actually thought that I ate cookies with sausage gravy.

American Biscuits n' Gravy

Last week, I brought in some fresh, homemade sausage biscuits and gravy before a hardy display section meeting.  The biscuits were so-so because people use different metrics for baking here (weight vs. volume), and I didn't think to pack any measuring cups.  They were warm, buttery, and okay overall.  There was only one biscuit left over, and when I threw the sad thing away at afternoon tea it was as hard as a hockey puck.  

The gravy was definitely the finest sausage gravy I've ever made.  Good flavor, color, consistency.  I had worried at first that nobody would eat it if it went gray and unappetizing.  Thankfully it was a nice white with bits of sausage and pepper floating around.

People kept calling these biscuits "scones".  No.
It's biscuits n' gravy, not scones n' gravy.

But probably the most popular part of the dish was the sausage patties.  Most of the sausages you see over here are in casings, so several people stopped to ask me what they were eating.  The idea of ground sausage formed into a patty is a bit too foreign for some folks to wrap their heads around.  The sausage was gone first though.

I had also prepared some sausage biscuits.  You know, like the ones you pick up from the McDonald's drive-thru for $1 when you overslept and didn't have time to make breakfast.  One person remarked that it looked like a hamburger, and because it resembles a burger it shouldn't be eaten without "salad" (toppings) and "tomato sauce" (ketchup).

As I was washing the dishes, I overheard a somewhat heated conversation from the dining area.  There were two folks, each with a biscuit, arguing over the pronunciation of scone.  One pronounced it skh-ON (rhymes with John) and the other skh-OWN (rhymes with Joan).  When I took the dish away to wash, one stopped me and verified that I had brought in the food.  When I affirmed, they asked me to clear it up.  "How do you pronounce the name of this? Skh-ON or skh-OWN?"  I paused, then replied, "Neither.  These are biscuits."  One kind of rolled their eyes, the other scoffed and threw up their hands, and as they walked away I think I heard someone mutter something about Americans.

But is a scone a biscuit?

UT students argue that scones are not equivalent
to biscuits.  Rather, scones are a type of biscuit.

When the University of Tennessee's Glorious Gardens of England mini-term group came to visit, I picked up some scones for the students to enjoy on the bus ride from Kew to Hampton Court Palace.  I also packed some clotted cream and jam, and told a few students about the controversy about which should be applied first (see end of "Week Three").  Apparently they were tasty, and I hope that they weren't awfully stale. 

A couple days later, we were on the bus to Sissinghurst, when one of the students thanked me for the treat.  "Those were good!" she said, "What kind of biscuits were they?"  Here we go again... I thought.  So the Tennesseans decided that scones are a type of sweet biscuit, but not all biscuits are scones.  Okay, I can go with that.  Except my fellow intern Daisy explained to me that there can be quite bland or savory.  That confused the issue again. 

And a biscuit... is... a cookie?

As soon as the UT students walked through the entrance to Kew and gathered by Victoria Gate entrance, I informed them that they had arrived just after morning tea.  In celebration of that, they each got to try a chocolate covered Hobnob biscuit.  After all, I'd had cake and cookies at every other morning tea that week.  Why should that day be any different?  

In the UK, "biscuits" may be
dunked in tea or coffee.  This is
coffee -- not tea.  There are just
some things I will not do.

I informed the group that Hobnobs and Digestive biscuits are pretty good on their own, but they're transcendent when dunked in coffee.  Some people I work with dunk them in tea, but as a red-blooded American there are some things I just won't do.  

There were murmurs of enjoyment, then I heard something to the effect of, "These cookies are good!"  No.  Here in the UK, these cookies are biscuits.  Yet they still have "cookies".  So what is a cookie?  There are varying definitions.  One Kew student believes that cookies are soft and biscuits are hard.  Okay, I can accept that.  Another friend of mine said that if they're hard, but still have chocolate chips in them, then they're cookies.  

...

This is all a bit too much for me to wrap my head around, which is why the matter deserved a post unto itself.  I'm opening the discussion up to let the people decide.  What do you think?  What constitutes a scone, biscuit, or cookie?  

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel welcome to leave a comment or send me an email.

To see more photos from this week, be sure to check out the album "The Great Baked Good Debate" on the Plante on Plants Facebook page.  "Likes", shares and comments are appreciated.

All photos were taken by Amanda Plante at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew unless otherwise stated in the caption.

Don't even get me started on crumpets...

Week Five

Believe it or not, I've already been at Kew for five weeks!  This internship is almost halfway finished.  And yet there are still plenty of new activities to keep busy with.  We were a bit all over the place, with edging and weeding in the order beds, deadheading, weeding, and watering in the secluded garden, weeding in the grass garden, and deadheading the Salvia border, so there isn't one area that really stands out for a profile this week.

The tender, whip-like new growth of Wisteria
needs to be pruned back at this time of year

Although we did work on some routine maintenance, Daisy and I had the opportunity to prune some monstrous Wisteria vines that grow along the brick wall between the order beds and the rock garden.  

Wisteria, way up

Cutting up

According to Crissy, Kew prunes their wisteria vines twice a year.  They do a hard prune in the winter where they cut new growth back to an older branch.  The new growth usually has two or three buds left that will sprout into the vigorous branches when the weather warms up.

Kew also does a softer prune in the middle of summer, which is what Daisy, Beth, Martin, Simon and I were working on this week.  In the summer prune, we remove the fresh, whip-like growth and cut the new vines back to five or six buds (about 15 cm).  This cut improves the appearance of the vine without giving the wall a scalped appearance, improves the chances of a second flush of blooms, and also prevents it from engulfing surrounding plantings.

One vine has already set a new flower bud!

In addition to being very vigorous, the wisteria are also quite old (1966-69201, NOTC).  The one that Simon and I worked on was planted in 1966!  All three of the plants that were being pruned were actually growing over the edge of the brick wall into specimens of other climbers on the opposite side.  There were two ladders available, so we broke into two smaller groups to try to contain the vines. 

Before climbing the ladders, we needed to clear some space.  Also, why use a ladder to cut a section that's within arm's reach?  After we pruned back all the vigorous, whippy new growth that we could reach, it was easier to find a suitable spot to prop the ladder.

Safety first

Martin and I were paired together to ensure
the work done on the ladder was done safely

Health and safety is a huge concern for Kew.  The first hour of the first day of the internship, the internship coordinator walked us through a great deal of health and safety rules, guidelines and forms.  We all needed to sign some additional paperwork before being allowed to use the ladders, and the staff members walked us through how to use the ladders safely.

We made sure that our ladders were securely placed against the wall and the footing was sturdy.  There was always someone with a firm grip on the ladder below to spot the person who was working on the wisteria, and we switched regularly to keep alert.  One hand had to be kept on the ladder at all times, which made pruning a bit more difficult.  Anyway, we finished pruning three vines without any incidents.

A personnel matter

Our leader Shelley was on annual leave for the past two weeks, leaving staff members Crissy and India in charge.  Shelley's management style has always been really open and inclusive, and she is great at communication.  The Friday before she left, she gathered all the staff, students, interns and the apprentice together to make sure we all were on the same page about what needed to be done while she was gone.  However, she's not the type to micromanage from vacation, so there was some flexibility in how India and Crissy chose to execute the work.

Simon shows us the scale of
the wall and how much the new growth
extends into the Salvia border

They did a really great job coordinating everyone -- including the volunteers -- and I think we got everything done.  For instance, right after Shelley left, a "heat wave" hit London.  India and Crissy coped with this by making sure we did work in the sunny, open areas (like the grass garden and order beds) early in the day, and saved chores in the shady areas (like the secluded garden, Salvia border, and birch border) for the afternoon.  You could definitely tell they put thought into how to balance practicality with getting the work done.

Goodbye Simon!

This week was a bit bittersweet for members of our little crew.  Our apprentice Simon is graduating from Kew, and moving on to bigger and better things.  From day one of our internship, Simon has been a friendly and capable presence in the order beds.  He's always been there to help out, whether it's by lending a hand to finish a task or to lighten the mood with a funny story.  It will certainly be weird to go through the next six weeks without him working alongside us.  We wish him the best in finding the job of his dreams.  Good luck Simon!

Familiar Faces for Friday Fun

Friday was a real treat for me, because a group of students from the University of Tennessee plant sciences department stopped by for a tour of Kew.  I took the morning off to wander the grounds with the participants in the Glorious Gardens of England mini-term.  It was so nice to hear a southern twang after five weeks in London!  They were kind enough to let me tag along on some tours of other fabulous gardens in southern England, which is why this week's post is a bit delayed.  I hope that they're having a great time exploring the north this week.

Thanks for reading, and check back to read what happens next week in my internship with Kew.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel welcome to leave a comment or send me an email.

To see more photos from this week, be sure to check out the album "Week Five" on the Plante on Plants Facebook page.  "Likes", shares and comments are appreciated. 

This week's British treat are chocolate Hobnob biscuits.  Yummy on their own, and transcendent when dunked in coffee.

Myself and professors Brad Collett and Garry Menendez from the University of Tennessee's Master's in Landscape Architecture and Department of Plant Sciences.  They brought a group of 17 students from various backgrounds to explore Kew and the Glorious Gardens of England.  Glad to catch up with some familiar faces after five weeks abroad!