Tuesday 26 May 2009

Jack... and his patch!

Once upon a time there was a little hut on the side of the road, at a place called Bishopsteignton, which is between Newton Abbot and Teignmouth.
A sign said 'Jacks Patch' and you could park up and buy lovely plants.
Over the years the hut grew and grew !

Jack's Patch is now a thriving garden centre, where you can also partake in a coffee and cake or spot of lunch...overlooking the River Teign...which is what we did today,with my mum and dad, before wandering around to admire the blooms.

I've always loved Philadelphus..or Mock Orange..with its very fragrant flowers.
and Delphiniums are a must!
These Clematis,which I spotted, were beautiful .

I could well do with these for my Lavender bags...I have 20 to make for a wedding!
More about that later.
Do you like Hydrangeas? I do ...but my mum doesn't.
Give me the cottage garden look any day!
And then I spotted ...



This Painted Lady kept so still for me to take a pic.




Sadly, it did not come home with me.

However, one or two things did!


A beautiful, blue Veronica

A delicate, blue Geranium.

A pink Verbascum, still in bud.
A gorgeous, lilac coloured Nemesia.
Now I'm thinking that I'll go and see if there are any second hand huts for sale!
Meanwhile..I am pretty happy with my present patch!
;-)

16 comments:

  1. We adore Jack's Patch and simply can't refer to it as Wyevale, as it's now part of the chain. But we've always found excellent plants there in good condition. Sometimes people can be a bit snippy about such large chains and prefer small nurseries, but we've always been disappointed with nurseries, with mildewed compost, dried out plants looking the worse for wear and tea rooms which smell of stale cabbage water. We always come away with good plants from Jack's Patch and if you're a member of the Garden Club there are discounts to be had, too!
    Love hydrangeas, by the way ... particularly the lace caps rather than the large mop head, and blue in preference to pink.
    Margaret P

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  2. Oh,it does look great. I'm in two minds about hydrangeas, never been sure about them, but my mum loves them!

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  3. Fantastic Garden Centre - love the digitalis and the clear blue of that veronica. Happy gardening!

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  4. Hey Sal-popped to Homebase in my lunchbreak today-carnage is all i can describe it as! - it was a complete mess, plants all over the floor, a tiny selection of plants and the ones which were left were so ropey-i thought id cheer myself up with a mooch around as its the only place round here within lunchbreak distance and wish i hadnt bothered. Will only stick to boot sale plants and small nurseries in future!
    My delphiniums are teasing me at the moment, lots of greenery and blooms as yet but my daughters namesake-the oriental poppy is more than making up for that putting on an amazing display!
    My hubby went a bit mad with the hedge trimmer yesterday and managed to scalp my Hydrangea-he hadnt realised it was there, im still coming to terms with my loss, hopefully it may survive!!!
    K xxxxxxxx

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  5. Lovely pretty flowers. Lupins, I absolutely love Lupins BUT I have stopped buying them, we must have the largest slug problem in the country!

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  6. like minds...we have been in the garden centre today buying some lovely lovely goodies...but I can never remember their names...senior moments...

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  7. OH my, that looks and sounds just lovely. Thanks for the wonderful photos. x

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  8. I'm with you re the cottage garden look, love plants all tumbling through each other. That Geranium looks a lovely delicate colour. Lucky you. x

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  9. All my favourite plants and flowers; Jack's Patch looks like a lovely place. I'm very fond of Philadelphus, we have one just outside our conservatory and the smell is gorgeous.

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  10. Tiz me again ... we love lupins, too, but the slugs make free with them. They also munch the dahlias and each year we plant Bishop of Llandaff for the glorious bronze stems and leaves as well as the scarlet flowers, but have not been successful for a couple of years. Ditto delphiniums.
    One thing which the lovely pix of Sal's don't show is the close proximity of the River Teign - yes, difficult to photograph from the actual garden centre, I admit - and lovely to see on the drive to and from this delightful garden centre.
    Furthermore, I have always found the staff at Jack's Patch very helpful and knowledgeable.
    Margaret P

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  11. What a lovely place, I would love to have seen the original Jacks Patch.

    Sue xx

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  12. I love the cottage garden flowers - your pictures cheered me up on this rainy & blustery day!

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  13. Those photo's are just wonderful and what a great name - Jack's Patch - so inviting.
    x

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  14. Hi Sal, I love Jack's Patch too.. haven't been for ages though. Looking forward to seeing you on Saturday x

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  15. Oh I used to love visiting garden centres and having a cup of tea in their cafes. For some strange reason, garden centres here haven't realised the opportunity they are missing to keep customers there longer by providing refreshments!

    Marie x

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Thank you for taking the time to comment! ;-)