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Alan Down

@downtoearthalan.bsky.social
399 followers 239 following 461 posts

#Garden writer, #blogger, app content, TV/radio, #wildlife, #gardening, #plantgeek, Master of Hort, #NSch, Horticultural Trades Association Immediate Past President. Sharing gardening info from my relatively new 1 acre garden. down-to-earth.co.uk

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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Probably my all time favourite rambling #rose ! “Treasure Trove” in an old crab apple tree. Powerfully scented too! #inmygardennow
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
The dark leaf elder Sambucus nigra Black Lace. Flowers make slightly pink elderflower cordial and the fruit can be made into wine! #growyourownfood
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
Gardener’s Garters grass Phalaris arundinacea var. picta looking surprisingly fresh in this heat (wish I was!) #gardeningtips
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Best new plant at this years @TheRHSChelsea flower show is red leaf (and red stem) Hosta Red Ninja. And previous winners shown for context.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
Polytunnels may not be the most attractive thing to have in a #garden but they have their advantages! Today’s harvest + strawberries (already eaten 🫢)
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Violet de Provence globe artichoke #inmygardennow #growyourown
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Iris germanica Kent Pride and sweet rocket
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Globe artichokes almost ready #inmygardennow !
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
1st sighting of Painted Lady #butterfly this year. Very keen to visit my Osteospermum jucundum (Cape Daisy).
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
Magnificent Wisteria in South Somerset now! This is a less often seen double flowered Chinese wisteria called Black Dragon
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
Mostly natives (even the Aquilegia vulgaris) filling gaps in part shade between widely planted young shrubs. #wildflowers
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Wisteria floribunda Multijuga (Macrobotrys) at its best in a friend’s house.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Geum Scarlet Tempest rocking it #inmygardennow #bloomscrolling
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
A little framework grafting over the weekend. But the scions worryingly dry so 🤞for a good ‘take’ of better varieties on this old tree. #horticulture #gardening
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
Planted just 6 years ago, our hawthorn hedge has masses of scented flowers this spring. #inmygardennow #wildlife
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Plenty of flower power from the white flowered honesty (Lunaria annua).
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Just dew on a #magnolia leaf
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
It doesn’t look very exciting but this is how to plant asparagus roots! #inmygardennow #gardeningtips
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
1st #strawberries ripening #inmygardennow
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Ledebouria cooperi #inmygardennow
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Gorgeous double flowered #tulips in Victoria Embankment Gardens, London. #bloomscrolling
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
My latest #gardenblog review. The Webb cordless grass and hedge shears. down-to-earth.co.uk/pruning/cord...
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
I’m wondering if this is the superior pink bugle called Ajuga reptans Rosea. It certainly is an exceptional performer #inmygardennow! #bloomscrolling
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Masses of blossom on this Phillyrea latifolia #inmygardennow . This will grow into a graceful evergreen #tree well suited to a warming climate. But I might be tempted to cloud prune it!
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Maybe taupe coloured pots, rather than black that absorb heat and restrict root growth on the sunny side, will produce more even rooting in future. This is the same tomato plant! #horticulture
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Magnolia ‘Fairy Magnolia White’ #inmygardennow
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Narcissus White Lady - a heritage variety (pre 1897) is a perfect choice for a late flowering #daffodil to naturalise.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 11/04/2026
Camassia leichtlinii getting into its stride in our orchard. White ones to follow soon. Then Allium siculum and all slowly spreading. #inmygardennow #bloomscrolling
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
I like this idea but it’s not mine! A hoop of willow to support plants. How environmentally friendly and natural looking is that? I’ll be monitoring this to see if it works. Anyone else tried it? #gardeningtips
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
Acid yellow Smyrnium perfoliatum under what will be dry deep shade in summer. And yes that is lots of seedlings in front! It’s a useful biennial for dry shade! #gardeningtips
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
Yikes! I’m gonna have to prune those grape vines! I leave two leaves beyond the flowers which are about to burst now! #gardeningtips
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
The Californian Fuchsia has flowers that resemble fuchsias but is more closely related to a gooseberry! This is Ribes speciosum on a sunny wall #inmygardennow
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Delighted to welcome members of our #garden green team back again! A pair of slow worms - maybe male and female? #lizards #slowworms
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Next best thing to the #EasterBunny? It’s Easter carrots from my poly tunnel. #inmygardennow
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Delightful #Cyclamen repanda tucked close to a shady wall with lots of baby seedlings suggesting it’s very happy there! #gardenstips
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
The distinctive later flowering Japanese #cherry Prunus Ukon. The flowers have a hint of greenish-yellow which contrast with the bronze young leaves.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
Fabulous Magnolia Apollo at Lanhydrock, Cornwall #magnolia #bloomscrolling
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
Narcissus Golden Echo is one of the very best varieties of #daffodil. Multiple blooms per stem and a great performer #inmygardennow
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Reposted by Alan Down
Roger_TL45Y @rogerhorton.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
This is when Native Black Poplar (Populus nigra betulifolia) #trees have catkins. Check your local known trees. Male catkins won't last long in windy weather. Male left RSPB Lakenheath, female right in Abbey Gardens #BuryStEdmunds both #Suffolk. (NB: hybrid poplars will be doing the same!)
Two close up photos of Native Black Poplar catkins. On the left red male catkins. On the right lime-green female catkins. The males will soon be blown away whereas females will remain on the tree for some time until they spread seed on cotton fluff.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
I’m very grateful to the FB group who confirmed this wonderful #magnolia as ‘Genie’. Hats off to those devoted plant breeders who produced such spectacular varieties!
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
#Clematis armandii Apple Blossom. Vigorous early flowering evergreen climbing #plant with delicate scent.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
Just a few days of sun and my greenhouse #grape Vanessa is out of the starting blocks! Just look at all those flower buds.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
Every year this snakehead fritillaries clump produces more blooms. It competes with a big patch of stinging nettles but seems to cope well! And this year there’s even a more common purple flower! #bulbs #wildflowers
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
The first of hopefully many Pleione formosana blooms has opened today. I overwinter this almost hardy terrestrial orchid in a cool greenhouse but apparently it can take down to -5C but I wouldn’t risk it!
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
Fabulous scent from these tayzetta Avalanche narcissus - pot grown on our patio.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
With so many colourful blooms in the #garden now it’s easy to overlook great foliage….but not if it’s cardoons (Cynara cardunculus)!
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
First thinnings from winter sown carrots in a cold poly tunnel. Small but oh so very tasty! #growyourownfood
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
Lovely drift of snakes head fritillaries at #LytesCary now. Plenty of cowslips to follow soon!
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
Here’s hoping the #bees will find these flowers! 🤞 I’ve never tried growing broad beans in a polytunnel before but with luck these will give me a really early harvest.
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Alan Down @downtoearthalan.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
I much prefer Narcissus Avalanche to the more widely grown ‘Paperwhite’. Both can be forced for flowers and strong scent in mid winter but Avalanche is great on a warm patio!
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