ENTERTAINMENT THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
Picture Courtesy of Nick Bailey
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE BECOME ACCUSTOMED TO THE CROCUS
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Camilla Bassett-Smith has a spring in her step as she celebrates one of our most popular seasonal sensations.
As we arrive in March, we have become accustomed to the crocus which have now been flowering for weeks, small in stature but huge in impact when planted en masse, this charismatic corm cannot be ignored!
The famous plantsman E.A Bowles adored them, even patiently waiting 30 years for the results of his cross-fertilisation programme which produced a pure white seedling of Crocus sieberi. There is even a crocus bearing his name, brilliant in golden yellow, making its prominent mark in the world of horticulture, just like the man himself.
When closed, some of the more slender species crocus have been described as toothpicks or new umbrellas, but when the sun shines, they open gloriously in appreciation for all to enjoy. Meanwhile the more bulbously bulky Dutch types show off their voluptuous buds before also enthusiastically erupting when solar streaks surround them.
Those familiar with the lawns of Cheltenham College or Pittville Park will know first-hand how carpets of crocus have the ability to lift us out of our winter gloom and highlight the hope ahead.
RHS Wisley has a stunning carpet display of purple and white including the spectacularly striped ‘Pickwick’. In fact, show me a town without a crocus and I’ll eat my botanical bobble hat!
So, it came as no surprise that my talented horticultural friend, garden designer and television presenter, Nick Bailey, has been at the helm of a crocus collaboration of the highest order.
Nick, who also holds the position of The Director of The University of Leicester Botanic Garden, has created a striking new crocus exhibit there, which is designed to reflect and celebrate the rich diversity of Leicester. The exhibit consists of 80,000 crocus in four colours planted in a classic paisley motif pattern. Installed in the autumn of 2025 the garden team and 60 volunteers worked across three days to plant the bulbs.
Whilst you or I might use sand to mark out a pattern, or perhaps a ‘throw it and see’ approach, when it came to the planting plan for this project, both art and science came into play.
Picture Courtesy of Nick Bailey
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