On our post yesterday I mentioned that we had a weekend away in Norfolk in which we managed to visit a nursery and a couple of gardens. We were actually intending to visit a couple more to that didn't managed to as it quickly dawned on us that the time we allocated to see them all was simply not enough, hence only managed to see three places (plus the seaside town where we all stayed overnight).
Of the three places we visited our first stop was Urban Jungle, a nursery specialising in the rare and unusual as well as plants that can help give a garden an exotic feel. If you like exotic (and not so exotic) plants this a nursery that is a must to visit. They have a wide selection of plants available, from the staples to the more unusual ones, lush and leafy to the spiky, backbones to the bedding plants, and more importantly lots of plant options that are winter hardy for most parts of the UK.
Now let's take a look, first from the outside as we walk out from the parking area...
Tree ferns greets you and you know you're off to a good start in this nursery
Stunning leaves on this tree - Sorbus aucuparia 'Chinese Lace'
Dicksonia antarctica
A fun looking place to pay for your plant purchases! And good views from here too!
Kokedama area
Even the composting toilet building looks exotic
It is on a large site with mature trees making a fab backdrop
My favorite part of the nursery is the display greenhouse but before we explore that let's look at a few more bits first...
Their vertical garden has been in situ for years now and is doing well and looking great
Grevillea lanigera 'Mount Tamboritha'
Pinus pinea
Shady sales greenhouse with ferns and woodland plants
And now we go into the their delightful main sales greenhouse...Very conducive for tea and cakes!
It's an exotic jungle in there...
Gaz and our friend Don admiring the large koi in their indoor koi pond
Large spikies with stunning Furcraea macdougalii in the middle
Furcraea macdougalii
Where the leafy and spiky meet each other
Absolutely love this seating area!
Tea and cakes were available with lively music playing on the background
Now this nursery also has a separate area called 'The Tropical Garden', a section that is truly very tropical looking an exotic. The lush planting and the effect they achieved was great. Come in and see for yourself...
Before we went we had to check out a few more places again like...
Their bamboo row
Perennials
Propagation Area
So what did we buy? We went home with...Magnolia delavayi
Trachelospermum asiaticum
Puya laxa
Agave macroacantha
and three nice pots!
The Agave macroacantha on the foreground went home with us
And this silvery, hairy, and spiky beauty...
Puya laxa
The nursery is pristine and very well organised and their presentation is perhaps the best, if not one of the best of the nurseries we have visited in the UK so far. It's great to see this nursery looking and doing very well and seems to be going from strength to strength through the years. It was a delight to see it again and must remember not to leave it too long before our next visit!Mark :-)