Chelsea Physic Garden - A hidden treasure in London

I was lucky enough to visit Chelsea Physic Garden at the end of May 2021. Did you know the garden dates back to 1673 because the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries wanted to grow plants to be used as medicines. If you want to know more, then when you go definitely book a tour. It's definitely worth it.

I am going to highlight a few of the plants, with some interesting facts about each of them. So hopefully, if you read this, you will go armed with a little more information, to hopefully get a bit more out of your visit or you will just learn a bit more about plants you might not have come across elsewhere.

NB: Photos are my own and the information come from my research, if you have any suggestions about corrections or updates, please send them to me via the contact page.

Here's an overview of the garden...

Below is a beautiful selection of plants I saw.

Golden-leaved Jerusalem Sage - Phlomis chrysophylla.

Evergreen ground cover suitable for problematic dry soils in full sun. Outstanding large evergreen foliage (H3). Cut plants back in spring. Will reach a height of around 1m by 1.5 spread.

Jerusalem sage can be used as the more common sage (Salvia officinalis) in meat dishes or stews. The leaves can be fried in butter or oil and used as a garnish on meat, vegetable or egg dishes. Chop Jerusalem sage and add to pasta or risotto dishes. As with the common variety, Jerusalem sage should be used sparingly.

Candy carrot - Athamanta turbith.

Care: Clump forming deciduous . Has white clouds of white flowers in summer (similar to cow parsley). Height 0.5 and 0.3 spread. Prefers hot, dry conditions. Resents root disturbance.Tolerates most soils. Protect from winter wet and cold dry winds.

Propagate by seed.

Giant Viper's Bugloss - Echium tree - Echium pininana.

Care - takes 3 years to flower. Not hardy and needs winter protection, preferably in a conservatory or under serious protection in the garden. Propagation by seed. Bees and pollinators love it. 1.8m high, 90cm spread.

Uses: grown as an oilseed crop. Not recommended to eat.

I have a couple in their second year and they're already 1m across. They're very dramatic even just with leaves. I can't wait for the flower spikes in 2022.

Canary Island date palm - Phoenix canariensis.

Care: 15m or more high by 5m wide. H2. Recommended be grown as a houseplant and taken outside in summer. It’s hardy to -6 or lower if kept dry. Well suited to growing in containers and if restricted will grow to 1.5m.

It has a small echium to the right of it.

Witch Hazel Fringe Bush - Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum 'Daybreak's Flame'.

Looks similar to St Johns Wort. An evergreen and will produce bright pink flower in spring and will do best in a slightly sheltered spot. Hardy to -5.

It had a lovely red-ish tinge to the ends of the branches.

Tower of Jewels - Echium wildpretii.

3m high and 60cm wide. It flowers in its second year. Monocarpic plant, meaning that once it has flowered, it dies. Propagation by seed. They are quite drought tolerant but they need regular watering in summer to help produce a strong flower spike that doesn't tip over.

Great for bees and pollinators.

Giant Herb Robert - Geranium maderense. Robust but short lived perennial or biennial to 1.5m high, to 40cm wide. Has lovely purple flowers 4cm across.

Evergreen H3.

I had one in my garden and unfortunately the frost in January killed it. I will try again but I will overwinter it in my conservatory.

You can propagate it from seed or from new shoots.

Adam's laburnum (pink and yellow). - Laburnocytisus 'Adamii'. This is a deciduous tree, a grafted-hybrid between a laburnum and purple broom, bearing pink and yellow flowers.

All parts of the plant are toxic, so it would be best to wear gloves when handling. H5.

4-8m high, 2.5-4m wide. Moist well drained soil in full sun.

Comfrey - Knitbone, Symphytum officinale (white).

Flowers can be white, blue, pink, purple, red or blue.

It likes damp, grassy, bogs, riversides and woodlands.

People used to eat it, but it contains chemicals which can harm the liver. So I suggest more research if you are interested in this. NB: The white comfrey is the only one that doesn't contain the harmful chemicals.

Composted comfrey leaves make a fantastic fertilizer and helps enrich the soil with nitrogen.

Just put some comfrey leaves in a watering can and let it sit for half a day or more.

Did you know there are 35 different species of comfrey?

Labrador violet - Viola labradorica ambig.

Q: Are violas and violets the same, they look very similar? A: Botanically speaking, violas, pansies, and almost all violets are perennials belonging to the genus Viola.

They are low growing with lovely purple flowers. They will spread by self seeding and are great for ground cover. H7.

Uses. Young leaves and flower buds - raw or cooked. ... The leaves make a very acceptable addition to salads. When added to soup they thicken it in much the same way as okra.

Agave - Agave americana | century plant.

H2. Clump forming. Full sun and sheltered. Grow under glass in a standard cactus compost, in bright, filtered light. When in growth water moderately and feed every two or three weeks with a balanced liquid feed. Keep almost dry in the winter

Will produce a huge 8m spike, but only in very old plants.

A plant which can be used like soap!

Double Soapwort. - Saponaria officinalis 'Rubra Plena'. A great British native where it will produce a beautiful show of raggedy double pink campion-like flowers in late Summer. Plant it where it has room to run, the end of a difficult border would be good.

The roots contain saponin which has been used as a gentle cleansing agent, especially for fabrics that can be harmed by synthetic soaps.

I might give this a try…

Jacobs ladder - Polemonium reptans 'Stairway to Heaven'. is a lovely clump-forming perennial, requiring little maintenance. I love it when a plant is low maintenance. This is definitely on my ‘to buy’ list. Flowers attract butterflies and are great for cutting.

Five-fingered maidenhair fern - Adiantum pedatum is a hardy, deciduous fern. I've always loved ferns. From when I see the beginnings of fronds to the full show!

Forms a clump and grows to 45cm high. Happy in full or partial shade. Another ‘need to buy’ plant.

Sweet woodruff - Galium.

I've just bought one at a plant fair. It's under my acer tree, so i hope it does well.

It grows vigorously in damp to wet soil conditions, it also tolerates dry shade. It’s edible and most well-known for use in May wine, traditionally drunk on the first day of May to welcome spring.

Sweet woodruff can also be used instead of a monoculture lawn. Low-growing varieties of bellflower, chamomile, and yarrow are not only walkable but mowable as well. Walkable groundcovers are important because they can replace low-traffic lawn areas. I might experiment with this idea.

Angelica Tree - Aralia elata. Also called Devil's walking stick, Hercules’ club, or prickly ash. Due to its spikey trunk.

Deciduous H5. Partial shade. Sandy soil. Moist but well drained. 8-15m high and 8m wide. Keep in a sheltered spot, away from strong winds.

Alexanders - Horse parsley - Smyrnium olusatrum.

Usually grows on roadsides, sea walls and near meadows and woodland.

The Angelica plant can look similar, but is very bitter and tough if eaten.

They have a great smell, sweet and almost spicy. They taste similar to celery, best to eat the shoots in Feb-April when they're young. The root can also be used like parsnips.

They were used in the past for asthma, menstrual problems and healing wounds.

1.5m high. Sensitive to frost.

Tree Fern - Dicksonia antarctica.

Planting time - spring. 6m high and 5m wide. Half hardy in most of the UK to -5 to 1 degree.

This is on my list to buy, but they can be expensive and need a lot of care, especially winter protection. As frosts can injure the fronds, even into May. So you’d probably be best further south or be happy to have it only on display from the end of May - October.

They are very slow growing (2.5cm/year), so usually it's best to get the biggest you can afford. Note, they usually get delivered in Spring as a trunk and soak the base then you only need to plant it about 2 inches in the soil. Then water it every day in the crown. To encourage rooting, don't feed it in its first year. It will probably need support (4 posts) around the trunk until it is established.

They can also be planted in containers, but I don't fancy lifting that.

'Bow Bells' Rhododendron pink (Bow Bells Group) (dwarf variety). They will take sun or shade, but dappled is best. They like moist acidic soil, with good drainage, and plenty of organic matter such as leaf-mould and added ericaceous compost. 3m high by 3m spread.

Trumpet Lily - Lilium regale 'Album'.

1.5m high by 0.4 wide. They prefer full sun in a well drained spot. Flowers in July and are fully hardy. Lilies can be planted at any time from early autumn to mid-spring.

Plant the bulb 15-20cm (68inches) deep. Also, provide support before the flowers appear.

They have a fantastic scent.

Even though they haven't flowered yet, I think they have a unusual feathery look.

Yellow Fairy Bells - Disporum. 90cm high by 50cm wide. H6. Best planted in well drained clay soil. They spread quickly. Plant in part shade. Low maintenance and fully hardy.

Another one to add to the ‘need to buy’ list.

Chilean Wine Palm - JUBAEA CHILENSIS. It is the most spectacular and cold hardiest of the feather palms that will weather normal UK winters without a problem.

7m high, 3m wide and can handle -12 or lower. They are quite easy to look after but are usually £££.

Jelly Palm - Butia capitata or Cocos capitata. 8m high. Can handle -10.

It’s name comes from the fruit, which is used to make jellies, jam and wine.

Another £££.

Beach Bells. Kalanchoe pinnata, formerly known as Bryophyllum pinnatum, also known as air plant, cathedral bells, life plant and miracle leaf plant is a succulent plant native to Madagascar, which is a popular houseplant. It requires lots of sunlight.

Propagation should be easy, by placing the leaves on compost and keeping it moist.

Yellow Azalea. Rhododendron luteum. H6.

4m high by 3-4m wide. Very fragrant flowers from late spring to summer.

This plant is listed on Schedule 9 of the UK Wildlife & Countryside Act as an invasive non-native species. While this does not prevent it from being sold in the UK, or from being grown in gardens. See RHS info on banned invasive plants here https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=530

Vulcan Angel's Trumpet - Brugmansia vulcanicola - part of the nightshade family.

It is a large evergreen shrub and reaches 3m high by 4m wide. H3 - tender in frost.

It's pollinated by bats and also smells of rotten fruit, which is what bats seem to go for.

There are 6 additional species of Brugmasia - common angel's trumpet (Brugmansia arborea), angel's tears (Brugmansia suaveloens), golden angel's trumpet (Brugmansia aurea), pink angel's trumpet ( Brugmansia x insignis) red angel's trumpet (Brugmansia sanguinea) and peach angel's trumpet (Brugmansia versicolor).

That's it for me on a selection of plants at CPG. I hope you enjoyed it.

Sarah