Credit: Vikki Rimmer Tom Hart Dyke – creator and head gardener of the World Garden of Plants, Lullingstone CastleĬhristmas Eve and the morning sun emerges slowly, just two days after the longest night. It ’ s an early night for me tonight – there ’ s lots to do tomorrow. I use heat lamps and regularly check for botrytis mould. They ’ re my babies and need tending every day of the year. My paw-paw, betel, ebony and baobab all stand on heated trays so they ’ re nice and warm. It likes acidic soil and to be kept damp and warm. T o grow it in a pot, it has to be in a climate above 9 degrees.

The betel vine (piper betel) is very popular in south east Asia. I love to travel to this part of the world and to look at the flora in its native habitat, but I have to say my betel seems pretty happy in east Croydon! The betel is a creeper with beautiful heart-shaped leaves that are waxy to the touch. I encourage the plant with a high potash feed. If you ’ re wondering how much water to give a mango, then a good rule of thumb is to allow the top surface of the soil to dry to a depth of several inches before watering again. Wham ’ s Last Christmas will be blasting out as I tend my mango tree, my baobab from Madagascar, my ebony from Mauritius, two new betel vines from India that I ’ m really proud of and my paw-paw too. No, on Christmas Eve, you ’ ll find me in my conservatory at home instead, tending my collection of exotics! Some gardeners are keen to grow native but I really love my exotics. ‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the greenhouse not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse … Find out what’s in the diary on Christmas Eve for the head gardeners at Hever Castle and Lullingstone Castle and the curator of Great Comp.ĭon’t forget to check back in tomorrow for each of the gardeners’ Christmas Day plans, and on Thursday for the Boxing Day agendas! Christmas Eve checklist: Neil Miller Never Castle in winter Neil Miller – head gardener at Hever Castle & Gardens

Unlike many professions, a gardener’s work doesn’t halt over the Christmas period. Vikki Rimmer finds out what’s on the Christmas Eve to-do list of three top gardeners based in Kent: Neil Miller, Tom Hart Dyke and William Dyson.

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