Last Sunday I went to the annual spring fair at Orton Bradley Park in Charteris Bay, which is on the north side of Lyttelton Harbour. It is a beautiful spot with many assets, including historic buildings and machinery collections (the water-powered sawmill is wonderful to see in action), a collection of southern beech trees, idyllic picnic and camping sites beside the Te Wharau Stream, and walking tracks across open farm land and into forested gullies.
It also has an increasingly valuable and beautiful collection of national significance of species and hybridised rhododendrons, including most of the rhododendrons that have been hybridised in Canterbury. They are planted under tall evergreen trees and under-planted with sympathetic perennials. Or in some places 'over-planted' by the wonderful Himalayan lily (Cardiocrinum spp) which has dramatic flower spikes of scented white trumpet flowers up to three metres tall.
I took a guided tour of the rhododendron grove with its honorary curator,
Kathryn Millar, who showed us how even the same species of rhododendron can have significant variations, and also talked about the breeding of NZ raised hybrids in the grove. She encouraged us to rub the branches of the taller rhododendrons which have peeling bark, to further expose and polish their gorgeous shades of nutmeg and cinnamon. She also pointed out the seven year progression of the Himalayan lilies from a grass-like seed leaf (first year) to a one tiny heart-shaped true leaf (second year) to more and bigger leaves (years three to six) until finally the plant (which has been forming a bulb as big as a hockey ball underground) is ready to flower.
Orton Bradley Park is open every day during daylight hours. It has a small
entry fee to help cover the costs of providing its many amenities. The
rhododendrons start flowering in October, and go through to December.
The Himalayan lilies are at their peak in late November/early December.
There are seats throughout the grove, and it is a lovely place to stay awhile.
Kathryn Millar points out Himalayan lily seedlings.
Note the huge seed stalk from last year's lily behind her.
All the lilies in the grove are descended from six seedlings
which Kathryn acquired over forty years ago.
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