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Ian LeGros

Ian LeGros Curator RHS Garden Hyde Hall

I joined the Hyde Hall team as an untrained assistant gardener in 1992, was promoted to Garden Superintendent in April 2005 and then to Curator in June 2006. Over the years I have been lucky enough to play a lead role in many of Hyde Hall’s landmark projects including setting out the Farmhouse Garden, the redevelopment of the Queen Mother’s Garden, and the creation of the Millennium Avenue and Wild Wood. Most recently I helped to co-design the new Robinson Garden which was opened in 2007.

  • Date Joined: 12 Jul 2007

Recent Comments

  • Dry Garden

    Ian LeGros on 17 Jun 2008 at 05:32 PM

    Even if I say so myself, the Dry Garden is looking absolutely splendid at the moment!  Earlier rainfall this year, followed by the odd warm spell has seen the garden literally burst into bloom.  The vibrant shades of purples, oranges and yellows look amazing - not bad for a garden that is never watered.

    Of particular interest are the giant Verbascums and Echiums, which are literally towering abover everything else at the moment.  In fact this is the first year that the Echiums have bloomed. The Phlomis, Salvia, Nigella, and Leptospermum are also providing useful colour and the wonderful textural qualities of grasses such as Stipa gigantea and Stipa tenacissima add great movement and softness

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  • Flower Festival

    Ian LeGros on 04 Jun 2008 at 03:01 PM

    When the idea of a flower festival came about, one of my garden team members - Michelle Renwick - eagerly volunteered to 'dress' our events barn.

    Michelle, who in her spare time is studying floristry at Writtle College, has a great talent for flower arranging and relished the challenge when asked to create a number of displays

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  • Hyde Hall Roses

    Ian LeGros on 30 May 2008 at 04:00 PM

    The Rose Garden at Hyde Hall comprises six rectangular beds of David Austin English Roses set in an immaculate verdant green lawn. All these roses have been bred to combine the disease resistance and vigour of modern varieties, combined with the flower structure and fragrance of traditional roses. Many of them have repeat flowering flushes thus providing colour from June right through to November. The beds are grouped according to colour and are bounded by tightly clipped hedges of Buxus sempervirens and Taxus baccata, the deep green perfectly complementing the hues of the roses. Some noteworthy varieties include Rosa 'The Mayflower' which is incredibly disease resistant, Rosa 'Winchester Cathedral' which has a very compact pure white bloom and Rosa 'Scepter’d Isle', a deep red rose with an outstanding fragrance. Two climbing roses on modern style obelisks are situated on the corner of each bed.

    The Rose Rope Walk is one of the older features of Hyde Hall, originally planted in the late 1960s. It comprises a delectable selection of climbers, ramblers and clematis trained along thick shipping rope and makes a heavenly scented walk in the summer months. The Rope Walk is also spectacular in the winter, when the roses are pruned and trained into labyrinthine shapes around the ropes

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  • Diary notes - Mon 18 January - Crocus watch

    Ian LeGros on 18 Feb 2008 at 03:31 PM

    At long last our Crocus are beginning to bloom!

    Last year we undertook a major bulb planting session and over 200,000 crocus were sown.  The majority of them are blue / lilac tones and on a bright sunny day you can really appreciate their subtle colours. 

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  • Diary notes - Mon 18 Jan - scarecrows working in field

    Ian LeGros on 18 Feb 2008 at 03:21 PM

    Following our first family scarecrow making day, all the scarecrows are now working out in our fields.

    The idea of making scarecrows came about following the sowing of the cornfield annual meadow and someone happened to mention that we could do with a few scarecrows to stop the birds eating the seed.  Well we now have around 50 scarecrows in the field and they are attracting much attention - particularly from motorists passing by the estate

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  • Diary notes - 24 January - maintenance activities

    Ian LeGros on 24 Jan 2008 at 01:37 PM

    During the winter months we like to carry out any maintenance or refrubishment tasks around the garden while there are fewer visitors to disturb!

    At the moment we have a number of maintenance tasks ongoing

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  • Diary notes - 24 January - Wisteria pruning

    Ian LeGros on 24 Jan 2008 at 01:28 PM

    At Hyde Hall you enter the eight-acre Hilltop Garden through a solid oak pergola draped with the wonderfully scented Wisteria brachybotrys 'Shiro-kapitan' and this needs to be pruned twice a year - in Janaury and June.

    At the moment members of the Hilltop Gardening team are hard pruning to about 2-3 inches per spur.  The next prune will be a light one in June when each spur is reduced by about half

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  • Diary Notes - Mon 21 Jan - more bloomers!

    Ian LeGros on 21 Jan 2008 at 12:06 PM

    It's that time of year when you begin to spot lots of things coming in to bloom.  On my last walkabout I noticed that there are many Snowdrops (Galanthus) in our Woodland Garden as well as flowering Hellebores in the Winter Beds and Robinson Garden (Helleborus x nigercors and Helleborus x ericsmithii).

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  • Diary Notes - Jan 10th - Cornfield Annual Meadow

    Ian LeGros on 10 Jan 2008 at 01:08 PM

    Last year we planted a 10 acre meadow (on the eastern side of the Estate) with Cornfield Annuals and we look forward to their blooming later this year.

    The local bird population were also pleased that we sowed the seeds as many were seen feasting!  However, I'm pleased to report that they didn't manage to eat all the seed as there are signs that they are beginning to emerge

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  • Diary notes - Jan 10th - Camellias in bloom

    Ian LeGros on 10 Jan 2008 at 01:02 PM

    During a walk around the garden yesterday I noticed that in our Woodland Garden the Camellias are beginning to bloom.

    We already have plenty of Camellia williamsii 'Saint Ewe' in full bloom and a few Camellia williamsii 'November Pink' starting to come through

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  • Pond Clearing

    Ian LeGros on 20 Sep 2007 at 09:26 AM

    This week several members of staff have been carrying out the annual task of pond clearing - must to be amusement of visitors who normally just expect to see fish in the pond rather than people!

    The water lillies have been trimmed and numerous bucket loads of pond weed removed, ensuring the pond will be in good order over the winter months

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  • Looking good this weekend

    Ian LeGros on 07 Sep 2007 at 12:29 PM
    Despite a chilly start at the beginning of the week the days have been beautifully mellow and there are definitely signs that autumn is on its way.

    In the garden, the sub-tropical garden is still bursting with vibrant coloured blooms as are the colour-themed herbaceous borders. From the fiery reds and oranges to the more muted blues and pinks the perennial plants are looking great this year - probably thanks to all the rain over the summer months.  In fact the whole garden has retained a lush green feel to it.

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  • New students arrive at the garden

    Ian LeGros on 07 Sep 2007 at 09:05 AM

    This week we welcomed Jo, Fay and Claire who have all successfully completed their studies at Writtle College.

    They will all undergo a year's training here at the garden and will be closely working alongside our experienced gardeners.  During the year they will also be expected to manage projects and take part in plant identification assessments.

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  • Family Fun Day

    Ian LeGros on 08 Aug 2007 at 12:54 PM

    At last summer seems to have arrived and once again the garden is bustling with visitors enjoying the vibrant blooms and lush green lawns.

    We also like to cater for our younger visitors and with this in mind we have another Family Fun Day on Tuesday 21 August

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