The poppies at the nectar bed in Wharfemeadows Park looking good in mid May.
Margaret and Jacquie after doing some work on the bed.
Nectar Bed poppies
Category: Plant
The Otley Phlox
The Story of the Otley Phlox
Fred M. Simpson was born in 1879 to an Otley ironmonger. Through his working life he was a plumber in Harrogate, a farmer in Canada, and then a poultry breeder in Otley. His passion for horticulture only began in his 50s when ill health forced him into a most productive retirement. He used his skills in cross breeding to breed new strains of Korean chrysanthemums, lupins, Michaelmas daisies, and finally in his 70s perennial phlox.
In 2014, Otley in Bloom heard about this pioneering horticulturalist and wanted to bring his plants back to Otley. An ongoing search has so far not revealed any known examples of his chrysanthemums, lupins and Michaelmas daisies, but this year we will be planting in Wharfemeadows Park examples of five perennial phlox varieties bred by Fred M Simpson in the 1950s.
Mr Simpson bred the phlox to be more compact and bushy than other available varieties. The guiding principle of his work is described as “a search for perfection, a discontent with things as they are, a feeling that however good a plant of his creation might be it could be made better. “I’ve got a good thing here but I must try to improve it” has been his personal motto. And his criterion has been his personal sense of beauty, that subtle appreciation of colour and form which he shared with his artistic sisters – ‘If it doesn’t suit me out it goes out onto the muck heap’”*
*extract from West Riding Farming Personalities article from Otley Museum
With grateful thanks to Otley Museum and Jane Britten.
The plants have been propagated by Courtyard Planters who have donated plants to Leeds City Council Parks in Otley and to the National Collection at Temple Newsam. If you would like to purchase an Otley phlox, they are available from Courtyard Planters, with 50p from the sale of each plant coming to Otley in Bloom to support more horticultural projects.
If you are able to report any known examples of other plants bred by Fred M Simpson, we would be delighted to hear from you.
Our snowdrops came up all over Otley
In autumn 2015 we planted thousands of snowdrops around Otley. We saw blooms all over town last February, and again this Spring there have been masses of flowers. Here are some at the Whartons School.
Nectar Bed plants for pollinators
Since we planted the Nectar Bed in Wharfemeadows Park, we have lost some of the plants and added new ones. It will continue to change and evolve as we see what does well and what doesn’t, so it’s impossible to give a list of what’s there right now. But if you want to know which garden plants are perfect for pollinators, attractive to bees, butterflies and hoverflies, see the RHS’s list.
Snowdrops at Ellar Ghyll
Here are a couple of photos of the snowdrops at Ellar Ghyll recycling Centre, planted by the workers there (thanks!), and looking good now alongside the daffodils.
Otley in Bloom 