Posts by Emma Emmerson
It’s Not All Plants!
We love our plants here at Woodside, but we do other things too!
Vintage Garden items
Last year we started sourcing and stocking vintage garden and shed items, and we are well stocked with interesting bits and pieces from 50p to £2500, so plenty to suit all budgets!
This week I’ve collected some gorgeous late-Victorian salt glazed troughs, I’m reasonably good at remembering to put photos onto Facebook, so please follow us if you want to receive regular photos of items that catch my eye. We have also got a section here on the website for our antique and vintage items – now we’ve passed the May and June madness I’ll be able to spend a bit more time getting it up to date.
Our search for vintage and antique items takes us throughout the UK, but we are always very happy to source items closer to home, so if you want us to do a shed or garden clearance for you, just get in touch. Also if there is a particular item, for example a sundial, that you’d like us to look out for, just let us know and we’ll see what we can find….
New Range of Curry Pastes
We also retail selected food items in our plant shop, including our own home-made frozen meals, fresh bread, fruit and vegetables. We have recently started stocking a new range of curry pastes, which are made in India with traditional Indian ingredients. These differ from other sauces and pastes in that each one has it’s own distinct fresh flavours, and don’t all just taste of gloopy spicy curry – I’m sure know what I mean! Choose from 8 different flavours, all £4.50 each:
Butter Chicken (Highly recommended)
Goan Curry
Chicken Curry
Karahi Curry (Also highly recommended – quite spicy, but tasty too)
Rogan Josh
Chick Pea Curry
Tikka Masala
Tandoori
Serve them with our giant oven baked naan breads, and that’s a meal sorted!
Perfect Planting Conditions for Hardy Perennials
This rain has been wonderful for our gardens, with the plants drinking it up and putting on lots of growth after a hot dry spell.
Now we have perfect planting conditions, it’s a good time to fill your garden with gorgeous hardy perennials. We have lots of new plants this week to choose from including a beautiful selection from award-winning Howard Nurseries that have just arrived.
Here are some of my favourites – there are plenty more!
Actaea Chocoholic – this used to be called Cimicifuga and is a lovely tall dark leaved perennial with delicate looking flowers
Brunnera Dawson’s White – this is a really good variegated form, with blue flowers
Calamagrostis Karl Foerster & Overdam – two really nice varieties of grass, perfect for prairie planting schemes
Eryngium Jos Eijking – this is probably the best of the blue Sea Hollies, and is the one we grow here in our garden at Woodside and is much admired. Lovely to look at and irresistible to bees
Eupatorium Baby Joe – a compact form of Joe Pye Weed, with attractive purple flowers in late summer/autumn that are good for the butterflies
Geum Pink Petticoats & Totally Tangerine – two of the very best Geums, that have good strong colour, and flower for weeks throughout the summer.
Heleniums – fantastic late flowering perennials with daisy-like flowers, to give later interest in the garden. We have 4 varieties – Red Jewel, Wesergold, Moerheim Beauty and Short and Sassy
Persicaria – really good ground cover perennials that are easy to grow and have quite showy flowers too. We have four varieties of these – affinis Donald Lowndes, amplexicaulis Annes Choice, amplexicaulis Blackfield, and bistorta Superba
Sedum Herbstfreude – sometimes known as “Autumn Joy, this is probably the best of all the border Sedums, flowering quite late in the summer and persisting into autumn, providing a late food source for pollinating insects.
Other highlights
Look out too for packs of Lewisia and flowers for rockeries and alpine troughs, Rhodohypoxis in a variety of colours, Ophiopogon nigrescens (known as the “black grass” but not a grass at all – it’s actually a member of the lily family, and they’re just coming into flower now), Nemesias in three different colours and much, much more.
As you can tell, I’m very excited about our current range of plants and I very much recommend a visit to Woodside to fully appreciate the choice that we have. All our plants are container grown and can be planted all year round, and, as mentioned, planting conditions are now absolutely perfect with the warm weather and lovely rainfall.
Slugs
Remember that slugs like the rain too, so don’t forget to protect plants with slug pellets! We have a good range of eco-friendly slug pellets in the plant centre.
As usual, if you’d like anything reserved, to book a table in the tearoom, or have any questions, please call on 01835 830315. Emails and social media messages may go unanswered as none of us like computers – we much prefer plants!
Tender Plants for Conservatories and Sun Rooms
Our polytunnel has been transformed into a stunning space displaying tender plants for conservatories, sun rooms and patios. Most of these plants will live outside quite happily over the summer, to give your garden a lush, tropical feel, but will need to come indoors for the colder months.
Tender Plants
Here are some of the plants we have available:
- Gloriosa with shocking pink blooms
- Hoya bella, (Wax Plant) a house plant with sweetly scented white flowers
- Plumbago – a blue flowering climber
- Aloe Vera – an easy to grow plant with healing sap
- Cannas – exotic blooms suitable for pots and patios
- Mandervilla – a subtropical vine with stunning flowers. We have 3 varieties Classic Red, Flamingo Pink, Classic White.
- Zantadeschias – in a choice of colours
- Passionflower – really big bushy plants standing around 3ft in height, full of flowers and buds. Three varieties – Clear Sky, White Passion, Violet Passion. £59.99 each
- Citrus trees – Lemons and calamondins, both carrying fruit £52.99 each.
Garden Plants
There are plenty more garden plants available this week. My personal favourites are:
- Flower Carpet Roses in 6 different colours
- Penstemon Sour Grapes
- Hosta Sting – a new variety with white stems, upright growth and good variegation
- Agastache Blackadder – a great plant for pollinators and attractive too
- Persicaria affinis Superba – one of the vey best ground cover plants which flowers from spring, through summer and into autumn.
- Hemerocallis – I love Daylilies. They are really easy to grow and keep producing blooms throughout early to mid-summer. We have 6 varieties – Night Embers (dark red double flowers), Summer Wine (pinky red), Charles Johnston (cherry red with green throat), Golden Chimes (rich gold), Stafford (deep red with orange throat) and Stella de Ora (crisp clear yellow)
- Alstroemeria – choose from Husky (speckled orange), Sundance (speckled yellow) or Indian Summer (bronze leaf and orange flowers)
As usual this is just a quick taste of what we have available. Don’t forget we also stock garden furniture, water features, decorative garden ornaments, birdbaths, pots and statues, garden vintage and antique items and much more, so do come in and take a look.
Easter Weekend at Woodside
What a gorgeous morning to start the Easter Weekend at Woodside. The first of our baby vegetable packs are now available and selling fast. We will be getting more over the next few weeks, so please don’t worry if you have missed out this time. Please note that all tomato plants will need heated conditions at the moment, such as a heated greenhouse. There will be plenty more tomato plants coming on for those of you with unheated greenhouses.
For this weekend we have packs of:
Purple Sprouting Broccoli
Green Calabrese
Red Cabbage (Limited numbers)
Cauliflower (Limited Numbers)
Spinach (Limited Numbers)
Lettuce Cos (Limited numbers)
Lettuce Green Salad Bowl (Limited numbers)
Lettuce Red Salad Bowl (limited numbers)
And in 9cm pots we have:
Leek Musselburgh
Sweetcorn
Tomato Alicante
Tomato Gardener’s Delight
Tomato Shirley
Tomato Ailsa Craig
Tomato Moneymaker
Herbaceous Plants
A delivery of herbaceous plants has arrived today (Good Friday). This means that we have a good selection of hardy perennials for the weekend, to add to our large choice of garden plants. The weather forecast is perfect for planting, and the sun is to shine for at least two days, so it’s the ideal time to get out into the garden.
Also for this Easter weekend at Woodside we have a selection of UK made wooden troughs and planters – as featured in the photograph.
We have trellis backed planters, suitable for short climbers and for screening, troughs on legs suitable for salad, vegetable and herbs, as well as square and rectangular troughs for patios, driveways and front doors. These are all very well priced, so do come in and take a look. We recommend that you line them with used compost sacks or bin bags for best results.
Easter in the Tearoom
In the Birdhouse Tearoom we have some delicious Easter Specials for you.
Try our new handmade oven baked Scotch Eggs, made here at Woodside by Mandy, using local free-range organic eggs and are available in four flavours – Pork & Apple, BBQ, Chilli and Herb. On the specials board we have Coronation chicken on this weekend.
Sue has been busy baking some Easter treats: Simnel Cake, Easter Spiced Biscuits and Chocolate Nests are all ready for you to enjoy, along with all our usual favourites. The tearoom is likely to very popular this weekend – so I’d recommend booking for indoor seating on 01835 830315. There’s plenty of space outside on our picnic tables, so no need to book if you’re happy to sit outside in the Spring sunshine.
As usual, for all enquiries and reservations, please call us on 01835 830315. The office will be closed until Tuesday, so emails and enquiries through social media will not get picked up!
More New Stock Arriving
What a couple of weeks this has been with new spring deliveries arriving every day! This morning (7th March) we have just had a delivery of azalea and rhododendron plants, which are sure to be popular as gardeners look forward to spring. Other plant deliveries last week included Hebes, Hellebores, Ribes (Flowering Currant), Cotinus Grace and Royal Purple, some gorgeous mature Corylopsis pauciflora in flower, some beautiful feature Pines, and some large Wisteria sinensis.
Seed Potatoes
The remaining seed potatoes have been delivered and are selling fast. Fresh stock includes:
Charlotte
Kestrel
Jazzy
Nadine
Wilja
Organic Bambino
Main Crop:
Caledonian Rose
Cara
Desiree
Golden Wonder
King Edward
Maris Piper
Pentland Dell
Pink Fir Apple
Rooster
Organic Sarpo Mira.
If you’d like us to reserve a bag of seed potatoes for you, please give us a call on 01835 830315
Scottish Grown Fruit Bushes
Also selling well are the fruit bushes which arrived last week from our specialist Scottish grower:
Blueberry Brigitta
Blueberry Jersey
Black Currant Ben Connan
Blackcurrant Goliath
Gooseberry Hinnonmaki Green
Gooseberry Invicta
Honeyberry Boreal Beast
Gojiberry
Redcurrant Rosetta
Rhubarb Champagne
Rhubarb Glaskins Perpetual
Rhubarb Timperley Early
Rhubarb Victoria
Tummelberry
Peat-Free Professional Compost
We are very excited to have taken delivery of some new ranges of compost. Our NEW peat-free professional compost (Bronte Heritage) finally offers non-peat users a really good multi-purpose compost suitable for a wide range of uses, including potting and planting. This compost has been available to professional users for a while in bulk loads, but has now been packaged in retail bags in a manageable 50 litre size. They are £11.99 each, or 2 for £20. We will be using this compost ourselves for all our plant production and growing purposes, and Joanne will be very busy next week potting up our young plants ready for growing on.
We also now stock the Growmoor range of compost, which is a company based in County Tyrone and offers a full range of composts and related products, including Garden Mulch, Farmyard Manure, Growbags, Rose, Tree and Shrub planting compost, Multipurpose compost with added John Innes and a NEW peat-free Ericaceous Compost. And we have also taken delivery of a fresh batch of Dalefoot Wool Compost which is produced in Cumbria using fleece from Herdwick sheep and bracken. We stock most of their range: Potting, Tomato, Vegetable and Salad, Double Strength, Seed and Lakeland Gold (Claybuster). In all we stock around 25 different composts – so there should be something to suit everyone’s needs.
Recycled Metal Birds
And finally, we’ve had a delivery of more of our lovely recycled metal birds and animals, made by Zimbabwean artists to designs developed by a British team in the Coxwolds. These are not the mass produced items you find on-line, but individual handmade and hand painted items, made from recycled oil drums and other waste metal products. Our range includes a selection of British birds, which seems particularly suitable for Woodside.
If you want to receive regular updates about new stock as it arrives, please sign up to our newsletter list below
Chocolate Cake Day
This Friday, 27th January is National Chocolate Cake Day (who knew there was such a thing – but it sounds like an excellent idea to me).
To celebrate, we will be offering 5 different chocolate cake options: Chocolate Fudge Cake, Chocolate Brownies, Guinness and Chocolate Cake, Chocolate and Beetroot Cake and Chocolate Log.
These are all available individually for you to enjoy, or we are offering a Chocolate Cake Taster Sharing Platter for just £10. Only available on Friday 27th, so if you’d like to come you may want to book by calling 01835 830315.
Burns Night.
If you are not a sweet tooth, you may be looking forward more to this week’s Burns Night. With the original date for our Burns Lunch now fully booked, we have added an extra date of Thursday 26th January for you to enjoy the Woodside Burns Lunch from 1pm.
Enjoy:
Starters:
Cullen Skink Or
Vegetarian pate with homemade oatcakes
Main Courses:
Haggis, tattie neeps, whisky sauce, and buttered leeks or
Vegetarian Wellington, tattie neeps, whisky sauce, and buttered leeks (V)
Pudding:
Mango and black pepper cranachan or
Clootie dumpling and custard
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2 courses £21.50 per person
3 courses £27.50 per person
Please pre-book menu choices – 01835 830315
Snowdrop Events
If you are out and about walking in the area you have may noticed that the snowdrops are coming out in some more sunny areas. They are always such a welcome harbinger of spring, so we will be running a series of themed snowdrop events throughout January.
Artist of the Month
From 16th January E Judith Murray will be exhibiting snowdrop themed art in the coffee shop. She will be here in person on Friday 20th between 11:00 and 14:30, so do pop in and have a chat and maybe try your hand at drawing snowdrops with her. No need to book, just turn up on the day. You can have a look at her work on her instagram page here
Snowdrop Lunch
We will be starting our Snowdrop Lunch offer from 20th to 31st January – come and enjoy a warming winter lunch for just £14.50.
Soup of the Day and a roll (2 choices daily)
Hot Pudding of the Day (2 choices daily)
Tea or coffee (or a cold drink)
If you wish you can book on 01835 830315, or just turn up!
And, if these snowdrop events aren’t enough, we hope to have snowdrops available to purchase in the plant centre from 20th January too.
Winter Wonderland at Woodside
It is an absolute winter wonderland here both inside and out. We are very much open for business – the snow is just adding a bit of seasonal magic!
Mistletoe and other Christmassy plants
We’ve just had a delivery of gorgeous Christmassy plants for your home and garden, including some mistletoe, as we welcome the return of Christmas kissing!
Highlights include hyacinths, potted amaryllis, Christmas cactus, indoor azaleas, mini orchids and lots of colourful indoor cyclamen. These are all perfect for Christmas gifts or for simply making your home look bright and Christmassy.
We are well stocked with gifts, decorations and Christmas lights, as well as groceries, Christmas food items (including delicious brandy snaps) , wild bird food, dog treats, garden tools and so much more.
I think you’ll be surprised at the range of our products, so do come in and have a look, particularly if you’ve still got some “hard to buy for” people to buy for.
Christmas Dining
Don’t forget we are still taking bookings for our Christmas Lunches every Monday and Tuesday, and Christmas Afternoon tea on 15th December, and our Christmas Evening Dinner on Friday 16th December. Please call us on 01835 830315 to book.
We are open every day right up to and including Christmas Eve 10am – 4pm.
Winter Fuel and Food at Woodside
Winter has truly arrived, with frosty nights and chilly days, so our thoughts have turned to keeping warm and well fed over the coming Festive Season.
Winter Fuel
To keep you cosy we have a choice of winter fuel for stoves and open fires. We stock locally sourced kindling, softwood and hardwood logs all sold by the bag, as well as Coffee Logs (for stoves only) which are made from recycled coffee grinds and give off a lovely intense heat.
I have found that the coffee logs work really well mixed with logs and give plenty of heat as well as a good slow burning flame. Coffee Logs benefit both people and planet. They’re a low moisture fuel, burn 20% hotter than kiln-dried wood logs, and they reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 130% compared to grounds sent to standard disposal method. They are £11.99 a bag with a special offer of £20 for 2 bags.
We also stock the hugely popular Dr Heat Firelighters, which offer a carbon neutral way of reliably getting your fire or stove lit. Dr Heat eco-friendly firelighters are produced from miscanthus grass waste from biofuel production, and recycled scented candle wax, which would otherwise be sent to landfill. The factory is run by solar panels and all packaging materials are 100% recyclable cardboard.
It’s always a good idea to make provision for winter power cuts here in the Scottish Borders, and we have plenty of plain candles in different shapes and sizes, as well as red Christmas pillar candles and vanilla scented candles for a romantic and cosy ambience.
Relaxed Food Shopping.
We love our food here at Woodside – who wouldn’t being surrounded with delicious home-made cakes and the daily aroma of freshly baked scone? We sell a good range of fruit and vegetables in the grocery section of the plant shop, as well as a selection of store cupboard items such as pasta, curry sauces, naan breads, olive oils, salad dressings and much more. We’re also pleased that we have a reliable and local source of organic eggs so we have these is stock (whilst the supermarkets are running out!)
Talking of supermarkets – they are all proving to be a bit of a nightmare just now as the hectic build up to Christmas begins, so if you’re looking for a calmer way to do your food shopping, please pop into Woodside to take a look and see what we can offer. In addition to fruit, vegetables, eggs and store cupboard items, we sell freshly baked sourdough bread on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and we now have oven ready pheasant and red-legged partidge in our frozen food section. Sue is also busy cooking more frozen ready meals today to top up any gaps in the freezer.
Our Christmas range of food is also now available – either to give as presents or to treat yourself. Look out for gift-packed chocolates, vegan truffles, Scottish fudge, gluten-free Amoretti biscuits, Christmas puddings and, everybody’s favourite – Brandy Snaps.
Christmas Decorations
To make your table look pretty this Christmas we have a range of luxury Christmas Crackers with matching napkins and candles, as well as a good selection of table decorations. Don’t forget that we stock a small but good quality range of Christmas lights for both indoors and outdoors, artificial wreaths (some of which are battery operated light-up ones) and artificial garlands that you can use year after year. And, of course we stock Scottish grown Nordmann Christmas Trees, pot grown Christmas Trees, and our beautiful home-made real foliage wreaths which are very well priced compared with other local outlets, and are made here at Woodside by myself, Joanne and Sarah using local conifer and holly.
To order or reserve any of the items we stock at Woodside, including Christmas Trees and Wreaths please call us on 01835 830315.
Christmas Lunch
