Erwan Le Bec, a French horticultural student at INH school (Agrocampus Ouest Angers) writes about his recent visit to us as an intern. He left us with extraordinary photographs and research notes about our collections.
Since I was a child I’ve had a particular interest in the world of plants.
It started with my grandfather’s vegetable garden, then moved to ornamental plants, and especially woody plants, whether trees or shrubs, because to me they seemed incredible living creatures, able to survive against all the difficulties of our world. This passion developed over the years and I decided to take advantage of my studies in landscape design to deepen my knowledge of botany. I began in 2019 with an internship at the Roscoff botanical garden, then continued with an internship at the Aoba nursery, run by Cédric Basset and Manon Rivière, and, last year, had a unique experience at Wespelaar arboretum with Christophe Crock and Koen Camelbeke. This world of trees and shrubs is now for me both a refuge and an idyllic setting for a future professional life.
For several years I’d been hoping to be able to have some experience in gardens in England, to improve my English and my knowledge of plants at the same time. Last summer, during a talk in Herkenrode with Philippe de Spoelberch, we spoke about the garden at White House Farm and its wonderful Hydrangea collection. Having worked on the Hydrangea collection at Wespelaar arboretum, WHF seemed a good choice for my next internship destination. After few emails, I agreed with Maurice Foster on a 3-week internship in August 2023. As soon as I arrived, I felt right at home at White House Farm, with a nice welcome from Clare, her children and Maurice. The atmosphere was incredible: a house in the middle of a treasure trove of plants from so many different horizons. The Hydrangea aspera had just begun to bloom and were shining in all their splendor, like images I’d seen in books about the flora of China.
From the very first evening, Maurice welcomed me with open arms into his world, giving me access to his knowledge and some interesting books: it was the beginning of an incredible experience, three weeks of pure happiness. During these weeks I inventoried with Maurice some zones in the garden, and some genera like Carpinus, Sorbus, Corylus and Euonymus. Thanks to this work, I discovered my favourite plant of the garden: the Magnolia wilsonii x Magnolia globosa seedling from one of his collections that he has nicknamed ‘Parachute’ because of its very big white flower.
Any activity with Maurice at White House Farm is interesting and instructive, because at WHF each plant has its own story, so every day he took me with him to the different regions of his travels. For example, he discovered Carpinus fangiana in Yunnan in 1998 with some American botanists – the tree had no fruits, and they thought that the foliage looked fagaceous, and was probably an oak. But Maurice kept on searching, and finally spotted a the very characteristic single fruit of Carpinus fangiana in some taller branches. I also helped the arboretum team for one day a week, pruning, tree-felling, and weeding, which was a great way to learn about plant collections in a different way, as something constantly changing. And every week Maurice took me to different famous gardens like Wisley, Nymans and Hilliers to meet different plant specialists, such as Chris Sanders, Chris Lane, Rod White and Jack Aldridge. It was a great pleasure to talk to them, each one a specialist in his own areas.
This unique and comprehensive experience was very encouraging; it helped me feel I belong in this world of enthusiasts. So I’m finishing my last year of study in landscape design by specialising in urban green spaces, with a 6-month work experience in February 2024 to conclude my course, which I hope to do in a garden or arboretum. My sincere thanks to Maurice and Clare for their welcome, and to Philippe de Spoelberch for this recommendation.
Follow Erwan on Instagram at @decouverte_botanique, connect with him on LinkedIn, or contact him at erwan.le-bec@orange.fr.
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White House Farm Garden and Arboretum 