Cyril Lafong's Mansions

The next day Ian and I traveled to Cyril Lafong's home in Fife which is just across the Firth of Fourth bridge to Edinburgh.

For those who don't know who Cyril Lafong is; please allow me to enlighten you. Cyril is an accomplished grower of some of the best alpine plants in the world and on Saturday he won his 50th Best In Show for a Trillium (possibly a record?)

The weather was excellent as we stepped into Cyril's backyard. I had seen pictures from Panayoti Kelaidis when he visited a few years ago but it was only a glimpse into how extensive his private collection is. We spent some time walking around the patio crevice garden or as Ian likes to call it, Crockery. As we made our way around the garden, Daphne and Corydalis were flowering everywhere as well as Trillium and Erythronium. 

the Crockery

Erythronium tuolumnense

Over 60 years combined knowledge right here

Ian and Cyril have been friends for over 30 years and have been sharing plants, seed, and cuttings since they met. This friendship has produced some incredible crosses of Daphne, Galanthus, and Trillium to name a few. This sharing has also introduced many plants into cultivation that are difficult or require a certain knowledge to grow.

Viola volcanica. Case in point. 

One of the several growing mansions filled with pots of choice alpines

Pot to pot full of choice alpines. Some of which he will bring to shows

Every time I asked Cyril if a certain plant was hard to grow, he often replied "not too hard". I am not sure if there isn't something Cyril can't grow though. It was both inspiring and overwhelming to hear this from him and made me want to try growing more unusual things.

 Many cushion plants and unusual gems fill the cracks of Cyril's 2nd Crevice bed

Forgot to write the name of this down. Some you plant geeks might know it

The rectangular beds grow many plants Cyril tests outside or do better in the ground

Propagation area that Cyril shared some great tips about with me 

I am really glad that I had the time to see Cyril's garden and private collections. It's amazing how someone with a small backyard could have a collection to that of a botanic garden. Thank you to Cyril and his family for hosting me for the afternoon.

Final Stop: Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh