THE Garden House at Buckland Monachorum is celebrating its Diamond Jubilee by naming a new cultivar of rhododendron 'Buckland Unique'. The Garden House has an established reputation as originator of new plants, rhododendrons among them. Lionel Fortescue, who founded the garden in the 1940s, raised the beautiful yellow rhododendron hybrids 'Katherine Fortescue' and 'Nancy Fortescue', named after his wife and daughter respectively. As the garden celebrates its diamond jubilee, a new cultivar of rhododendron from its famous collection is to be christened Rhododendron 'Buckland Unique'. Named for the attractive yellow variegated foliage, it was discovered among a batch of tissue- cultured plants of the cream-tinged-pink R. 'Unique' by the previous head gardener, Keith Wiley, and planted along the garden's rhododendron walk. Matt Bishop, the current head gardener, said: 'Variegated rhododendrons are extremely rare and tend not to be great beauties, but this one really is!' It is hoped there will be plants available in the garden's plant sales centre in the future. Also creating a stir at The Garden House this month are the erythroniums (Dog's Tooth Violets), one of the garden's signature plants. Erythronium revolutum, a North American species, has naturalised in many parts of the garden including the birch wood, underneath the ancient lime trees and in the bulb meadow. Among the roots of a starry-flowered magnolia they have formed an enormous pink carpet, considered one of the finest colonies in the country. The Garden House, including plant sales and tearoom, is open daily from 10.30am to 5pm.