Many gardeners have suffered poor fruit crops this season– especially apples; a complete contrast to last year when the cold winter and warm spring produced bumper yields. Poor cropping was caused primarily by wet weather affecting pollination and cool dull conditions for most of the year and we have and we have no control over […]
September, is traditionally the month of lawn maintenance. If you have a small lawn, rake out the ‘thatch’ or dead grass and moss that has accumulated over the mowing season, using a wire rake, if your lawn is larger, hire a scarifier and share the it among several of your friends to save money or […]
To misquote John Cleese; ‘Don’t mention the rain’! It has been the most extraordinary year for precipitation; it started as soon as the hosepipe ban was announced. Low temperatures and lack of sunshine, has meant plant growth has often been at a standstill. Normally restricted growth forms of gooseberries, redcurrants and apples, like fans and […]
I heard someone say recently: ‘I don’t wish to sound like a farmer, but the weather has been dreadful this year’! Whatever your profession, it has more than justified being our favourite topic of conversation. Cold, drought, heat, flooding and incessant rain have all affected our gardens, plants and morale! High rainfall has encouraged masses […]
Removing faded flowers or ‘dead heading’, (see image) is a wonderful job for a late spring day, it extends the flowering season of annuals, hanging basket plants like Pelargonium’s, herbaceous plants – even shrubs, where it’s practical and is vital for sweet peas, which stop flowering if they are allowed to produce seed. Cutting bunches […]
‘Hardening off’ is the process of acclimatising plants which have been grown indoors, until they become robust enough to grow outdoors for the summer like bedding plants, ornamental or vegetable seedlings propagated in the greenhouse and tender or half hardy plants, like Fuschias and dahlias, which have been protected through the winter. It usually takes […]
As predictions of ‘a worse drought than 1976’ hit the headlines, here are some water saving tips for your garden. Seven water companies in southern and eastern England – Southern Water, South East Water, Thames Water, Anglia Water, Sutton and East Surrey, Veolia Central and Veolia South East – will soon be starting hosepipe bans; […]
The end of last month took us from -15 C to 15C in a matter of two weeks in parts of Britain, some gardeners I spoke to expressed surprise; others, wore that knowing, well worn look based on years of experience. I clearly remember when I was a teenager (yes, that long ago!) planting trees […]
By the end of February you should be thinking about ‘chitting’ your potatoes. ‘Chitting’ or sprouting first or second early potatoes by allowing several shoots to develop before planting, encourages faster growth, heavier crops and is a way of beating the weather. Timing is the key – start them off about six weeks before the […]
I dread January; it is often the coldest month of the year, when snow makes its presence felt. If last year, was intent on reminding us that cold winters are not a thing of the past, it worked! (Do double check that you have wrapped your pots in hessian or bubble wrap if snow is […]
What – its December already? I can’t believe it! It seems that time passes more rapidly every year. Perhaps it’s my age – surely not; it’s just that there is so much to do and so little time! November was an extraordinary month, with bouts of unseasonal temperatures, which made it feel like spring. I […]
Now’s the time to plant garlic. The year before last, my garlic was successful and my onions were not. This year is has been the other way round! They were both planted at the same time and treated in the same way but the results are different! It is interesting how success and failure are […]
