March; making wonky vegetables great again.

Much has been in the news recently about the American party nominations along with some articles on the introduction of wonky vegetables to supermarkets.

I love wonky vegetables - especially organic ones or even better, home grown ones from the allotment. Full of flavour with the odd bit slug thrown in. Not sure about the super-clean, tasteless artificially orange carrot you see on TV with few of it's own hairs and often presented in ridiculous packaging. But who am I to judge?

But talking of things that have grown too big for their own good....and if you are in need of an antidote to media overload - now is the time to be ruthless with that Honeysuckle. I have lost count of the number of times I have gone into gardens and rather worried looking clients have complained about the size and woodiness of their rampant Honeysuckle.

Fear not - there is nothing to it. You can chop it right back to knee level and it will come back just fine. If it doesn't then it was past saving anyway.

It is also the month to cut back your roses. As I have suggested before - one third off in the late autumn and another third off in early spring is a good rule of thumb. Cut to just above a bud to avoid "die-back". By pruning you encourage healthy new growth, a better shaped plant and you can take out crossed, dead or diseased stems. That is the basic premise of all pruning.

I am looking forward to getting out and getting on with the following this month;

• Tidying up perennials that still need cutting back. Some, such as Sedum still display nice looking stems and seed heads so you might want to leave them for a bit longer.
• Get mulch spread over the borders to help keep the moisture in, the weeds down and to feed the soil. I am a big fan of the real thing - well-rotted cow manure.
• Add additional slow-release fertiliser to plants that have been struggling.
• There is still time to move evergreens as long as it is not in a cold snap.
• Not a very inviting task but now is the time to get into the pond ( or reach out from the edge ) and divide the marginal, pond and bog plants. Make sure you have a hot cuppa lined up!
• Work out your slug-defense regime. Beer traps? Grapefruit halves? Grit rings around plants? Night time patrols?
• In less frost-prone areas you can seed new lawns but always over-sow and put in place pest deterrents; conditions are never perfect so beware of bald patches.

Talking of bald patches...no...let's not go there. The sun is shining, the birds are singing and the clouds are clearing. 

Happy Spring gardening and here's to ...making wonky vegetables great again!

(Actually - they already are).

February; waking up from winter

February is always a strange mix. As the waitress in the cafe where I am blogging has just said; "It's weird innit? Everyone has a great time in December yeah? January they are broke and February...like...it's just ...weird innit?". I couldn't have put it better myself.

The holiday break now seems far too many miles away and work is beginning to pile up. My resolutions are being severely tested. There is however plenty of promise and consolation.

You can feel the days getting longer. And there are many glimpses of things to come; more birdsong, snowdrops emerging where you had never seen them before, Hellebores that you had never looked at closely and the saturating smell of sweet box ( Sarcoccocca ). You might even catch some sunlight on the yellow flowers of Witch Hazel.

I think it is the bright shafts of sunlight as a contrast to the winter grey that make it special. They pick out the colours. Mind you - I never get too excited as one moment I will be leaning against a wall warming myself and the next moment putting on extra layers because of the biting wind. You never know when a sharp frost is coming.

It's all definitely on the turn though. And if I can tear myself away from the warm sofa and put some of my healthy resolutions into practice I will get down to some of the jobs to do.

Monthly top-tips for February;

• Lawns can have their first cut if you are sure there are no frosts about. Set the mower at a high cut to start with then gradually lower it through the spring.
• If you do have a frost try to avoid walking on the grass as it damages and marks it.
• Trim the winter-flowering heathers after they have lost their colour.
• Fuchsia, Santolina and Lavatera are all looking a bit scraggy now and ready for a good chop. Cut them back to 30-45 cms.
• After you have cut back the ornamental grasses you can use the cuttings as a thermal layer by heaping them over the plant base.
• If you are lucky enough to have a wood burner or even have a bonfire you will help your roses and your fruit trees by sprinkling the ash around the base. It is the Potassium in it that benefits the fruit and flowers. Coal ash is not good news - too toxic for plants.
• It's still a good time to plant your new rose.
• Birds still benefit from a supply of food but I am reliably informed that providing peanuts when nesting time approaches is not a good idea. ( Health and safety with young fledglings is a hot topic you know).
• If you are going to prune deciduous hedges then do it now BEFORE the nesting season starts.

Well - I could get out now and cut down those Sedums and grasses before tea. Or watch the rugby preview from the sofa with some of that left-over cake, but it looks awfully miserable out there.

Oh dear - what happened to my resolutions? Like - it's just weird innit? 

Witch Hazel

P.s. Blog posts will now be posted on the first w-end of the month not the first day of the month.

January; light and dark

I recently walked some of the Cornish coastal path around Falmouth and the Helford estuary.

 Not only did I have some extraordinary and unexpected conversations with "strangers" leading to invitations and garden designs but I was struck by the amount of life I came across.

Admittedly these observations were when the rain wasn't  horizontal and I wasn't hanging on to a tree for dear life. But when the breaks came - and there were plenty of them - they were stunning. Strong yellows of gorse amongst the defiant green prickles, swelling buds of the mountain ash, oaks and Hawthorn and even small daffodils nodding their heads in the breeze.

I even managed some sunbathing in the shelter of a Helford estuary beach.

The wildlife certainly know the days are now getting longer. When the birds weren't sheltering from the winds the buzzards, blackbirds and inevitable seagulls wheeled in the skies. I looked on, envious of their acrobatic freedom as they swooped fearlessly over ragged cliffs.

I wonder if they are waiting for a "proper" winter as many of us are...or for that matter they have any opinion on global warming?

What ever my musings lead me to conclude there will be plenty of jobs to do when I get back home.

• WE might have fed rather too well this Christmas but for a lot of wildlife it is still a struggle. Apart from the joy of seeing birds at the feeders we can do our bit to bolster the numbers of common species such as sparrows and blue tits with simple bird feeders.
• If you have Hellebores that produce flowers from the ground you can show them off better by taking off the leaves.
• Make sure you get the most of the winter flowering Mahonias, Daphnes and Loniceras, even taking some cuttings into the house for a scented flower arrangement.
• Some of the ornamental grasses and perennials left for their winter interest may start looking messy. Just cut them back 75 - 100 mm from  the ground.
• Because larger trees and shrubs are still mostly dormant it is a good time to move, prune and plant them without too much fear of doing them permanent damage. Just avoid letting roots to dry out when planting.
• Partially prune Wisteria by cutting back side shoots shortened by summer pruning to two or three buds but avoid cutting off flower buds.
• Moles start becoming irritating at this time of year. You might have to level out their "hills" and think about disrupting their love lives wit some of the many devices on offer. What a thought. Shotguns maybe a bit too savage.
• If we do start getting frosts then not only protect your tender plants (Abutilon, Palms and others) but check your pots are protected too. Raising them a tad with a broken tile or two will stop them becoming water-logged.
• If the pond freezes over resist the temptation to crack it open with an iron bar. The fish won't thank you - in fact it will probably kill them.  A pan of hot water set onto the ice will do the job fine.

As I squelch around gardens and country paths I remind myself of the fact that time is on our side now and that every bit of vigorous digging will ease my conscience about the brandy butter, stuffing and cream I worked my way through.

Funny thought - that when we are at our most fulsome (!) nature is often at her most lean.  I guess that's why we go on walks in bracing storms and enjoy being woken up from our mid-winter doziness. 

Until we do it all again in a year's time.

December; a season of gifts

"Mummy, Mummy - that's the man who lives in our tree house!"

I felt I had finally made it into the local children's folklore. It made my morning and bought a long chuckle to my client too as her daughter pointed to me in awe. I momentarily considered becoming an unlikely extra in "The Hobbit".

Sometimes we seem to get "gifts" from the most unexpected sources. At a time of year when we are about to pour millions into the economy by buying presents that we often don't need, it is worth keeping our antennae up.

My allotment is looking pretty desolate - but the colours of the crab apples are stunning; even in the gloom they seem to glow. There is a mysterious purple to the shrubs in the evening. The cotoneasters and pyracanthas come into their own and the hollies are usually alive either with birds or berries. All beautiful and inspiring.

Winter scent can be bought into the house with cuttings of Mahonia, Witchhazel, Viburnum fragrans and a number of others; put them together and you will have the most dramatic arrangement on your kitchen table.

Even the much maligned Privet hedge can be raided for it's bright leaves; mix them with some dark evergreens from your boring laurel hedge along with bright stems of dogwoods you find out on a walk later this month and you will have the framework for an arrangement. I am no expert but there are a thousand ways you can go on from there using silver spray and ribbons.

December top-tips;

• If you are planting a tree or shrub in a particularly wet patch then plant in a mound slightly above the soil level. This will prevent the roots becoming water-logged
• On that note - you may have areas that become a muddy mire in winter. Don't go to the gym; get out there with a fork and jump on it at 150mm intervals to improve the drainage. (Then have that glass of wine).
• That climbing rose you were given last century can be renovated in stages; cut out a third of the stems now and then the same in the following years and it will show new vigour.
• As the frosts begin to come in wrap up the more tender plants that will take a knocking. Some plants ( such as the climber Passiflora and some Clemetis) will die back a bit but pruning them in spring is fine and no real harm will be done. It is the more tender species such as Abutilons and Yuccas from hotter climates that can suffer permanent damage so hessian, fabric or fleece will all help.
• Remember; it is the damp not the cold that will kill off perennials in the winter months so aerating the soil as well as the lawn may be necessary. The long-term strategy for this is to add organic matter and even grit to damp borders or better still - plant species that love their feet in moisture.

My experience is that it all gets a bit mad at this time of year. The real gifts for me are things that come in an unexpected way. Are my ears, eyes and hands open?

Am I really ready for gifts this Christmas?

November; Bonfires & beer

Gardeners are a funny breed.

I was sitting outside a pub in the sun yesterday afternoon drawing breath when a seasoned gardener drew up. ( It was my way of preparing for a hard 80 minutes against the All Blacks).

I waved in a hale and hearty manner."Lovely day isn't it? Good to get this sun!"

He shook his head; "Too warm for me. I prefer it cold - all this global warmth is no good for me. We need a good cold snap - that's what gets all the leaves off all the trees in one go, none of this sweeping them up for a month". I did my best to grin; "Well I like it" I said weakly.

He looked at me as if I was the typical Johnny-come-lately romantic gardener whose hands and now whose head was going soft. ( He is right of course ). "Well you rake leaves for a month and then tell me that". I left him to his pint hoping that he would spot that his glass was half full before it became half empty and that we probably won't be seeing polar bears in Hampshire quite yet.

The warmth certainly has gone on - and what a blessing. But it means that bugs and diseases are more likely to remain and bare-root planting should be delayed. There is still time to lift and divide herbaceous plants, to enjoy late flowering perennials and to be able to work in borders without tramping the life out of them when they are water-logged.

So now the rugby is over and half-term almost done;

• Enjoy a bonfire to burn all diseased cuttings and leaves such as black-spot on roses and coral spot on twigs that are dying back.
• Get all the leaves off the lawn and off the pond either to compost them or burn them if mildew is appearing.
• Plant out your Tulips where you know colour will be needed in the spring; you can still plant daffodils and many other bulbs.
• Bare-root hedging and trees can be "heeled in" by digging small trenches and covering the roots with soil. They can then be easily lifted to plant out when the time is right.
• Plunge into that compost heap you have been patiently filling with tea bags and potato peelings. Clear all your well-rotted compost ( hopefully with all the worms too) onto your borders and veg patches to make space for another filling this year.
• Check that all your tree and climber ties are not too tight or too loose; it is amazing how easy it is to forget such a simple task. Ties that are too tight will restrict the bark that is essential to growth. Ties that are too loose will make your trees and climbers vulnerable to wind damage in the winter.
• Now is the time of year to prune Acers as they are prone to bleeding in other months.

I like to add well-rotted manure to borders at this time of year too. It takes several months to break down so the nutrients are available to the plant in spring and humus would have worked it's way into the soil by then too. Roses particularly benefit from this.

Maybe not mention red roses and rugby shirts for a while. Perhaps my grizzled colleague was an England rugby fan and that was why he was so grumpy. I didn't ask though he did seemed to have cheered up after a few pints when I passed him on the way out.

Just don't mention global warming, the weather or the war.

October - making the most of the sunny days.

Oh Joy of Joys !

Not only do we get to see a glowing moon, but we get the promise of some sunny days - oh sing choirs of angels!

We are on bonus time of gorgeous blue skies ...which means time to catch up on unfinished tasks and a spot of sun basking.

But before you begin the work just take a close look at some of the shapes and colours that are emerging. Extraordinary. The light is less glaring at this time of year which accentuates the shadows. Somehow the quality of the light brings out the best of the textures and tones.

Orange and blue are opposites in the primary colour wheel which means they show each other off. (It was this colour wheel that helped bring on the Impressionist art movement; colour contrasts, compliments and hues were studied and used to dazzling effect).

Did you know that it is the unwanted toxins of the plants that create the bright Autumn colours in the leaves of deciduous plants? What a fabulous use of waste. I wish I could be so creative though I did get pretty excited at the quality of my kitchen compost after I added a handful of earthworms and some spadefuls of soil. Sad I know - but there it is.


Top-tips for October

• Get your spring-flowering bulbs planted planted but leave the Tulips for another month as they are susceptible to something called tulip fire ( no - you don't need a fire-blanket).
• Fallen leaves may look charming but won't do your lawn any favours - sweep them off asap if you want to keep the good looks. There is still time to scarify, spike and top-dress.
• If keeping the lawn 'beautiful' under the trees is too time-consuming then consider planting bulbs and allowing the grass to grow longer. You could add wildflower 'plugs' in spring.
• Keep your very woody prunings separate from the softer ones ( leaves, unwanted veg etc). Nothing like a bonfire for the woody pile and nothing like adding soft leaves with soil to the compost bin. 
• Ash from bonfires offers plenty of Potassium for next years growth which strengthens fruits and flowers ( which is why traditionally it was put around the base of roses and in orchards).
• Well composted garden and soft leaf waste offers plenty of Nitrogen for green growth but importantly improves the quality of the soil.

And don't stand too near the bonfire when you are taking in those yoga-like healthy deep breaths or you will end up like I did this weekend - doubled up and gasping for air whilst pretending that you meant to go red in the face to match the emerging Autumn colours.

                             

September; it's a garden Jim, but not as we know it.

I had a bit of a shock coming back from my mini-break ( no - that's not my garden above).

Shrubs bent double, bedraggled roses and where there had been glorious life - a rather messy heap of fading flowers. The rain on a bank holiday in a rather gloomy afternoon didn't help.

It was a garden - but not as I left it a week ago.

I think my surprise was also due to the fact that a few days earlier I had been at one of the finest period gardens in England - Kiftsgate Court Gardens in Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire. They had had exactly the same weather but somehow they had managed the changes better and got it right.

So what were they doing that I was not?

Here are some observations that you might find helpful;

• The roses ( including the famous 'Kiftsgate' variety ) had been ruthlessly cut back and where sensible had been carefully dead-headed. All the energy was therefore going into producing and sustaining the second flush of blooms. 
• The tall herbaceous plants that were likely to collapse had been staked up - often with fanning Hazel or Birch twigs which blended into the borders.
• Dying herbaceous stems and blooms had been removed to prevent mildew.
• Shrubs that were likely to collapse into an unattractive heap after heavy rainfall (such as Hydrangeas) had been kept to an appropriate size by good pruning earlier in the year.
• The fading leaves had in some instances been allowed to remain on certain plants due the interesting colours and textures they were offering.
• Timber duck-boards had been put on the grass paths where water collected so they didn't become a quagmire.
• There was still a thick layer of mulch preventing weed growth in areas that would otherwise have been difficult to reach with a hoe.
  
  

Of course we don't all have acres of gardens and a team of gardeners to work one''s land. But applying these principles will help keep the good looks of the garden. 

Finally - a reminder of other jobs for September ;

• Raise the level of the blades on your mower as the grass growth is slowing down.
• The soil is still warm and becoming more moist - absolutely ideal conditions for planting everything from trees to perennials.
• Now the birds have finished nesting you can cut back deciduous hedges such as Beech and Hawthorn. 
• Give your evergreen hedges a final trim before the cold sets in.
• Keep deadheading tender perennials in order to extend their flowering season.
• Put netting over ponds in anticipation of the leaf fall.
• And the bit I enjoy the most; start leafing through your catalogues to plan your autumn bulbs and winter planting campaign.

Who knows - we might even get an Indian summer? We have had the hottest summer on record I am told. But try telling that to the ducks.