Innholdsfortegnelse for 21/11/2015 i Amateur Gardening

I’VE BEEN looking for something to top off the slim 2x2in posts that hold trellis along one side of my new patio. Few places stock finials for anything smaller than 4x4in posts, so I made some chamfered blocks out of treated timber… but the posts still didn’t look ‘finished’. Then Kath and I popped up to Stourhead garden a couple of weeks ago to catch the autumn tree colour (sensational!) and visiting the National Trust shop there I spotted the metal animal and bird garden ornaments that have become so popular. While sort of seeing their charm I’ve tended to think these trinkets a bit naff, generally pointless and expensive – a slightly more acceptable version of the garden gnome. But a little cast iron mouse caught my eye, and…

TO MAKE sure garden roses survive winter, and come back strong next spring, we should do a few things. Rose leaves will soon drop. Tidy them up meticulously, particularly if your plants suffered from blackspot or rust this year, as fungal spores can overwinter on the leaves, and readily re-infect next year. Some people say not to feed roses in winter, as rain leaches the goodness from the soil before the plants can absorb it. But I give my roses a bonemeal feed now, and then immediately mulch over the top of the soil with well-rotted garden compost (or good-quality bark). It keeps the ground moist, and protects it from the worst of the winter freeze. Bare-root roses can be planted from now until February. You may also find that…

TREE FERNS are majestic plants, with their wonderful architectural foliage bringing a touch of the tropics to UK gardens. They became popular as a result of shows such as Ground Force and Home Front, which inspired me to buy my first tree fern while visiting the Malvern Spring Show over a decade ago. Like most tree ferns grown in the UK, mine is a Dicksonia antarctica. They’re generally trouble-free, and will survive most UK winters outdoors if given good protection during the cold months. However, we’ve had some harsh winters in recent years, and tree ferns left exposed to the elements are at risk. That’s a shame, because they grow by just 1in (2.5cm) a year, so I’d be heartbroken to lose mine after watching it mature. Normally I’d wrap-up…

1 If you have very little space, then you can create a plant ‘snug’. Take two or three hardwood or conti-boards and cut them to the same width. Stand them on their sides and screw them at right-angles. 2 Use three boards to set them against a house wall or a raised patio wall (like mine above), or you can use two boards to form an L-shaped frame if you have a handy corner spot. 3 The screwed boards should be rigid enough to be able to support themselves, as long as the ground is flat. Once in place, you can stand vulnerable plants inside. 4 Now cover the top with a sheet of clear Perspex (available from DIY stores) which is light, and easy to place. Cut it to…

1 Wait until the stems and leaves have turned fully brown. Carefully tip the pot contents out and tease compost away from the bulbs and roots. 2 The planting hole should allow the bulb bases to sit 6-8in (15-20cm) below the soil surface. A little general fertiliser will help the bulbs to establish. 3 Carefully transfer your lifted bulbs to the planting site. Small ‘bulblets’ around the main bulb can be picked off and potted up to flower in 2 years’ time. 4 With secateurs, cut back the stems to a couple of inches from the bulb. Tease compost out of the roots to tidy them. Check over bulbs for mould/rot. 5 Take each cleaned off bulb and place it into the base of the planting hole. Set them in…

1 Prepare a 3-4ft (1-1.2m) wide bed and put up strong supports - 6ft (1.5m) high posts with 2-3 wires tensioned between them. 2 Plant new canes 18in (45cm) apart, so the root ball is are about 2in (5cm) below the surface; firm in well. 3 Cut back the old stubs on new plants to 6in (15cm) tall to mark position of plants; mulch the row with compost. 4 Water generously in dry weather; net ripening fruits against birds; harvest fruit from established plants. 5 Cut out canes which have fruited at their base (usually brown); tie in new ones (usually green) to the supports.…

Q When is the correct time to plant the small bulbils that form in the stem axils of the Sutherland begonia ( left )? Margaret Sloan (via email) A You can deal with the bulbils from your tuberous begonia by planting them now, or in spring. If planting now then they need to be ‘sown’ on the surface of soilless compost, just as you would with seeds, and keep them at the same sort of temperature as the parent, and sited on a shady windowsill indoors. If you are growing them in a conservatory or room where the day and night temperatures are very different then gentle heat from a propagator will help. They should produce roots and shoots through the winter if the temperature is…

ONE OF the pleasures I get from explaining the basics to new gardeners is the chance to relive the excitement of experiencing the miracle of new life for the first time. Anything from seeing the speed at which onion sets form roots with an autumn planting to soft wood cuttings becoming independent new plants in two or three weeks. Then there’s the perfectly formed leaves, stems and every flower part in miniature to be found in a bisected bulb. It is all too easy for old hands to take the brilliant autumn leaf colour on blueberries for granted and to accept as normal the delicious, special taste of fallen apples, which ripened on the tree before maturing perfectly in damp, cool grass. We need to be reminded of the thrill…

WHICH GARDENING programme inspired you to sow, mow and hoe this year? Vote for your favourite series and we’ll enter you into a draw to win a £100 National Gardening Gift Voucher. Results will be revealed in AG’s bumper Christmas issue. THE 12 PROGRAMMES, IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER, ARE: The Great British Garden Revival Channel: BBC2 What is it? Each one-hour episode saw two TV gardeners campaign for a resurgence of a plant or gardening style that is apparently in decline. Britain’s Best Gardens Channel: ITV What is it? Short series in which Alan Titchmarsh scoured the UK over a year, in a bid to track down 30 of the nation’s most inspirational domestic gardens. The Big Allotment Challenge Channel: BBC2 What is it? Hosted by Fern Britton (circled), a…

GARDEN FLEECE £5.99RRP 01406 372227 gardman.co.uk  for stockists Tender plants will suffer at the first sign of frost – so give them a blanket of protection in advance with garden fleece. This FrostGard roll of spun-bonded fleece fabric by Gardman is 26ft 3in (8m) long x 4ft 11in (1.5m) wide. Fold it double or more if your plants are particularly susceptible to the cold. OUTSIDE TAP COVER £4.99 0500 41 41 41 screwfix.com  for branch finder Garden taps are vulnerable to frost and cold weather – freezing water expands to crack and split open the tap’s soft brass body. Unless you’re particularly handy at DIY a burst tap will most likely result in an expensive visit from a plumber, so an insulating frost jacket is a…

“IT’S IMPOSSIBLE to choose my favourite roses: some years I favour some more than others,” laughs Jonny. This year ‘Adélaïde D’Orléans’ has been in his top five, along with ‘Raubritter’. Here are three others that have caught his eye: ‘Kathleen Harrop’ “The pale pink flowers look delicate but to me their perfume really is the smell of a rose,” says Jonny. “If you could put that smell in a bottle and ask the public what it was, they would answer it was a rose.” ‘Crimson Glory’ There are a couple of roses called ‘Crimson Glory’ but Jonny particularly loves the climbing variety with its very deep red, scented flowers. “It’s fantastic; it has the most amazing flowers,” he enthuses. ‘Francis E Lester’ A rambler rose that produces huge bunches of…

IN THE SHADE A shady corner is turned into a feature with the addition of a wooden bridge leading to a statue. Plants include astilbe, tree peony, hydrangea, buds of agapanthus and a golden variegated euonymous. Ivy and clematis climb the fence behind.…

PECKISH COMPLETE Energy Balls is a one-stop store of goodness for garden birds. They are packed with 12 different ingredients, and will give birds the energy needed to see them through the cold winter months. We have five packs of six balls to give away. To enter the draw, send your name and address on the back of a postcard to Energy Balls Draw, Amateur Gardening, Westover House, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1JG. Or email your details to ag_giveaway@timeinc.com , heading the email Energy Balls Draw. The closing date is: 25 November, 2015.…

1 Tree ferns hate wind, so I moved mine (it’s growing in a container) into a sheltered corner. If yours is growing in an exposed border, make a windbreak using horticultural fabric secured by tree stakes. 2 The trunk is best protected by packing straw around it. To hold the straw in place, I’ve cut a piece of gauze (readily available at garden centres and pet stores) to fit around the trunk. 3 Wrap the gauze around the trunk, leaving a gap of around 1in (2.5cm) between the metal and the trunk. Do not fit it too tightly. Next, use twine to tie the gauze together so it can be filled with straw. 4 Straw sold for use in animal hutches is perfect. Push it behind the gauze between the…

RUTH SAYS: The best time of day to transplant lilies is in the morning, when temperatures are cooler, and the soil and air contains some moisture. LILIES ARE some of my favourite flowers. Once the bulbs are planted out, you can essentially leave them alone. Some tall types may need support, and they do need cutting back at the end of the year (like other bulbs). Other than that a little fertiliser around midsummer is all they need. If you have grown yours in a patio container this year, they can be left in it over the winter and they will flower again next year. In my experience, however, they will always flower better if planted into the garden soil. The best time to do it is now, after the…

THERE IS a strong temptation to tidy up the garden before the onset of winter. However, stay your hand before you make the place too spick and span, for those slightly messy areas can literally be lifesavers for garden wildlife during the colder months of the year. A jumbled log pile hidden away round the back of the shed, a pile of branches and leaves tucked away under a hedge, a stem or seedhead left standing – small things that give food and refuge at a time when they are needed the most. After all, wildlife and helpful insects add so much to the garden that a short period of untidiness is a small price to pay for their continued safety. Simple tips to help wildlife MOST WILDLIFE doesn’t need…

• If the shed roof is leaking, refelt it - a strenuous job but worth the effort to prevent much greater damage to woodwork and contents. • The unusually warm November weather has really boosted weed growth, but hoeing is not very effective on moist soil. Consider turning annual weeds into the soil with a spade, or spraying with a systemic weedkiller if they are very bad. • Check netting is securely in place over brassicas - when the weather turns cold pigeons will feast on unprotected foliage. • Mulch generously around the crowns of globe artichokes to protect them from hard frosts. • Many winter crops will be ready for harvesting. Start picking leaves of kale, cutting cabbages, digging up leeks and snapping off buttons of early Brussels sprout…

NOVEMBER IS a traditional month for planting tulips, because by growing in colder weather, they are less likely to suffer from diseases and virus. Setting them out on a lovely autumn day provides a great excuse for enjoying leaf colours, late blooms and the glorious sprawl of ornamental grasses. The border is weeded and it pays to loosen the soil deeply with fork tines. This makes it easier to dig generous planting holes, so the bulbs can sit 6in (15cm) deep in the soil. In colder, lighter soils you could go even deeper. I’ve chosen a variety called ‘Alibi’, which I’ve never seen before. Multi-headed, lilac flowers will open in April or May, on stems 18in (45cm) high. The colour should blend well with hellebores nearby and they are tall…

1 Plant tulips deep to get repeat flowering and reduce the chance of damaging them when weeding above. 2 Plant biennials, like wallflowers first and the bulbs last, to avoid damaging the latter with the trowel. 3 Slugs can damage tulips and emerging bulb shoots so take precautions, especially on heavy clay soils. 4 Don’t plant bulbs on a layer of grit, this can damage their base and act like a sump, causing water-logging. 5 Where heavy soil needs improving mix grit into the soil to help the free movement of moisture.…

THERE’S SOME well-intended advice out there that always makes me mad, and that is when we are encouraged to put up nest boxes for the birds in spring. Now it’s true these may be up in time for summer visitors such as flycatchers, but for most of our most lovely and useful natives this is far too late. They choose their territory and nest boxes much earlier, and way before they start laying eggs. So it makes sense to be putting up new boxes now, and lots of them, for a shortage of nest sites is a bigger problem than finding food or water for most species. The next point is, does your usual nest box resemble any natural site you have ever seen? That rectangular form with flat, planed…

THERE COMES a time in every pot plant’s life when its roots outgrow the container, then it either turns up its toes or makes a break for freedom by cracking the terracotta pot. Re-potting is the answer but there are only so many times you can do this before the root-ball becomes so hefty that even the local rugby team would hesitate to tackle the job. A choice has to be made: If it’s a keeper it’ll either need planting out in the garden, or its roots will require some surgery so they fit back into the old container. I mention this as with the dormant season upon us, it’s an ideal time to take large pots in hand. And there’s a couple of tricks that will help persuade reluctant…

GARDENERS ARE always being told that autumn is, in many ways, the best time of year to plant plants. And I agree with that. But there is one aspect to this that you should be aware of. As winter starts, newly planted plants are at risk. The extremes of weather – icy blasts, constant dampness, repeated freezing and thawing, and layers of snow – can all wreak havoc on new plants. If you have a greenhouse or coldframe you can protect portable plants (that is, ones growing in pots), but if you don’t have such protective structures, or your new plants are in the garden soil, what can you do to give them a little bit of winter protection? Here are a few ideas. Erecting a mini-greenhouse 1 On getting…

IF YOU are at a loose end over the next week or so, why not visit one of these gardening events taking place around the country? • 20 November: Christmas Wreath Workshop; Yorkshire Arboretum, Castle Howard, York YO60 7BY; 01653 648948; yorkshirearboretum.org • 21 November: Day of the Hedgehog; International Centre, St Quentin way, Telford, TF3 4JH; hedgehogstreet.org • 25 November: Compost Making; RHS Garden Hyde Hall, Creephedge Lane, Rettendon Common, Chelmsford CM3 8ET; 0203 1765 830; rhs.org.uk/gardens/hyde-hall • 25 November-2 Jan, 2016: Christmas at Kew; Kew Gardens, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3AB; 0208 332 5655; kew.org • 28 November-13 Dec: Christmas Around the World (Weds-Sun); Hever Castle & Gardens, Hever, Edenbridge, Kent TN8 7NG; 01732 865224; hevercastle.co.uk • 5-10 December: Christmas Floral Extravaganza; Arley Hall and Gardens, Northwich, Cheshire CW9…

I SHARED our prolific summer raspberry crop with my neighbour this year. She was used to buying supermarket fruit and couldn’t believe how good just-picked raspberries tasted. So much so, that this weekend she asked me to lend a hand planting canes in her own garden. Hers is a medium-sized plot, much tidier than mine (!), and she is using the raspberries as a neat dividing ‘fence’ between the lawn and the vege plot. The site is ideal – sunny and well-drained, with soil just on the acid side of neutral. Raspberries don’t like sodden or very alkaline soils, and although they will grow in partial shade, the berries won’t be so sweet or prolific. First we did the hard work – digging the bed to a spade’s depth, removing…

Raspberry Chocolate Tart A rich, luxurious chocolate tart topped with fresh raspberries, which is quick and easy to prepare. This version is also dairy-free. Serves: 6 Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 20 minutes Ingredients 1 Preheat oven to 170°C/fan 160°C/gas 5. Gently press the pre-rolled pastry into a 23cm/9inch loose bottomed pastry tin - make sure you press the pastry into all the grooves. Trim away the edges and chill for 30 minutes. 2 Line the pastry with baking paper and fill with baking beans, blind bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully lift paper and beans out. Return pastry to oven and cook for another 5 mins or until the base and sides are golden and crisp. Set aside to cool. 3…

QI have potted up some attractive winter containers using shrubs and bedding plants. Do I need to water them, or will the winter weather provide enough moisture? Dave Graham, Sidcup, Kent A One of the great problems with containers is that once there is plenty of evergreen top growth, this often deflects rain and prevents it reaching the compost. I check my winter containers on a weekly basis as if they dry out this can result in poor performance or even failure. Remember to put a few pebbles or pot feet under the containers to keep them off the ground – this allows excess water to drain away and it is therefore less likely to freeze in the pot. AG on facebook  Go to facebook.com, create a free account if…

FOR SOMEBODY who is otherwise informal and almost untidy in the garden, I am a different character when sowing and planting in a veg plot. There’s a lot of clearing and weeding to do first but then out come the garden lines and measuring canes so I can square off the beds. These have to line up properly with each other and I even have to make all their long edges lie parallel with the slabs on the kitchen garden patio. The next job is to make them roughly 4ft (1.2m) wide by measuring the width at both ends. SHOVELLING UP Once the beds themselves are marked out, with pathways in between, the next step is to use a spade to ‘shovel’ soil up from the paths onto the beds.…

SIR DAVID Attenborough last week warned that youngsters have lost contact with the natural world. The veteran broadcaster spoke out after a poll for The Wildlife Trusts found that less than half of kids (46 per cent) aged eight to 15 had looked for wildflowers with a parent or grandparent. Shockingly, 37 per cent of children had never seen a hedgehog, while 42 per cent had not listened for birdsong. Sir David said: “We can be physically, mentally and spiritually impoverished if our children are deprived of contact with the natural world. Contact with nature should not be the preserve of the privileged. It is critical to the personal development of our children.” TIME OUTDOORS The study found that 78 per cent of parents are concerned that children don’t spend…

MOST PEOPLE like a neat and tidy shed – leaving tools chucked in a heap not only makes it difficult to find what you want but can also be dangerous. The easiest way to achieve some form of orderliness is to have a proper place to store all your gear. Floor-standing racks or bins are all well and good, but in a shed you often don’t have the headroom to allow a long-handled tool, such as a rake, to be lifted out of its storage hole. And, of course they take up valuable floor space needed by heavier items like a lawnmower. Racks or hooks that allow tools to be easily hung and retrieved are the answer. So this week we’re looking at individual garden tool hooks, and racks designed…

‘Constance Spry’ David Austin’s original English rose first appeared in 1961. “There’s a white bench with pink roses completely covering the wall behind and everybody wants to go and have their photos taken sitting on the bench,” laughs Jonny. “Sometimes there is quite a queue of people waiting their turn.” Produces large, rose pink and strongly perfumed flowers, and can be used as a large spreading shrub or as a climber. Supplier: David Austin 01902 376300 ‘Raubritter’ This small-flowered hybrid is great for ground cover and is used to great effect next to a pond at Mottisfont. “It’s always a showstopper,” says Jonny. “It spills over the side of the lily pond and comes up over a couple of retaining walls. “Its small, rounded pink flowers are prolific and each…

That’s mine, not yours! I WAS rather sad when I read the question in Ask the Experts ( AG 24 Oct) to find it was a complaint. I thought the picture was a display of baby owls without the finishing touches such as toes and faces! When I read that the complaint was against blue tits and squirrels, labelled ‘pests’, I marveled that people could complain about nature for using something for bedding that to them was there to be used. I thought gardeners were well on the way to supporting wildlife in their gardens, without pros and cons like ‘You can have that, but don’t touch this’. Do people really expect creatures to know the difference? I have squirrels, a badger and an occasional fox…