Innholdsfortegnelse for 25-Mar-2017 i Amateur Gardening

PART of my job as Editor of this magazine is to check that the information we give is correct. It can be tricky, because I don’t have all the answers and many of the people who write for us are the best in the business. A certain amount of tact is called-for. Anyway, I was reading Anne Swithinbank’s feature on hydrangeas (see p38). A bit on pruning caught my attention: “Take off old flower heads by cutting back to the topmost pair of fat buds in spring. Remove more than this and you are cutting away this year’s flowers,” warns Anne. Now, my wife Kath prunes the hydrangea in our front garden. She’s done it for about five years, and it always flowers beautifully, and she always cuts last year’s…

1 The basic way to tidy the lawn edge is to use a pair of edging shears to cut off the lanky strands. This should be done every time you mow the lawn through the year. This first real edge-trimming of the season, however, may need extra effort to cut through thicker tufts. 2 Remove all of the cut grass and other debris by hand. This can then go on to the compost heap. Only then will the lawn start to look tidier. Once you have done this, you will be able to see if the side of the edges have collapsed or need to be recut with the half-moon iron. 3 A half-moon edging iron will create a perfect, vertical edge. Hold the handle vertically with the semi-circular blade…

• Planting perennials now makes sense. The soil is warming up, and you can spot gaps left by plants that didn’t survive the colder months. • While plants are standing in water, to give their rootballs a good soaking, dig a hole as deep as the pot. • Slide the plant from its pot, and tease out the roots before placing the rootball in the hole. • Infill with soil, and firm down. Water well and add a layer of mulch. Don’t let the plant dry out, and keep it pest- and weed-free.…

“A robotic mower can be controlled with a smartphone” THIS year sees the 70th Anniversary of Gardeners’ Question Time on radio and the 50th for Gardeners’ World on TV. We’ll be looking at the huge changes in gardens and gardening over those years in the Horticultural Trades Association Back Garden Exhibit at Chelsea Flower Show in May. Take lawns for example. In 1947 suburban gardens would have had a simple push mower and perhaps a heavy roller. Fifty years ago (it seems like only yesterday) saw the first Flymo hover mower and since then we’ve seen the introduction of electric lawn rakers, battery leaf blowers and robotic mowers. The machines from the 1940s and 50s were made to last, though: indeed I’m still pushing my Ransomes 12in (30cm) Ajax over…

Water the plant well, and then mulch with a layer of organic matter. This keeps the soil damp and helps suppress weeds. 1 Stand your shrub in water before planting, to saturate the rootball and make it easier to slide from its pot. 2 Dig a hole as deep as the rootball, and slightly wider. Plants won’t thrive if set too high, or too deep. 3 My soil is thin and chalky, so I added a layer of well-rotted manure to the bottom of the planting hole. 4 Slide the plant from its pot, place it in the hole, and infill with a mix of soil and compost. Firm it in.…

TWO – yes two – free packets of seeds this week! Your seed-sowing season continues with the beautiful cornflower ‘Blue Ball’ (which will bloom from July-Sept), and Schizanthus ‘Angel Wings Mix’ (which blooms Jun-Sept). The cornflowers produce masses of true blue flowers. Delightful in borders and cottage garden settings, where they will attract butterflies and bees, the long-stemmed ‘Blue Ball’ flowers are good to cut for a vase indoors. The blooms can also be dried if desired. I love seeing these cornflowers with bright yellows and oranges… just some cornflowers and calendulas loosely placed in a jam jar on the kitchen table is enough to cheer me up for a month. Its seeds can be sown direct in the garden where it is to flower. It does best in full…

FOR the shadier corners of a house, we turn to plants whose natural habitat is the gloomy, humid floor of a tropical rain forest. One of the best is Epipremnum pinnatum ‘Aureum’ also known as devil’s ivy, from the arum-lily family. Originally from the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific east of Papua New Guinea, it is now grown in tropical gardens worldwide, and as a house plant. As a youngster, devil’s ivy swarms over the ground, producing juvenile heart-shaped leaves to 6in (15cm) long, green splashed with gold. On finding a tree or other vertical surface, stems climb, clinging with aerial roots and producing larger leaves to 30in (75cm) long, irregularly slashed around the outside. In the house, plants usually remain juvenile but enthusiastic and I’ve known one grow…

“Each day has a primary allotted task” HIP hip hoorah, it’s summertime again! Well, British Summer Time. The extra hour is so valuable to us gardeners. Suddenly there’s light enough in the evening to get some jobs done. The only bugbear is there’s never enough time to get all the jobs done, so some get overlooked... Of course, every day I attend to watering and harvest whatever is ready as these are tasks that must never be deferred. And huge seasonal jobs such as hedge cutting are seldom forgotten. No, it’s the regular jobs that are pressing but not urgent that get overlooked. However, I’ve found it a boon to have routine to fall back on, which ensures that I get most regular jobs done within each week or so.…

THAT droning noise in your garden – is it the sound of a bee or a flying robotic insect busy pollinating the flowers? The decline in bees has led scientists to turn to technology for help in plant fertilisation. They have created an insect-sized drone, 1.5in (4cm) wide and weighing just 15 grams. The fuzzy body and stickiness of natural bees is replicated using gel and horsehair pads which pick up pollen grains. New Scientist claims that in trials in Japan, a drone was able to cross-pollinate Japanese lilies with no damage to stamens or pistils. But Professor Simon Potts, of Reading University, said that pollinating robot bees is science fiction: “Technology has taken steps in that direction but is still barely out of the starting gate. Evolution crossed the…

• 25-26 March and 1-2 April: Haldon Grange, Dunchideock, Exeter, Devon EX6 7YE. Camellias, magnolias, rhododendrons, a lake and ponds with river and water cascades. Open 1pm-5pm for NGS, 01392 832349, ngs.org.uk • 25 March: The Manor House Street, Horncastle, Lincolnshire LN9 5HF. Informal spring garden and orchard bordered by the River Bain and including a short section of Roman fort wall. Open 12pm-4pm for NGS, ngs.org.uk • 26 March: Bere Mill, London Road, Whitchurch, Hampshire RG28 7NH. Water meadows and wooded valleys, herbaceous borders, an orchard and arboretums. The working mill made paper for the Bank of England in 1716. Open 1.30pm-5pm for NGS, 01256 892210, ngs.org.uk • 28-30 March: RHS Spring Plant and Orchid Show: RHS Lindley Hall and RHS Lawrence Hall, 80 Vincent Square, Westminster, London SW1P…

Be inspired Look at books on modern planting style, such as the New Small Garden: Contemporary Principles, Planting and Practice by Noel Kingsbury, (Amazon £16.59). Plant Get shrubs, perennials and grasses into enriched soil in spring, and come midsummer, they should be established enough to produce a show of flowers. Sow Choose annuals that will look fabulous amidst your new contemporary planting scheme. For example Ammi majus, scabious and Euphorbia oblongata. Update furniture You could paint existing metal or wooden furniture a modern shade of light grey, soft green or pale blue. Consider installing a contemporary grey stone patio.…

According to the National Autistic Society more than one in 100 in the UK are living with autism. Those with autism see, hear and feel the world differently to others in varying degrees, and the condition can affect how they interact with others. With the right sort of support, all can be helped to live a more fulfilling life of their own choosing. For more information see autism.org.uk Kim is launching a new autism-focused care farm and social enterprise on her smallholding in West Wales. Go to greenrocketcourses.com…

‘Indian Summer’ One of the few dark-leaved varieties available, with soft orange and red flowers at about 2ft/60cm. ‘Pandora’ A tall and beautiful light purple with a pale yellow throat. Especially good for growing as a cut flower. 3ft/90cm. ‘Perfect Blue’ Another tall beauty at 3ft/90cm, with lavender blue flowers and a creamy throat. Good strong stems, too. ‘Friendship’ Delicate greenish-yellow flowers with a deeper yellow throat. Equally good in a mixed border and in a vase. 3ft/90cm. ‘Inca Glow’ This really good clumper has shocking pink blooms at around 18in/45cm. Flowers from June to November. ‘Maya Dwarf’ One of the ‘Intichanca’ series, this is low-growing at 8in/20cm. The white petals are enhanced by a pale pink throat.…

Home-grown exotics I WAS interested to read ‘How to create an Exotic garden (AG 4 March). I have found three plants that you can keep in the ground that will come up every year and can also be grown in pots. They’re Ricinus communis, Canna phasion and Colocasia Coco aka elephant ears. This latter plant has absolutely enormous leaves which give a fantastic effect. My exotic garden isn’t as wonderful as the one created by Christopher Lloyd but I’m hoping it will be eventually! Hannah Roberts, Dawlish, Devon Jenny says... Sounds like you’re on the right track Hannah to produce a stunning effect! Fond memories of my Nan IT was great to go out into my garden in February to find that the buds on my camellia had started to…

IT turns out that I’m not the only one making use of my newly tilled vegetable beds. Our cat Parker has rudely decided to turn the freshly-raked soil into a giant litter tray, making it smell and meaning I must tread very carefully when sowing and hoeing. To add insult to injury, the problem is getting worse as the neighbourhood cats are now flocking to this new latrine to try and out-do the other cats’ doings. So, in the spirit of fighting fire with fire, I’ve decided to leave a scent of my own – and don’t worry, that’s really nowhere near as bad as it sounds! The fragrance ‘bomb’ I’m dropping is made from plant oils that cats can’t abide. As well as their unsavoury habits, felines also have…

IF you want your lawn to be the best it possibly can be in 2017, start its annual maintenance now. In one day, you could set the scene for your best-ever grass year! Over the coming months you will need to mow and edge the lawn every week, and water it if we are lucky enough to get a period of hot, dry weather (and we don’t find ourselves on the receiving end of a hosepipe ban. This, admittedly, does seem a tad unlikely so far this year). But to get that ‘top class grass’ we all desire, there are a number of jobs that need doing just the once – and now is the time to get on with them. The three most important of these are scarifying, spiking…

FOR the first cut of the year, raise the height of the mower blades to the highest setting, so that the grass is just tipped. When grass is long (and wet) following the winter lull, if you cut it too short you will stress it, and encourage possible diseases to set in. You’ll also clog up the mower in no time! As spring progresses, gradually reduce the height of cut until the desired height is reached. For most back garden lawns this will be 1½in (4cm) in spring and autumn, and ½-1in (13-25mm) in summer. For fine ‘bowling green’-like lawns, this height of cut from spring to autumn is ¼-½in (6-13mm) but it won’t wear so well.…

THANKS to Australian comedian Barry Humphries (better known as Dame Edna Everage), gladioli were once regarded as the height of horticultural vulgarity – as fashionable as an avocado bathroom suite. Luckily, cries of “Hello Possums” while you’re tending your “gladdies” are a thing of the past. Just like the dahlia, also once regarded as an ugly duckling, gladioli are making a comeback. Clever breeding has led to stronger plants and a more sophisticated colour palette, making gladioli a must-have for adding height at the backs of borders, or growing in containers. Gladioli corms hate being sat in heavy, wet soil, so I prefer to start mine into growth in large pots, in the safety of a frost-free greenhouse, conservatory or a bright, cool room of the house. Actively-growing clumps of…

SPRING is a great time for planting new shrubs, as the soil is damp and warming up, and the ambient temperature is rising. I planted a Hebe ‘Heartbreaker’. This pretty evergreen grows to around 3ft (1m), tall with a similar spread. Its leaves are edged with cream, and turn pink in cold weather. It produces attractive, lavender-coloured flowers in summer. The Hebe came from Garden Beauty ( 01489 550 830, gardenbeauty.co. uk), who specialise in mail-order plants. Hebes will grow in most poor to moderately fertile, free-draining soils. Improve heavy clay soils with lots of garden compost and grit. Planting small shrubs is relatively easy, but remember to check them regularly, and don’t let them dry out. Top Tip Before choosing and buying a new plant, check its growing requirements,…

THE chilli seeds I sowed in the middle of February have germinated and grown into healthy young seedlings. They are growing in propagators on a warm windowsill, and have developed a pair of ‘proper’ leaves each, so are ready to be pricked out into individual pots. The key to successfully completing this move, without damaging any plants, is to avoid touching their delicate stems, which are easily crushed. To pick up the seedlings, slip something thin and flat, such as the end of a plastic plant label or a teaspoon, under the roots. Lever the little rootball from the soil, and keep the plant steady by carefully holding its leaves. They can then be moved into their own pot of compost – I used multi-purpose, as chillies are pretty robust…

FLOWERS in the fruit garden look great, but they’re also essential for good yields. In March and April the majority of our fruit crops will be in bloom, so what can you do to ensure that these precious flowers transform into fruit? Plenty! The main role of pruning and training is to encourage lots of flowers. Stems that are tied in horizontally and pruned to form fruiting spurs will yield far more heavily than those that aren’t. Hopefully you’ve been following my advice over the past weeks and months, pruning your trees and bushes to maximise flower numbers. So you should now be looking at masses of blossom. Here’s how to turn those flowers into fruit: Top Tip   It’s difficult to protect blossom on bigger fruit trees, so consider…

ARE you a fan of blueberries and raspberries, or perhaps you’ve got a cranberry, gaultheria or lingonberry on your plot? All are delicious fruits! These berries all need acidic soil to grow well. The time to check and adjust it is now, just as the soil is warming up, and it’s easy to do. Just purchase a soil pH testing kit from a garden centre, establish the pH level of beds growing these plants and, if needed, adjust the pH to make it more acidic. Sulphur chips acidify the soil and are readily available at good garden centres. Check the dosage rates on the packaging (clay soils need more sulphur than sandy ones to lower pH), and apply accordingly.…

• Although shade is tolerated for a while, good but not direct light will maintain healthy growth and enhance leaf colours long-term. • Normal room temperatures (not near radiators) suit epipremnum with a minimum of 50°F (10°C). • Allow the surface of the compost to begin drying out between waterings. • Pot young plants on to larger containers in spring. Prune invading stems when necessary, cutting beyond a leaf (use them as cuttings). • Create moss pole extensions using canes, moss and nylon fishing line, train stems around strings fixed higher up or allow plants to drape and trail after they’ve reached the top.…

THERE are plenty of good reasons to divide clump-forming perennials now. One is to rejuvenate plants, and another is to make room for more. It’s great to propagate your favourite plants for selling at charity events or to give to friends, and it also helps to control a plant that’s taking over. March is a good time to do this as plants are just about to go into active growth and division is more successful when plants are not in full growth. Leave it until early summer and you’ll be putting your other perennials at risk as you work in the border. Your new divisions will also need lots of TLC. As a guide, plan to divide plants every three to five years. Do you remember last May when I…

DIBLEYS’S Nurseries is to release four new streptocarpus from its breeding programme this spring. The popular houseplants have been bred by the North Wales-based nursery’s Lynne Dibley, who won the RHS’s Reginald Cory Memorial Cup last year for her hybridisation programme. The four newcomers will be seen for the first time at the RHS Malvern, Chelsea and Hampton Court flower shows. All of the new streptocarpus cost £4 each. Go to dibleys.com or call (01978) 790677 for details. • S. ‘Gold Dust’ Flowering over eight months, blooms have lower lobes that change from pure-gold to speckled gold on a deep-purple background. It’ll be unveiled at the RHS Malvern Spring Festival in Worcestershire in May. • S. ‘Titania’ Upper lobes of small, ruffled-edged flowers are creamy-white while its lower three lobes…

READERS who enjoy a dollop of ketchup on their food can now grow one of the original tomatoes that was bred for Heinz’ famous sauce. Tomato ‘Heinz 1370’ is a semi-bush variety bearing smooth and slightly-ribbed fruits on the same plant. Plants can produce 40-50 fruit each. A spokeswoman said: “Gardeners may need to stake the branches to stop the masses of fruit bending them.” “You can expect crack-resistant fruit, high yields and flavour. Plants can be grown indoors, or outside in a sunny spot. ‘Heinz 1370’ will even grow well in a large container.” Dobies added that fruits “make amazing soup.” Tomato ‘Heinz 1370’ is in Dobies’ Rob Smith range, priced at £3 for a packet of 15 seeds. Plants start at £9.99 for three grafted super plugs. Go…

*Just pay £5.65 postage LAVENDER is an easy to grow, small shrub with beautifully scented flowers. The nectar-rich blooms are particularly attractive to bees and the stems are ideal for cutting or drying. Your collection will contain 24 plug plants each of ‘Munstead’ (Height 45cm Spread 60cm) and ‘Hidcote’ (Height 60cm Spread 30cm). Other special offers: OFFER 1 Carolina ‘Allspice’ Carolina is a hardy, adaptable and trouble-free garden shrub. And the best bit is the fragrance - like a bowl of stewed apples with cinnamon. The perfume comes from not only the showy flowers, but also from the crushed leaves! Supplied as a 9cm potted plant. • Buy 1 for £14.99 • Buy 2 for £19.98 – SAVE £10 Buddleja ‘Buzz Indigo’ Dusky, deep blue flowers on short, bushy plants…

Prepare a well-drained site in sun or part light shade, adding lots of garden compost or well-rotted manure. Allow for plenty of growing space. A healthy plant will eventually spread to 24in/60cm. Taller plants may need supports. Buy well-grown plants with firm tubers. Garden-ready plants in 1.5-litre pots will give a good show of flowers this season. Get them in the ground anytime from April to August. If you’re buying plug plants, it’s better to pot them up and wait for a bigger rootball to form before planting out. Water them very well, but allow to dry thoroughly between waterings. Feed weekly with tomato fertiliser during flowering. Protect young emerging shoots from slugs and snails. Deadhead to maintain flowering for up to six months. Where to buy For garden-ready pots:…

OUR feathered friends love somewhere to drink and somewhere to bathe to keep their feathers in tip-top condition. Bird baths come in all shapes and sizes so when looking for one make sure birds have a good edge on which to perch for drinking, and that it is shallow enough in parts for them to stand up and splash around. All will require cleaning and washing – fairly frequently in summer – to keep the water sweet and algae-free. A soft brush will do the ones you can simply lift and tip out, for heavy stone ones you’ll need a stiff scrubbing brush and a hosepipe or watering can to sluice them out afterwards. We check out six completely different styles of bird bath to see what they offer in…

1 Now is a good time to sow fresh seed over any bare patches. Start by removing any weeds by hand. 2 Break up the hard surface of the soil. Do this is with a hand fork. Then level it and tread over it lightly to firm it. 3 Sprinkle the grass seed evenly over the bare area. For the best results, follow the guidelines on the packet. 4 Gently rake over the area so that some seed is under the soil. It will germinate, but be safe from hungry birds. 5 I like to place nylon netting over the patch, held in place by plant labels. It helps keep bird, cats, and people off! 6 Water the patch well. New shoots will start to appear in a week, but…

ICAN’T think of a cheaper or easier way to fill a border with colour than to throw down a packet of annual seeds. Just one packet will fill a decent area, but two or three packets, sown in drifts across the bed, will give the ‘wow’ factor we all crave. Hardy annuals don’t perish if we get some late frosts, but half-hardy annuals may. Half-hardies should be raised under cover and planted out in May/June. If you have the ideal border – empty, dug, weeded and raked to a fine tilth – all you need is a way to make little drills in the surface and some dry sand to set out areas to create those drifts of colour. The trick is to divide your bed into irregular shaped and…

1 Buy corms now: Buy corms while stocks are plentiful at garden centres. Corms sold loosely are often bigger than those sold in bags. 2 Store safely: To avoid corms rotting, or being exposed to cold night temperatures, store in a cool, frost-free place until you’re ready to plant. 3 Prepare a container: Choose a big, deep pot with plenty of drainage holes. Part-fill with multi-purpose compost, firming the compost gently. 4 Plant corms: Holding each corm with the pointy end facing up, plant 8in (20cm) deep. Leave as much space between corms as possible. 5 Provide support: Taller gladioli can need staking. To avoid damaging the corms at a later stage, insert supports at planting time. Top-up with compost. 6 Plant out: Harden off then plant out when frosts…

• If left unpruned, Buddleja davidii – also known as ‘butterfly bush’ – soon become unruly, and take over their corner of the garden. • To keep plants healthy and shapely, cut them back hard now, before they really get into their spring growth. • This is known as ‘stooling’, and involves pruning branches hard back without cutting into the old wood where no shoots are forming. • Hard pruning keeps the shrub size manageable, and encourages it to put on strong, new growth from the base which will flower well in summer – and bring the butterflies flocking! • As with all shrubs, after pruning feed with a slow-release organic fertiliser, and mulch with well-rotted compost or manure.…

• This month is your last opportunity to sow leeks if you want big, strong plants for autumn. They are easy to grow, just needing a weed-free site, regular watering, and plenty of sun. • You can sow them in situ, or in deep pots, before pricking them out and potting them on until they are 5-7in (15-20cm) tall, and looking robust. • They can then be planted out in rows, and ‘puddled in’ – placed in planting holes and well watered so the soil falls around them and supports them. This helps avoid soil falling in between their layers.…

IF you resent forking out for supermarket cucumbers which go off very quickly – welcome to the revolution! Home-grown cucumbers last far longer, cost less and above all, taste better. A heated or sheltered greenhouse helps these vigorous vines to romp away and produce prolific crops (outdoor cues don’t get sown till May). Choose for a mildew-resistant variety like ‘Passandra’ or ‘Femspot’ and decide whether to grow long, conventional cues or mini snackbox varieties (the latter crop heavily). Sow seeds individually in pots of moist seed compost, place in a warm propagator (20°C) and expect germination in 7-14 days. Keep warm and moist – I’ll tell you what to do next later!…

THERE are lots of benefits to sowing seed directly outdoors in the soil. No fancy (costly) propagator is needed; the tricky hardening-off stage is avoided; your shed isn’t cluttered with compost; and many crops prefer it! Sowing root crops like carrots and parsnips in modules, for example, has disastrous effects on taproot development. Salads bolt at the slightest whiff of becoming rootbound. Crops sown outside grow hard and stocky, making them more resilient to disease attack, too. With the soil warming in many counties, now is the time to fork over bare areas then rake out stones and large clumps of earth to prepare a bed for your sowing. With spring soil likely to be wet, do this task the morning before you want to sow, then rake again every…

1 Give a general purpose liquid fertilizer at half the normal strength roughly once a fortnight while the plant is in active growth. 2 Plants cling to a moss pole with aerial roots, but keeping it moist is tricky. Wet it occasionally, but watering the pot is more important. 3 Use a long stem for cuttings. To make a tip cutting trim beneath a node where leaf meets stem, and use stem chunks, each with two nodes. 4 Set cuttings in multipurpose compost/grit mixed 50:50. Bury aerial roots, keep growing point near the surface. Cover with polythene.…

ARE you looking for a reliable foliage plant for a moist soil? If so, look no further than Rodgersia pinnata ‘Superba’. Now is prime time to ask gardening friends if they have one of these striking plants – and if they do it’s the perfect time to do a bit of plant swapping. If you’re in a gardening club you could put out a request for this plant at your next get-together. Gardeners are generous people and are often happy to share. At this time of year you’ll see the new bulbous rodgersia ‘pups’ bursting out of the ground. If you find a plant with plenty of these ‘pups’ simply cut one off and pot it up. The mature clump in my garden has plenty so I’ve carefully removed them…

TREES and shrubs are a long-term investment, so before opening your wallet some thought needs to go into which ones are right for your garden. Create a list of the plants you fancy and then head to a specialist nursery to seek further advice. My uncle recently went on a serious shopping spree at our local tree nursery and came home with a nice collection of magnolias, lilacs and cornus that will decorate the garden for decades. He has a good eye for a plant and he’d picked out those with a strong framework. When selecting trees and shrubs pull them out of the row, stand back and admire their form. Choose trees with only one central leader, no crossing or rubbing branches and a balanced shape. Before planting prune…

BIRDS of prey generally don’t do any harm to the garden, other than to rid it of some smaller birds and mammals – but then the loss of the odd mouse or rat is likely to be welcomed. I recently heard squawking in the garden and at first saw nothing, but then I spotted movement in a clump of bergenia: a sparrowhawk was doing for a poor blackbird. By the time I saw it the blackbird had already perished, so I left the hawk to continue its feed. It’s the circle of life, and I prepared myself to clear up the feathers and bones later! The sparrowhawk is the bird of prey you’re most likely to see in and around gardens. It tends to pick off birds at tables and…

1 Emphasise contrast Use obelisks or evergreen shrubs in combination with softer perennials and grasses. A mix of soft perennials and textural grasses stands out well against a backdrop of evergreen hedges and box balls. 2 Simplify your colour scheme Keep it simple, don’t complicate the garden with lots of different colours. For example, stick to a soothing, pared-down palette of greens and whites, using white-flowered perennials and grasses. 3 Create layers Achieve it by incorporating ‘see-through’ perennials, such as Sanguisorba and Scabiosa, which are so airy that you can glimpse the plants behind; and the layers they create give the border a sense of fullness.…

How can I grow better strawberries? Q My ‘Cambridge Favourite’ strawberries are reliable, but I’d like to grow more varieties for better flavour and heavier crops. Any suggestions? Barry Fairclough, Llandudno A Strawberries grow naturally at the edge of woodlands and prefer leaf mould or similar organic matter, light soil types (slightly acidic) and good drainage. As they are surface rooting, any cultivation (like hoeing) around plants should be shallow. Remove all perennial weeds and do not use land that has been used for growing strawberries for several years. Avoid frost pockets. A sunny sheltered site is ideal. Prepare the site at least a month before planting, adding two buckets of well-rotted organic matter per square metre. A week before planting, apply 56g/sq m of Growmore and rake into the…

Attract wildlife in A number of studies show that engaging with nature makes people healthier and happier. There are lots of ways to attract wildlife into your garden, from hanging bird feeders, to allowing certain areas of the garden to grow a bit wild, to building a wildlife pond to encourage frogs and toads. Use sound Incorporate lots of gravel paths to encourage movement from one area to another and to create a nice crunchy sound underfoot – you could even opt for coloured stones to add further stimulation. Likewise, the swishing sound that trees, bamboo and ornamental grasses make in light wind is calming. Create a time-out area If the size of your garden allows, create a special secluded area for people to retreat to. This is a particularly…

Peas and fennel Peas are easy to grow from seed and delicious eaten straight from the pod like sweets. Fennel is an appetite enhancer and good for autists that are under-stimulated by food, due to its strong flavour. Soft fruit Blackcurrants have a strong flavour, and they encourage foraging, which stimulates the senses. Raspberries and strawberries are also good.…

Grow in containers Opt for shorter varieties that will not need staking, like the ‘Inca’ series. They look equally good grown as a specimen plant on their own, or in a mixed container with other sun lovers. Go modern Plant bold-hued varieties such as ‘Princess Leyla’ against a backdrop of grasses and spiky-leaved plants such as yucca and Eryngium agavifolium for a more contemporary look. Contrast with blue Pair fiery red and orange alstroemerias with the blue flowers of aconitum for an eye-catching late summer combo. Enhance a cottage style border Pastel shades like pink ‘Diana Princess of Wales’ work well with cottage garden favourites like penstemons, Campanula persicifolia and shrub roses. Plant en masse Group a single variety together and allow to spread for maximum impact. Choose a vigorous…

Halls Popular 4ft x 6ft Wide Greenhouse £289.99 FREE DELIVERY 0121 321 6070 hallsgreenhouses.co.uk With an aluminium frame and horticultural glass for maximum light, this greenhouse is ideal for a small space. Width is 6ft 4in (193cm), depth 4ft 4in (133cm) and height 6ft 3in (190cm). There’s a sliding front door, integral gutters and an opening roof vent. Assembly is required. Greenhouse Disinfectant £3.99 01530 510060 vitax.co.uk  for stockists Keep your greenhouse sparkling clean and free from germs, bacteria, moulds and mildew that might kill or stunt the growth of your plants. A concentrated disinfectant with added orange oils, it can be used on glass, work surfaces, pots and tools. Greenhouse Gro-Beds x3 £11.99 + £4.95 P&P 0844 557 6700 marshalls-seeds.co.uk Collapsible Gro-Beds are…