Innholdsfortegnelse for 17-Jun-2017 i Amateur Gardening

with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes OUR back garden is very much a tale of two borders. One is filling up with healthy, bushy perennials, foxgloves, a couple of hollyhocks, some shrubs and for blossom, a weeping ornamental cherry and an Amelanchia lamarckii. The other one looks rather sad, patchy and bare. Plants that went in the same time as in the other bed, aren’t doing half as well, despite regular mulchings with well-rotted organic material and soil improver. The problem may be because it used to contain large trees and shrubs that depleted the soil’s goodness. Despite removing them, the border remains frustratingly less than flourishing. This week I tackled it by adding several bags of soil improver, removing old bedding plants and any that looked sickly or were…

Step by step 1 Remove old bedding and sickly plants. Dig in some soil improver or well-rotted organic material. 2 Place plants on the soil, in their pots, among the existing plants until you get the arrangement you want. 3 Place plants at the same depth as their rootball. Check holes are deep enough before planting. 4 Tease out the roots, especially ones circling the pot. Place in its hole, and firm in to squash air pockets. 5 Water well and add a slug deterrent. I’m using a wool-based product that also acts as moisture-retaining mulch. 6 Don’t worry about gaps. Given the right space, plants grow and create a healthy blaze of colour and foliage.…

with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes TopTip Don’t worry if leaves are missing half-moonshaped chunks. Leaf cutter bees remove them to line their nests. The affect is cosmetic rather than damaging. ROSES should be looking superb now, but they are susceptible to several problems. Pests include aphids, scale insects, leafhoppers and several varieties of sawfly (leaf-rolling sawfly, large rose sawfly and rose slug sawfly). Sawflies lay eggs on leaves or in the stem, and the larvae either roll leaves into a protective cocoon or eat them. Small pest colonies can be removed by hand, but chemicals are necessary on larger infestations. Avoid using them when pollinators such as bees are around. Also remove plant suckers. These sprout from the rootstock, look slightly different to the main plant, and should be…

with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes TopTip Carefully hold seedling leaves when potting on. Avoid touching their fragile stems or roots, as they are easy to damage, which will stunt growth and can even kill the plant. THE first batch of plants grown from this year’s seed is already in the garden, where they are growing well. Now our windowsills are congested with the second batch of trays, mainly Dahlia mignon, foxgloves, Canterbury bells, Nicotiana and Lavatera. The largest ones need pricking out into 3in (7cm) containers, and growing on somewhere sheltered before they are planted outside. Smaller seedlings growing closely together can be hard to separate, so lift the rootballs of several in one go, and carefully firm them into fresh compost. When they are large enough to go…

with Peter Seabrook, AG’s classic gardening expert Listen to Peter's free podcast every Thursday. Search for 'This Week In The Garden with Peter Seabrook' on iTunes MY first job as a 16 year old was working as a nursery hand at Cramphorn’s Seed Trial Grounds in Essex. When winter weather prevented outdoor work we were employed in the seed packing warehouse filling small cardboard cartons with 20% DDT and other insecticidal dusts. Emptying large paper bags of these powders into the dispensing hopper filled the air with white dust and sent us home looking like the Camberwick Green TV character ‘Windy Miller’! What health and safety officers would make of that today and the use of lead arsenate as codlin moth control in orchards I dread to think. “Tobacco is…

with AG’s indoor plant expert Anne Swithinbank THERE is a distinctly intestinal sound to the name gasteria and it derives from the Latin Gaster, meaning stomach as a reference to stomach-shaped flowers. A common name is ox-tongue and there is a specimen known as the wart gasteria, so we are not expecting a pretty or delicatelooking plant. This is a genus of a rather lumpen succulents, but I enjoy them for their structural shapes and markings. They originate from the low altitude, coastal regions of South Africa and are closely related to aloe and haworthia. If you love succulents, a collection of these will bring fascinating shapes and textures into your home. Gasterias are well suited to living indoors, as they are tolerant of warm, dry air. In their native…

with Lucy Chamberlain, AG’s fruit and veg expert TopTip Protect transplants from the wind with fleece, kept in place for a week. Otherwise the large leaves can scorch and turn brown in the sun. WHO would be without this kitchen garden staple on their plot? Not me, that’s for sure! If you’ve ever bought runner beans you’ll know they’re not a patch on home-grown pods. Picking them young ensures tender skins with very little string – shopbought beans are so leathery in comparison. And there aren’t many crops that give such generous harvests – you’ll be picking the slender pods from July well into October. Now is a great time to get your plants into the ground, and there are various ways you can grow them. You might remember me…

Next week: How to feed your veg, the best feeds for fruit, plant cucumbers (step-by-step), training trees in small spaces and plant out sweetcorn. There’s something evocative about these sun-loving vines – they make you feel like you’ve got your own little vineyard at home – no wonder I like them! People often get muddled about how to look after them because they grow at a rate of knots – turn your back on them for a second and you’ll be met with a tangle of stems large enough to cause panic in any greenfingered soul! Books mention confusing terms like rod, spur and ‘guyot system’, so I’ll keep it simple. Outdoor vines are best grown for wine – if you want larger fruits for eating opt for a dessert…

with AG’s gardening wildlife expert Graham Clarke IN March, a butterfly collector was ordered to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work after illegally capturing and killing specimens of the endangered Large Blue butterfly. The largest and rarest of our blue butterflies, it has a wing span range (male to female) of 1.5-1.7in (38-44mm) and is distinguished by a row of black spots on its upper forewing. Its life cycle involves hatching from eggs on marjoram, and then spending most of the year in red ant nests, where its larvae feed on ant grubs. Adults are flying and laying eggs now, but only for about a month. It may be seen in areas near warm and well-drained grasslands, both inland or near the coast, but it is very rare in…

AS soon as the leaves of your spring flowering bulbs have turned yellow it’s time to lift and divide them. Leave bulbs like narcissus and muscari undivided for years and they could go blind (not flower). We have pots of bulbs in the garden that are in need of dividing. Simply remove the plants from their pots or from the ground and tease the bulbs apart. Make sure you wear gloves as some bulbs can irritate the skin. Replant them straight away in their new home. Plant at the same depth as they were at before. As a general rule, narcissus need lifting and dividing every four or five years and muscari every other year. Snowdrops should be divided in the green so you are too late to do this…

with Tamsin Westhorpe in her country garden OUR fruit frame is home to an enviable wall-trained cherry and then further down the garden we have a delicious plum. In August if you can’t find me I will be sitting under either tree feasting on fresh fruit and batting away wasps. As with all woody plants, it is vital to remove dead, damaged and diseased wood. If I left pruning until winter, as would be correct for many woody plants, both plum and cherry would be open to an infection from the dreaded silver leaf disease – silver leaves being the first sign of infection followed by the death of entire branches. Now is the perfect time to prune out the unwanted stems and branches. So, sharpen your secateurs and set…

Try it! Cistus A classic Mediterranean flowering shrub whose evergreen foliage sets off the early summer flowers well. Trim lightly and feed after flowering. Look for ‘Silver Pink’ and white ‘Alan Fradd’. Euphorbia Bold and statuesque, this evergreen classic with its upright stems and towers of bright green late winter flowers takes heavy soil better than most though it may be short lived. Osteospermum These cheerful daisies that come in a vast variety of colours keep coming until after the frosts and they’ll overwinter in many areas to bring you even more Mediterranean style next year. Rosemary Aromatic evergreen foliage and spring blue flowers. Prostratus Group will trail effectively, while ‘Miss Jessup’s Upright’ has striking vertical growth Cut back by half after flowering. Pelargonium Scarlet pelargoniums in terracotta pots are…

A SELECTION of families who have fallen on tough times or overcome tragedy are set to receive a garden makeover from Alan Titchmarsh. ITV’s cameras are rolling for the sixth series of hit makeover show Love Your Garden, fronted by Alan with copresenters David Domoney, Frances Tophill and Katie Rushworth (left). Landscaper David Domoney told AG: “We’ve filmed three of nine that will be going out this year. That’s more than we’ve ever done in a year. We’re taking on more adventurous gardens, and featuring deeply moving, inspirational stories of people overcoming difficulty. It will show that gardens improve lives.” David said Love Your Garden audiences “topped three million last year,” making the series “the most watched gardening show in Britain”. He added: “It’s not just about landscaping and cutting…

Christine Walkden’s masterclass on growing strawberries QI bought strawberry plants at the garden centre and plan to grow them in containers. Is this a good idea? Robert Hamilton, Keswick A Strawberries are tolerant of a wide range of soil types, but if growing in containers, it’s best to use a soil-based compost such as a John Innes No 2 or 3. I add 25 per cent sharp grit to keep the compost open and well-drained. Grow in a sunny site that’s sheltered from prevailing winds. Avoid frost pockets. Traditionally, strawberries have been grown in strawberry pots and these can still be obtained. Make sure they’re large enough and can be watered easily. Drill holes in a piece of plastic pipe and sit the pipe in the middle of the container…

QWhat is this tree, and how should I prune it? Caroline McGuigan, Malmesbury, Wiltshire AIt is Pittosporum tenuifolium, which is best pruned now, but only lightly. Cut back overhanging stems to side shoots. If you have to shorten limbs to where there are no side growths, smear Vaseline over the cuts to keep tissues moist and keep alive the invisible latent buds around the wound, which will take about six weeks to burst into growth. QIf I cut a couple of foxglove flower spikes for indoors, will it ruin the plant? Craig Stewart (via email) AIf it is the common, biennial Digitalis purpurea it won’t matter if you cut it. If it is a perennial species such as ferruginea, which has small, brownish florets, cutting flower spikes will strengthen the…

Watering & feeding Water new plants in well. Hydrangeas don’t need regular feeding unless in containers, but do feed when planting out. Don’t overfeed as this will encourage leafy growth; feeding will benefit those growing on light, sandy soils. Use an ericaceous feed if growing blue varieties and a general purpose feed for other types. Pruning Prune in spring. For H.quercifolia - simply remove flower heads and tidy up the shape if necessary. For other hydrangeas, prune dead flowers back to the nearest pair of healthy buds. If you want larger but fewer flowers, prune harder. Rejuvenate established plants by pruning out one third of old stems back to the base. Online suppliers ashwoodnurseries.com crocus.co.uk signaturehydrangeas.co.uk…

Nurseryman and former Gardeners’ World host I FELL in love with gardening while digging potatoes. I was eight and in my Uncle Bob’s garden, I’d helped him plant the seed tubers just weeks before. My job then had been to push the sprouted potatoes among beads of bladder wrack and slimy belts of kelp that we’d gathered from the beach and then cover the lot with soil. I hadn’t given the potatoes a second thought until later in the summer when I was back in my uncle’s garden, digging down among the abundant green tops and finding to my delight that the seaweed had vanished! In its place were golden nuggets of new potatoes, shining out like buried treasure. Many seasons have passed since then, but even now, when I’m…

Feeding special: Next week’s AG is devoted to plant feeding: what, when, how, and when not to feed 1 Get rid of weeds to keep borders neat and prevent unwanted invaders stealing water and nutrients from plants. 2 Water regularly. Ideally, install water butts somewhere convenient, so you don’t have to lug watering cans too far. 3 Watch out for pests. I found these snail eggs among the roots of a lifted bedding plant. They were soon squished! 4 Regularly cut back and deadhead spent plants. It keeps them neat and encourages repeat flowering.…

with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes TopTip This is the wrong time of year to re-pot a citrus, but if yours is obviously suffering in a small container, move it into a larger one filled with citrus compost or a blend of loamy compost mixed with grit. I REALLY wish that this week’s AG was a ‘scratch and sniff’ edition, because the blossom on my lemon tree smells absolutely glorious! It started flowering in the greenhouse and every time you walked past you would get a waft of its rich and exotic perfume. Now I have moved it to a sunny and sheltered area of the patio and although the scent is more diluted, it still hangs in the air. I am especially delighted that the plant is doing so…

▪ Roses are susceptible to several diseases including dieback, replant disease, mildew and blackspot. ▪ Blackspot is when leaves drop after developing yellow blotches that turn black. Treat with fungicide, and dispose of affected leaves. ▪ Deter powdery mildew by feeding and watering, and encouraging good airflow around plants. ▪ Replant disease occurs when a plant is replaced by the same variety, and fails to thrive. Help prevent it by using fresh soil at planting, or by planting in a cardboard box without a base. By the time the cardboard rots, the plant should be growing strongly.…

with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes TopTip Plums can crop heavily, which may cause branches to break. Fractured branches should be neatly cut back to undamaged wood and heavily laden branches supported with a sturdy stake TWO years ago we planted a greengage in a corner of the garden and it hasn’t had the best of starts. Unripe fruit shrivel and fall and most of its leaves curl up and wither. Hoping for better success this year, I fed it through the winter with wood ash and blood, fish and bone, and watered it well during dry spells. It is definitely looking healthier, but several of its smaller branches have died and need cutting out. Unlike apples and pears, which are pruned out of the growing season, gages, plums and…

with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes I AM particularly excited about this week’s free seeds because I’m starting to think about brightening up the garden in late summer. Zinnia ‘Early Wonder Mixed’ from Mr Fothergill’s ticks all the boxes: they brighten borders and last a respectable length of time when cut for indoor use. They are easy to sow and will flower the same year, right through to October if you live somewhere warm or have a sheltered garden. Even better, they are popular with pollinators, so should bring bees and butterflies flocking to your borders. Zinnias are half-hardy annuals that originate in South America. They will do best sown where you want them to grow when the threat of chilly nights has completely passed. They don’t like having their…

▪ For spring and summer, place plants in good but not harsh light, or they may scorch and turn brown. ▪ They enjoy normal room temperatures, preferably cooler in winter and with a min of 7°C (45°F). ▪ Water only to prevent shrivelling during winter. Between March and October, water when the top half of the compost has dried out. ▪ Most growers never feed their plants (relying on fertiliser in potting compost). At the most, add a liquid feed for cacti and succulents a couple of times during the growing season. ▪ Repot as growth speeds up towards summer, setting generous colonies into wide, slightly shallow pots of 50:50 John Innes no 2 and soilless compost mixed 3 parts to 1 with grit.…

WARM, wet soils mean just one thing – weeds! On my light, sandy plot these nuisance plants germinate like wildfire, but I’m ready for them. Choosing a sunny day with a breeze, chop them off while they’re still tiny (and crucially, before they set seed) with a sharp hoe. The sun and wind will ensure these seedlings shrivel up quickly. If you’re unable to hoe yet flowerheads are developing, pinch them off before any seed sets. In other patches of the garden more perennial weeds can appear, their persistent root system meaning that hoeing won’t kill them. Here, you need to dig them out as thoroughly as possible (wet soil makes this simpler so soak it beforehand if it’s dry). It’s an ongoing battle but don’t let them win!…

What’s On ▪ 17 June: Woodland Festival, RHS Garden Harlow Carr, Crag Lane, Harrogate, North Yorks HG3 1QB. ? 0203 1765 830, ??rhs.org.uk/gardens/harlow-carr ▪ June 18 and 25: Cottingham Open Gardens (10am-4pm), Cottingham, East Yorks HU16 5AY. ? 01482 875 129, ??jimstan471@gmail.com ▪ 24-25 June: Hemingford Abbots Flower Festival, St Margaret’s Church, Huntingdon, Cambs. Many other attractions including garden openings. Entry £7.50 per day, £12 per weekend programme. In aid of church restoration. ▪ 23 June: Rare Plant Fair, Highnam Court, Highnam, Nr Gloucester GL2 8DP. 10am-4pm. Admission £5 per adult includes the garden. For details ? 0845 4681368; ??rareplantfair.co.uk ▪ 24-25 June: Rose Weekend Celebrations, RHS Garden Rosemoor, Torrington, Devon EX38 8PH; ? 0203 1765 830. ??rhs.org.uk/gardens/rosemoor ▪ 24-15 June: Arley Garden Festival, Arley, Northwich CW9 6NA. ? 01565…

Tip: If you’re going away on holiday move your hanging baskets to a shady spot to reduce their watering requirements. Don’t hang them under the eaves in a rain shadow though! We grow very few annuals in our garden so the plants I pick tend to be perennials. I adore having a freshly picked bunch on the kitchen table and over the years have learnt how to create one without taking too much from the garden. I head out in the morning to cut flowers as I find it’s then that the blooms are at their best. The first thing to do is decide on which plant is your lead in the arrangement. Roses tend to be my favourite, as are peonies. As a rule a vase only needs three…

If your wisteria was flowerless this year the cause may well involve one of these five reasons: 1. It is planted in a position of low sunlight. They need full sun to perform. A south or south-west facing wall is the ideal spot. 2. Unnamed seedlings can take over 20 years to flower. For success buy a popular and well known named variety. To be extra sure buy larger plants already in flower. 3. Wisterias need a good soil to thrive and require watering in summer in their first year. 4. It hasn’t been fed properly. Next year feed in spring with a high potash feed to encourage flowers. 5. Plants may have been pruned incorrectly. Prune in August and again in February.…

Deadhead flowers This encourages more flowers. If you’d like them to self sow, leave the final flowers to set seed. When seed is ripe, you can snip off the stems and shake the seed out where you need more plants. Tender plants in pots Plant slightly tender plants such as citrus, oleander and myrtle in containers of John Innes Number 3. Stand them on pot feet when you have them in position. Plan ahead for their winter protection. Liquid feed In well-drained Mediterranean garden soil, nutrients can wash through quickly leaving plants starved. So give a liquid feed every few weeks with tomato food.…

Alan backs Cornish gardens Alan Titchmarsh has helped The Great Gardens of Cornwall to celebrate 25 years of raising the profile of gardens that the public can visit in the west. Grow Chelsea’s award-winning berry Gardeners can now grow the new dwarf mulberry bush ‘Charlotte Russe’ which won RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year 2017. It costs £17.99 from ??suttons.co.uk ‘HibisQs Petit orange’ Compact hibiscus with contrasting orange flowers. Adds an exotic touch. Frost tender. From Thompson & Morgan. ??thompson-morgan.com. & 0333 400 0033. Rosa ‘Simple Yellow’ Bushy, sweetly-scented shrub with good disease-resistance. Will appeal to organic growers. New from Harkness Roses. ??roses.co.uk or call & 0845 331 3143 for more details. Zantedeschia ‘dubai nights’ Velvety flowers that boast an outer margin of cream, held above speckled foliage. Grow in…

▪ ‘Snow White’ – white berries with red seeds. Great in salads and deserts, as the taste is more like pineapple. ▪ ‘Elan’ F1 – a vigorous cultivar yielding heavy, sweet fruit. Plants will be cropping from June to October. ▪ ‘Buddy’ – bred to crop in hot summers. Fruits are borne from June to October. They’re deep-red, large and sweet. ▪ ‘Sweet Colossus’ – berries up to 40g each with excellent flavour. A long fruiting season, from May to August.…

We try before you buy BOIL them, chip or roast them, potatoes are one of the most versatile foods we grow. And with so many different varieties available, we can harvest spuds from May right through to October. Harvesting them is heavy but rewarding work. It can also be frustrating. Use an ordinary digging or border fork and, no matter how careful you are, there will always be some potatoes speared by one of the tines. And some tubers will escape attempts at lifting altogether, remaining hidden away in the ground. If you grow a lot of potatoes it’s worth investing in a special harvesting fork. These are designed to reduce the risk of damage and ensure more tubers are lifted and sifted from the earth. A general digging fork…

Phlox divaricata ‘Clouds of Perfume’ Spreading perennial. Likes shade from hot sun and a moist, humus-rich soil. Mauve-blue flowers. Phlox paniculata ‘Alba Grandiflora’ Tall, white phlox (4ft/1.2m) that needs some support. Heads of delicate flowers are open and elegant. Phlox paniculata ‘Peppermint Twist’ Fragrant pink-and-white flowers in clusters on sturdy plants. Good choice for the front of a border. Phlox bifida The dainty sand phlox is a low, mound-forming kind reaching 8in (20cm) high. Fragrant lavender flowers with deeply lobed petals.…

Prize Draw Resolva Natural Power Bug & Mildew provides safe and effective control of a wide range of plant pests – such as spider mite and aphids, as well as controlling mildew. It’s safe to use in areas where children, pets and wildlife are present. We have five, one-litre ready-to-use sprays to give away this week, worth ?5.99 each. See below for details of how to enter. How to enter Send your name and address on the back of a postcard to Resolva Natural Power Bug & Mildew Draw, Amateur Gardening, Westover House, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1JG. Or you can email your details to ag_giveaway@timeinc.com, heading the email Resolva Natural Power Bug & Mildew Draw. The closing date is: 19 June 2017.…

with Wendy Humphries Write to: Wendy Humphries, Amateur Gardening, Westover House, West Quay Rd, Poole, Dorset BH15 1JG or email: amateurgardening@timeinc.com Star letter Worthy of Chelsea Gold? I WATCHED the BBC’s RHS Chelsea Show coverage with mixed feelings. What were the judges thinking when they described the disused Maltese quarry as faultless and awarding it Best in Show? The presenters gushed over it, too – whereas others that I felt were more worthy (Chris Beardshaw’s), failed to get the prestigious Gold. How can a space with every surface covered in stone slabs and blocks and a few weedy looking plants be regarded as a ‘garden’? On a more positive note, I was pleased to see a greater number of smaller gardens this year and I admire designer Adam Frost who…

NEW potatoes are ready when flowers start to open. If you’re not sure, excavate a foot or so out from the crown with a trowel, to see if there are any descent-sized spuds. The same goes for potatoes grown in bags or tubs. Rather than tipping out the lot and finding only roots, use your fingers to dig down in to the compost (right) and feel if good sized tubers are present. If there are, take what you need and leave the rest to swell. If there are no tubers, water well, flooding to the bottom of the compost and there will soon be a crop.…

▪ I am still reeling from the shock of seeing a foxglove (admittedly a large one) for sale for £17 in my local garden centre. ▪ Buying border fillers need not be expensive. Trays of hardy annuals are a cheap way of plugging gaps. ▪ I often buy plants from roadside garden stalls and open garden events, and am a regular at plant stalls run by nurseries at my local weekly market. ▪ You can buy small perennials for around £2 (they soon grow), and chat to the stall holders who are happy to share their knowledge.…

▪ By now, some perennials will have grown top-heavy and need cutting back into shape. ▪ This is best done between the end of May and mid-June, and is called the ‘Chelsea chop’ because it coincides with the world-famous horticultural show. ▪ Perennials that benefit include Nepeta (catmint), Echinacea, Sedum and Helenium. ▪ By chopping them back by up to a half, you remove any heavy growth that is pulling the plant down, and encourage a more upright, bushy shape with a secondary flowering of smaller, but more prolific, blooms.…

Step by step 1 Cut a length of healthy new growth around 12in (30cm) long from just above a leaf node. 2 Cut it into sections above each leaf node, so each piece has a leaf at the top. Pinch out he growing tip. 3 Remove any large leaves, and cut each attached leaf in half to reduce the amount of moisture it loses. 4 Dip the cut end of each section in rooting gel or powder to encourage healthy root growth. Tap off the excess. 5 Inset the cut end of each cutting into a clay pot of dampened cuttings compost mixed with grit or perlite. 6 Seal in a plastic bag somewhere light and warm. Cuttings have taken when new growth appears.…

▪ If your fruit trees start shedding unripe fruitlets between now and the middle of July it is a phenomenon known as ‘June drop’. ▪ This is the natural wastage of surplus fruits, which are all competing for the tree’s limited supply of carbohydrates. ▪ A lack of carbs is more likely in dull weather, when there is less sunlight for photosynthesis. ▪ Don’t thin fruits until the drop has stopped. You can help lessen it most years by feeding with a balanced fertiliser in spring, watering well and mulching.…

▪ Damping off and botrytis are fungal diseases that thrive in warm, airless conditions and attack many plants. ▪ Damping off attacks seedlings that aren’t receiving sufficient ventilation. It will lay waste to a whole tray. ▪ Botrytis is a grey mould that attacks damaged plants as well as healthy specimens in humid conditions. ▪ Both can be countered with good hygiene; get rid of dead and damaged plant material and increase ventilation around your plants.…

with Bob Flowerdew, AG’s organic gardening expert THE BIGGEST threat to our fruit crops is actually the gardeners’ best friend...the birds. They help us no end with all their snail, slug and bug eating. But now, when our fruit is ripening, birds become our arch enemies, even those charming little blue tits, but especially those devilish blackbirds. Their rapaciousness is incredible, one blackbird will eat dozens of fruits and then come back for more soon after. Putting up a fruit cage is the most effective way to keep birds off but not many of us have enough room for one! If you do have one, make sure it is completely secure because birds soon find any hole, no matter how small. It’s surprising how well scary things can work too,…

Three methods 1 The traditional method is to grow wigwams of beans, by inserting a circle of strong bamboo canes or poles into the earth. Gather the points into the centre and lash them together with twine, then plant a bean at the base of each cane and water-in well. 2 Similar to the first method, but allows easier access for picking. Make an X-shaped row of canes or poles, lashing each crossing point together strongly with twine and connecting each X with a horizontal pole. Plant beans at base of each pole. 3 Not all runner beans are climbers. Some such as ‘Hestia’ (above) are naturally dwarf, so good for container growing and useful if you have limited space. These don’t need any training at all. Just plant them…

Last week ruth explained how to pot chillies up and now I’ll show you how to guarantee loads of hot, spicy fruits. I’m growing four potted varieties: ‘Jalapeno’, ‘Cayenne’, ‘habanero’ and ‘hungarian hot Wax’. some are mild while others are scorching – but all need sunshine and warmth to grow strongly. sunny, sheltered patios are ideal. If growing your chilli indoors, pollinate the open flowers with a soft paintbrush to ensure you get fruits. Feed all chillies regularly with a high-potash liquid fertiliser (e.g. tomato feed) and thwart any attacks by red spider mite or aphids with a quick (organic) spray of fatty acids or plant oils.…

with Tamsin Westhorpe in her country garden CONTAINERS planted with perennials that are designed for spring interest have now given their best for the year. You have two choices – leave the pots alone and hope that they provide you with another show next year or, take the opportunity to repot the plants that have worked hard for you over the last few months and give them a head start for next year. By repotting now you can also divide the faded spring bulbs in the pots. I have a container that has given me a wonderful spring show for two consecutive years. It’s planted with Euphorbia ‘Ascot Rainbow’, Narcissus ‘Tete a Tete’, Erica ‘Albert’s Gold’ and Muscari ‘Atlantica’. There are too many plants in here and the erica is…

MY box plants are in need of clipping this month– a routine task that I do while keeping an eye out for box blight on them. And to prevent infection, I am a stickler for sweeping up the fallen leaves. The RHS say the box tree caterpillar (Cydalima perspectablis) is now a very serious issue. It’s easy to spot as plants are covered in webbing and the foliage is eaten. If caught early remove caterpillars by hand. And if you spot them on plants in a nursery or store alert the manager. The RHS is trying to trace the pest’s movements, so if you have been affected please take the time to fill in their survey. Go to ??rhs.org.uk and search for box tree caterpillar/ rhsgardening. Then scroll to ‘box…

Try it! Sacrifice some lawn You don't have to give up your entire lawn to make your garden look more Mediterranean. Create a smaller, shapely patch of lawn instead, like they have done here, and surround it with gravel and Med plants. Low-growing groups Mirror the 'Maquis' shrubland so typical of Mediterranean landscapes by growing groups of lavenders, santolinas and rock roses. Give them enough room to grow into their natural rounded forms. Evocative detail Nothing quite says the Med like tender geraniums growing in small terracotta pots on decorative metal wall frames. Go one step further and paint a rendered wall with a warm pink or orange masonary paint.…

GENETICALLY-modified plants will come to Britain eventually, despite recent furore over orange GM petunias which entered the supply chain illegally, experts have predicted. AG spoke to gardening pundits after the government said orange GM petunias were “not thought to pose a risk” and advised gardeners not to rip-out and bin plants (AG, 10 June). no harm done Gardening expert Peter Seabrook said: “It is not illegal to own GM petunias, but it is illegal to sell them in Britain. Outside the eU it is not illegal. Ninety per cent of the soya we are eating is GM. GM is going to come, whether we like it or not.” Peter added that he “couldn’t see any harm that would be done” by gardeners who may have planted GM petunias. He continued:…

With her team of experts John Negus, Anna Toeman, Dr Jane Bingham Where can I find this lovely plant? QI saw this lovely plant and wondered what it was. Is it easy to grow? Kathleen Young (via email) AThe plant is a Deutzia and I’m reasonably certain that it is the variety ‘Strawberry Fields’, with distinctive pink and white petals. It is absolutely beautiful and I can quite see why you were struck by it! Deutzia are hardy deciduous shrubs that reach from 4-8ft (1.2-2.4m) tall depending on the species or variety. ‘Strawberry Fields’ will get up to 6ft without pruning, but can be kept to 3ft and is suitable for growing in a pot. Flowers are borne in late spring or early summer and usually cover the plant for…

Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’ Panicles of green flowers appear in July and fade to ivory white before turning blush pink in autumn. Happy in sun/ partial shade. H and S 2m (7ft). Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Endless Summer Blue’ A strong blue mophead on acid soils with a long flowering season from May to September. Grow in partial shade as strong sunlight will fade the flowers. Hydrangea serrata ‘Miranda’ Delicate lacecap blooms are produced in shell pink or pale blue depending on the pH of your soil. A compact shrub ideal for a shady spot. Flowers from July to September. H and S 1m (3ft). Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Hot Red Violet’ A new introduction with striking magenta and violet flowers when grown on a neutral to alkaline soil. Compact and bushy, so ideal for…

Win £30! This word search comprises plant names and gardening-related words beginning with ‘G’. They are listed below; in the grid they may be read across, backwards, up, down or diagonally. Letters may be shared between words. Erroneous or duplicate words may appear in the grid, but there is only one correct solution. After the listed words are found there are 10 letters remaining; arrange these to make this week’s KEY WORD. GARDEN GARRYA GAZANIA GEAN GERANIUM GEUM GINKGO GLEDITZIA GLOBBA GLOBULARIA GREVILLEA GRISELINIA GYNURA GYPSOPHILA HOW TO ENTER: Enter this week’s keyword on the entry form, and send it to AG Word Search No 369, Amateur Gardening, Westover House, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1JG, to arrive by Weds 28 June, 2017. The first correct entry chosen at…

Give them light A sunny windowsill or greenhouse provides the best light. Harsh spring sunshine following low winter light can scorch, so provide light greenhouse shading if necessary. Not too cold Most cacti are happy to overwinter just above freezing, so aim for a minimum temperature of 45F (7C). While light is low, keep them dry and cool so they can rest and stop growing until spring. Minimal watering Cacti need no water between October and late March. From March, water regularly whenever the compost has dried out. Feed using a cactus fertiliser for handsome, healthy plants. Pot on When a plant fills its container, move it on to a slightly larger pot, preferably in spring. Use dry compost and do not water for 1-2 weeks afterwards, as damaged roots…

▪ When harvesting, fork through the soil to remove all tiny tubers, even those that are too small to cook. If left in the soil they’ll come up like weeds. ▪ If you like mint with potatoes, grow two patches. Trim one to the ground now so it bounces back with fresh leaves when the other is flowering. In next week’s Plant Feed Special Issue... Plant feed de-mystified What’s on the market and how it works How to feed, when to feed Best tips from years of experince What’s best feed for fruit & veg? How to obtain a maximum harvest Danger of over-feeding Too much is as bad as not enough…