Innholdsfortegnelse for 15-Sep-2018 i Amateur Gardening

WITH winter waiting in the wings, swapping thin duvets for thicker ones isn’t the only type of bedding switcheroo going on at the moment. Summer’s gaudy annuals are now on their last legs, so it’s time for a changing of the guard. Confusingly, autumn and spring bedding plants, which you should get in the ground now, are one and the same thing. Plant them up and they will grow and flower through autumn, then go dormant during the coldest months. Don’t worry though, because as soon as the mercury starts to rise again next year they will return to growth and provide a blanket of brilliance throughout spring. Bedding plants, including pansies and violas, wallflowers, daisy-like bellis, cyclamen, stocks and polyanthus, are relatively low maintenance. To get the best out…

1 Water plants before getting them in the ground. Move them around on the border, still in their pots, until you get the right arrangement. 2 If you are planting through a layer of compost and the soil seems dry underneath, thoroughly moisten the planting holes first. 3 Make sure the hole is as deep as the plant’s rootball and slightly wider. Plants hate to be under or over-planted and usually fail to thrive. 4 Tease out circling and congested roots. The easier it is for them to spread, the further they can forage for water and nutrients. 5 Water after planting, even if you watered well beforehand. Saturating the soil settles it around the roots and removes air pockets. 6 Protect from slugs using wool or organic pellets. Go…

1 Elegant foxgloves are long-flowering and add height and elegance to borders. They come in white and shades of pink. 2 Save the hassle of sowing seeds and buy bare-root wallflowers (see above) next month for their spicy scents next spring. 3 Although usually sold as hardy annuals, nigella do best when sown in autumn for stronger flowering the following year. 4 Sweet rocket puts on a long show in the gap between spring bulbs fading and summer colour really getting started.…

SOME of the best things in life really are free and can be created with the minimum of effort. Take leafmould, for example. It is incredibly easy to make using autumn’s fallen foliage and is one of the best organic enrichments you can add to your garden. Leaves take around two years to rot down completely into crumbly, loamy leafmould. Once they are ready they can be used as mulch, dug into borders to improve the soil, and mixed with equal amounts of sharp sand and garden compost to make the most incredible seed and cuttings compost. Start collecting leaves as soon as they start to fall. Rake them up, making sure you avoid including weeds as their seeds may germinate in the leafmould. Don’t worry if you bring grass…

“The new grey plastic pots can be recycled” DAVID Attenborough’s Blue Planet II TV programme is, quite rightly, having quite an impact on our use of plastics, including the pretty universal use of black polythene pots. While some garden centres accept expanded polystyrene for recycling and others offer a pot-return scheme, one long-term option is the introduction of a new pot suitable for roadside collection and recycling. The problem with black, I am told, is that the carbon it contains prevents recycling, but the trade is about to introduce a battleship grey-coloured pot that can go into house collection. It will, however, cost more, so plant prices will have to rise. I have mixed views on this, as I have been repeatedly using the black pots that I have. I…

1 Lift the pulmonaria with a spade, digging around the root system and keeping as much soil as possible around the roots. 2 Place it on a plastic bag and chop it into pieces using a sharp spade. Each portion should have roots and shoots. It will now be easier to tease out weeds. 3 Re-plant the divisions at the same depth as the rootballs. If there’s a short delay they should be wrapped in damp paper and stored somewhere cool. 4 Water each division well to settle soil around the roots. Don’t let them dry out, and keep them free of pests and weeds while they establish.…

WHILE it is satisfying when a tricky plant grows and flowers happily, it is just as pleasing when more easy-going varieties do well. One easy seed to sow that repays with boundless colour and beauty is Nigella damascene, or love-in-a-mist. I have sowed some of Mr Fothergill’s Nigella ‘Persian Jewels’ that produce a mass of flowers in white, blue, pink and mauve. They reach 18in (45cm) and the blooms are off-set by delicate foliage. Hardy annuals, they are sown this month and next or you can wait until next spring. Autumn-sown plants have time to set down roots before the first frosts and will start growing again next year, usually more successfully than spring-sown seedlings. When you sow, scatter the seeds in curves and drifts for a natural arrangement that…

JUST like a maturing brie or camembert cheese, there are some foodstuffs that improve on keeping. Quinces and medlars fall into this category, as do many late-ripening varieties of apple and pear. They simply cannot be eaten straight off the tree. The passage of time is needed to mellow harsh acidities, turning lip-pursing flavours into rich, honeyed, complex tones. Skin changes colour, flesh softens in texture, and the resulting eating experience is an altogether more pleasant one. Storing fruit has certain parameters for success. Get it right, and you can enjoy the fruits of your labours well into spring; get things wrong, and a musty, rotten disappointment awaits! The tips panel opposite explains how to ensure your harvest falls firmly into the former camp. Easy ways to help pumpkins ripen…

THERE are three classic late-flowering hardy perennials, plants we can rely upon to light up the russet days of autumn. The first is the Michaelmas daisy, the revival of which has been so successful that they’ve regained the position they held 50 years ago: that of the ultimate autumn dependables. I’ll be looking at them next month. Second is hardy chrysanthemums – still on the up as more and more gardeners begin to appreciate the value of the tougher varieties. And then there are sedums. Unlike the other two, they have never lost their allure; in fact, their appeal is being forever solidified by a succession of new introductions. The only impediment to their continuing popularity has come from botanists, who have decided that many of the most familiar are…

Sedum plants produce huge amounts of nectar, making them popular with butterflies, hoverflies, bees and other insects. What’s more, their nectar is available at a time when many other nectar-rich plants are past their peak. Eager to feed well and build up reserves before they hibernate (small tortoiseshell) or migrate south (red admiral) butterflies are sometimes seen wing-to-wing on sedums. If you are a butterfly fan, avoid the popular ‘Hersbtfreude’. Although this sedum is appreciated by bees and hoverflies, its flower structure makes it difficult for butterflies to access the nectar. This is one of the reasons it does not have an AGM.…

Molinia caerulea subsp. caerulea ‘Variegata’ This showy grass produces feathery flowers on 4ft (1.2m) stems above tufts of cream and green leaves Stipa gigantea The giant oat grass produces a cluster of slender green leaves that are dwarfed by 8ft (2.4m)-tall arching stems topped with oat-like flower heads Miscanthus sinensis ‘Ferner Osten’ The gorgeous red flowers on this grass are carried on 7ft (2.1m) stems above clumps of 3½ft (im) leaves that turn a copper colour in autumn Panicum virgatum ‘Heavy Metal’ This is a dramatic grass with bolt upright, metallic-blue leaves that sit beneath a 5ft (1½m) haze of purplish flowers in early autumn Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Hameln’ Forming a tight, upright clump of leaves, this sun lover…

Carex testacea ‘Prairie Fire’ This stunning copper-tinted evergreen grass has an arching habit and flushes fiery shades in autumn. It dislikes drought, so dig in compost to boost soil’s water retention. Happy in sun or semi-shade. H: 1 1/2ft (45cm). Cyclamen hederifolium AGM Gorgeous pink or white autumn flowers appear before the heart-shaped, silver-veined green leaves. Beautiful under deciduous trees, but equally happy dotted through sunny borders. H: 4in (10cm). Viola Teardrops Pink Blush The top pick for a viola that blooms non-stop from October to March and – unless a heatwave necessitates watering – requires zero attention. Plant in light sun (such as an east-facing border) or semi-shade. H: 8in (20cm). Viola Sorbet Honeybee A striking, vigorous viola that blooms in autumnal golden-brown shades from…

When choosing summer bedding, opt for those that will flower into October. Verbena bonariensis, dahlias, cosmos, Tagetes linnaeus and Begonia ‘Glowing Embers’ all add interest well into autumn. Plant autumn bedding that performs in winter. The heather ‘Foxhollow’ is an ideal choice as it has orange foliage in a cold autumn, followed by pink winter flowers. Dig in compost to aid water retention, and water regularly during an Indian summer. Always position grasses in sun for the best autumn tints. Carex dipsacea, for example, requires full sun to blush copper-bronze.…

Scent Daphne ‘Eternal Fragrance’ AGM Plant this semi-evergreen shrub (D. x transatlantica ‘Blafra’) for sweetly scented, pink-flushed flowers that will first appear in April, and continue right through to October. Perfect for autumn. Happy in moist but well-drained soil, in sun or semi-shade. H&S: 3ft (90cm). Foliage Heucheras With their eye-catching leaves, heucheras are useful ground cover and come in a spectrum of shades that make them easy to combine with other plants. Varieties such as ‘Silver Scrolls’ (left) and ‘Plum Pudding’ look striking in autumn pots. HxS: 1ftx20in (30x40cm). Wildlife Sedum ‘Purple Emperor’ AGM Many sedums will flower into October – or even November – providing bees and butterflies with much-needed late nectar. Once the flowers are over, you can leave the seed heads on…

Q Is it too late to take cuttings from my cane begonias? They’ve been growing in the garden and are now too tall and gangly to bring in for winter. Connie Yuill, Guildford, Surrey A The begonias are a large tribe of plants comprising 900 species, so for convenience we group them according to habit. There are shrubby, tuberous and rhizomatous kinds, and also those with several tall, upright stems, known as cane begonias. Some reach 5ft (1½m) or more and, given light shade from harsh sun, they grow well outdoors for the summer. For an exotic touch, group them with other container plants, or remove the base of their pots and plunge them in borders. Cane begonias are not hardy, and as they require a winter minimum temperature of…

Elho Corsica Easy Hanger Pot £5.99rrp + £4.99 delivery 01344 578111 crocus.co.uk Features Colourful resin pot hanger with integral hook (drilled for extra security) to fit balcony railings and fences. Built-in water reservoir and overflow. Frostproof and UV resistant. Dimensions: 7 1/2x11x6 1/2in (19x27x26cm). Performance Simply hook the hanger over the top of standard larchlap fence panels, balcony rails and anything up to 2 1/2in (6.5cm) across. The hook is drilled so you can screw or tie it in place if required. Trough holds a pot of around 1 1/2 litres. The reservoir and overflow, and its capacity to hold a big pot, means watering is easier and less frequent. Well designed and constructed, easy to put up and move around and good looking. Value A very reasonable price for…

‘Bartzella’ Mature plants that bloom for six weeks, smothered in large, semi-double, sulphur-yellow flowers with a lemon perfume. Occasionally, more buds form in September. ‘Callie’s Memory’ Soft shadings of pinkish peach with touches of creamy yellow decorate lightly scented, semi-double blooms. As the plant matures, flowers are more double and can reach 8in (20cm) across. ‘Cora Louise’ This hybrid produces showy, scented, semi-double flowers that open pink, but ultimately change to white with a deep lavender flare at the base. ‘Pastel Splendour’ This peony cross has blooms that start off cream, but gradually blush with raspberry and then finish a soft apricot. The stamens at the centre are an attractive pale yellow.…

Resolva 24H Liquid Shots are an easy way to apply concentrated weedkiller. They are ideal for the control of annual and perennial weeds, including nettles, dandelions and bindweed, with visible results in 24 hours. We have two packs to give away, each containing three Liquid Shots 24H tubes, worth £6.99 each, that offers 25m2 coverage. See below for details of how to enter the prize draw. How to enter Send your name and address on the back of a postcard to Resolva Liquid Shots Draw (15 September), Amateur Gardening, Pinehurst 2, Pinehurst Road, Farnborough, Hampshire, GU14 7BF. Or you can email your details to ag_giveaway@ti-media.com, heading the email Resolva Liquid Shots Draw (15 September). The closing date is 21 September 2018.…

“It can really help to think like a hairdresser!” I’VE been working on a patio made from recycled cathedral-grade yorkstone, with flags as big and deep as mattresses. It’s lovely stuff, but its depth has meant that the roots of a nearby magnolia have been damaged by the digger. When this happens, there are two schools of thought about what’s actually best for the tree. Traditionalists recommend reducing stress by pruning the crown to match what’s left below ground; modernists take a reactive approach, leaving whatever foliage remains to fuel root-regeneration, pruning only the branches that die back later. While I like the idea of letting the tree do the talking, the offending magnolia is leaning over the house so I’m going for the ‘cut quick’ option. That said, I’m…

1 Our sorry front border lies in the rain shadow of the house and has sunken, thin soil, dead summer bedding and lots of weeds. 2 To resurrect a bed, start by removing old summer plants and weeds, making sure you remove the roots of perennial varieties such as dandelions. 3 Layer your compost of soil enricher thickly over the bed. Worms and weather will soon work it down into the soil. 4 Rake it over the soil and around shrubs. It will become incorporated into existing soil when you dig holes for your plants.…

It isn’t too late to start a couple of bedding varieties from seed for next year’s show, but you need to get your skates on. Viola and forget-me-not seed germinates fast and the young flowers should be ready to go out next spring if they are grown undercover and hardened off. This month, sow them thinly in trays of seed compost. Cover, water and grow on until the seedlings are ready to prick out. Grow them somewhere cool and light, and don’t let them dry out. Gradually acclimatise them to outdoor temperatures in early spring and plant out in mid-spring.…

Most leaves can be used to make leafmould, but some will rot down faster than others. Avoid evergreen leaves from laurel, cypress and holly as they are tougher and will take around three years to break down. Oak, beech and hornbeam leaves are the best as they take only a couple of years to become crumbly mould. Sycamore, walnut and horse chestnut are tougher, but can be shredded or added to the compost heap. Pine needles will make acid mulch for ericaceous plants.…

1 Sterile Geranium ‘Rozanne’, flowering from May to winter frost, is a good candidate for bare-root planting, especially in Adrian Bloom’s river of colour planting schemes. 2 Every garden should have either a group or container of Rudbeckia deamii to provide colour from July to September. It is a good candidate for bare-root transplanting. 3 Iris germanica have been offered bare root at flower shows over recent years, the cultivar name written on shortened leaves. 4 School garden clubs and people raising plants for charity sales welcome empty pots and containers for reuse.…

“Why not try plums for even better tipples?” RIGHT now, the hedgerows are bursting with sloes – those hard, black, bloom-covered wild relatives of plums. So acid, they pucker your mouth if you foolishly try to eat one. However, once picked, washed, pricked and soaked in gin and sugar for a couple of months, they create that well-known ruby-red liqueur, sloe gin. This is quite delicious and moderately healthy – well, the vitamins and anthocyanins are, if not the sugar and alcohol! Not everyone likes sloe gin; some find the bitterness of the sloes off-putting, while others dislike the gin. On the continent, they make similar liqueurs from plums and brandy, so I’ve tried several other permutations. Sloe brandy was OK but expensive, sloe vodka was not so nice and…

15 -16: Cyclamen Society Show 2018 Weekend: RHS Harlow Carr, Crag Lane, Harrogate, North Yorks HG3 1QB. 0203 176 5830, rhs.org.uk/gardens/harlow-carr 16: Mapperton House Autumn Garden Fair: Mapperton House and Gardens, Beaminster, Dorset DT8 3NR. mapperton.com 16: Plant fair: Henbury Hall, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK11 9PJ.planthuntersfairs.co.uk 18: 356 Days of Colour with Nick Bailey, St Lawrence Church Hall, Bridle Road, Pinner, Middx. Tickets only in advance, £10 members, £12 non-members 01923 451616, ruisliphorticultural.org.uk 18: Preparing Your Garden for Winter: Barnsdale Gardens, The Avenue, Exton, Oakham, Rutland LE15 8AH. 01572 813200; barnsdalegardens.co.uk 18: Garden Tour with Friends of Harlow Carr: RHS Harlow Carr 19: Composting: Barnsdale Gardens 20: Watercolour Day – Sunlight Through Trees: Barnsdale Gardens 22: Heather Show: RHS Wisley, Wisley Lane, Woking, Surrey GU23 6QB. 0203 176 5830, rhs.org.uk/gardens/wisley •…

1 Only attempt to store unbruised fruits with the perfect skin finish – then be sure to handle them carefully! Bruised flesh will decay, and holes in the skin are ideal entry points for rots. Eat up or freeze damaged bounty; alternatively, why not turn it into preserves? 2 Find yourself some well-made crates or slatted trays. These must have air holes in the sides and base to ensure that air can easily flow between the fruits. Grab yourself some newspaper or straw, too, as both make excellent packing materials. 3 Lay the fruits on a few sheets of newspaper in the tray, so they are not touching each other; this stops rots spreading. Pack between the fruits with straw if you wish. Lay the trays in a dark, humid…

Sedums and Hylotelephium are all best in full sun, in soil that is well-drained and not too fertile. In rich soil they flower less well; they’ll grow taller and softer – and will soon fall over. Three small sedums, planted in a group, usually look better than a single large one. Large plants bought in spring can often be divided into three small plants when planting. For extra plants, take cuttings from the new spring shoots – these will root easily.…

Sedums are perfect partners for a range of other autumn perennials. Their dome-shaped (or almost flat) heads work well with verticals, with plants that have clouds of small flowers and with ornamental grasses. Stiffly upright kniphofias are ideal, especially those in soft pastel shades – such as primrose yellow ‘Little Maid’ or peachy ‘Pineapple Popsicle’. Autumn asters have a lovely softening effect – opt for those with clouds of small flowers rather than large daisies. Try the soft blue ‘Photograph’ and the tiny white blooms of ‘Monte Cassino’. The delicacy and continuous movement of ornamental grasses provides a charming foil to the immoveable solidity of sedums, and many come into their own in autumn, when their leaves take on golden hues. Try the short blue fescues in front of sedums,…

AFTER four or five years, some grasses will have formed large, congested stands that run out of steam. At this stage, the clumps may contain dead portions and become shy to flower. In order to rejuvenate grasses it’s a good idea to divide them, but it’s important to do this at the right time of year. Carex, deschampsia, stipa and others that come into growth early in the year can be divided between late winter and early spring. Miscanthus, panicum, pennisetum and those that flower later should be left until late spring, when they start to show growth. Lift clumps carefully with a spade, retaining as much soil as possible. Place the rootball on a plastic sheet, which sheet can be wrapped around the roots to prevent them drying out…

Use as large a pot as you have space for – this will give the plants’ roots more room, and means you won’t have to repot as frequently. For plants that will be in the pot for a long period, choose a loam-based compost such as John Innes No3. Don’t add plant food to containers in autumn – this can be done in spring when plants start into growth again. Towards winter, protect your pot from the danger of frost by covering in bubble wrap. Standing it on pot feet will help avoid waterlogging.…

1 Make cuttings 4-5in (10-13cm) long by trimming beneath a node (where the leaf joins the stem). Remove the bottom leaves. 2 Insert one cutting per 3½in (9cm) pot or four per 4-5in (10-13cm) pot of 50:50 soilless compost and sharp grit or vermiculite. Cover with ventilated polythene and place out of harsh light. 3 The stock plant should be pruned back hard, cutting above a node on each stem to leave stumps of 3-6in (8-15cm). 4 Stand the pruned plants indoors in medium light, keeping at a temperature of 50-65° (10-18°) for the winter.…

GARDENERS are familiar with herbaceous peonies such as ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ that die right back for winter, and we also love woody, exotic tree peonies for their large and showy flowers. But new on the catwalk are the ‘intersectional hybrids’ – often called Itoh peonies, as their breeding was initiated by Toichi Itoh of Japan in 1948. Creating a hybrid between herbaceous and tree peonies was considered the holy grail of peony breeding but, sadly, Itoh died before his first crosses flowered. Breeding continued in America, and now these gorgeous new peonies are available and affordable to buy for our gardens. Although they behave more like herbaceous varieties, Itoh hybrids have strong stems that don’t need staking and massive, usually semi-double flowers opening over a longer period against handsome foliage. The…

Dahlia days Dahlias are some of the most useful and popular summer blooms. They are great for big, bold colour at height in the border, great for cut flowers to bring indoors, and keenly contested at local flower shows. You cannot help but raise a smile when you see dahlias in full glory. Colour runs dramatically from whites and creams through nearly all the pastel shades, to the deep purples and brick-reds. Blue is the only colour missing, but there are plenty of lavenders, lilacs and mauves to compensate. Let’s look at some of the stories surrounding dahlias. Dahlias by group The 10 groups classified by the National Dahlia Society (and which you will see referred to in dahlia catalogues) are: Group 1 Single-flowered dahlias Group 2 Anemone-flowered dahlias Group…

Pollinator-friendly plants I HAVE been inspired by your articles about natural gardening, especially Val Bourne’s. You helped me to choose ‘good for pollinators’ plants and to be more aware what creatures live in our green spaces. I truly enjoy just going outdoors with a cup of tea to watch the busy insects on this humble oregano plant. I was amazed how many insects love it – I wonder if you can spot them? Your magazine is a highlight of my gardening week, so thank you and keep up good work! Gosia Lyson Reading, Berks Wendy says I love oregano, too – and it’s so easy to propagate. I have large flowering clumps all over the garden from dividing up my original plant. 12 flower spikes HERE is a photo…

When damaged or pruned, trees isolate the wound – creating internal compartments that prevent the spread of infection. Sap-carrying tissues above and below the damage are plugged, followed by a wall that divides the bough into pie-like sections, and these often contain infection-killing anti-fungal/bacterial chemicals. Finally, trees create a barrier zone between wood present at the time of infection and growth that develops after. That’s why you’ll see completely hollow living trees: the wood in the centre has rotted away but healthy, disease-free growth that’s developed outside the barrier in the years after infection flourishes.…

1 Pretty Cyclamen coum flower through January and February, and are ideal for underplanting and brightening dark shady areas. 2 The flowers of daisy-like bellis are like cheerful cushions. They flower for ages, making them excellent value for money. 3 Polyanthus and primrose are traditional early bloomers. They look gorgeous nestled close to hedges and walls, and provide early food for bees. 4 Fabulous scented dianthus and sweet Williams come in a variety of pretty shades and are excellent plants for indoor arrangements. Tender care: Tender annuals need propagating and lifting now before winter arrives – find out what to do in next week’s AG (in the shops 18 September)…

IF you sowed a selection of biennial plants this year, either in a nursery bed or in pots and trays, they will be ready to move to their final flowering place now. Early autumn is the perfect time to move them because they are young enough to transplant without damaging their root system. The soil will also still be holding onto some summer warmth and will have been usefully dampened by seasonal rainfall. By planting them now, you are giving their roots time to grow and start to mature before the plants go dormant during the winter. Then next spring, when the weather warms up, they will be ready to surge back to life. Don’t worry if their top growth dies back, as it will soon regenerate in the better…

IF you are making the most of the end of the school holidays and planning an early autumn break, your garden will thank you for any care you pass its way. Temperatures can still be reasonably high in September and conditions dry, so don’t forget to provide adequate moisture for plants, especially those in containers. If you don’t have a neighbour to help out in your absence, water well before you go and insert water-filled plastic bottles attached to nozzle drip-feeders into each container. You should also cluster containers together somewhere sheltered and shady, so they create a slightly humid micro-climate that will help prevent compost from drying out. If any do flop while you’re away, they should soon recover with a good watering once you’re back. Coming home from…

1 Hammer four tree stakes firmly into the ground and start to staple chicken wire around them. 2 Make sure the wire is taut so collected leaves don’t bulge out and destabilise the frame. 3 If you site your bin somewhere out of the way, it will be a haven for wildlife. Leave a gap at the bottom so hedgehogs and other creatures can hide and hibernate. 4 You can speed up the decomposition of leaves by wetting them and covering them with a layer of old carpet.…

OVER the next few weeks you will notice a distinctive change in the garden as things begin to slow down, die back and bed in for winter. The garden’s skeleton of branches and bare stalks that have been hidden behind the froth and flamboyance of summer bedding and lush foliage starts to reveal itself again. It can be a sad time, but any melancholy is tempered by the vivid autumnal colours and the fact that there are still tasks to be done. If you have already removed faded summer bedding and cut back your perennials, take stock of your borders now that more soil is on show. Keep weeds in check – these robust plants will take advantage of any gaps – and keep an eye out for pests. Check…

1 Let grass grow under apples, especially those for storing – it helps them keep longer by taking up water and nitrogen. 2 Lift your remaining potato crops soon, as any possible increase from now on will be cancelled out by increasing pest damage. 3 Place slug pubs (plastic cups of beer/juice) where you store your potatoes – just see how many you catch! 4 Paint or tie sticky bands around tree trunks to prevent many pests moving up or down – luckily, most beneficial critters can fly.…

I LOVE my butterflies, but 2018 hasn’t been a great year for them in my garden, apart from flocks of small whites and cabbage whites. My buddleia was out in July, which was too early for the arrival of small tortoiseshells, peacocks and red admirals. My bumblebees gave up by mid-July, due to the heat. These hairy bees can’t take high temperatures – after all, five species are found within the Arctic Circle. I hope next year will be more ‘normal’, with grey and cool conditions, and the odd sunbeam thrown in. Wildlife is dynamic (in the true sense of the word) and there are highs and lows – that’s how it is. Yearly changes can be attributed to weather, but climate change is more serious than a heatwave. I’m…

NEARLY 20 years ago, I worked at RHS Garden Wisley in Surrey, answering members’ gardening queries. For six years, I replied to letters, emails and phonecalls – tethered to the office, you can imagine I was keen to get out into the garden at lunchtime! Many of my walks would lead me to the fruit garden, and one of my favourite late-summer treats was to peer underneath the massive canopy of the kiwi fruit vines. Here, nestled beneath the huge, heart-shaped leaves, would hang dozens (and in good years, hundreds) of fuzzy little kiwi fruits. To see such a sight in the UK would take most gardeners by surprise, and yet these tropical-looking vines are reliably hardy. A sunny spot is preferred – and if you have the room, a…

Instead of lifting and dividing plants every three years or so, most sedums do well if left undivided until the sheer number of stems forces those on the outside outwards so that they collapse. Rich soil will also encourage floppiness, but cutting the plants back by a half to two-thirds at the end of May (the so-called ‘Chelsea Chop’) promotes shorter, bushier growth, with flowers only a little later than usual. Always try to leave the faded flower heads of most varieties in place for late autumn and winter appeal.…

THESE days we take ornamental grasses for granted, but there was a time when the only grasses likely to found in a garden were in the lawn. They simply weren’t popular until the late 1990s, and the nursery where I started my career in horticulture some 30 years ago stocked a measly three – pampas grass, Festuca glauca and Carex buchananii. Everything changed at the end of the 20th century with the advent of the TV makeover boom, leading to sales of grasses going through the roof. The prairie planting trend of the noughties established grasses as integral garden plants. Today there are nurseries that specialise solely in grasses, and entire sections devoted to large ranges of varieties in garden centres. It’s easy to understand the appeal of grasses. Miscanthus,…

Erica carnea ‘Myretoun Ruby’ AGM Deep-pink flowers adorn this spreading heather from December to March, and will darken to crimson as they age. Grow in well-drained, neutral to acidic soil, in sun. HxS: 6inx1 1/2ft (15x45cm). Cyclamen coum subsp. coum f. pallidum ‘Album’ Producing ‘windswept’ ivory blooms tipped with purple-burgundy, this pale-flowered cyclamen is a charming winter bedding choice. Plant generously in semi-shade. H: 4in (10cm). Erysimum ‘Winter Orchid’ The orange flowers of this enduring wallflower blush purple as they age (between February and July) and are very good for cutting. Grow in neutral to alkaline soil, in sun or semi-shade. H: 1ft (30cm). Brassica oleracea With their red, pink or white hearts and glaucous leaves,…

Pot 1 Skimmia japonica ‘Magic Marlot’ Skimmias are an excellent choice for autumn pots and this is no exception – a compact variety, it has attractive yellow-edged foliage and white buds that turn pink or red through autumn and into winter. HxS: 20x14in (50x35cm). Polystichum aculeatum AGM Adding foliage will really make those pinks and reds ‘pop’. Evergreen, the hardy shield fern provides year-round interest, plus contrast – courtesy of its textured fronds. HxS: 2 ½ ft (75cm). Pink heather Long-flowering and low maintenance, heather is great for pots. You don’t need a specific variety – visit a good garden centre and pick whichever catches your eye and matches your colour scheme. HxS: Varies. Pot 2 Phormium An exotic pick for pots – choose a vibrant…

Can I still buy freesia bulbs? Q Whatever happened to freesias? They used to everywhere, but I can’t seem to find them anywhere. Mrs A Best, Bolton Lancs A It ought to be possible to buy freesia bulbs from any good garden centre, but they may not be available until later this year or early next. Freesias prefer a sheltered location where the flowers can be protected from the sun during the hottest part of the day, though they do like a bright spot. The soil must be well drained with plenty of peat and sand added. Plant freesia bulbs indoors from September to November, putting five bulbs in a 5in (12cm) pot, 1in (2.5cm) deep and the same distance apart. Keep the pots frost-free over winter. Alternatively, plant the…

THERE’S something daunting about a bare 6ft (1.8m) square fence panel. The ones tucked away at the back of flowerbeds soon vanish under mounds of shrub and climber growth, but the panels alongside your patio and paths just glare at you relentlessly. Metal railings are just as bad – they always remind me of a prison – while drainpipes can look positively industrial! Turn them into a vertical gardening feature instead, using pot plants suspended on hangers or in troughs. They’re inexpensive to buy, quick to fit and will transform gardens into a colourful living canvas loaded with pots of late-flowering dahlias, asters, chrysanthemums and herbs. Before you buy, check that your pots will fit the hangers, and the hanger fittings suit your fence, railing or downpipe. Spanish Trellis Rings…

11 September 1919 Harry Dodson was born. Head gardener and nurseryman at Chilton Foliat in Wiltshire, he became a celebrity as a result of the BBC television documentary series The Victorian Kitchen Garden. He died in 2005. 12 September 1938 Gordon Rae, director general of the RHS from 1993-99, was born. Earlier, he had been a temperate and tropical agriculturist in the Caribbean and Kenya, followed by a career in ICI, latterly as general manager of the Garden and Household Products businesses. 13 September 1879 Punch magazine published a cartoon about the disturbance caused by the noisy lawnmower, proving that the machine had become essential for upper and middle-class homes. 14 September 2004 John Seymour died. He had been a prolific early author in the self-sufficiency movement. His book, Self…