Innholdsfortegnelse for 16-Oct-2021 i Amateur Gardening

“The Chelsea Flower Show is now past, and the RHS deserves credit for having the conviction to make it happen when we are still in the throes of a pandemic. I do believe a lot of the show gardens are created for an aesthetic ellite rather than normal gardeners, but this is still the premier show of the year and there was much to enjoy. For me, the new varieties showcased on the Plant of the Year stand were a highlight (see page 5), along with some of the special variety stands in the Great Pavilion, which included Peter Seabrook’s colourful display. Peter always flies the flag for the normal dedicated gardener.” Contact us: ■ Subscriptions: 0330 333 1113 ■ Editorial: 0330 3903732 ■ Email: amateurgardening@futurenet.com ■ Advertising: 0330 3906566…

IT has been a long summer and autumn and as we slide inexorably towards winter it is time to give your borders some love. By mid-October most of summer’s annual plants are past their best and need removing and composting. This makes borders look tidier and also lets you see the soil and clear away weeds. Once the past-it plantings are cleared away you may also be astounded by what comes to light. I spent a morning clearing dead bedding from around the base of a late-flowering sea holly and underneath I found a baby Eryngium growing away close to the parent plant! It is rather straggly and has obviously been trying to push its way through the encroaching bedding and up towards the light, and is now safely potted…

I Four brains were on autopilot, pears would tend to play second fiddle to apples. However, once you discover a homegrown example of these juice-filled, aromatic fruits, pear trees are sure to sit firmly at the top of your must-grow list. Spurring partners Originating from central Asia, it’s a well-known fact that pears enjoy life in the warmth. I look after a row of eight trained against a sunny brick wall and they crop prolifically, giving us early eaters, late mellowers and everything in between. “Grow early eaters, late mellowers, and all in between” They are trained as espaliers, the pear’s free-spurring nature lending itself to this shape readily; cordons are also a cinch – and both kinds are pruned in summer and winter. There’s no grass around the roots…

Got a story? email ruth.hayes@futurenet.com CHELSEA was back this year, but not quite as we knew it. The change in season, brought about by pandemic restrictions, led to different plants, new ideas including balcony gardens for the space-hungry, and autumnal shades. Rudbeckias, salvias, asters, grasses, echinaceas and red-hot pokers jostled for space among berried branches and russet leaves, while in the Great Pavilion eye-catching dahlias, gladioli and chrysanthemums took the place of alliums and foxgloves As usual, the gardens fell into two main categories: ‘How can I do this at home?’ and ‘Why on earth would I do this at home – or anywhere?’ Sitting firmly in the former was the Parsley Box garden that used a stunning combination of seasonal perennials, herbs, fruit and veg to celebrate nature’s bounty…

AS we turn up the heating and light the fires, let’s think about keeping vulnerable plants protected through winter too. If you are lucky enough to have a greenhouse, it will need cleaning before tender plants and seedlings are moved in to see out the winter months. The first job is to remove any tender crops that grew undercover during summer. Once these are gone, get rid of any lingering pests that came with them and check there are no old bits of plant matter stuck to the glass or between panes and the frame. You may want to light a fumigation candle to kill off any remaining pests. The new generation of candles aren’t harmful to plants so they can be left in place, but the windows and door…

Listen to Peter’s free podcast every Thursday. Search for ‘This Week In The Garden with Peter Seabrook’ on iTunes PUTTING crazy ideas into practice can prove testing! Years ago, university students in North America grew garden chrysanthemums through their summer break, decorated campus grounds with them at the start of the new academic year and subsequently sold flowering plants off to raise money for charity. Late last July, with this scheme in mind, we took 1,200 rooted cuttings of ‘Poppins’ garden chrysanthemums to Pershore High School and gave all the scholars a chance to pot one up. Pots and Miracle-Gro Peat Free All Purpose Compost (provided by Evergreen) were lined up on tables with the cuttings and the teenagers queued up to meet the social distancing requirements at the time.…

DO you ever wonder where all the leaves go? Folk used to gather these for bonfires, and some still do – but I’m not sure why. Obviously, on some roadsides and pavements, leaves are cleared by councils, but in the vast majority of the country leaves are usually ignored to disappear naturally. They do this amazingly well. Few will be found next spring, save where they have piled up in some sheltered dry place. By then, most will have been broken down into unrecognisable bits or pulled into the soil by worms. So why should we bother to collect fallen leaves? True, a thick layer of heavy wet leaves can choke low-growing plants or yellow a patch of lawn, but leaves seldom cause much damage. However, they are worth gathering…

John will reply personally to all your gardening questions every week Please help me with plums and shade! Q I’d like to get a plum tree as I’d love to make my own jam, but I don’t know which variety is best for that. The plum would need to be in a pot as I have only a patio garden. Can you help? Also, I have a small area in complete shade, with no direct sun at all. Can you suggest any shrubs or small trees that would be happy there, again in a pot? Natasha Erskine, Buckie, Moray A I suggest that you grow the selffertile ‘Victoria’ plum in a large pot. It doesn’t need a pollinating partner and normally crops heavily. A delicious dessert or cooking variety, fruits…

A RECENT survey conducted by the Royal Horticultural Society of 2,000 gardeners who were buying composts for use in pots and baskets, as well as for seed sowing, found that a high proportion of those surveyed had no idea what was in the compost they were buying. The label may say ‘peat-free’ or ‘peat reduced’, but very few composts give details regarding what has replaced the peat. The nearest we came to finding any details were bags that clearly stated they contained 100% coir (coconut waste). A number of garden centres and DIY outlets are making statements about their intention to go peat-free in the future, but are vague about what you will get instead. Three pots for each sample Our trial took place between early July and mid-September, using…

Plenty to go round Star letter THIS is an update to the hedgehog saga in our garden. We didn’t have baby hedgehogs this year but the neighbours found a little nest when they were sorting out their garden, and as soon as it was discovered they left that part of their garden alone. We continue to see our little visitors but they are accompanied by a young fox. We have named him Ferdinand! I caught their first appearance on our wildlife camera and was peaking through my hands whilst watching it in case the outcome wasn’t going to be good! I needn’t have worried, as is shown in the sequence of stills. Kathie Fitzgerald, Fareham, Hampshire Intense colour and flavour IT has been such a challenging year, but the free…

AG’s ‘Man at the Show’ Toby Buckland definitely approved of the decision to move the RHS Chelsea Flower Show to September. “I love it, and I think the autumnal slot works really well,” said Toby, who was also reporting the show for the BBC. “There is so much abundance on show and autumn gives the gardeners such a wonderful palette to work with. “The designers have taken the large spaces and distilled them down into smaller gardens and what you have are almost ‘pocket parks’. It is all absolutely delightful.” Toby’s favourite garden was the Psalm 23 Garden, sponsored by the Bible Society and designed by the gold medal-winning Sarah Eberle. An atmosphere of reflection Inspired by the landscape of Dartmoor and the words of ‘The Lord is my shepherd’,…

NOT everyone has the space or money for a greenhouse, but there are plenty of worthwhile alternatives available. Mini greenhouses are invaluable for small spaces. They are basically a set of mesh shelves covered in clear, weatherproof plastic with a front opening that can be zipped up or opened, depending on the weather Most have some sort of attachment so they can be fixed to a wall, or pockets that can be filled with ballast, to keep them stable. These mini greenhouses are not large but they have enough room to protect hardy plants and seedlings over winter. In very cold weather they can be further protected by being covered with extra insulation, such as old blankets. The insides can also be reinforced with extra layers of bubble wrap. Cold…

THIS week’s free Mr Fothergill’s seeds are Viola ‘Comedy Mix’, a joyful little springtime plant that is funny by name and brings welcome early colour to the garden. The plants are compact and long-lived, and covered with masses of bright flowers in cheerful shades of purple, yellow and creamy white. Violas are easy-going hardy perennials, though they are usually grown as a biennial or annual. They are more compact and clump-forming than pansies and although they self-seed freely close to where they are growing, the seedlings are easy to lift, gently separate and replant elsewhere. ‘Comedy Mix’ is a versatile variety and grows well in sun and light shade, happy to bring a spill of colour to the edge of beds, or to grow in pots and baskets. One word…

T HERE’S been an extra buzz in the garden at the National Trust’s Nunnington Hall in North Yorkshire this year, because gardener Cal Stuart has designed a 32x10ft (10x3m) Buzz Border for pollinators. It includes, he says, “a wide range of plants to maximise biodiversity and spread pollen and nectar across a long period, continuing Nunnington Hall’s commitment to biodiversity and gardening using organic principles”. Cal points out that although “many of us will be familiar with bumblebees, there are actually more than 200 species of bee in the UK and they… pollinate the food crops we all rely on”. Becky Falkingham, the Trust’s nature evidence data officer, added: “Pollinators are essential for the production of one in every three bites of food. That’s why it’s so important to find…

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QMy friend has given me a beautiful potted plant with pink flowers called a Guernsey lily. Is this related to a Jersey lily and how do I care for it? Valerie Kendall, Hitchin, Hertfordshire AGuernsey lilies are cultivars of Nerine sarniensis (Sarnia being the Roman name for Guernsey). They are the national flower of Guernsey and related to hardy, outdoor Bowden lilies (Nerine bowdenii). All 27 species of nerines are native to South Africa, but they are not true lilies, as the genus Nerine belongs to the plant family Amaryllidaceae. The first mention of Guernsey lilies dates back to the 1600s, and in 1738 Linnaeus named the plant Amaryllis sarniensis. There are many legends of bulbs arriving in Guernsey, and most tales involve shipwrecks. The likeliest tells of a vessel…

A MARKETING expert once told me that any product emblazoned with the word ‘new’ will sell more. I was sceptical, though intrigued, as I owned a nursery at the time, but I’ve since noticed how I subconsciously prefer to put products with ‘new recipe’, ‘new formulation’ and (my favourite) ‘new lower price’ in my shopping basket. Apparently, it’s because since coming down from the tree, our minds have hardwired to seek out new experiences, especially regarding food. And by increasing the range of what we eat, we do the same for our chances of survival. With a Greggs on almost every street corner, we no longer need to seek the new to survive (vegan sausage rolls aside), but that instinct explains why so many gardeners are drawn to novel vegetables.…