Category: The Village Gardener

THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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LOOKING AFTER A LARGE BORDER

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Angela Flynn, on LOOKING AFTER A LARGE BORDER.

1. Dead head daily during the flowering season.
   2. Fill any gaps, so that most of the soil is covered, this helps keep weeds at bay.
   3. Don’t put up with plants you dislike.
   4. Keep any shrubs under control or they will merge into one mass.
   5. Take cuttings of your favourite tender perennials and propagate for next year.

Beryl Richards gets to the point.

1. Don’t bother with no mow May, your lawn will provide for wildlife even when very short.
   2. Make your own compost, if at all possible, as most of what’s on offer wouldn’t grow weeds.
   3. If someone offers you a plant you don’t want, kindly decline, or they will keep checking that you still have it.
   4. Don’t be kidded into thinking those small tunnels just below the surface of your lawn are made by moles. They are rat runs which are mainly built over the winter.
   5. Probably best not to save those ice cream containers and yogurt pots, you’ll never use them.

If you don’t do much else this month, please make sure you water camellias and rhododendrons thoroughly to make sure next year’s buds develop. Time to trim the lavender after flowering (not the French plants they just need deadheading) but be careful not to cut into the old wood. Dahlias are coming into their own now and will need strong stakes and a feed. Roses will become more prone to black spot as the season goes on. Spraying is not what we want to be doing but for this disease I use rose clear. There must be some other remedies, but I have found this spray works well. Cut the seed heads off lilies before they set, this will give you bigger blooms on the parent plant next year. This month and next are the best times to spray perennial weeds especially ground elder and bindweed before they start to die back.

Using a high nitrogen feed on your lawn will have a detrimental effect, as it will encourage rapid green growth which has been proved to weaken the grass over the Autumn and Winter. Use a preparatory Autumn fertiliser. If you have leatherjackets in the lawn, then now is the time to start a nematode treatment.

Allotment old-timer Herbie will, on a good year, get a second crop from his broad beans by cutting them off to a leaf joint about 6 inches from the ground. They will then shoot and give a lighter crop. Harvesting beans, courgettes and salad will go on for quite a while as long as you keep picking. Tomato plants seem to need a lot of care to get the best out of them. We need to keep taking the top growth off and remove any leaf below the first truss as well as taking some of the leaves off the rest of the stem. We don’t want the plant putting any energy into growing greenery.

The Village Show on September 9th will hopefully encourage you to show off your produce and encourage others to take up gardening.

Take care and happy gardening

 

 

 

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

 

Two expats, Sean Connor and Penny Wise, give their thoughts on aspects of gardening.
Sean Connor
1. Consider turning a small area of your front garden into a veg patch, it will create interest and, if kept well, will be an asset.
2. Do not overdose when feeding plants, it’s a complete waste of money.
3. If you see totally green leaves on a variegated shrub, remove them or the plant will revert to type.
4. Pull suckers off from the base of roses or they will weaken the parent plant.
5. A battery powered hand pruner makes life so much easier in the garden.
Penny Wise, on how to negotiate a garden centre.
1. Do not buy small pots which are on offer, they are never big enough when you get them home.
2. The farm shop must be run by Fortnum & Mason
3. Check the limit on your Visa card before entering cafe.
4. Avert your eyes when passing the charismatic man selling conservatories that you can’t live without.
5. In July be careful driving in as the car park is full of lorries bringing in the Christmas stuff.
The gardens are in their second flush now after the Spring flowers have faded, so dead heading is a regular pastime. Peter Beale the rose grower advises that when taking faded blooms off roses you should cut back to a leaf joint but most just snap the the bloom off just below the spent flower. The recommended way to dead head delphiniums, foxgloves and Canterbury bells is to cut off the flower stalks just below the spent flowers but Sid & Lyn Cottle always take the individual flowers off and leave the spike and have good results. Plants like lady’s mantle and herbaceous geraniums can be cut back to the ground, they will recover well enough to give you another flush.
On allotments and veg patches the first crops will be ready to harvest. Beans, lettuces, spring onions and early potatoes will be waiting to be picked. The main problem at this time is the fact that most people take their annual leave and go away which leaves some gardens without someone to water, so be nice to your neighbours and they may assist.
Parsley is notoriously difficult to germinate outside but this month is known to have the highest success rate. They can then be potted up and brought indoors later in the year.
The village show in September will be your chance to show off your wares, to keep this event going we need plenty of entries. Anne Daniels might be in with a chance with her secret tomato food blend.
With a lot of May and a big part of June being really dry it is essential that we save as much dirty water as possible to use on the garden. Water butts don’t have to cost the earth any vessel that holds water will suffice. According to the people who know about these things we are going to have long spells of dry weather and when it does rain this will be prolonged so make use of the down pipes on houses and outbuildings. If you can cover these containers, it will stop evaporation. We are also going to have to consider which plants we grow if this is to be the norm. If you have unglazed or terracotta pots water will dissipate through these quickly, it is good practice to line the inside with plastic, bin bags will suffice, or paint the inside. Putting some weed fabric on the top around plants then some bark or stone will slow down the evaporation considerably.
Sadly, Trevor Case passed away at the end of May. Trevor wrote the gardening column in the What’s on for many years. He also led the environment team and was a driving force when Wenvoe competed in the best kept village competitions. A good man.
Take care and happy gardening

 

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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Gardening Thoughts From The Silver Foxes

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The gardening thoughts this month come from the Silver Foxes, who meet their probation officers at the Library Hub on Fridays.

1. Reduce the buds on roses for bigger blooms if you’re going to enter the village show.
2. Cut back dogwoods and use the trimmings for pea sticks.
3. Leave any bulbs growing in the lawn for at least 6 weeks after flowering before cutting back.
4. Fill the runner bean trench with newspaper to help retain moisture during dry periods.
5. Sweet pea seeds can be sown outside now.
6. Split hostas before they start vigorous growth.
7. Put fresh gravel around early flowering alpines to show off the blooms.
8. Slugs will be on the march now and very hungry as well, so be vigilant.
9. Place canes adjacent to tall perennials before they put a spurt on.
10. If you could do with some excellent conversation and company then come and join us.

The 20th March is officially the first day of Spring but we know this can be cold and wet, so please don’t be tempted to rush to the garden centre and fill your trolley with all those lovely plants that have been grown in heated greenhouses. These plants will suffer badly when you get them home unless you have the right conditions to look after them. Nurseries and garden centres know this happens and will have replacement plants back in over the next few weeks so you can buy again when the first lot fail. Once the weather warms up, plants you delay in purchasing will catch up without fail. In Wenvoe we are lucky to have a garden centre on our doorstep and people want to support local businesses, just don’t throw your money away. We are encouraged to go peat free and from next year peat products in England will be banned for everyday gardeners. Professional gardeners will initially be exempt but a ban is planned for them too. Head gardener at Hestercombe gardens, Claire Greenslade, has said they are going peat free but the bedding plants that are purchased from nurseries are still grown in peat at present so, if you’re concerned about the use of peat, check that your supplier is doing their best to bring this practice to an end. British Soil based in Wenvoe have been peat free for a number of years and produce some good composts to grow plants from seed and to bring on young plants.

If some of your daffodils have not flowered it may be that the clump is overcrowded and may have to be split up. The main reason for daffs not producing blooms is that they are not planted deep enough, they need to be inserted at least three times the depth of the bulb.

One of the jobs that will give you a good return on your time is to remove the top 5cms of compost from your containers as this is where most pests, diseases and weed seeds congregate over winter. Replace with some fresh compost and a general fertiliser or, for roses, a balanced rose feed will give excellent results.

On the allotment they are still adding manure and preparing the ground. If the ground is too wet you are better off waiting as the ground will be compacted which will reduce the yield. Spring broad bean seeds can go in now as well as early potatoes. Be aware that there may be late frosts so don’t plant more than you can protect with fleece or cloches. One of the allotment holders is a renowned horticultural show judge so expect a critical eye on your produce at Twyn Yr Odyn.

There are plans for another Gardener’s Question Time in the Spring ( date to be announced). This will give you a chance to ask any questions you have and pick up some tips to enhance your love of gardening.

Upcoming events include the Spring plant sale Sat 29 April 10 – 3 at 29 Vennwood Close and the Wenvoe Open Garden Day on Sat June 17th 10 – 5.

Take care and happy gardening.

 

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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This month Rita Edwards and Elizabeth Jones give us the benefit of their gardening knowledge.

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Rita

1. Separate clumps of snowdrops while in the green as they will naturalise better.
2. Prune hedges before the birds start nesting.
3. Check fences for broken posts and loose panels.
4. Prune wisteria back to 2 or 3 buds.
5. Cut back perennials that were left protecting the crown of the plant.

 

Elizabeth

1. Make sure that the mower is serviced before mowing begins in earnest.
2. Do repairs to paths on dry days.
3. Sow sweet peas.
4. Strimmer line will keep its strength if stored in water, honestly.
5. Seaweed is a brilliant fertiliser, just make sure you wash the salt off first.

 

Right then gardeners, you can be sure that plants are going to cost quite a bit more this Spring due to high heating and fertiliser costs which the nurseries have to pass on to the garden centres, who in turn pass this on to customers. So, start saving by sowing seeds. We have to heat our homes, and windowsills make an ideal spot to produce seedlings. Cosmos, sweet peas, kale and tomatoes will thrive on a warm sill. Just cover at night to keep the chill off. This is the one time you need to use properly prepared fresh compost with a bit of perlite added for drainage. This will help prevent damping off which is a fungal disease that can wipe out trays of seedlings. The main causes of damping off spreading are low light and poor air flow.

Outside, the garden seems to need attention everywhere you look. Now is a good time to move deciduous shrubs that this year, with fresh eyes, seem to be in the wrong place. Prune mahonia and winter flowering heathers. Cut back buddleia and elder down to the base. This will help keep them a reasonable size. Cut back the overwintered fuchsias, check on any plants that may have become dislodged in the inclement weather. There is still time to purchase bare root shrubs. This month is the latest you should be pruning apple trees. Most apple trees produce fruit on short stems that sprout on old wood, while a few fruit on long shoots produced just the year before. Check to see which type you have before pruning or you may end up with no fruit at all. The important thing is to have an open aspect by thinning out the middle to allow a good air flow and increase light. This will help to keep disease at bay.

Keep deadheading the pansies to prolong the flowering. The one thing that needs to be done every time you go into the garden besides weeding is to look in crevices and under pots for slugs and snails as everyone you deal with now is going to increase the number of buds that will develop in Spring.

Take care and happy gardening

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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Happy New Year. Let’s hope for some kind weather to give us a good start to the year.

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We start the year off with some tips from people who in their own way have left their own mark on the area.

Gareth “top banana” Lewis of Twyn yr Odyn.

1. Plant chilli seeds in a propagator as they need a long season to bear fruit
2. If you are lucky enough to find a tasty tomato while shopping, keep some seeds and with a bit of luck they will make good plants.
3. Start chitting some potatoes but keep out of direct sunlight, which should be easy at this time of year.
4. Don’t garden by date, garden by the conditions.
5. Sort out all your seed packets before the rush to plant comes along.

Silver fox, Parry “Barista” Edwards

1. It’s January, stay in, you will do no good traipsing over the lawn.
2. Order some more seed and plant catalogues.
3. Try to buy British and help keep plant diseases out of the UK.
4. Keep a garden diary as a reference.
5. If you do insist on venturing out, be careful as no one wants to end up in A & E.

Wet and cold January weather makes looking at the garden from a window the best option. On an occasional nice day a bit of weeding always helps but be careful of emerging bulbs. Planning for the seasons to come is always a good idea, as when the growing season starts we will only have time for the usual jobs. If you need help with the physical side of any plans you may have, get in touch with landscapers early. If you are worried about whether they will be any good talk to people who have had work done or ask at British Soil for their approved contractor list. Make sure that you can reach the middle from either side of any new beds or borders that you build. A common fault is to plant too near the edge of borders. You can be sure that the label on the plant you decide to put in will not mean much once it’s been planted and fed: they always get bigger in good growing conditions.

As gardeners we are encouraged to leave an area for wildlife. This doesn’t have to look unsightly or to be occupied with bee hotels and hedgehog houses from garden centres where you’ll need a mortgage and a good credit rating to buy them. A few holes drilled in a log for bees and a small covered dry area for the hedgehogs will suffice. Wenvoe has a plethora of these spiny mammals as a lot of residents make provision for them and one of the best things to do is have a hole at the bottom of your fence to allow them access to more gardens. A wildflower area can seem like a good idea, just make sure to find a packet that has flowers for both Spring and Summer which will give you a longer season.

A few years ago, the village had an Open Garden Day which was very well received. Glenys and I are planning to organise one this year and if you are interested there will be more details in the February issue of What’s On and on Facebook on the Wenvoe Community Support Group page.

Take care and happy gardening

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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This month’s tips come from the most popular person on the planet at this time of year – Father Christmas

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1. When we get on in years the main gift we want for Christmas is our health. That’s why the other presents dry up.
2. Please send letters to me, otherwise you will end up with socks and another scarf.
3. Families cannot fathom why you would want a roll of bubble wrap but stick to your guns.
4. Don’t tell the friends and relatives that you can’t help with the clearing up after the Christmas dinner because you need to water the allotment, they won’t believe it.
5. If friends buy you a year’s magazine subscription, don’t expect it to continue indefinitely.
6. Unlike myself you only have to wear your Christmas jumper this month, so go for it – you know you want to.
7. Before the big day make a space in the shed and when the partner asks you why, just say you’re expecting a sizeable gift. Disclaimer, it doesn’t always work.
8. Don’t take your new gloves to the allotment in January as the conditions will make them unusable for the rest of the year.
9. Give yourself a bit of extra time to think about New Near resolutions, that way some might be achievable.
10. Gardeners are a sociable lot and have many friends. Just give a thought to those on their own. Loneliness is miserable.

 

Although we haven’t had any significant frosts in our area before Christmas for a couple of years it is still best to insulate the greenhouse, replace any broken glass and use a clear flexible mastic on loose panels. A single layer of polythene beneath the glass will reduce the amount of sunlight able to get in by 10%, which at this time of year should not affect the

plants. We need to have all pots that are outside, up off the floor to allow drainage. Watering will be at a minimum at this time of year, so it may be a good idea to empty out water butts and leave upside down. With high winds guaranteed, check that any trellis is safe and that plant stakes are fit for purpose.

Bare root plants are available now and are good value compared to potted ones. Plant them up as soon as they arrive but they won’t need a feed. Apple trees, vines and acers can be pruned now. If you wait, they may start to bleed which can make them susceptible to diseases. Take hard wood cuttings from now until late winter. Gardener’s World magazine says most deciduous plants will take but some evergreens, such as cotoneaster and holly, are also worth trying. Just take off the soft growth and cut above a bud, then cut just below a bud anything from 6 – 12 inches from the top and stick in a pot or the ground leaving a third above ground. These are going to have to stay put until next Autumn then you can move them to either their own pot or a patch of ground. Blackspot on hellebores is a problem at present. Pull the infected leaves off but don’t compost them; put them in the bin. While you’re dealing with this remove some of the lower leaves to show off the flowers.

At the allotment Bernard will be on hand for any advice you may need over the winter period. There will be a lot of netting rolled out to protect brassicas from hungry pigeons. People who put onion sets in will have to place them quite deep or birds will pull them out and they only do this to annoy you.

A big thank you to all who contributed to this page (whether they wanted to or not) over the past year and to the What’s On team for giving me space in the magazine.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

from the village gardener.

 

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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Tips From Two Lady Gardeners

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This month’s tips are from two lady gardeners

Firstly Angela from Larchwood.

1. If we can expect summers to be dry in future, then pelargoniums and bedding begonias are going to give good displays as they have thrived during 2022.
2. A lot of shrubs have fared badly this past year, but pyracantha has survived the drought, plus it’s good for protection against intruders and it provides good cover for small birds.
3. If you have camellias in pots, try to give them some shelter from easterly winds.
4. Get your Tulips in the ground this month.
5. A tea light placed between two bricks topped with an upturned terracotta pot will keep your greenhouse free from frost.

Betty on Walston Road

1. If you need to keep plants like pelargoniums but have no cover for them, bring them close to the house on the South side if possible.
2. Tie up tall conifers to prevent them spreading in high winds and possibly snow.
3. Try to cover any bare soil with mulch or any permeable material to prevent erosion.
4. Lift pots off ground to prevent water logging.
5. Be extra careful when around the garden in wet weather, because if you haven’t got nosey neighbours, you could be out there for hours if you fall.

The growing season seems to have been long this year with the summer bedding lasting well into October especially the pelargoniums which only really stopped when heavy rain flattened them. Dahlias are still flowering in sheltered spots and the roses don’t know what season they are in. We would normally have cut back everything by now. Some gardeners leave their perennials to die back naturally, saying that this protects the crown of the plants from frost, while others clear away the dying stems which exposes hidden weeds and pests and then mulch the area. The one thing you have to do at this time of year is keep raking the leaves off the lawn, a thankless task but one that needs to be done regularly to prevent dead areas forming. Ponds should be covered by now or leaves will sink and if there is a lot of them and you have fish the bacteria won’t be able to break them down fast enough and will reduce oxygen levels and a build-up of ammonia, which is toxic to fish. If netting is difficult to put in place, then a floating pond skimmer may be the answer.

November is prime tulip planting time according to those who know. They also say you should plant the bulbs three times their own depth and if not sure plant deeper which should guarantee that they flower for more than one year.

Ivy is one of those plants that divides opinion as it can get out of control and is very difficult to get rid of once established. It’s main saving grace is the fact that it flowers late providing the bees with a late harvest and the berries keep the birds fed well into winter. Blackbirds, especially, are very fond of them. If you can hold back before pruning the wildlife would appreciate it.

Work on the allotments is slowing down. With Autumn planting done the ground is being readied for Spring by weeding and covering with manure. Then in late Winter the ground will be covered to warm up the soil and an attempt to stop weeds germinating. You will see some of the allotmenteers in parks collecting leaves to make compost and leaf mould which will take a year before it’s ready to use. Leaf mould is the ideal growing medium for bulbs and when you see what garden centres sell bulb compost for it makes good sense to produce your own for free.

There is a chance that the village will have an open garden event next year, so if you would be interested look out for information in What’s On and on the Wenvoe community support group.

Take care and happy gardening

 

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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This month’s tips are from the farming community

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Madeleine Rees

1. Save your used compost and add some N.P.K fertiliser. It will be better than you get from suppliers, until they shape up. You only need good, new compost for sowing seed.
2. Plant a green manure crop on any unused ground.
3. Buy British and stop the pests coming in on imported plants.
4. If you grow some comfrey, you will have feed for your plants all year.
5. Make sure you have some sort of greenhouse shading for next year.

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Viv Jervis

1. After using your hedge trimmer make sure you brush the blade with new engine oil. The blades will not become sticky thus saving power.
2. As the years catch up with us all, remember to take the phone with you when out in the garden.
3. When starting an allotment, it’s a good idea to plant potatoes as they help clear the ground.
4. Hoeing regularly will make gardening less of a chore.
5. Be sure to spray weed killer on bindweed before it dies back, so that it takes it back to the roots.

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Time to start clearing the borders of bedding plants ready for winter flowering pansies etc. If you have pelargoniums and some space to keep them frost free, then remove flowers and cut down by half. They don’t need much soil or water, but they do need a bit of space for ventilation otherwise grey mould will set in. If it does you must remove infected plants. They can, of course, be kept on a windowsill where they will flower for ages. October is a good time to divide perennials to give you some free plants. Cut everlasting sweet peas down to the ground. Dahlias can be left in the ground in our part of Wales as long as it’s not constantly waterlogged – just cover with mulch. If you want to dig them up then make sure you remove all soil and put upside down to dry before storing, do the same thing with begonias. They need to be stored in a cool dry place away from frost.

Prune roses from now on. Climbing roses need some care when cutting back by making sure you tie in stems horizontally so they will produce side shoots for next year’s flowers. Remove any damaged stems. With shrub roses just take the clippers to them and cut down by half to stop wind rock over the winter which can open up the base of the plant and allow water in which could freeze and kill off the rose. On the subject of roses, the environment team cut back the roses on the village green three times, mainly to prevent them obscuring the visibility at the junction with Walston Road. This proved highly successful with shorter stems and a profusion of flowers.

Collecting seed at this time of year is so worthwhile, just make sure you dry them and, most importantly, label them.

Mr JCB Alun Arthur has offered this advice for anyone with a compacted conifer hedge. To keep it healthy you need to wash it through in Springtime using a hose to clear the debris as this will allow the hedge to breathe.

October on the allotment is a mixture of harvesting and planting. Some are planting sweet peas for next year. Not Herbie, he would never plant a flower where he could grow a vegetable. He is planting broad beans, onion sets and garlic. There is still time to pot up runners from strawberry plants.

Take care and happy gardening

 

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THE VILLAGE GARDENER

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Tips from Venwood’s bionic men Ryland & Dave

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Ryland

1. Get to work on lawns by scarifying and seeding.
2. Hold back on buying Spring flowering bulbs as they will be cheaper by the end of the month.
3. Water butts are a must, stop putting it off.
4. Collect seeds from plants. With the cost of seeds increasing it makes good sense.
5. September is the best time to spray those perennial weeds.

Dave

1. Put netting over ponds before the leaves start to drop.
2. At this time of year you will have a lot of garden waste so go on – start a compost heap.
3. If you haven’t grown sunflowers try to do so next Spring as the birds will love the seeds at this time of year and they are so easy to grow.
4. If you’re thinking of making a raised bed you need to construct it so you can reach the middle from both sides.
5. A wooden gazebo covered with a climbing plant provides unrivalled, cool shade

This year the hot weather has made it difficult to find places to be cool indoors or out. Those who walked in woodland during this time have found how cool it is under the shade of trees as they dissipate the heat so well. Planting a small tree in the garden will provide a cool place to sit. If you decide to plant one it will need plenty of water until it gets the roots growing.

We can take cuttings from a lot of plants at this time of year. Pelargoniums, fuchsias, penstemon etc are all easy to propagate. Just pick a stem without a flower, trim below a leaf node and place in pots of compost and keep in a cool place. Divide perennial plants, pot up and water the ones you want to give away and dig the others into their new home. If you have some clear ground to spare try sowing some hardy annuals such as cornflowers for early summer flowering.

Hedge cutting will be the major job in most gardens during the autumn so take your time and don’t worry that you can’t get it all done in a day. It’s not going anywhere and the longer you can live with it the shorter it will be at the beginning of next year’s growing season. When you’re cutting the shrubs back try cutting some of the lower branches off to allow more air and light around the base. In most cases the plant will look better as well. Are you considering buying a shredder to reduce the debris and use it as mulch? This is a commendable idea in practice but be warned there are dozens of sheds in the village with shredders that were purchased without the benefit of YouTube, so do check before buying.

With more rain and some sunshine September is a good month to sort out the damage done to the lawns by the dry weather (and the no mow May) during the late Spring and Summer. Most will need scarifying plus an Autumn lawn treatment along with some lawn seed. Besides the amount of effort needed you will need to keep the birds from taking their fill of seed.

Produce is being harvested from allotments and veg gardens in what is the most productive month of the year. Onions are being laid out to dry, runner beans are still being harvested and Autumn raspberries are at their best. Even when harvesting is in full swing Bernard, of compost bin fame, is planting onion sets and broad beans to get a good start for next year. Garlic really benefits from an early Autumn sowing as do meteor peas. Try putting in some turnip seeds as at this time of year conditions are perfect to produce a small but perfectly formed veg for the Christmas dinner table.

Hope to see you all at the Village Show, where the ability of local folk can be seen, admired and tasted. Be a part of village life and meet some of the characters that make Wenvoe a lovely place to live.

Take care and happy gardening

 

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