Things to Do This Month

The Cherry blossom on the village green in early May was just fantastic. You would be hard pressed to find a nicer village view anywhere than that from the corner of Vennwood Close by Ty pica farm house, looking towards the church. A lot of effort has been going on around the Village with residents planting out their gardens to put on a good show. If you need inspiration the usual suspects are at it. Silvia Davies, opposite the Walston Castle, always provides a great visual entrance into Wenvoe. The renowned Gerry Crump and the forever young Ieuan Williams, both excellent gardeners, are the supremoes of Rectory close. And of course, there are many more around the village.

The Royal Horticultural Society things to do list for this month: –

1. Keep borders weed free by hoeing regularly.

2. Be water wise, especially in drought conditions.

3. Pinch outside shoots on tomatoes.

4. Harvest lettuce, radish and early potatoes.

5. Mow lawns every week.

6. Plant out summer bedding.

7. Stake tall or floppy plants.

8. Prune spring flowering shrubs.

9. Shade greenhouses to avoid scorching.

10. Keep bird baths topped up with fresh water.

June is the month when gardeners who enter competitions position their hanging baskets and containers outside. These need a lot of care and attention but are stunning to see. If you have the time to do this the results are worth it.

This year saw a problem with Moles in gardens on the edges of the village. There are only two ways to get rid of them. You can either trap them or use a sonic device that will probably move them on to your neighbours who won't be best pleased.

You will need to cut back Spring flowering shrubs if you have not already done so. Deciduous Magnolias need to be trimmed back as soon as they are in full leaf. If you leave this job till later in the year it can cause die back and ruin the look for next Spring.

Greenhouse work never ends with trying to control the temperature and dealing with pests on our precious tomatoes. Red spider mite is a nuisance and caught early is easy to control by washing them off the plants with plain water. An infestation can only be controlled by insecticide. Keeping the greenhouse humid is a good way to deter them.

Any gaps in the borders at this time of year are best filled with annual bedding plants for instant colour. It's not too late to sow fast growing and late flowering hardy annuals such as Calendula and Godetia. Hellebore seeds can be harvested and then planted as soon as possible. You know if they are ripe when you you squeeze the pod and it splits easily. These seeds will test your patience as they need a period of dormancy to germinate. Perennials such as Hollyhock, Delphinium and Lupin seeds can be planted now.

Plastic has been in the headlines for some time now and most of the supermarket chains have plans to either use recyclable or compostable pots on their own labelled plants within the next couple of years. Garden centres are a bit slower on the uptake with only a few offering any time scale on plastic reduction. Monty Don has been banging the drum on this subject in his latest series of Gardeners World. The convenience of collecting our compost etc in plastic bags is adding to the pollution.

I am really looking forward to Wenvoe gardens full of colour this Summer. Don't forget the sun screen, take care and happy gardening.