Amateur Gardening 27-Feb-2021

“I find it fascinating when gardeners voice their dislike of specific plants and there will be many reasons, both emotional and horticultural, why they feel that way. However, I am always surprised when someone says they dislike dahlias, because I wonder how anyone could not be amazed at the many varieties of shape, colour and form they can take. Even my fiancée Gill, turns her nose up, considering them gaudy and loud. I think they are a wonder of nature and I only wish I had room to grow more. What do you think of dahlias?” Contact us: Subscriptions: 0330 333 1113 Editorial: 0330 3903732 Email: amateurgardening@futurenet.com Advertising: 0330 3906566…

WHEN it comes to gardening, one of the best things we ever did was invest in a greenhouse. We were lucky enough to have the space and money and although it is a basic, 6x8ft (1.8x2.4m) model, we would not be without it and regularly lament the fact that we didn’t get a bigger one! We use it all year round. For the past few months it has been hosting a legion of overwintering tender plants, a lemon tree and some strawberries, which will hopefully crop earlier than those that have remained in raised beds outside. We’ve also been harvesting salads sown every few weeks through the winter months in last summer’s rejuvenated growbags. Over the next few months we can add seedlings and cuttings to its list of residents, then come summer…

RIGHT now the greenhouse is full of tender plants sheltering from winter’s elements and more hardy, edible varieties putting on growth before their cousins still lying dormant outside. In the former category we have newly-trimmed fuchsias, scented pelargoniums, rooted penstemon cuttings and baby French lavenders. The edibles include strawberry plants, which will hopefully fruit before the ones growing outside, and a tarragon that I potted up in autumn and now has new shoots emerging from beneath last year’s top growth that has died back. There are already signs of growth and I want to keep all these plants healthy until they are ready to move back outside for summer. My two main enemies now are pests and disease, and luckily, with a little forethought and some quick action where needed, both are easily countered…

Got a story? email ruth.hayes@futurenet.com LOST business and an atmosphere of uncertainty are just two of the early effects of Brexit on horticultural brands, according to two industry insiders. Rising prices hitting consumer pockets are another danger, as is the potential loss of certain seed varieties due to added costs and admin brought about by new regulations imposed since the UK left the European Union. An added burden are the phytosanitary certificates and Animal and Plant Health Agency inspections that now have to be carried out on every single order travelling from the UK to another country, even Northern Ireland. These costs are the reason why AG free seeds are no longer attached to copies heading over the Irish Sea. Peter McDermott, managing director of YouGarden described the effects of Brexit as ‘awful’. He said: “If we…

AS the winter progressed it became increasingly apparent that our back lawn contains more moss than sward. Although this isn’t a massive issue as we leave it to turn into a wildflower meadow in summer, we don’t want what’s left of the lawn to become an entire moss bed to the exclusion of everything else. So this week we were out, taking it in turns to rake out as much moss as possible. Although this process leaves unsightly patches of soil, these will be perfect when we sow more wildflower lawn seeds and plant the variety of wildflower plug plants, both suited to chalky soils, already ordered online. We are still in that strange in-between period of the year when we want to get on with plans for the lawn, but are…

We are entering the peak season of mole activity, when they build their subterranean dens (or ‘fortresses’) for breeding. Moles are a nuisance – two springs ago our lawn looked like the Andes – but they are easy to send packing with deterrent powders and ultrasound devices. Children’s beach windmills stuck into the molehills are also said to work, as the revolving sails resonate underground, making a sound the moles hate. We successfully used Mole Repellent Scatter Granules by Defenders, who also make ultrasound devices. Both are available from garden centres and the internet. Once Mr Mole has gone, use the excavated soil on your flower beds or mix with compost for potting up seedlings and cuttings. Then reseed with grass where the molehills stood.…