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Edition eight - November 2006
I have been asked if there are any benefits to waiting until the Spring before pruning and tidying the flower borders, as advocated by some gardening experts. Well there are benefits, for even though the vegetation has died back and has blackened foliage, it will create a micro-climate and stop the worst of the frosts from penetrating the plants. Wild life too will be afforded a little protection from the cold. I suppose it is the natural way of doing things but personally I don’t like to see lots of dead vegetation overwintering in my garden, even if it does look nice with a sprinkling of frost. It makes the garden look neglected and I prefer to see neat borders.
That doesn`t mean to say I chop everything that needs pruning to the ground in the Autumn. I am selective, leaving dogwoods and hardy fuschias in particular until the Spring to be pruned. Frost tender plants such as the giant Gunnera can be covered with it`s own dead leaves for protection. Tender perennials can have cuttings taken from them in case the frost destroys them…
So, Autumn or Spring, it`s really just a personal choice...
It is a good "maintenance" time of year and there are still many jobs that need to be done before beginning a spell of "armchair gardening."
Fallen leaves
Sweep the leaves up or use a garden vac for the job, then put them in black bin liners tucked away in a utility corner of your garden.. You'll find after a year or so they will have rotted down to make wonderful leafmould for the garden.
Paths and drives
Keep paths and drives free of piles of wet soggy leaves and slippery moss, not just for your own sake, visitors will appreciate you being considerate of their safety too..
Trees
Have a look at the trees on your property... Are they safe? Is strong wind or heavy snow likely to topple any of them over or break a branch off.. If in any doubt get a professional in to check them out or make a repair... Have you checked the stakes and ties of newly planted trees lately? Trees put on girth so rapidly that they can soon become strangled by tight ties that dig into their bark.
Borders
This is
a great time of year for moving plants and shrubs.. Make a list
of what you want to move and work your way through it... First, dig up
and discard plants you no longer want, then move the ones that have become
cramped into the cleared spaces... Try to include the complete root system
when you dig them up and don't forget to water them in if there is a dry
spell.. If they are fairly large shrubs, stake them for one season to
prevent strong winds blowing them over...
Other borders should be tidied up by pruning the dead wood off shrubs, cutting down perennials and throwing away remaining summer bedding, which seems to be flowering forever this year.. It's a matter of choice whether you cut down plants in the autumn or leave them until the spring.. As a general rule, I cut down hardy plants and leave the tender perennials until the spring because they will form a micro-climate which will protect them from the worst of the frosts..
Give the borders a hoe to freshen them up and get rid of any lingering weeds.
Ponds
Don't feed your fish any more this season and ensure that any ice is cleared to allow your fish to get the oxygen they require.. Want your pond professionally cleaned? Or made safe for young visiting children?
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Some ideas for useful Christmas presents for your garden-loving relatives or friends:
A
years subscription to a gardening
magazine- A gardening book from www.amazon.co.uk
- Secateurs or other garden hand tools
- Gardening gloves
- Gift voucher for a garden centre
- Terracotta pots
- Decorative house name or number: www.englandsigns.co.uk
- Japanese wind chimes
- Garden ornaments
- A beautiful Amarylis is always welcome
- Orchids, which flower for months on end are very popular just now..
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Some web sites of interest to gardeners:
The living theatre of plants
and people
The Eden Project is a gateway into the world of plants and people.
A meeting place for all to discover how we depend on plants and how we
can help to manage and conserve them for our mutual survival.
Gardening
is an important part of many people's lives. You don't have to give up
gardening because of accident or illness, the onset of disability or the
problems associated with growing older. The information on their website
is designed to provide you with the information to Carry on Gardening.
Carry on Gardening was initiated by the horticultural charity Thrive
and is funded by the National
Lottery Charities Board. It brings together information
on easy ways of gardening gathered over 23 years by Thrive and research
carried out since the early 1970s by Mary Marlborough Centre, Oxford,
on tools and equipment for disabled and older people.
www.alantitchmarsh.com Alan Titchmarsh MBE, TV gardener, writer, broadcaster and
thoroughly nice person. Just a few choice words to describe the peoples`
favourite TV gardener. See his website....
Thompson
and Morgan
A growing resource for gardeners worldwide. The site includes
the international online seed catalogues, the young plants catalogue (UK
only), the wholesale seeds catalogue, together with the award winning
Germination Times and a host of other useful information.
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And some reading material:-
"The Yellow Book 2006" contains information of all Gardens of England
and Wales open for charity, from National Gardens Scheme and is available
from all good bookstores throughout the UK priced £7.99. http://www.ngs.org.uk/yellow_book.htm
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