Archive | November, 2008

Purple Cabbage

By on November 3, 2008 in Fruit, Vegetables & Herbs

This ornamental cabbage is grown for winter colour. For a Red Cabbage with heart try Kalibos, Red Drumhead or Red Jewel varieties grown from seed. Cabbage Tips Red cabbage usually stands well in the ground from summer to early winter. Solid hearts with fewer wasted leaves are also normal with Red cabbage. Pickled or ‘shredded [...]

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Pumpkin for President

By on November 2, 2008 in Fruit, Vegetables & Herbs, Garden Design, Gardening, Tips Hints and Ideas

Was it just Halloween or April first but Iowa is to tax pumpkins. Gardenerstips answer is to grow your own from seed. You can roast the flesh, eat the seeds or make soup from most varieties. Related to Marrows and Squash, Pumpkins are part of the Cucurbit family. A recent trial of several varieties for [...]

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Grow Chestnuts

By on November 2, 2008 in Fruit, Vegetables & Herbs, Shrubs and Trees

Two Chess fanatics were showing off in the front of a posh hotel – they were ‘Chess nuts boasting in an open foyer’. Chestnut Tips You can grow your own chestnuts on a Castanea sativa or Sweet Chestnut tree. It is a large, fast growing tree and will do better in a hot summer. Marron [...]

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Hibiscus senensis

By on November 1, 2008 in Books, Flowers and Plants, House & Greenhouse plants

The flamboyant Hibiscus senensis is now readily available as a housplant from garden centres. This yellow flower was growing on an Italian road side. In a conservatory this evergreen is a neat rounded shrub. Good drainage and light are required for good flowering but plants can have a very long life. If you want to [...]

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Pomegranate for Climate Change

By on November 1, 2008 in Fruit, Vegetables & Herbs, Shrubs and Trees

More exotics can be grown in the UK as we get hotter summers and temperate winters. Why not try a Pomegranate or Punica granatum a large shrub or small tree. Pomegranate tips Good drainage and a warm sunny wall position will help. The leaves are green coppery when young changing to yellow as they age [...]

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Nearly Free Seeds

By on November 1, 2008 in Gardening

RHS Seed Distribution 2009 One of the joys of RHS membership is the annual free seed distribution. A 24 page listing of available seeds, collected from the RHS gardens, provides a wide and unusual selection. The descriptions are short and the official Latin names send me off to look up the species in books or [...]

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Conservatory Plants

By on November 1, 2008 in Flowers and Plants, Garden Design, House & Greenhouse plants

November is a great time to plan next years plants for your conservatory. I would go for ‘shock and awe’ with some bold colours. Lantana camara is worth the space in your cool conservatory where it will bloom from spring to late summer. It is evergreen and flowers best with good light. You will often [...]

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