Gardeners Tips

The colour of green.

These hostas show how much colour you can have from different shades of green. They do a great job in brightening up this shady spot.

Hostas are an excellent low maintenance plant which are admired for their range of leaf colour. The fundamental problem of hostas is the old enemy the slug. The advantage of growing in pots is that it is much easier to protect them from slugs which for some reason take a particular liking to hostas.

A lovely gateway into Lady Margaret hall gardens, Oxford

Tips for Growing Hostas in Pots

Hostas do best in shady / woodland environment. In full sun, they may struggle. Though they do like a few hours of sun each day. They also like a moist soil. In pots, you will need to be careful they don’t dry out.
If they are in the shade, they are less likely to dry out, but, it may still be worth adding a few water retaining capsules.

Hostas in Full Sun

Hostas don’t thrive in full sun. You are better off choosing different plants for a hot sunny position. If you really want hostas, generally yellow / golden varieties will do better. Try varieties like ‘sun power’ August Moon, Gold Regal, Golden Sculpture Rising Sun, and Squash Casserole.

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1. Sunflowers. One of the most rewarding plants to grow from seed is the sunflower. You can sow seed in March – May. April is a great time. For best results. Try sowing seed in 3 inch pots. Protect from slugs and keep well watered. After a few weeks the seedlings can be planted out. Sunflowers will need staking. But part of the fun is seeing them grow so rapidly. – Growing Sunflowers

2. Daffodils. Bulbs tend to be very easy to grow. The main thing is to plant at the correct depth in the autumn. If the bulbs are in good condition and disease free they will flower for several years. They can be helped by a liquid feed and dividing when overcrowded. Growing from seed requires great patience and expertise. Growing Daffodils

3. Sweet Peas. Sweet Peas aren’t the easiest to grow, but they are wonderful. You can sow direct outdoors but you will have to watch out for slugs. Sowing in 3inch pots will give better results. They also need something to grow up. They will soon reach 6 feet. The other secret of sweet peas is to keep cutting the flowers – this will give you wonderful cut flowers for the house and extend the flowering season. Growing Sweet Peas

4. Nigella – Love in a Mist. If you want a really easier flower to grow try ‘Nigella’ common name ‘love in a mist. You can just scatter seed in the garden and it tends to look after itself. You can sow the seed in either autumn or spring. Once it gets going, it will set seed. It is resistant to many pests as well.

5. Iris.

See: Growing Spring Iris – Bearded Iris

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Delphiniums are stately border perennials which come in a wonderful variety of colours. Strong blues and clear whites are colours which are often hard to find in the garden. The delphinium is one of the few plants to give a true blue colour. The delphinium also adds greatly to the height of the garden. If well staked it can tower above the other foliage to give an eye catching display.

Growing Delphinium from Seed.

Delphinium seed is expensive. A packet may only have a few seeds in. But, they are good fun to grow from seed. Make sure you get a good variety from a reputable supplier.

• Sow seed in January / February under glass and gentle heat, and keep well protected from frost and cold.
• Sow in 3 inch pots and grow one plant per pot.
• In April / May start to move outside before planting out.
• Delphinium Seed
• You can acquire or just admire plants as part of a collection

Soil Preparation for Delphinium

Like many plants delphiniums like well drained fertile soil. If possible work in leaf mould / well rotted compost into the soil to improve the humus  / organic content. Top dresser with a general fertiliser. If the soil is clay based then drainage may be a problem, in this case work in sand or grit to the place where they will grow.

Staking Delphiniums. The flower stems of Delphiniums are so dominating they are unfortunately top heavy. Therefore, they need appropriate staking to prevent blowing over.

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Tulips protected by a windbreak.

If you live in an exposed environment with strong winds, you will have to be more selective about the plants you chose. Bear in mind also, windy gardens may soon dry out. You will have to avoid plants which can easily get ‘wind burn’ – acers for example spring to  mind.

Gardeners often see wind as an ‘enemy’ of the garden – blowing over their prize delphiniums e.t.c. But, wind can have beneficial effects. Some plants like bamboo and grasses, look enchanting blowing in the wind. With careful planning, the windy garden can still do well. One tip is simply to see what is thriving in similar environments. Good plants for windy gardens include

Best Plants for Windy Gardens

Bamboo. Chose a non-invasive variety or grow in pots. Bamboo makes a great sound swaying in the wind. It also helps to offer a flexible windbreak, to provide more shelter.

Hydrangea. A low growing shrub with attractive blue or pink flowers in summer. In particular thrives in coastal situation with both wind and salty air.

Scot Heather – grows in a variety of conditions from exposed moorland to the town garden. Only real requirement is an acidic compost.

Sedge – Carex. A grass that looks great blowing in the wind. Tough pliable bronze foliage looks great in the wind.

Sea Lavender – Limonium – A much undervalued annual with attractive flowers in the height of summer, will be fine in windy environments.

Chilean Potato Tree – Solanum Crispum. A fast evergreen climber which will soon cover fence and provide more shelter.

Geraniums and Pelargoniums. These low growing annuals will be fine in windy conditions. This applies to over low growing annuals such as buzy lizzies.

Related

• Windbreaks for the garden
• Windbreaks for the Garden at Amazon.co.uk
• Trees exposed to wind
• Coastal wind suggestions