Leeks and Pot Leeks

Leeks and Pot Leeks

Starter Tips

  • Grow culinary leeks in ground with well rotted compost that hasn’t cropped leeks for the past 3 years.
  • Sow autumn and winter varieties in deep pots during late March or April
  • Transplant in June-July so about two thirds of the plant is buried increasing the length of blanching.
  • For average sized leeks plant  6 inches apart in rows a foot apart.
  • Nitrogen fertiliser in autumn helps winter growth
  • Grow Pot Leeks for competitions prevalent in the North East of England.

Leekology

I first went to a Leek show in the North East one September about 40 years ago and the Pot Leeks on show were really something to behold.
It is an art, a science and a bit of black magic that helps create a show stopper in this region renown for its prize leeks.
Pot leek exhibition standards require a blanch of up to 6inch which can give a circumference of 28″. Intermediates are up to 14″ blanched length and Long leeks are anything in excess of this.                                                                                                           For eating purposes, size is much less important than flavour. We will  concentrate on normal garden culture for flavour.

Leek flags

Tips on starting to grow Leeks

  • Seeds can be sown in Mid march until June as the plants like a long growing season.
  • Set out the plants at the end of May.
  • A quick and easy start can be made by buying seedlings from a nursery or market stall.
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Sunflowers for Display and Cutting

Sunflowers for Display and Cutting

Sunflowers look great in a vase but are heavy drinkers and need conditioning in a dark place overnight after cutting.

Valentine Sunflower

I have tended to drift away from growing Sunflowers but now I think my reasons may not be correct.
I tended to grow tall varieties which produce one or few flowers. They were showy but needed support from the wind in our northern hills.
The knew the space was better dedicated to other plants and the only sunflowers that grew this year were self sown from our bird feeders (and the flowers were small weedy efforts that I should have pulled up).

North Carolina University Sunflower trials
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Gentians I Have Known

Gentians I Have Known

Gentian

I have a phobia or total lack of ability when it comes to growing Gentians. Because I expect to fail I have done so many many times and now I avoid Gentians like I wanted to avoid Gentain Violet bactericide as a child. (The purple dye you mum stained on cuts)

Gentian Facts

  • The Gentians are evocative of the mountains (and that should tell me something about there cultivation).
  • The majority of species flower in the deep, intense shade of blue for which Gentains are renown. ( New Zealand Gentians are white and there is a yellow Peruvian variety).
  • Larger Gentians have 5 petals in a trumpet shape whilst smaller varieties have 5 petals that open like a star.
  • In general European varieties flower in spring whilst the ‘easier’ Asian varieties flower in Autumn.
  • This is a large genus with over 400 species and varieties.

Growing Tips

    • Gentians are fiercely lime hating and require moist but fast draining soil.
    • Gentians are thought to be difficult to grow outside their wild habitat.
    • Good clumps of root should be planted out between October and February.
    • Once established the less the plants are meddled with the better
    • Top species to grow in England include Gentain Acaulis, Gentian verna, the spring Gentian and Gentian septemfida the  Crested Gentian.
    • Gentiana sino-ornata is not only one of the easiest and most reliable, but also one of the loveliest with spectacular colour

The flower that is most evocative of mountain scenery must be the the Gentian with its alpine associations. Gentians make me blue in the face because I fail every time I try to grow these sumptuous blue flowers.

Here are some of the reasons I have failed: –

      • Gentians are known to be difficult to transplant .
      • When seed is sown, it should be fresh or it will not germinate & grow.
      • All Gentians prefer partial shade for at least some of the day.
      • The Fringed Gentiana is a biennial variety which is extremely difficult to grow. I have been guilty of lumping all Gentians under one species as though it was a perennial, acid hating alpine. How wrong I was each variety needs to be understood in its own right.gentian
      • I have failed to provide adequate drainage, most Gentians need gritty alpine conditions
      • The Closed Gentiana may be grown in moist meadows but have no lime in the soil.
      • Winter sow in coldframe or unheated greenhouse with ventilation
      • The Gentianella is an easy sort to grow requiring limestone added to the soil.

I resolve to try again in my Rockery. Perhaps with American, Australian and Japanese hybrids.

 

 

 

Earwig Oh!

Earwig Oh!

There are a lot of earwigs around this year or so it seems. Typical in a year when I had decided to grow more dahlias than usual but I guess the earwigs must have known that and got on with early breeding.

Facts about Earwigs

  • Earwigs chew on live shoots, flowers or decaying vegetation and like damp secluded conditions.
  • In my garden they do most noticeable damage on Chrysanthemums and Dahlias.
  • Earwigs are attracted to lights when they move around at dusk and nighttime.
  • Females lay between 30 and 50 small, round, translucent eggs.

Some Control Tips

    • Good housekeeping, dry areas and removing leaf litter restricts an earwigs desired living conditions
    • Soapy water sprays or chemical formulas can reduce infestations
    • To catch these night feeders use a torch.
    • The inverted plant pot on a cane method with the pot filled with straw or well crumpled newspaper will act as a trap. You can then collect the earwigs for destruction.
    • Birds, frogs and toads that prey on earwigs will help reduce the population of earwigs and keep it under control.
    • Chemical controls such as permethrin should be applied at dusk on warm evenings. Treat the leaves blooms and the soil below the plants.
    • Prevention by removing moisture and decaying vegetation will make conditions less hospitable for earwigs.

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Fungi Out Walking

Fungi Out Walking

All mushrooms are edible but some only once!

2023 has been a good year for walking and observing nature in the raw. As autumn approached the mushrooms and toadstools or fungi were out in force. This  provides you with new observation opportunities on your nature walks. This week I spotted this gigantic fungi over 2 feet in diameter growing in a local graveyard.

fungus

These photographs are from previous autumn walks. Even if I had found them in the garden it would not be a cause for concern as they are part of natures support for the environment and a wide range of other species.

Fungus comes in all colours, shapes and sizes with most under the soil. The largest living organism in the world is arguably a honey fungus growing   2.4 miles lomg and wide in the USA.

fungus

 

Daily Dahlias

Daily Dahlias

2023 has been a top year for Dahlias The garden was disrupted by an impending downsizing house move but the quantity of flowers was excellent even after some neglect.
A second plus was the plants I gave away to friends who seemed to appreciate the performance in pots or direct in the ground.

For Christmas I want a garden suitable for for Dahlias and perhaps some new tubers.

Colour me Garden

Colour me Garden

One of the most interesting aspects of gardening is the combination of colours that can be achieved by accident or design.
Leaves and bark can play their part but it is the bold colours of some of our favourite flowers that take centre stage.

 

Sometimes, we like the delicate, soothing pastel shades or the zen of a ‘White Garden‘ but, this doesn’t mean we always have to follow decorum and good taste. Sometimes its nice to just choose great impact colours which add life, zest and sparkle to the garden. The kind of colour combination that makes a passerby think – ‘hmm that’s interesting’

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Uses for Ivy

Uses for Ivy

Ivy is a versatile green or variegated plant that climbs, trails or acts as ground cover. As an evergreen plant grown for its leaves the plants would need nitrogen based fertiliser but I have found Ivies grow well even in poor soil.

Purposes and Uses of Ivy

It makes sense to decide the purpose of your Ivy plant before selecting a variety.

  • Ivy uses it’s aerial roots to cling rather than for sustenance and they can be used to climb tree stumps or cover unsightly sheds or walls.
  • Ivy can grow even in shady areas so is useful for the awkward dark corners. The variegation will be better with good light.
  • H colchica Persian Ivy is less hardy but have large leaves and a pleasant sprawling habit. Hedera hibernica also known as Irish ivy is one of the fastest growing varieties if you want quick results. Both can be used for ground cover.
  • In containers and baskets they offer year round colour and a trailing habit
  • Types of Ivy include Hedera helix English Ivy or Heart leaved, large leaved Algerian Ivy Hedera canariensis. There are numerous varieties with different features including white, yellow or cream variegation or crinkled leaves.
  • I prefer smaller leaved species which can form an impressive feature
  • I have found most varieties to be hardy, strong growers so keep them in control with hard trimming and pruning.

House Plant Indoor Ivy

  • We grow several pots of Ivy in the house. The smaller leaved types look best and can trail out of various pots and survive in lower light conditions than other houseplants.
  • Beware of too much water and too little light. Repot shop bought Ivies into a larger pot with compost that will hold moisture
  • Traditionally Ivy is used at Christmas for decoration and festive wreaths. Gold or silver-leaved ivy can be draped over Christmas trees to make attractive and natural alternatives to tinsel.
  • The National Trust maintains a National Collection of Ivy at Erddig Hall Wrexham

My Choice Varieties

  • Hedera Helix ‘Buttercup’ a climbing yellow leaved variety.
  • H.h. ‘Chester’ good self-branching with cream variegation.
  • H.h. Green Ripple hardy with lush green leaves with 5 lobes.

 

Grewelthorpe Himalayan Garden Images

Grewelthorpe Himalayan Garden Images

The Himalayan Garden at Grewlthorpe continues to mature and develop. It is great to see a wide range of trees allowed to grow their natural size without undue lopping or arbocultural work.
A new arboretum will opened at the end of May 2017 and the  autumn season is well  worth a special visit. The hydrangea and sculptures are also looking great.

As ever the sculptures are excellently located and seem to breed in number every time I visit.

Rhododendrons are the key feature for me that makes return spring visits a must.

Landscape views from the many well located paths are set to delight.


The artist Subodh Kerkar has several new installations at the Himalayan garden in North Yorkshire, many miles from his home in Goa.  I couldn’t say what type of tree trunks these 18 carefully and vertically  place ‘logs’ were!

Even walking through the gap I was still stumped. The message on these ‘Logs of Dialogue’ is that ‘terrorism is a product of non-communication between  nations, groups, regions religions and ideologies’.

Take a leaf out of another sculptural installation. Or take another leaf from my inspiration and visit these Grewelthorpe gardens, infant arboretum and sculpture trail during April or May or October for autumn colour.