Gardening Book of the Month July 2011

Fearless Colour Gardens: The Creative Gardener’s Guide to Jumping Off the Colour Wheel is a work of art in 180 pages. Written by Keeyla Meadows the book uses more coloured ink than I have ever seen before in it’s illustrations.

Sections and Quotes in the Book

• Colour Journey ‘Colour is fun and colour is everywhere’. Do not be afraid of colour.
• Putting together colour palettes – flowers do it why shouldn’t you – mix your colours.
• Building colour gardens – frame your garden in sections like a series of photographs
• Tour of colour gardens – If you want to be happy for the rest of your life, plant a garden

Making Gardens Works of Art: Creating Your Personal Paradise also by Keeyla Meadows gives me opportunity to show another splash of colour in this post.

From Amazon

Clay or Plastic Plant Pots

Some plants thrive best in plant pots. Others need pots to help them through their juvenile life until they can be planted out into a permanent position in the garden.

Uses of Plant Pots

• Pots are a good medium for containing, selling and transporting plants. Garden centers couldn’t function without them and nurseries nowadays only sell a small number of bare rooted plants.
• Pots protect and enable plants to develop good root system.
• Pots can be the final home for some plants and be used in a decorative manner.
• Houseplants are invariably housed in a pot of some description.

Clay Pots

• Terracotta pots made from fired clay are the pots old gardeners had to use.
• Clay pots are porous and allow water and air to move within the compost.
• Water evaporation from the sides is slow but helps keep the pot and soil cool.
• Clay pots can be heavy and well balanced so shouldn’t be blown over.
• Clay pots tend to dry out quicker than other pots and watering needs must be considered.
• Some plants such as Auriculas, love the conditions of clay pots.
• Glazed pots are usually earthen ware or some form of clay pot.

Plastic Pots

• These are cheap to manufacture, available in many sizes and light to carry.
• Black flexible plastic is used for larger pots. Brittle plastic seems to be used for small 3″ and similar pots.
• Plastic pots are easy to clean with a disinfectant. Pots can be reused many time and last several seasons.
• Plastic pots tend to breed and if you end up with a surplus they are not  recyclable.
• Plastic pots rely on the compost to control the watering and moisture level.
• Roots do not adhere to the sides of the pot as they may do with clay pots.

Related article Tips for Planting Summer Pots

Rain Brings Slugs

After a dry winter and even dryer spring gardeners are keen to see more rain. Unfortunately more rain equals more slugs and snails.

One benefit of the dry weather has been a reduction in the amount of plant damage done by Slugs and Snails. So much so that I have been able to leave these critters unmolested by my sundry treatment methods.

Seeing these various chemical treatments on the shelf at our garden centre I was able to restrain myself and not make a purchase. The slugs can munch on a bit longer. The only concern I have is for a new collection of young miniature Hostas that I hope will expand and not become an early lunch for molluscs.

Amazon selection of Slug and snail products.

Related
Biological Controls
Slug Pellet Poison

Read the rest of this entry »

Lawn Spikers and Aerators

Like all plants, lawn grass needs air, water and nutrient from the soil. Too often these resources are lost to the grass as a lawn gets compacted by walking and playing on the lawn.
Water runs off compacted ground and doesn’t soak in. Air is crushed out and worms that would help aerate the soil are not tolerated. Soil can become sour and lacking in nutrient despite seasonal fertilizers.

Treatment with Spikers

• One solution is to spike the grass as you walk on it wearing the shoes as shown in this picture.
• Hollow tyned forks are good for removing a core of soil to leave a short tunnel for water and air to penetrate the soil.
• Professionals have special aerators for large areas like sports fields and bowling greens.
• Amazon have a range of Aerators from the shoes to the wheeled roll up and down types.

Comment and Warnings

• It is hard work to penetrate compacted soil
• Select a time when the ground is as soft as possible then the comment above is still valid
• Remove excess ‘thatch’ and any soil that is pushed to the surface by the spiking
• A wide spike is better than a narrow spike. Narrow holes fill up quickly.

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My Fat Tomatoes are Well Fed

Well the tomatoes are not yet as fat as I hope they will be. I have now started feeding with ‘Tomorite’ a high potash feed made up in a watering can from a concentrated liquid.

I also use other liquid feeds from cheaper sources in between Tomoriting the Toms. I am not sure this does them any good but variety is the spice of life as a good tomato will tell you. As you may see from the label Tomirite now contains Seaweed extracts and that saves me adding the seaweed concentrate that I have been using for several season (the bottle seems bottomless).

Consistency is the key to Tomato growing and I water daily in hot weather feeding alternate days. I also damp down the greenhouse in the morning if we are in for a hot day.

Tomato feed is fine for giving flowers a boost. You probably don’t want any more leafy growth on your annuals so deadheading and a booster feed will increase the flowering capacity of your plants.

Drip feed seems to be a new fad that I find a bit cumbersome. It may work well for a small number of plants. A variety of Tomato feeds are available from Amazon including some of these new fangled drip feeders.

Tomorite is supplied by Levingtons and is widely available. They claim it is a ‘Liquid plant food for tomatoes, also ideal for flowering pot plants that appreciate a high potash feed. Contains seaweed extract that supplies many micro-nutrients essential for maximum growth and better crops. Ideal for feeding growing bags, giant planters and tomatoes growing in open soil’.
‘When to use: April to August’ according to Levingtons but I find that too early to start and feed June to September in my greenhouse and stop in August outdoors.

For more on seaweed

Praise Nets for Cabbages and Soft Fruit

Nets or horticultural fleece are great for crop protection. I can’t praise them high enough for looking after this years soft fruit.

After a week in the Alps I returned home expecting the birds to have decimated my Raspberry crop. Fortunately the family jam maker had the presence of mind to peg white horticultural fleece over the ripening berries. We returned home to a good crop of red raspberries and empty bird feeders.

The picture shows how pigeons are kept off the brassica crops at Ripley Castle gardens in Yorkshire.

Nets and horticultural fleece allow water through but keep most pests out. The can be good for deterring carrot root fly for another example.
Fleece seems to bring on plants a bit quicker and you will see more and more farmers using the fleece early in the season.

The heavy weight fleece is available with other products from Amazon

Netting is used for supporting climbers. Peas and beans like some support and many flowers will clamber up netting strategically placed. I didn’t take enough care with this years sweet pea nets and am suffering as a consequence.

Bees and Bee Keeping Books

Bee keeping books

A second selection on Bee Keeping Equipment

More Bee photographs and a range from Google

Bee World and other specialist Apiarist book publishers International; Bee Research Association

Gardening Book of the Month June 2011

Late Summer Flowers will soon be upon us. This book by Marina Christopher will be in paperback at a lower price by August but if you can’t wait buy from Amazon.

Reviews in Other Publications

• A timely book where the author’s practical experience and knowledge really shines. (Garden Answers )

• It is a must for any one who wishes that their garden had a more vibrant colour from August throughout to the edge of winter, needs inspiration for plant combinations, or simply wishes to indulge themselves. (Organic Gardening )

• This book is packed with gorgeous pictures. (Independent on Sunday )

• Useful reference…descriptions of her choice of plants…gives practical advice…comprehensive plant dictionary…accurate information…excellent photography.(Gardens Illustrated)

• Seed heads, late perennials and also foliage, are revealed as valuable components. (John Fredericks)

• Great source of ideas and lots of practical tips not only on plant selection but also cultivation and propagation based on strong science and obvious real nurseryman experience. (Alistair Campbell)

Garden Chairs

Garden Chairs

• Solid wooden furniture can be both functional and decorative.
• I particularly like the ‘companion seat’ where two wooden chairs are linked together with a place for a cup of tea.
• Single seats can be moved around to take advantage of the sun.
• Patio chair sets are designed to be used with a table for alfresco dinning.
• Aim for good quality seasoned wood and look after it with regular applications of an appropriate oil.
• Solid metal chairs may need painting to avoid rust unless they are made of light weight aluminium.
• Tubular metal may be plastic coated to reduce maintenance.

Folding and Stacking Chairs

• Lightweight steel tube chairs with canvas seats and a back rest and cup holder are supplied in storage bag with integral carrying handle and drawstring closure. You often see them pulled from the back of cars at picnic spots. They can be functional in your garden and put away when not in use.
• Chairs built on the old deck chair line collapse into a thin, stackable rectangle. There is now a rocking chair version of the old deck chair (see below).
• Plastic preformed chairs are often designed so that one can be piled on top of the other to save storage space.
• Recliners look the most comfy when accompanied by plush cushion covers.

Garden Chairs from Amazon
Wooden Garden chairs from Amazon

Source David 365 flickr CC Attribution 2.0 Generic

Log Roll Edging

I have had problems with my terracotta edging alongside a path. It looked very tidy and the sculpted effect was very pleasing. There is negligible soil to hold back and a straight concrete path edge to butt up against. However after 3 winters 25% of the sections have broken or crumbled. This is annoying as they are not cheap and it takes time and effort to replace the damaged ones.

An alternative may be the log roll type edging shown above. It is more robust and less aesthetically pleasing but needs must. Made from tanalised wood it will probably last up to 10 years. The links are made from robust galvanised wire.

Log Roll Edging Tips

• Log rolls are available in various heights. 6″ is a bit small for some jobs if you need to bury part of the edging 9″  and 12″ seem my preferred sizes.
• Roll lengths also vary but more than 6′ in length and the roll becomes harder to handle.
• You can get untreated wood rolls but they will rot quicker.
• You could treat the wood with a paint or dye similar to that used for fences or decking.

Other Options For Edging

• Metal edging strip is popular on lawn edges. Green and black versions are available.
• I use some concrete paving on its side and kerb stone sections.
• There is a Bamboo fence sold as edging that looks attractive in the right setting.
• Willow hurdles or woven willow can act as edging.
• Gard Edge is made from polypropylene and is guaranteed for 10 years.
• For a neat lawn edge there is nothing to beat a well tended gully and the soil cut back regularly with a lawn edging tool.

Amazon supplies a variety of Log Rolls similar to the photograph above.

Read more about Lawn Edges