Amateur Gardening - 30 July 2022

60 Pages·2022·78.7 MB·English

138 years of practical advice
1884 2022
The World’s Oldest Gardening Magazine
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‘Goblin’/What’s On event listings
Great garden ideas
24 Butterfly magnets: here are 16 plants
that will feed these winged beauties
28 Walk on the wild side: these are the
best varieties for naturalistic planting
33 How to grow anemones: all you need
to know about these diverse plants
Gardening wisdom
28
“Prairie planting is a more naturalistic style
using herbaceous perennials,” says Anne 14 B ob Flowerdew
16 V al Bourne Wildlife
19 L ucy Chamberlain’s Fruit and Veg
37 A sk John Negus
42 W ords of Wisdom
45 A Gardener’s Miscellany
50 Advanced Skills
52 A nne Swithinbank’s Masterclass
55 L etters to Wendy: from AG readers
59 T oby Buckland
Garden news
7 T op cities in Britain for wildlife
Reader offers
22 See the latest great deals!
“We often talk about planting for wildlife
4 33
“Here’s how to keep “Anemones are good and how important that is, yet whilst this
the garden blooming in for borders, trees is true I also think that we should plant
the weeks ahead,” says Ruth and shrubs,” says Graham for ourselves. I refer to AG reader Geoff
e
ur Barry’s letter on page 55, in which he
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F
says: “At times, it feels as though we have
to apologise for growing plants just for
the sake of growing plants (their beauty,
their ability to delight, and the satisfaction
it gives to nurture a living thing). Rather,
we are expected to grow plants only
based on their utility to other species (for
example, as food plants for
insects)”. Of course there is no
reason why we can’t do both.
Everything, as my mother
would say, in moderation.”
Garry Coward-Williams,
Editor
Contact us:
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Editorial: 0330 3903732
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dite Email: [email protected]
cre 24“If you want to help butterflies, here are 16 Advertising: 0330 3906566
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nle plants that are magnets for them,” says Hazel
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Cover: Echinacea purpurea ‘Green Twister’ (pic: Alamy)
30 JULY 2022 AMATEUR GARDENING 3
Your
GARDENING WEEK
with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes
Quick colour
I’m supporting this tall Eryngium so the
weight of the flowerheads doesn’t
break the slim stems
Sow annuals now for late blooms
1
Clear stones and weeds from a
sunny patch of soil and break up
the soil to fine grains.
10 jobs for the coming weeks
Ruth tackles the tasks that will keep the garden healthy
B
Y this point in the summer, our
gardens should be growing
2
well and many plants can Dampen the soil and give the
pretty much be left to get on water time to sink in.
with growing and flowering.
The early summer bloomers have
passed the baton to varieties that flower
in the later weeks and through the
autumn, while last year’s sown biennials
and the hardy annuals started earlier this Make sure tall plants are secure
year will be shining through.
For the next few weeks your chief
concerns should be maintaining the
garden’s health and appearance by
keeping up with the deadheading,
3
weeding, watering and feeding. Scatter the seeds thinly. Don’t
Other jobs include supporting tall worry if they fall too closely
plants as they grow and cutting back and together, you can thin the seedlings
feeding perennials that have already when they appear.
flowered – if the conditions are right they
might give you another burst of colour.
Look after your lawn too, because Cut back stems after flowering
grass will grow even during the driest
periods. Mow with the blade on the
highest setting to avoid scuffing the soil blooming when the rest of the garden is
beneath, and if you choose to feed the starting to quieten down for winter.
lawn, do so after rain as fertiliser applied Try California poppies, corn flowers,
to dry grass on a sunny day can burn it. Salvia viridis or blue clary, poached egg
Another lovely thing to do now is sow plant and calendula. Last year I sowed
late colour to see your garden through some late calendula and blue clary and it
4
into the autumn. Hardy annuals are flowered right through the winter – and Cover the seeds with a little
designed to grow, flower and set seed amazingly is still going! soil then gently firm it down.
all in the same season and some So sow some seeds in a sunny spot, Label the seedbed and scatter
ure varieties are extremely fast-growing and keep the soil damp and look forward to pepper dust to deter cats and birds.
ut
All F long lasting, meaning they can still be extended colour.
4 AMATEUR GARDENING 30 JULY 2022
Pruning recap: Next week I talk you through
the final items of summer pruning, and also
take cuttings of shrubs
Keeping the garden bountiful and colourful
The top jobs that will help keep your patch flourishing and healthy all summer long
1 2 3
Prioritise watering, concentrating It’s prime time for pests, and if you Deadhead early perennials such
on crops, new additions and can use organic or natural methods as delphiniums and compost
container plants. A plastic bottle filled to control them, your garden will benefit. them before feeding and watering the
with water and liquid fertiliser, attached Beer traps and barrier pellets keep off remaining stems to encourage a second
to a nozzle inserted in compost keeps the slugs, and organic sprays work well flowering. Feeding flowering perennials
potted plants hydrated. on aphids and other sap-suckers. keeps them productive for longer.
4 5 6
Deadheading annuals and The major diseases now will be Manage the temperature in your
harvesting cut-and-come-again rose black spot, rusts and powdery greenhouse to avoid scorching
crops have the same effect: they mildew. Black spot and rusts can be plants. Damp the floor with water
encourage prolonged flowering, countered by removing and binning every morning and open doors and
because the plant ‘panics’ and makes affect material and using a fungicide. windows to improve airflow, which
more buds, and crops make more tasty Mildews can be diminished by improving will also reduce the risk of rots and
leaves for later on in summer! plant ventilation and watering well. moulds developing.
7 8 9
Some houseplants can be moved Mow your lawn to keep it neat, but Make sure garden birds have plenty
outside, others such as African leave quiet areas to grow untidy, as of fresh food and water, and clean
violets and orchids, should stay indoors this will help pollinators and give wildlife their bird baths and feeders regularly.
somewhere well-lit but out of direct a refuge. Edge borders, deal with weeds Give hedgehogs meaty cat food or
sunlight. Feed, water and stand them on and oversow bare patches, keeping new proprietary hog food and make sure
damp gravel so they don’t dry out. seeds damp and safe from birds. they have accessible fresh water too.
30 JULY 2022 AMATEUR GARDENING 5

Your
GARDENING WEEK
with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes
Five cities for garden wildlife
Garden Organic’s ‘Small Spaces, Big
Nature finds a way to thrive around urban gardeners Ideas Garden’ at Gardeners’ World
BRISTOL, Leicester, Reading, Edinburgh
and Stoke on Trent have all been named
the UK’s top five ‘wildlife-rich’ cities.
Bristol took the number one spot with
7,940 species recorded, and is home to
the speckled wood butterfly, followed by
Leicester, which has 5,840 species and
Edinburgh, with 5,285 species.
Going for gold
The data came to light in a survey
carried out by online marketplace
Small really is beautiful for charity
Onbuy, using figures from the National
Biodiversity Network (NBN) Atlas. SMALL was definitely beautiful for
Leicester has become known for its horticultural charity Garden Organic,
The common carder bee and, inset, ringlet
colonies of common carder bee at a time which won a gold medal for its ‘Small
my butterfly, are both doing well in urban
when the species is at risk, and the small a Spaces, Big Ideas Garden’
Al enclaves across the UK
h
brown bat is doing well in Edinburgh, ot at the 2022
B
which is great news as bat numbers are Gardener’s World
falling due to a loss of roosting sites and helped organise the survey, said: “We Live show.
climate change. were surprised by the range of species The petite plot
that can be found around the UK, and demonstrates how
Surprised by the range of species how easy it can be to make minor a productive and
Gardeners can help them thrive by adjustments to your garden, that have beautiful organic Chris Collins and
Emma O’Neill Head
encouraging insects into their plots and the potential to make a great difference and biodiverse
of Garden Organic
putting up bat nesting boxes. to the ecosystem.” garden can be
Hurrah for hedgehogs, which are (cid:81) You still have a week to take part in created by all gardeners, no matter
doing well in Stoke on Trent where Big Butterfly Count ‘22. Simply sit in how small their space.
residents are helping them by leaving your garden or go for a walk for 15 The garden used vertical planting,
wild areas in their gardens and creating minutes on a sunny day and make a raised beds and shelving and even
‘hog highways’, while in Reading, rare note of the butterflies you see. For included a small pond, compost bins,
stag beetle numbers are on the rise. details visit (cid:27) bigbutterflycount. mini greenhouse, hedgehog home
Onbuy manager Liam Tickner, who butterfly-conservation.org and water saving ideas.
The garden was designed and
built by Garden Organic’s head
Future gardeners win apprenticeships
gardener Emma O’Neill, alongside
the charity’s head of organic
FUTURE Gardeners, the apprenticeship horticulture and former Blue Peter
scheme launched by the Worshipful Future Gardeners students James gardener, Chris Collins.
Newman, Jake Wood and Jennifer
Company of Gardeners, has teamed up
Edwards with Louisa Mansfield
with Greenwich Park in London to offer Anyone can have a small garden
work experience and apprenticeships to Emma said: “Chris and I are thrilled
up-and-coming horticulturists. to receive this accolade, it’s a great
The scheme, which helps endorsement of the whole team’s
underprivileged people gain hard work and commitment to
qualifications and a career in horticulture, creating a garden that anyone can
has so far placed three future gardeners replicate in their own space, be it a
in the park. small garden, backyard or balcony.”
Jake Wood is now an apprentice at around. We have employed one young Chris added: “This garden shows
Royal Parks Greenwich, Jennifer woman as a seasonal gardener for two you don’t need to neglect the quality
Edwards is working at Greenwich as a years running and three others as our of your soil or health of your plants in
seasonal worker and Joseph Coffey apprentices, with one now working with a small plot. Our garden contains a
starts his apprenticeship in September. us full time on a permanent contract.”’ compost bin made of recycled
Louisa Mansfield, project manager pallets, a built-in comfrey feed drain
d
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ditVery supportive of the students with Future Gardeners, added: “The to make your own organic fertiliser
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s Contracts manager Beverley Meekins team at Greenwich have always been and a pipe to collect rainwater.”
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unlsaid: “Each individual has brought very supportive of the students and the For further details of how to
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ctsomething different, whether it be fact that three have gone on to become garden organically, visit
stri
Rehorticultural knowledge, gardening skills Royal Parks apprentices has been (cid:27) gardenorganic.org.uk
s
esor simply being great people to be testament to that.”
Pr
30 JULY 2022 AMATEUR GARDENING 7

Your
GARDENING WEEK
with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes
Water wise
Potting up Echinacea seedlings to
add to the garden next spring
Save water and lower your bills
1
Install as many water butts as
you can to collect rainwater
from gutters attached to the house,
garage, shed and greenhouse.
Echinacea are
beautiful plants
Potting up seedlings
I’m moving some seedlings into larger pots, says Ruth
I
LOVE Echinaceas but always have the soil warms up again.
problems growing them from Echinaceas originate from the
tubers – they start off well, then American prairies and while they can
mysteriously fall by the wayside. tolerate the cold they don’t like our
2
Next spring I will start them in pots relatively mild, wet winters. Harvest washing up water, as
rather than the soil, but until then I have They do best on free draining soil long as it isn’t contaminated by
several healthy seedlings to look after. so if your garden has heavy clay you too many food bits or bleach. You
They were grown from AG free seeds may have more success growing them can also use cooled water used to
and are now large enough to be potted in containers or adding grit and well cook vegetables and pasta.
up into larger containers of multi rotted manure to the planting area.
purpose compost. I’ll keep them in a cold Creating a small gritty mound to
frame or greenhouse through winter and raise plants above the soil and
then plant them out next spring when improve drainage is another option.
Step
Potting on seedlings
by step
3
Collect the water that runs
while you are waiting for the
hot tap to heat up.
1 2
Fill large modules or 3in (7cm) pots Hold the leaves (never the stem) of
with multipurpose compost and a seedling and carefully scoop up
make a hole in the centre of each. the rootball using an old spoon.
4
Very dry compost can be hard
to re-wet, but a few drops of
3 4
Lower the roots into the hole in the Water well and set in a cold frame detergent in the watering can will
compost, making sure they are all or mini greenhouse, protecting the break the surface membrane and
ure contained, then firm in the seedling. seedlings from slugs and snails. make rehydrating easier.
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30 JULY 2022 AMATEUR GARDENING 9
Your
GARDENING WEEK
with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes
Pond priorities
Siberian irises, or Iris Enrich planting sites
sibirica, are smaller with rotted manure
than bearded irises in the summer
1
Keep ponds topped up as
water levels will drop during hot
dry spells. Ideally use harvested
rainwater or tap water that has
been left standing for 24 hours to
y let the chemicals dissipate.
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Dividing Siberian irises
Split big clumps to keep them flowering well, says Ruth
S
IBERIAN irises are smaller attractive clump. However, if left alone
and less flouncy, but no less too long these clumps have a tendency
attractive, than their cousin, to outgrow their spot.
the bearded iris. When this happens, new
Always deadhead 2
Their delicate flowers that shoots appear around the Remove algae and blanket
after flowering
usually bloom in shades of edge of the original clump weed that will block out light.
purple or mauve, and slim which eventually develops Leave it lying on the side for 24
blade-like leaves, add a unsightly bare centre. hours after removal so pond
colour to the garden in late You can counteract this creatures can return to the water
spring and early summer. and keep plants tidy and before you add it to the compost.
If grown in a spot that rich in blooms by splitting
they favour, as marginal plants the clumps between July and
by the side of ponds, in a bog the start of autumn after they depth as they were growing before in
garden, or in a bed with full sun or have finished flowering and you have soil that has been enriched with well
partial shade in enriched, moisture- deadheaded them. rotted manure. Water well while they
retentive soil, they will soon form an Replant the divisions at the same get established.
Step
Making more Siberian irises after flowering
by step
1 2 3 4
Dig widely around Divide the clump using Cut the foliage to about Replant the divisions to
the iris clump to avoid a sharp spade or two 6in (15cm) tall. Reducing the same depth as they
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dit damaging any roots and garden forks back-to-back. the leaves helps prevent were growing before. Water
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s rhizomes. Lift with as much Make sure all divisions have wind-rock and moisture loss well and mulch with well-
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unl soil as possible. good roots and shoots. after re-planting. rotted compost or manure.
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10 AMATEUR GARDENING 30 JULY 2022