Keeping Busy...(always jobs to do!)

Firstly I would like to wish all of our readers a Happy New Year and look forward to a successful gardening year! My first wish has to be for the ground to dry up so that I can catch up with digging on my allotment, which is now badly behind schedule. Last year was the same; I had to spend some long hours digging in February to catch up. Ideally I will get one of my two plots single dug. I start by taking out a trench to a spade’s depth and moving the soil from this to the other end of the plot in my wheelbarrow. Any debris and annual weeds are then skimmed off the top of what will become the next trench and buried, face down in the bottom of the first trench. These are then covered with the soil from what will become the second trench and so on. Any perennial weed roots such as Couch Grass and Dock Leaves should be removed and burned, but not composted. The soil should be left in large clods and can be broken down to form a ‘tilth’ with some vigorous raking nearer to the time of sowing and planting. My second plot will be used to grow potatoes and later crops, such as squashes and runner beans. I like to manure the ground for these when I plant them out so the soil does not need to be prepared so far in advance!

Philadelphus SilberregenI have managed to spend some time in the garden this week and pruned some of my shrubs. We have a Parrotia persica (Persian Ironwood) which will eventually become far too large for the space it occupies, but it is one of my favourite large shrubs with beautiful orange and red autumn colours and small red flowers through the winter on the bare, grey branches. Left to its own devices, Parottia makes a wide spreading shrub or small tree, so I have to prune off branches every so often to keep it in bounds! My Cornus (Dog Woods) were all pruned hard back to a basic framework last winter, so will not need any attention now. They continue to light up the garden with their sealing wax red and olive green stems that give a good vertical accent.

Philadelphus are some of my favourite summer flowering shrubs with their creamy white flowers scented of orange blossom. It is easier to see the shape of these and other deciduous shrubs at this time of the year and a light prune to tidy them is a good idea.  The Holly was given a trim just before Christmas and I will tidy up other evergreens later in the spring, when they begin to grow again. My ornamental Grape vine Vitis vinifera ‘Purpurea, grew really well last year and I have pruned it back to a basic framework. Each shoot has been taken back to four buds and some of the weaker growth removed. My Clematis are looking very untidy, but I must be patient and wait until next month before giving them their annual haircut!

Mr McGregor

Jobs to do in September

September marks the beginning of a new season; leaves turn from luscious greens to shades of amber and burgundy, layers of moss develop on fallen leaves and plants begin to settle in. Autumn is one of the most beautiful times of year and as the season begins to change, a new wave of gardening tasks await us.

Autumn is one of the best planting seasons; the heat from the summer sun remains in the ground and as the rain falls, moisture also seeps into the soil, giving plants all they need to survive the winter months. However, when it comes to your lawn, you may want to incorporate an autumn feed.

Now is the time to start planting your evergreens, tender Mediterranean plants such as rosemary and lavender and spring flowering bulbs. It’s important to plant evergreens this month or next to give their roots time to engage with their new surroundings before the winter months. If the roots are not engaged and are unable to draw water, they’re more liable to die of drought.

With bulbs, separate the woodlanders (for example, anemone and dog tooth violet) from the dry varieties. Prioritise the planting of woodlanders and leave the dry bulbs, such as tulips and narcissus in a dry and airy place before planting.

September is a great time to get your hands dirty planting a variety of perennials, climbers and shrubs. To find out more, we here at Notcutts have an extensive list of plants you can incorporate into the garden in our September and October Monthly Calendar.

Allotment

Allocate as much time on the allotment as you can as September can prove to be an extremely busy month. Now is the time to start sowing spring lettuces, salad leaves, winter spinach, pak choi and turnips and planting spring cabbage and autumn onion sets.

Harvesting is also a big job this month, so start digging up your:

Salad leaves, lettuces, radishes, potatoes, globe artichokes, Spinach, tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, cucumbers, Runner beans, beetroot, leaf beet, spring onions, Bulb onions (from store), carrots, parsnips, peas, Squashes, marrows and courgettes.

As the chillier months are descending upon us, September is the best time to begin protecting and enriching the soil. Simply sow green manures; doing so will help retain the nutrients in the soil instead of them being washed away by the winter rain. These plants not only provide a covering over the soil, generating a protective shield, but they also absorb nutrients such as nitrogen, locking them up to be released once the plants are dug back into the soil in spring.

Notcutts


Gardening Jobs to do

With the first flush of summer over and autumn yet to make itself known, the garden can often look exhausted. So use your resources and with these guidelines, bring the garden and vegetable patch back to life.

Trimming and Cuttings

•    Take cuttings from any shrubby herbs
•    When your lavender has finished flowering cut it back
•    Take cuttings from any tender perennials, fuchsias, argyranthemums, salvias, pelargoums and vebrenas

Roses

•    Remove rose suckers
•    Take cuttings from healthy stems
•    Stop feeding and tie back any new shots (climbing roses)
•    Remove any faded flowers

Other gardening jobs

•    Prune wisteria and laurel hedges
•    Prepare for the late summer rush by diligently watering and de-heading
•    Damp down the paths of glasshouses
•    Move pot plants to the shade
•    Order bulbs

Allotment

•    Sow lettuce, spring onion, radish (including winter varieties), spring cabbage, carrots, kohl rabi and turnips.
•    Harvest peas, potatoes, radish, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, celery and salad leaves.
•    Order and sow autumn onions
•    If you’re going on holiday, pick everything in sight before you leave
•    Water your beans well to help assist in pollination

It looks to be a busy month,

Notcutts


Jobs to do in July

Cut back your Weigela this monthWe have been experiencing a fantastic amount of warm weather and we’re sure all you gardeners out there are anticipating the arrival of some much needed rain. Due to the dry weather some of us have briefly experienced our weekends have often been filled with setting up irrigation systems and watering thirsty plants. However, with summer firmly with us there is plenty more we can be doing in our garden this month.

Round the garden

•    Dead head border perennials such as Delphiniums and Lupins to prolong flowering.
•    Cut back any unwanted growth from Weigela and Kerria
•    To avoid Dahlias being damaged by heavy rain, support them with canes
•    Feed summer bedding weekly to promote flowering
•    Organise your spring bulb shopping list, ready to plant in the Autumn
•    Create a water feature
•    Keep weeding by hoeing or hand weeding with a trowel

Roses

•    After the first flush of flowers give your roses some fertiliser or some organic fertiliser
•    Dead head and remove faded flowers
•    Keep an eye on them for pests and diseases
•    Spray as necessary

On the allotment

•    You've still got time to put in summer herbs such as basil, coriander
•    Harvest Strawberries, raspberries, redcurrant, broad beans, early potatoes, courgettes
•    Sow salad leaves, swiss chard, perpetual spinach, radish, lettuce, peas, turnips and spinach
•    Plant broccoli, winter cabbages, brussel sprouts and leeks
•    Thin tree fruit
•    Keep the weeds down
•    Water regularly

Notcutts


In the Garden

The weather over the past few months has been splendid and I have been enjoying some wonderful weekends in the garden. Not only have I been tidying up borders and mowing the lawn, I have been entertaining family and friends by serving up, if I do say so myself, my best barbecue dishes. I think I have truly surpassed my barbecuing techniques (I might be blowing my own trumpet now), but I’m very proud of myself.

However, as the early flowering perennials have begun to stop flowering I’m going to be spending my time pruning them back to the base and hope I get a second round of flowering. With the spring starting to turn into the summer season, I can now begin to fill my borders with some summer plants that will really bring a burst of colour into the garden. I’m really looking forward to getting my clematis, pansies, marigolds and busy lizzies planted up as I’m sure they’re going to look magnificent.

Mrs McGregor’s roses are wonderfully trained up to the trellis, but to encourage further blooms I will deadhead a few of them and try not to go overboard. I will have to keep a watchful eye on them as during this time of year roses are prone to insects and diseases. Luckily there are no signs yet, but if you have noticed anything make sure you act quickly and treat them with a fungicide or systemic insecticide.

Other Gardening Jobs on My To-Do List

• ·         Feed fuchsias weekly to encourage growth and flowering
• ·         Continue to weed (my favourite job of all)
• ·         Prune forsythia, weigla, philadephus and pieris
• ·         Dig up and divide primulas

There is a lot to do in the garden this month and if the weather continues like this Mrs McGregor is sure to have a challenge getting me to come inside.

With my to-do list complete, I better hop to it!

Mr McGregor