GARDENER'S WORD - IDEAS AND TIPS

I was watering my garden this evening after so much dry weather had begun to impact on my garden borders when I spotted some kerfuffle up in the neighbour's ash trees. A magpie was attacking a small squirrel and as fast as the squirrel tried to get away, the magpie followed. I have seen this kind of behaviour before from magpies and, I have to say, I don't like it. While I tend to say that I like all animals, I am not fond of those black and white birds at all. I have even seen them attacking neighbourhood cats. If one attacks my cat, Alfie, it could be magpie stew for supper. Magpie trying to steal from squirrel November 2019 Magpies attack squirrels and other birds.  They are omnivores and will kill and eat small mammals and birds. Unfortunately for the magpie, and fortunately for the squirrel, I had my garden hose in my hand with the water full on. I shot a blast up into the trees, targeting the bird and preventing it from continuing its chase of the squirrel. Then, ...

Seed suppliers are always reminding us that it is best to use their seeds because of the possibility of seed taken directly from shop bought vegetables and fruit having diseases etc etc etc. Hmm.  I bought several packets from a well known supplier and they aren't doing any better than the ones I took from supermarket fruit and veg. Talking about price now, how come seed supplier can justify the prices they charge when you consider just how much seed a single vegetable or fruit can provide? Seeds from one small Cantaloupe melon Hundred or more cantaloupe melon seed, above image, from one small melon and yet seed companies charge c. £2 for a packet with about 10 seeds. Robbery! Seeds from one small red sweet pepper One company is selling packets of sweet pepper seeds at nearly £4 for 40 seeds. The pepper I bought with my groceries cost about £0.50p Butternut squash seedlings, taken directly from a butternut squash.They look healthy enough to me. Cost of the vegeta...

Last year (2019) I planted Lathyrus vernus (spring pea) 'Rainbow' and I'd forgotten all about it until it popped up again this year. It has been somewhat swamped by the Italian parsley which I planted into the border last year and expected to die, but which has survived our rather wet and mild winter. Lathyrus vernus 'Rainbow' is a delightful and delicate-looking plant to have and it's not picky about where you can grow it.  Lathyrus vernus (spring pea) 'Rainbow' April 2020 Apparently the flowers are good for cutting but I think I'll leave them right there in the garden. Although you cannot see from the photograph, it also produces flowers which are just pink! It's quite quirky really. 

Slowly but surely my small collection of Japanese maples are growing and they are putting on a lovely show right now. Acer palmatum 'Katsura' is doing the best, even though it had serious signs of die-back last year and I had to cut off one branch. What with dieback and the dastardly vine weevil attacking the roots of various plants, particularly those left in containers, no one can tell me that gardening is easy. I lost a beautiful acer, Acer palmatum 'Orange Dream' to that insect.  Acer palmatum Katsura Then there is the one called Jordan, which has potential for being quite spectacular when it gets bigger. I had to move it last year because it was getting wind-burn and I am hoping that it might fair better in its new spot which is only a little distance away from its original place but I suspect it will be less vulnerable. Time will tell. Acer shirasawanum Jordan  Another one, Acer palmatum 'Phoenix' is showly but, like Jordan, keeps suffering a little fr...

After a week or so of sunshine we now have some welcome rain. I'm hoping that it will brighten up again very soon because here in the UK we are still in a state of Covid-19 lock down and I like to get out into the garden. I took some photos yesterday of my plants and one that is particularly wonderful right now is the Exochorda macrantha 'The Bride'. Exochorda macrantha 'The Bride' aka Pearl Bush I bought it on a whim; a must have but, when I have looked at images of the mature shrub online, it can get much bigger than I would hope for. I would say it has doubled its size in a year and for now I am keeping it under control in the same pot.  It's a little dazzler though. The trouble is, its branches are longer than the depth of the pot so I am having to elevate it by standing the pot on an upturned pot. Exochorda macrantha 'The Bride' aka Pearl Bush (end April 2020) Exochorda macrantha 'The Bride' aka Pearl Bush (3 May 2019) Exocho...

Although the Covid-19 coronavirus lock down continues in the UK, as well as in other countries, I am still able to get out into my garden. It's the end of the Easter weekend and we have been blessed with sunshine and some warmth, although it is a little cooler today than it has been. Still sunny though. Yesterday I transplanted (pricked out) the Tumbling Tom tomato seeds into their individual containers and there are 18 plants in all. Hopefully, they will do well and I shall have a good crop of tomatoes. It's really all down to the weather. Tumbling Tom tomato seedlings Tumbling Tom tomato seedlings after 'pricking out'.  Tumbling Toms - 2015 Also the sunflowers seedlings, Oranges & Lemons, are coming along nicely and although they seemed somewhat leggy and wobbly at first, the stems are toughening up.  Sunflower seedlings & houseplants getting some sunshine outside.

Last year a beautiful fern of mine,  Dryopteris filix-mas Euxinensis , was so large that it looked ridiculous where it was. It is an upright type of fern, grew to several feet high, and hid the wonderful arching ferns behind it. Sad as it is, it has to go. So, yesterday I tried to dig it up. Who would have thought that a fern could have roots like an oak tree! Perhaps that's using hyperbole, but I dug and dug and couldn't get it out. I tried chopping at it - it was hard as rock - and I tried levering it out of the ground and thought the spade and fork handles were going to snap. It's still there. Half in half out. There it will have to stay for a while as, today, as I stepped through the kitchen door into the garden, my back went into a protest—so perhaps another day. I may keep a piece of it so that it can thrive elsewhere.  Dryopteris filix-mas Euxinensis roots Dryopteris filix-mas Euxinensis roots Dryopteris filix-mas Euxinensis roots Ferns make a ga...

The coronavirus known as Covid-19 has taken hold of the UK as well as many other countries in the world. Right now, the UK is in lock-down and I am self-isolating. I am going to make the best of it and keep myself mentally and physically healthy by keeping occupied. A short while ago I received an online order of seeds and two or three days ago I sowed Oranges & Lemons sunflower seeds in small pots. I have the pots in a  Stewart Premium 52cm Thermostatic Electric Propagator  that I bought a couple of months ago and it seems to be doing the trick. Already they have germinated. I wanted to grow something that pollinating insects and subsequently birds would appreciate, as well as myself. Unwins Oranges and Lemons Sunflower The label says that these sunflowers attract birds, are great for cutting, and are strong growing plants. They achieve a height of 120cm (4ft) and should be grown 45cm (18in) apart. They can be sown indoors March to April and outdoors April to May. To...

During this time of the coronavirus called Covid-19 and self-isolation, I thought it would be a good idea to try and grow my own vegetables. Not only that, but gardening is good for mental health. I never seem to have much luck growing vegetables in my garden apart from the ever-reliable runner beans. I have rocky ground, much of the spare space is taken by mixed borders and lawn (over rock!), and although slugs move slowly, they frequently get to the vegetables before I do! I usually try and grow vegetables in containers but over the years some plants grown that way have become the target of vine weevils ! It's going to be a challenge. Vegetable seeds from Fothergills I couldn't get my favourite Wisley Magic runner-bean seeds online so I am going to try Red Rum  (RHS external link) and hope for the best. Hopefully, after a long wet but relatively mild winter, we might have a decent summer. I think a hot summer would be lovely, not least because Covid-19 will not thrive s...

Since December, all eyes have been focused on the evolving situation regarding the novel Coronavirus, Covid-19, which began in China and has become a pandemic. It all feels so surreal. The elderly and those with certain underlying health conditions are most vulnerable and many are, by choice and on advice from the Government, self-isolating. I am one of them. But life can be good with a positive attitude and so my focus is shifting somewhat to my own little world, inside and out. The garden is coming to life and much has stayed green over a relatively mild winter. I cannot believe that the parsley, which I bought from the supermarket last year and planted in the garden, is not only thriving but a monster! It's about 24" (60cm) tall at its utmost point. It's tolerated zero temperatures and even a light covering of snow! Parsley, March 2020 after overwinter in the garden. I'm starting to do garden jobs, little by little, making them a form of therapy as much as ...

For the last two nights we have had snow here on the Pennines of West Yorkshire and during the day the snow has thawed and we have had sunshine. That works for me!  Apart from that, I'm so pleased to tell you that a lovely Great Spotted Woodpecker has visited my garden again. I first saw it on the first day of January 2020. It likes the homemade fat balls that I make. It's lovely to see it eating seeds from the feed, alongside the small birds. I wondered what sex the woodpecker is and it seems they are very easy to identify.  The male has a red patch on the back of its head, whereas the female does not. Young Great Spotted Woodpeckers are even more easy to identify, from any view, because they are sporting a cap of red until they mature.  It's most definitely a mature male that is visiting my garden. Whether or not it is always the same one is anybody's guess. Sorry the photos are not great. They are taken from a distance through the kitchen window. If I opened the do...

Approaching winter last year, there were a few buds on my Wildeve rose. I expected them to rot and come to nothing, so have not paid any attention to them. I'm afraid my garden is like a jungle over winter as I leave everything untidy for the insects and the birds (and it saves me doing any work). So imagine my surprise when I looked out of the window today and noticed one bud had actually bloomed.  Ok, it looks a bit chewed and ragged, but it's a welcome sight. Roll on spring. Wildeve rose blooming in January 2020 There are a couple of buds here and there which look promising. How lovely! This image below is Wildeve in summer. She's a beautiful David Austin rose. Wildeve rose

I've been gardening for decades and for the first time, this year, have bought a heated propagator. Each spring I take cuttings of my older red pelargoniums so that I can have a good display each year. Usually I will do this around late March but I wanted to get a jump on the weather this year because I want flowers earlier. Stewart Premium 52cm Thermostatic Electric Propagator I bought it via Amazon and you can see more details about it there. It comes with a base within which is the thermostat and probe, then there is a large tray and two smaller ones which fit into the base, and along with that came 10 small plastic pots.  I used those and another six besides, so I have fitted sixteen cuttings in individual pots into the base. It's quite room! It was easy to set up but I couldn't quite make out from the pamphlet whether or not I was supposed to put water in the base. Looking at several YouTube videos demonstrating this propagator, it seems not. Anyway, pelargonium...

Snow came down today in heavy clumps but, fortunately, it's too mild for it to hang around for long. The sun is trying to make an appearance too. While I love the sight of snow, it can be problematic where I live and can hang around for weeks if several inches of it come down and it's cold enough to prevent thaw. The garden birds seemed to be in a bit of a feeding frenzy today and so I ensured they had plenty of seed and fresh water. It was lovely to see a robin in the miniature James Grieve apple tree . Robin on James Grieve miniature apple tree on snowy day - January 2020 Robin on James Grieve miniature apple tree on snowy day - January 2020 Birds on bird feeding station on snowy day - January 2020