March Gardening News
Another month gone already, nothing particularly dramatic about it, no stormy punctuations, just a very mild grey block of time, a chilly wind and just enough rain to disrupt. Whilst there have been a few cold nights, it’s been the mildness that has brought the greatest confusion. The squirrels have kept busy, the magpies have been ripping twigs from trees for nesting and buds everywhere are swelling. This week when the sun smiled on us for a few hours, folk were starting their lawn mowers. As we move into March and the days lengthen gardening can start in earnest. I am busily trying to finish off pruning and have one or two bigger plants to try and move. Any day soon the sap will surge and plants will want to get going, so I cut and move in the knowledge that nature will swiftly bring repair to my disturbances. I may even find space for a few more bare root raspberry bushes too. (if you are buying anything bare rooted then you do need to get it into the ground smartly). This week I will be getting some more seed underway and last months sowing of lettuce and cabbage has already been transplanted. Keep the sowing light and regular especially with salad items, you just don’t want fifty ready on the same day. If you want to try celeriac then get it sown or you’ll finish the season with golf balls. Hold off with tender vegetables unless you have good, protected space. If you have that protection, then Tomatoes and Chilli’s can be started but it is too early for the cucumber and marrow families. As the days advance and towards the end of the month you can be getting some potatoes into the ground. At this stage don’t worry too much about the chitting, once in the ground un-chitted stock will soon catch up. If none of that appeals then you can be sowing a few flower seeds. It’s a good month for broadcasting some of the hardier annuals straight into the border, if the ground is clean. All of the cottage garden favourites can be scattered, cornflower, love in the mist, larkspur, candytuft and linaria will all take a hold quickly. And finally I am introducing a few more summer bulbs to the border. For sentiments sake I have some gladioli to put some bold height in and have eucomis and tigridia to bring a bit of exotic splendour. Check out bulbs. Happy gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
May Gardening News
The sting was certainly in the tail of last month, my goodness there was some treachery, particularly around the middle of the month, when a watery sun offered thin disguise to a cruel wind, that cut through everything. Every other person drawn by the deception nursed a cold. The pollen was lively too, with Hazel and Birch catkins encouraged by the wind, throwing pollen in the direction of all. There was some conciliation though with cherries looking wonderful. Huge clusters of blossom hung from every branch and in support, the bold stands of tulips have been a delight. In fact bulbs generally have all performed well, but I am going to have to reduce the Grape Hyacinths. The tide of blue continues to sweep across every unplanted space. But, enough reflection, it’s May the planting season for everything. All the bedding and all of the veg, will in the weeks ahead get into the ground. We need to tiptoe in the early days, avoiding the most frost sensitive items like begonias and Busy Lizzies as well as our beans and marrows, but steadily it can be done, with those tender things hanging on until the tail. In sheltered corners we can make up baskets and containers, bringing these to the fore as they become established. There are some great plants about and the continued development of the petunia family continues to impress me. Modern varieties that deliver every colour from terracotta to magenta, with flowers that can be anything from an inch to four inches across and may be speckled, dappled, crossed and striped. Nature’s paint box is something quite special. Enjoy the feast. On the vegetable front, this selection continues to expand, fuelled by fancy eating and continental holidays, the public continues to search for more. Every garden centre now offers Chillis, Aubergines, round courgettes, baby cucumbers, oriental leaves, gourds and squashes and so much more. This year our adventure continues as we explore yet more tomatoes. We are playing with forty different varieties this year, exploring new shapes and colours. I have a long historical connection with tomato growing and in my early years cropped about 6,000 plants under glass every summer. My tip for growing a good tomato is to make the plant work, water away from the base of the plant to encourage good root spread and only feed the plant lightly. Lazy plants make lousy crops. And finally, know that when you have found the plant that you like best, another is waiting. In the case of tomatoes more than 10,000 other cultivars. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
January Gardening News
Happy New Year! Yep, it’s the start of another one. December was a bit of a mischief wasn’t it? A few thumping cold nights and the first end of year snow for a while. Our big Christmas seller was fleece. It was at close, an interesting year. I always think January is an exciting month, a month for planning and buying in readiness for the new season. I spend hours poring over catalogues, looking for things that are new and different. As I mentioned last month most seed firms display their catalogues online, with paper copies becoming more of a rarity. The seed industry is flagging up 2018 as the Year of the Marigold for some reason, but the real growth in my eyes is with Petunias, there are an astonishing number and some really lovely varieties. If you are into your flowers check out Gaillardia Mesa too, what a delight that series is with some stunning sunshine shades. On the vegetable front, seed companies are promoting more depth in every area. One firm I looked at offers sixteen types of beetroot. Across the board, depth is the keyword, dozens of different Tomatoes, Chillis, Lettuce, wherever you look the choice is huge. Is 21 varieties of carrot in one catalogue a record? In my camp of course, the big thing is spuds and stock is arriving every day. Ok, I admit it, we get carried away with range too. This year my eyes are on ‘Kennebec’ a big potato with an interesting pedigree. The official catalogue description is ‘hefty’. The variety is favoured by giant veg growers, but don’t be put off it does have a flavour. If you want to actually plant something (weather permitting), then onion sets, shallots and garlic can all be considered as the month moves on and as always, I am playing with a pinch of lettuce on the window sill. If they are only nipped off for a sandwich, they will be appreciated. The new season is only days away. And finally, I’ve been looking at summer bulbs. We all do traditional autumn things, like daffs and crocus, but apart from Dahlias the summer bulbs are not well explored. So this year, I am going to play with some that I have never grown before and that will be wonderful, if they look half as good as the picture suggests. So Hymenocalis, Tigridia and Galtonia were all on my Christmas list. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
May Gardening News
April bounced along, in fact it flew once Easter had arrived. The late Easter was the starting pistol and we had the benefit of a few weeks of light evenings ahead of it to prepare. So many people use it as the start time for gardening, so there were many lined up for the charge and since that weekend trading has been lively. I say late Easter but in fact not as late as it can be, The date is determined by the first Full moon of the spring and in 1943 it didn’t happen until April the 25th in 1943. Anyway, it is all systems go now. The last of the spuds can go in, we can run successions of vegetables, keeping pinches of lettuce, radish, spring onion and beetroot going, pushing in summer cabbage and would you believe even planting sprouts. The real joy these days for me is that the supermarkets have introduced so many new vegetables. Well, not perhaps new but better publicised. Celeriac, Kohl Rabi and Flower Sprouts to name just a few. Celeriac is a long winded grow, but Kohl Rabi is a doddle and quick. As the month advances tomatoes, beans, marrows, courgettes and cucumber can all be put out. In the case of Tomatoes and Cucumbers watch out for late frost and be prepared to cover them with something overnight and if your garden is naturally cold then leave them in until the last week of the month. Beans and Peas in fact can be sown straight to the ground if you haven’t got plants (they germinate very quickly at this time). Try to give all plants space if you can, aphids and white fly are already busy and they are disturbed by the breeze. Of course all the bedding is about too and as with the veg, most things can be planted out. Here too there is a cautionary note, so do watch the night temperatures. Dahlias, Busy Lizzies and Marigolds don’t like frost much. I remember loosing every Marigold I had to a very late frost in the first week of June. And finally, look out for Chillis and heritage tomatoes. There are Chillis everywhere and even if you are not a fan,they are very decorative. The heritage tomatoes take you back to the ‘olden days’ when tomatoes really tasted and they certainly worth a space. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org