November Gardening News
Who switched the lights off? Suddenly the season has turned, spurred over the line by the tweaking of time and the disappearance of daylight by 5.00pm. The smells have changed too, there is a damp mustiness as fallen leaves moulder. The livestock still skips about, rats, mice and squirrels all foraging, gathering and storing in readiness for winter. The squirrels have been a particular nuisance this year, grubbing up bulbs and seeds then turning over new plantings to bury their booty. I have replanted so many pansies and a few days ago witnessed extraordinary acrobatics, as two squirrels set about scaling our sunflowers to gnaw off the heads which they duly carted off. I suspect there will be a few surprises in the compost heap next spring. Whilst the day has shortened, when the mood and the moment suit, there are jobs to be done. You can still be planting, certainly for a week or two more over wintering bedding. Wherever possible pick up decent sized plants. It is late in the season and the ground is cooling, so bargain packs of small plug plants are almost a waste of money now. Look out for plants in pots or packs of 6 or 9 and check the underside of units to look for roots (if there are none put the plants back). You will still get away with bulb planting too. I love tulips, but will be planting more daffodils this time as they are less attractive to my marauding squirrels. Around the borders carry on cleaning up, cut back old herbaceous plants and consider whether you have space for anymore trees or shrubs which can be dropped in. In the vegetable plot you can be planting onion sets, shallots and garlic and this is perfect timing for over wintering broad bean seed. They will all stand quite comfortably in the open across the winter. There are still a few vegetable plants to be had with spring cabbage and winter lettuce both on sale. If you are putting green vegetables out, or indeed already have, then do make sure that you have some netting available. The pigeons will find every leaf left in the open, they are merciless and will strip plants completely if given the chance. And finally this month you will find bare root hedging and soft fruit plants become available. So if you need a new hedge or want to create a fruit garden this is the time to go for it. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
October Gardening News
And there it was gone, the summer just upped and left, making way for autumn. By early September many plants looked close to surrender as the dry weather thumped them and there was a fair amount of early leaf fall. The gardens have been reasonably productive, even without the rain. The beans have been ok, the French in particular have been amazing, but everything has needed to be kept tightly picked. My real joy this year has been with Aubergines, which have been fantastic and tomatoes which have been so flavoursome. I don’t do too much feeding, so the plants really have to work on finding what’s there. I really believe that taste can be compromised by too much feed. Most mornings I have had tomatoes on toast for breakfast. If you are chasing bigger crops then feeding is important, but I am talking about my domestic needs and I need flavour. This month, we will be pulling out the stops to get the bulbs in and pad the borders and containers with the next offering of bedding plants. Pansies and violas to bring some winter colour and wallflowers and biennials as an investment for the spring. There are plenty of bulbs about and with careful management of the flowering times, very extended shows can be achieved, with selected varieties offering colour from early February into May. There are bulbs for every setting, statuesque sentinels for open space, with a little protection and dwarf forms for the breezy spots. In the vegetable area, you can be planting out onions, garlic and shallots as well as spring cabbage plants and by the end of the month broad bean seed for over wintering. As always there is some tidying up to do, a good final cut of the lawn and a repairing prune of overgrown trees and shrubs to lessen the risk of winter damage through rough weather. This is also a month for new planting or relocation of trees and shrubs as they move into dormancy. The disruption will be minimal, many items not even noticing they’ve moved. You can also consider propagation by division, putting the spade through perennial favourites to expand stock, a clean slice through a clump will make you to extend displays. Such division can also be used on rhubarb crowns to increase the crop. And finally, lift and shift dahlia tubers and other tender plants moving them into some shelter, early frosts can be brutal. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
April Gardening News
The darkness shrank and the light swept back across the land. A new spring has arrived and nature unperturbed by the turbulence of an interesting year, just moves forward. Buds have filled and are poised for the new start. Hazel catkins flicked lazily in the breeze above daffodils, snowdrops and crocus which all performed well, leaving the stage to the imminent tulip and bluebell festival. The weather continued to test delivering a challenging mix of hot and cold, the spiteful wind testing the fashion choice on an hourly basis. Meanwhile the early cherries perform, naked stems festooned in droplets of colour. It has been cold but so uplifting. The early sowing has germinated, more seed is sown and the first round of transplanting is done. Things are wanting to grow, I have lettuce and cabbage ready to go out and sweet peas standing proud in the ground already. Broad beans are surging ahead and I will plant more together with some peas in the coming days. This is a good month for seed sowing and germinated this month you will have good plants ready for May. You can get all of your potatoes in the ground now if you haven’t already done so and there is still time for Onions, garlic and shallots. April is also a good month for summer bulbs, so Dahlias, Gladioli and Lilies can be popped straight in, they do come in a range of sizes, so don’t allow limited space to deny you the chance to play. Be aware that there some very interesting, lesser known bulbs that are worth a space too. Freesia, Montbretia and ranunculus are available and if you fancy something different then take a look at Tigridia and Eucomis, both of which bring a sense of the exotic. I have already earmarked some for my own garden. Tigridia brings a carnival of colour to the border, whilst Eucomis, more muted in its colour is very regal. Do check them out. And finally, if nothing else consider the lawn. Most have had a very tough journey and the wet and warm has large swathes colonised by carpeting moss. I am not a big chemical treatment person, but there are products available to slow the moss if you want them. For my part I will be aerating (pronging) the ground with a fork to allow air in and then will deliver some feed later in the month. If nothing else get cutting. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
February Gardening News
And so to business! The distraction of COVID had disguised the advance of another month and there is a gentle easement on daylight. Nature teases and whispers of better days ahead. There is evidence of buds filling and bulb shoots are spearing out of the ground. In just two months we will be tweaking the clocks all over again. I think spurred by the successes and the distraction of last year’s garden, the populus are already looking to get gardening. It’s there to do and there’s plenty of variety. I am pruning and redefining a tired hedge at the moment, cutting away rubbish and slipping in bits of bare root hedging to fill gaps. My plan is to move on this month to finish pruning. I have some fruit to tidy up and towards the end of the month will cut back a couple of roses. I have a rambler that has gone mad. Whilst any regular roses can be cut back hard, I will be more modest with the rambler. With the sap on the rise, I don’t want the plant producing masses of new vegetation, so will just restore some order. I am going to get some onion sets and shallots out, indeed most bulbous vegetables are available this month including Garlic and Artichokes. Asparagus and rhubarb can also be considered. Rhubarb is a great plant to have around. It’s easy, prolific, edible and it looks good even in a border. Don’t rush to harvest it in the first season and with care you can have a crop that harvests for years. This month I will be seed sowing. Make a start on a few bits and pieces, it’s so uplifting. Vegetable seed sowing should be modest and regular, creating a succession of cropping. Everybody gets carried away, just sow a pinch at the time, nobody wants 100 lettuce in one go. Try running rows of different items across a seed tray on a window sill. Just fill a tray with some good compost and then create five or six lines across the width, depressing the line with your finger tips to create a shallow channel. Then spill a few different seeds along each line, lightly sweeping the compost back and firming over the seed. The method is great for lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and spinach. Lightly watered, you’ll see new growth within a fortnight. The journey has begun. And finally, remember, it’s just a game, sometimes we may lose, but when we win, what joy. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
November Gardening News
The month of October offered prelude to the changing season and now autumn is upon us. Already the air carries the scent of aging decline, tumbled leaves litter the garden and there is a dampness to everything. I have already spent a good amount of time cleaning up. I think that the warmth and wet of the early season made for some luxuriant growth as I can’t really see where the leaves have come from. The month ahead is going to be busy. Apart from the cleaning up, November is a good planting month, especially if you need bare root items. There will hedging about shortly and in a state of near dormancy it will transplant smoothly. Formal and informal stock is about, with everything from native field plants, like hawthorn and maple to beech, and laurel. Soft fruit is about too, with I suspect many looking for raspberries, which generally have performed well again this year. And blueberries, which seem to have had big television exposure. Modern varieties do very well actually and can be grown in containers. Blueberries will prefer a slightly acidic condition, so consider using some ericaceous compost or in season a suitable feed. Roses too are about now and for many centres, offered for the first time since the lockdown. In the vegetable garden you can still be planting onions, garlic and shallots as well as rhubarb crowns. The shallots enjoy the cold, which encourages early division, delivering good clumps of bulbs in the spring. If you have not put in some overwintering broad beans, your hesitation has delivered you to the perfect moment. For the purposes of overwintering broad beans are best sown between the last week of October and the second week of November. Sown earlier you can end up with stalky plants before Christmas which will not enjoy cold weather. If you can offer some shelter then winter lettuce and oriental vegetables are also worth a go. On the flower front, get cracking and lift any bedding that you may wish to over winter, Pelargoniums, Begonias and Dahlias are salvageable ahead of the frost. They can be allowed to dry and then will need storing in a shed, garage or greenhouse. Or can be potted to bring late colour inside. And finally there is still time to pop in some over wintering bedding and bulbs, but you need to get a move on. Buy big plants in pots or 6 packs to ensure winter resilience. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
March Gardening News
Wet, wet and a bit more for luck. My goodness we have had some rain. The ground is saturated, tough enough for gardeners, it must be a nightmare for farmers. It is very frustrating; you’ve really had to seize your moments to get out. Thankfully I did. I shifted a couple of shrubs, did some serious pruning and managed to sow a bit of seed. In the days ahead I will hope to finish pruning an apple tree and then I will hang out a Codling Moth trap. I had quite a bit of moth trouble last year, so a trap hung for two or three months will help to knock out adults ahead of mating. The beast is impossible to spray for and once the eggs are laid, trouble will follow, with emerging grubs diving into the bottom of young fruit and then eating their way out. I have some pricking out to do too, with cabbage and lettuce needing space. I will transfer them into a couple of seed trays for a few weeks and will hopefully have something fit for the ground around Easter. March is a really good month for sowing seed if you have space, you’ll need to be selective according to the space and protection that you can offer, but many things will grow now without extra heat. You can be sowing grass seed too, establishing new space or patching up old. It will germinate quite quickly and will be spurred by the changing of the clock to bring more light. You can continue to plant out onions, garlic, asparagus and rhubarb this month and they will be quick to show life. Towards the end of the month you can also get your potatoes into the ground and direct sow some salad vegetables. If you have any soft fruit or newly pruned roses, then a bit of top dressing with a general feed or even chicken pellets will be beneficial at the turn of the month. As the daffodils and winter pansies fade, you may want to bring some early colour back and many centres will have aubretia, pansies, anemones and violas to brighten the run up to Easter. And finally, consider growing the vegetable that you never have. Supermarkets do get plenty of bad press and certainly have a negative effect on the High Street, but they have created interest in a huge range of vegetables and many of them can be grown from seed at home. Try Celeriac or Kohl Rabi and sow it now. Re-join the adventure. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
October Gardening News
What a joy September proved to be, with some delightful days and a real awareness of autumn knocking. I do love the low, chill watery sunrises and the smell of the changing season that sneaks across the land after dawn. The weather though hasn’t knocked out the summer crops and many things have just kept on. The runner beans have been fantastic and all the leaf vegetables look strong, with the winter crops looking very robust indeed. Soft fruit has been terrific too, with raspberries in particular being really prolific. If you have enjoyed yours this year, do try to prune out the old fruiting growth this autumn to ensure good new fruiting stems for next year. With temperatures cooling it is worth taking stock and deciding if you want to preserve tender subjects by storing them away for the spring. Watch dahlias and geraniums in particular. As space appears in the borders, there’s plenty to be picked up to bring new colour. Winter pansies and violas are everywhere as are wallflowers, sweet William, chrysanthemums and many more over wintering bits. Bulbs are in plentiful supply and all can safely be set out in the coming days. There’s a chance to refresh tubs and baskets for winter colour too. This is also a good month to implement changes, to reshape borders, create patios and introduce new shrubs and trees. Cast a glance around and see what nature is doing for the autumn, spotting berries, the turn of foliage and even flowers as you ponder on the what to plant next. A good garden should hold your attention across every season and the idea of having colour at the turn of the year is worthwhile. Look at Viburnums, Mahonias, Winter honeysuckle, Sarcococca, Jasmine as starters. In the vegetable border, you can still pop in winter onions, shallots and garlic and at the end of the month over wintering Broad Beans. If you can find a bit of shelter then winter lettuce and Mizuna are useful for pepping up the salad. As always at this time there is plenty of maintenance work to consider too. Focus on keeping this safe and secure. Cut out heavy branches, thin crowded space and tie and strap plants to avoid breakage and uprooting. And finally, if you were teased by the talk of raspberries and want to try your luck next season, then pick up canes from garden centres next month. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
September Gardening News
So, that was summer then? What a strange month August proved to be, a real mish mash of unpredictable weather, that knocked over and knocked out. It tucked into everything above three feet, pushing over canes and cages and tumbling immature fruit. Not that the fruit issue worried me too much as pests have been active and every apple seems to have been visited by Codling moth grubs (the holes in the fruit announcing the departure of the overfed). Most things can be repaired though and the season of summer vegetables and flowers extended, with a prune, a bit of feed and the repair of support arrangements. Clip off the broken and damaged, even take out the tops of peas and beans and they will bounce back. Put your heel around winter veg to see it into the autumn. Sprouts and sprouting in particular will not deliver if they don’t have a firm hold. Have some net on hand too as the pigeons are already watching the domestic crop. Many gardeners are ready to move on and as we move into September, winter pansies and violas are back, as are many over wintering bedding items.Planting them now will set them up for a good performance through the darker months. There are some great autumn chrysanthemums and cyclamen around too and these will bring colour up to Christmas. Shelves are full of bulbs and it is worth buying this month whilst there is plenty of choice. Check out the labels when you buy, it is possible to create successions as varieties of many bulbs flower at different times. You can for example buy Daffodils and Tulips which are early, mid season and late flowering. So you can have colour from February to late April. If you like your bulbs it is worth the time. On the vegetable front, we are back in to the bulb season too, with Japanese onions, as well as shallots and garlic all appearing. You may still find a few greens about and it is worth trying your luck with Spinach, Chard and spring cabbage all of which can bring something else to the winter plate. And finally if you have space and nothing to do with it, then have a go with green manures. This is a range of vigorous plants, raised from seed which will quickly cover and smother the ground. The plants can be turned into the ground in the spring and as the name suggests improve it’s fertility. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
February Gardening News
Tick, tick, tick, the seconds turn to minutes and another month is gone. Totally mad, Christmas seems so far behind us and the seeds that were my Christmas present sit on my desk and tease me. January was an acceptable mix of confusion, with the weather not wanting to work to a plan, so we had the lot. As we move forward into February, accepting there may be some cold to come, the Spring does seem close and in just seven weeks the clocks will change. The garden calls. I am hoping to get some pruning done this month. Whilst you will need to avoid the very bleak days, restoring order generally and particularly with some of the fruit, is a good plan. Tidy up anything that has flowered through the autumn and winter too. New growth will happen in March and plants repair very quickly. Finish turning over ground on dry days and if you have space, some bits can go into the vegetable plot, most notably onion sets, shallots and garlic. Not much harm will come to early peas and bean seed now either, just stick them in, they are not going to rot and the slight lift in temperature will have them pipping as we hit next month. If you can find sheltered space, have a greenhouse or an empty window sill then you could be starting off a few seeds. Many things don’t require heat, just a bit of protection. So green leaf vegetables including lettuce can all be sown (in moderation) as indeed can some annuals. We always used to start off early bedding in February and pansies, calendula, dianthus, antirrhinum and many others are quite straightforward. Garden centre shelves are full of seed, so do some swatting and have a play. Of course we are also well into spuds now and here again there are plenty to look at everywhere. There is no panic, but early purchase ensures that you get exactly what you want. Don’t rush to plant yet unless you want to stick a few in the bottom of a pot (which can be fun and bring a taste by the end of May). I am going to be trying a new second early introduction called ‘Lipstick’. I love quirky, I am not sure what it says about me, but I am curious. It’s a very flirty red. And finally, it’s the last call on bare root hedging. If you have gaps to fill, save money and get organised. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org
January Gardening News
Ho, ho, ho, here we go. Off again on the sleigh ride into tomorrow and who knows what. I get quite excited by the turn of the year and the smell of new adventures. 2018 didn’t turn out too badly really. December was a mixed bag, with one or two very cold nights, with the compensation of some glorious days. The growing year was late and as always a few things struggled to deliver, but in the balance it was ok. Now, with the corner turned and the days starting to lengthen, we can look ahead. As the month moves forward and the mood takes we can look to start planting onion sets and shallots, as well as garlic. We can consider dividing things too, extending commitment to Rhubarb and Raspberries by splitting clumps with a spade and replanting. We can start to look at seed potatoes this month and whilst it is still too early to plant, there is more choice available if you buy early (tubers can then be held for weeks in a cool space). You can also be playing with the first bits of seed and towards the end of January, try your luck with a few Broad Beans and some Early Peas. You can use up your Aquadulce bean seed and look at something like Feltham First if you want to stick in Peas. The ground will still be cold, but the seed will emerge slowly as the days advance. Just keep your eyes open for rodents. They are all hungry and will be pleased to help themselves if temptation is obvious. So store spuds and seeds out of harms way and consider lightly dressing lines in open ground with a bit of grit (they don’t like it. Scratching around on a frosty morning in a pile of sharp grit ? No, I don’t think so). When the weather bites, as it is bound too, retreat and start looking at the seed catalogues. I talked of adventure and the journey into a seed catalogue is very special. As we embark on a new season, it is really important to remind ourselves of how extraordinary nature can be and whilst man will always poke his nose in, the ever changing shape and performance of plants is to be celebrated. Do try something new. And finally, play the game and never think that you are in charge. Losing is no big deal, there is always tomorrow. Happy Gardening. Chris Evans www.dundrynurseries.co.uk www.thebutterflygarden.org