|
Fifty first edition - August 2005
If your garden is suffering from lack of rain, here are
some tips on water conservation from
The Royal Horticulture Society..
Have you noticed there seem to be very few wasps about
this year?
According to my paper, "There was unfavourable weather in late March, April
and May, the time when queen wasps emerge from hibernation to start their
colonies. Although average temperatures and rainfall were little different
from 2004, heavy showers and frost could either have wiped out the queens or
made conditions impossible as they scratched around to find materials to
make nests.." (Daily Mail, July 6th)
It has been a very dry period for the UK and many of you
will be despairing at your brown, dried up lawns, but don`t worry they will
soon green up after a few heavy showers and some cooler weather. It is
really not worth watering grass in dry weather unless of course it is a
newly turfed or seeded lawn.
Jobs
for the month - August
Patios
and other garden areas
Our love of flower tubs, garden furniture and barbecues can sometimes lead
to accidents. Make sure outdoor living spaces are not too cluttered,
especially when entertaining. Please make sure that if you have a pond, it
is safe, especially when young children visit.
 Lawns
New lawns which have been either turfed or seeded will need to be kept
watered during dry spells. Don`t bother watering established lawns, even
though they might look awful. They will soon recover once the weather turns
wetter and cooler. Remove weeds from lawns and keep the edges neat.
Greenhouse
Ventilate tomatoes to guard against leaf-mould. Take cuttings of geraniums
(Zonal pelargoniums) and fuschias. Although this is the correct month to
take cuttings of pelargoniums, I have always found that overwintering the
stock plant and taking cuttings in the spring, produces much stronger
plants!
 Hedges
If you have a lavender hedge it can be trimmed now, but take care not to cut
it back to the old wood because it will not regrow.. Cut off the dead
flowers and new growth only.
Roses
Spray against black spot and start cutting out old wood from established
ramblers. Remove suckers at source.
 Herbaceous
plants
Continue to remove faded flowers from all plants including bedding plants,
to encourage new growth. Hoe around the plants to remove weeds and freshen
up the borders.
Sow annuals directly in the borders for an early and easy colourful display
next year. I am doing this more and more, rather than growing the expensive
and labour intensive bedding plants. I love the annuals such as godetia,
larkspur, cornflowers, nigella etc., which can also be found sold in packets
where the flowers have been colour co-ordinated, all ready to 'throw and
grow' .. Gardening made easy!
Vegetables and salad
Allotments are back in fashion, but some property developers, not a million
miles from us, are trying to buy the land and offering allotment holders
substantial cash deals to sell up. What a shame if this deal comes off for
those gardeners for whom allotments are a big part of their lives, .. What a
shame too for those who would appreciate the lump sum if the deal falls
through, due to someone refusing to sell! See the story
here:
Keep your runner beans well watered. Shallots and (last) autumn sown onions
are now ready for lifting in the dry weather. Lift and store beetroots. Make
another sowing of lettuce. If you grow parsley and it is getting straggly,
cut it right back to get some new young growth for the autumn. Did you know
you can freeze parsley and mint to use in the winter months?
 Ponds
and water features
If you see aphids on the aquatic plants, give them a blast with a hose jet.
The fish will love to eat the aphids and you will also have introduced extra
oxygen into the pond.
 Thompson
& Morgan
You
may obtain their free New 2005 Seed Catalogue by telephoning 01473 695224
and their website address is
www.thompson-morgan.com
where full information is available on their product varieties and orders
can be taken on-line.
|
The National Botanic Garden of Wales
