90 |OxfordshireLimitedEdition|June 2019HOMES INTERIORS
‘Thereisplentytodointhegardentokeepyou
occupied,suchascuttingbackandmowingbutit’satimeofyeartoreallysitbackandenjoythe
fruitsofyourlabours’
oxfordgardendesign.co.uk
[email protected]Gardening
calendar
June
S
ummerisreallyhere!Ornamental
borderswillsoonbeattheirbest
whentowardstheendofthe
monthscentedrosesbeginto
flowerinearnest.Thereisplenty
todointhegardentokeepyou
occupied,suchascuttingbackandmowing
butit’satimeofyeartoreallysitbackand
enjoythefruitsofyourlabours.Soabove
alltaketimetorewardyourself.Gardening
shouldneverbecomeachore.
Thestartofdryspellsmeansthat,if
youhaveanewlawnorhaveplantednew
shrubsandflowers,theywillneedwatering
asrequired.Iftimeislimited,it’snogood
goingouteveryeveningsplashingalittlewater
overeverything.Thiscausesmoregoodthan
harminthelongrunasitencouragesroots
tocometothesurfaceofthesoilmaking
plantsmorevulnerableindryconditions.
Instead,concentrateyoureffortsononearea
ofthegardenandgiveagoodsoakinginthe
evening.Thisgivesplantstimetoabsorbthe
waterovernightandtheirrootswillgodeeper
insearchofwater.
Thefollowingeveningconcentrateon
anotherarea.Plantsincontainersrequire
wateringmost,atleastonceaday,butinvery
hotconditionstwice,onceinthemorning
andagainintheevening.
Mowgrassregularlyduringthismonthto
encouragegoodgrowth.Mowingisthebest
waytoensureyouhaveagoodlawn.Oncea
weekisfinebutforareallygoodlawn,twice
aweek.
Thereasonforthisisthatthelessgrass
thatistakenoffateachcutthehealthierit
willremain.Itisalsoimportanttomowthe
grassinadifferentdirectioneachtime.Ifyou
mowinthesamedirectioneverytimethe
grassbeginstogrowthatwayandthemower
blades,especiallyonacylindermower,will
notcutisaswell.
Don’tforgetedgingtrimtheedgesatthe
sametimeasthelawniscut.
Itmakesallthedifferencetothe
appearanceofagardeniftheedgesarecut
regularlyandit’slessworkdoingitoncea
weekasthetrimmingsarefewanddon’thave
tobeclearedup.
SheenaMarshisowneranddesignerat
OxfordGardenDesign.L