Amateur Gardening – 21 May 2019

11 MAY 2019 AMATEUR GARDENING 5

Don’tforget!Doa pestcheckbeforeplantingas

snaileggsandvineweevilgrubsmaybelurkingamong

the roots and compost (they make excellentadditionsto

the bird table!)

Actingon

problems

whenthey

firstappear

willsave

youa lotof

troublein the

longrun.

Beddingpla

arevulnerableto

mildewwhenplantedtooclose

together,sogivethemenough

spacetogrowproperly.

Removeanyplantsthatshow

signsof diseasetopreventits

spread,ortreatwitha fungicide.

Catchpestsin theearlystages,

squishingaphidsandremoving

slugsadsnailsor using beer traps

andbarriers.

Onlyusechemicalsforlarge

infestationsandneveruseon

flowersalreadyin bloom as you

will kill pollinators.

Dealing with

problem

Watchoutforsnailslurkingamong

foliageandunderbedding

container rims

Poorventilationcan

cause mildew

Get the best from yourplants

Y

OUcanbuythehealthiest
plantsontheplanetforyour
summerborders,butunless
youlookafterthemproperly
youwillgeta disappointingdisplay.
Getyourplantsofftoa goodstart by
makingsureyoursoilis in good
condition.Beforeplanting,weedwell
andincorporatea generousamountof
well-rottedorganicmatter,manureor
compost.If youdothissometimebefore
planting,youmay need to weed a
secondtime.
Buyrobustplantswithhealthyfoliage
andlotsof flowerbuds.Unlessyouneed
tocreateinstantcolour,pinchout
flowersanddeadbloomstoencourage
moreflowerstodevelop.
Plantat thesamedepthasthe
rootballanddon’tovercrowd,soplants
have enough room to grow properly,

Create a healthy environmentforlong-lastingcolour

Ifyouwantyourplantstoprovideyouwith

lotsofbloomsovera longperiod,makesure

yoursoilis in goodconditionandcheck them

regularly for pests and diseases

Deadheadto

prolong fl owering

withadequateventilation.Alwayscheck

thelabeltogettheplacingsrightand

ensuretheplantshavetheappropriate

amountsof sunshineandshade.

Protectfromslugsandsnailsat

planting,usingferricoxidepellets,beer

trapsoroneof severalbarriersonthe

market.I amexperimentingwith

EcofectiveSlugDefencesharpwhite

granulesthatcreateanunpleasant

barrieraroundplants.A morevisually

subtleoptionwouldbewoolpellets,

whichalsoactasa mulchand help

retainmoisturein thesoil.

Ongoingmaintenancewillimprove

yourdisplay.Tacklepestsandweeds,

andwaterregularlywhendry,feeding

witha high-potashliquidtomatofeed

everyfortnightin peakfloweringseason.

Deadheadtoencouragemoreflowers

and cut off dead or damaged foliage.

D

ON’Tforgettobuynextweek’s

editionofAmateurGardening,

markingour135thanniversary.

WhenAGfirstappeared

ontheshelvesin 1884,it brok

themouldin horticultural

publicationsbypromoting

theideaof urbangardens.

Itseditor,ShirleyHibberd,

wasa Renaissancemanwith

interestsrangingfrombee-

keepingtovegetarianism,

environmentalismandwater

recycling– passionsthatwere

unusualthenbutloomlargeat the

forefront of public consciousness today.

Nextweek’sAGwillcelebratehislife

andlegacybytakingourusualclose

lookat moderngardening with an added

Victoriantwist.

ll becarryingoutmy

al weeklyjobsusingplants

d techniquesthatwere

opular 135 yearsagoand

restillwidelyfound in

ardenstoday.

Therewillalsobe

cinatingfeaturesaboutthe

ssfulbutultimatelytragic

lifeof ourfoundingfather,a focuson

a Victorianfavouritethat’sstillpopular

today, tips on creating a cottage garden

anda run-down

of thebestnew

plantsof thepast

135 years.

Anddon’tforget

nextweek’sfree

SarahRavenseeds

• Clary‘Blue
  Denim’,a hardy
  salviawithbrilliantly
  colouredbracts
  tobrightenthe
  gardenandattract
  pollinatorsin droves.
  ■Nextweek’sAGis in the shops on
  Tuesday 14 May.