Summer Containers

Mrs McGregor and I had another trip to our local garden centre today and we were amazed at the variety of bedding plants available for summer colour! The range seems to grow each year and we are always keen to try something different in our pots.

‘Half hardies’ are raised from cuttings and will flower until the first hard frosts of winter. I like to bring some of the containers into the greenhouse over winter and many of them have survived, including Diascia which I have even overwintered outside in a sheltered area near the house. They are easily increased from soft wood cuttings taken early in the spring and will flower well in the first year.

This year we have been taken with Calibrachoa (Million Bells), which have flowers that look tiny Petunias and small, rounded leaves. The plants have a mound like, slightly trailing habit and come in a wide range of colours from white and pale lavender to coral pink and terracotta orange, often with a darker centre to the flowers. In previous years, we have grown the rightly popular Surfinia Petunias, with their large, velvety flowers and long trailing stems, but they tend to be very vigorous and can swamp other plants in the same containers!

The trailing Verbenas have stiff stems and clusters of flowers in flat heads, which are much loved by insects including the Hummingbird Hawk Moths that we get in the garden occasionally. They really do look like a tiny Hummingbird and it is always a thrill to see them darting about from flower to flower! Mrs McGregor is particularly taken with the bicoloured varieties of Verbena in pink and white and another with crimson and white striped petals. Teamed with some golden leaved Helichrysum and a darker flowered Calibrochoa, a pot of these will brighten up the area by the back kitchen door.

We have just had the front door painted a blue green colour and I have bought three Ivy Leaved Geraniums (Pelargoniums), which have bright, coral orange flowers that will give a lovely contrast in the open porch. Plants by our front door are often sadly neglected; when we are rushing out we always think ‘I will water that when I get home!’ and then the job is not done. Pelargoniums are extremely drought tolerant, so they will be well suited to that hot, dry position!

I always like to change the compost when I plant up my summer containers, to get rid of any soil borne pests and eggs that they may have laid. The plants always seem to grow better in new compost. I also add a moisture retaining gel, to help cut down on the watering, and some Osmocote slow release fertilizer to help feed the plants over the summer. Once this is all mixed together, we can start to plant up the containers. If frost threatens, I cover with some newspaper or horticultural fleece and of course we are always on the lookout for slugs and snails!

Happy Gardening,

Mr McGregor

Gardening Guide - Taking Soft Wood Cuttings

Now that the garden is springing into life, there is plenty of fresh growth on perennials such as Phlox, Sedum, Cat Mint and Aster, which will flower later in the summer and early autumn. Giving these plants a trim in May, sometimes known as the ‘Chelsea Chop’, produces bushier plants with more flower stems. An added bonus is plenty of soft wood cutting material so that you can increase your stocks easily to replace old plants or simply use a favourite one in other areas of the garden.

Phlox cuttings cut to a node, lower leaves removedHere is a quick guide to taking soft wood cuttings successfully so that you get results like a professional!

1. Choose vigorous, non flowering shoots that are ‘true to type’ so that an even batch of cuttings is produced.

2. Collect the cutting material just before you are going to use it and pop it into a damp polythene bag along with a label detailing the plant name and date. Any plants in containers should be well watered the night before the cuttings are taken.

3. Use a sharp pair of secateurs or scissors and cut the material longer than needed – it can be cut to size when you make the cuttings.

Leaves cut by half to reduce water loss4. If you are using pots to strike your cuttings, mix multipurpose compost with Vermiculite or Perlite at roughly half and half quantities to ensure good drainage and water well. Notcutts also sell a range of Jiffy pots, which are watered to expand the peat in them. The cuttings can then be placed in these individually.

5. Make the cuttings by using the top five to eight centimetres of growth and cutting on a leaf joint (node). Remove the lower leaves with a knife or scissors, taking care not to damage the main stem. Leave the portion of stem that will be in the soil bare to help stop the cutting from rotting.

6. Plants with large leaves, such as Phlox and Penstemons, should have their upper leaves trimmed by half to prevent water loss whilst the cutting is rooting.

Potted into small pot of compost and vermiculite ready to go into propagator7. Dip the bare stem portion of the cutting into rooting powder and insert it into well watered pots of compost or Jiffy pots or strips. Remember to label the container with the date and plant name! Cover the cuttings with a propagator lid or polythene bag kept clear of the leaves, to help prevent them drying out.

8. Once the cuttings have been taken, they can go into a propagator in your greenhouse or a windowsill propagator in your house. Use a hand sprayer set on a fine mist to keep the leaves of the cuttings moist, if necessary, until they are rooted.

9. The cuttings will soon show signs of rooting and will begin to grow away. Once the roots are seen at the base of the pot or coming through the Jiffy pots, they can be potted on individually into a small (9 cm) pot and grown on ready for planting out into the garden!

Many perennials and summer bedding plants such as Pelargoniums (Geraniums), Marguerites (Argyranthemums) and Osteospermum (Cape Daisies) can be increased from soft wood cuttings, so why not try this rewarding technique for yourself?

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On the Allotment

Much like my garden, my allotment is springing in to life, with the first sowings of Broad Beans, early Peas and salad leaves coming up, along with Radish and the first of the early potatoes. All of the digging and waiting patiently until the soil had warmed up has been worth it! The onion sets are also starting to grow away and I am now walking down with my ‘swoe’ whenever the soil is dry enough, to hoe between the rows and keep the weed seedlings at bay!

Flea Beetle damageI am also watching anxiously for any damage by mice. Last year they took out all of the broad beans on a neighbouring plot and a couple from my first sowing. The shoots were left standing in the ground but there were no seeds beneath them! Mice can also affect Sweet Peas and eating Peas in the same way; I lost a whole row of Mange Tout to them! This year I have planted the rows further from the hedge, hoping that the lack of cover will make them think twice about their foraging trips! Covering the rows with spiny sticks can help deter them and an old farmer said I should soak the seeds in paraffin before planting them.

Last year my salad leaves of Rocket and Mustard were badly attacked by Flea Beetle, which nibbled the leaves and left pale brown spots on them. This didn’t affect the flavour but made them look less appetising. I have noticed that the same pest is again having a feast and when I gently brushed the seedlings with my hand, the shiny dark beetles dashed out leaving no doubt whatsoever! I have decided not to plant these leaves on the allotment anymore, but have sown some in containers by the kitchen door – no flea beetle and more convenient for picking! Radish are also affected, but only the leaves so I will still have the tasty ‘French Breakfast’ to add to my salads and sandwiches through the summer!

Loose leaved lettuce seedlings growing on!The early potatoes are beginning to come through their earth mounds, so I have earthed them up this week, to bury the tubers more deeply and protect the young growth from frosts. I still have some second early and main crop potatoes to plant and hope to get to this during the week, as well as sowing more seeds - the first of my carrots and beetroot included!

I like to sow my lettuce in modules every two weeks and plant them out in any spare gaps once they are big enough to fend for themselves, along with a sprinkle of organic slug pellets! Mrs McGregor likes to have a supply of loose leaved Lettuce so I sow the red leaved ‘Lollo Rosso’ and frilly green ‘Can Can’ in old bedding plant six pack trays. The leaves on these can be cut off individually or I cut a whole plant, wash the leaves and store them in the salad spinner in the fridge where they will keep for a week and taste just as fresh!

Coming to Life

The garden is really coming to life now with plants growing and changing daily! The early spring perennials, so welcome after the bareness of the winter months have all but finished their show for another year and will spend the summer making larger clumps for next year. Our Pulmonaria ‘Blue Ensign’ was particularly good this year. It started to flower in February and was covered in the deep blue flowers that are so loved by early bumble bees on warm days. I like to cut Pulmonarias to the ground, leaves and all, once they have finished flowering. They then grow a new carpet of leaves through the summer that make good ground cover in our shady border. The Heuchera ‘Amethyst Myst’, also in this area has flushed into new growth with deep purple leaves that are overlaid with silver veins. I have noticed that it is starting to get woody now, but it has been such good value for the last few years, I will definitely be replacing it with some new ones later in the summer! I have planted some orange Tulips behind the Heuchera and the effect is stunning!

HeucheraThe winter flowering Honeysuckle has made a huge bushy plant with arching branches that are taking over one corner of the garden, so today I have pruned it back to size. It is invaluable for winter flowers and scent from November through to March, and one of the hardiest and most reliable of winter flowering shrubs. The Caryopteris (Blue Spiraea) that is near the Honeysuckle, flowers in late summer and autumn, but now that it has come into leaf, I can tidy it up with a light prune to remove the straggly growths from last year. I love the flat heads of blue flowers later on and so do the butterflies and bees!

 I had forgotten how many empty pots we have, stored at one end of the garden, so I decided to plant up a couple with hardy bedding plants to add some colour until the summer bedding plants can be put outside safely in May. The new varieties of Pansies and Violas are much more weather resistant than some of the older types, so after much deliberation over the beautiful range of colours, I have purchased some of these from our local garden centre and planted them into multipurpose compost, incorporating some slow release fertilizer granules to cut down on the liquid feeding required. With a little care and dead heading, they will flower through the summer. I have quite a few Primula auriculas and these are doing well in a collection of terracotta pots, but have almost finished flowering now. I like to replace their gritty compost every couple of years to prevent Vine Weevil grubs attacking the roots; Primulas are a particular favourite of these annoying pests!

The Clematis that I pruned back in February are all shooting away again and I am now on the warpath against slugs and snails with my organic slug pellets. A small amount of rain brings them out in force!

The Hardest Working Greenhouse

The Hardest Working Greenhouse has been written by Helen Johnstone on behalf on Notcutts. Helen runs a blog called The Patient Gardner where she records and shares her endeavours and inspirations that have shaped her life in and outside the house.

I sometimes think that my greenhouse must be the hardest working greenhouse in the country.  It is only small (4ft x 6ft) but it is full to the gunnels all year round.

In the spring, at the start of the growing season, there are pots and trays of seeds and seedlings on the staging which runs on both sides of the greenhouse.  Under the staging lurk pelargoniums, dahlias and watsonias waiting for the weather to be warm enough for them to go outside.  As the season progresses and the weather warms up the seed trays make way for tomatoes and cucumbers.  I remove one set of staging and generally squeeze in 3 or 4 tomato plants in the gap.  I also had two cucumber plants in there last year as well as pots of cuttings and late sown seeds.  Come Autumn and the tender perennials are itching to get back in to the greenhouse before the coldness of winter sets in.  The tomatoes and cucumbers are evicted to the compost heap, the greenhouse given a wash and clean up and preparations made for winter.  By Christmas the greenhouse is full again with tender perennials, succulents, pots of cuttings and there is only just room to squeeze in my potted Bottlebrush bush.

I keep the greenhouse frost free with a simple thermostatically controlled electric heater.  As my greenhouse is sited close to the house I am lucky to have electricity running to it.  I have never bothered to insulate the greenhouse with bubble wrap. Partly because I think this will cause too much condensation especially given the smallness of my greenhouse and this leads to grey mould but probably the real reason is that I just can’t be doing with all that fiddling around securing bubble wrap.  Even in the recent two very cold winters I didn’t lose anything and my electricity bill didn’t rocket. 

I don’t use greenhouse shading any more either as whenever I have painted it on a drastic change of weather follows and we have a cold and damp summer!  These days I tend to provide shading on hot days by throwing over some of those bamboo beach mats that we all buy on holiday.   It seems to work quite well.

Being a small greenhouse I also don’t have any vents so any ventilation is dependent on the door.  Working full time I have to make a decision at the start of the day whether to leave it open or shut.  Again, I haven’t experienced any real problems with this.  I usually leave a couple of watering cans full of water in the greenhouse to help with humidity and also pour water on gravel floor which also helps.

When I got my greenhouse I was initially obsessed with how I was meant to do things reading lots of books but I have realised that it isn’t that complicated and, as with all gardening, if you trust your instincts you will probably be alright.

Having a greenhouse has widened my horticultural experience.  I can now grow lots of plants I couldn’t or struggled to before and each year I find myself experimenting with growing something that little bit different – this year I’m trying Bird of Paradise seeds.

By Helen Johnstone of The Patient Gardener