Somerset Country Gardener Winter 2018

Gardening events

throughout Somerset

The secrets of great composting

Christmas cooking from the garden

Growing and eating artichokes

Somerset www.countrygardener.co.uk

ISSUE NO 162 WINTER 2018 FREE

Colour, style and interest in the WINTER GARDEN

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Up Front!

OUR HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GARDENING CALENDAR OVER THE COMING WEEKS IN SOMERSET

Somerset Poppies at Wells

The Somerset Poppies is a public installation of artificial poppies, displayed at The Bishop’s Palace, Wells in November. It will feature 8000 poppies made by children at schools in and around Wells. Each poppy will represent a serviceman from Somerset, or who served in a Somerset regiment, who lost his life in World War One. This collaborative art piece will commemorate 100 years 8,000 poppies will be on display since the end of the conflict.

Poppies can be pre-ordered for £5 at www.somersetpoppies.co.uk All proceeds will be donated to the Wells branch of the Royal British Legion, and SSAFA, the armed forces charity.

There is a preview event on 10th November (6pm - 7pm), the poppies will be displayed under floodlights with children from local choirs singing songs from the First World War. Tickets cost £15 and only 100 are available at The Bishop’s Palace Shop.

The exhibition, which runs from Sunday, 11th November for two weeks is free, on the Croquet Lawn, beginning with the ceremonial planting of the final poppy at 11am on 11th November.

Looking forward to Somerset Potato Days It’s not too long to wait now for the popular Somerset Potato Days – the series of potato buying themed days organised by Pennard Plants. It’s the twelfth year the Somerset nursery have been organising the days and as well as a huge range of seed potatoes you’ll be able to buy onion sets, shallots and garlic bulbs and more.

There are four Somerset events in January and February.

Bristol Potato Day and Seed Fair, Sunday, January 13th.

Windmill Hill City Farm, Philip St, Bedminster BS3 4EA. 10am to 1pm.

“I prefer winter when you feel the bone structure in the landscape - the loneliness of it - the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it - the whole story doesn’t show.” - Andrew Wyeth “From December to March, there are for many of us three gardens - the garden outdoors, the garden of pots and bowls in the house, and the garden of the mind’s eye.” - Katherine S. White

Lecture probes the development of apple varieties Bristol Botanic Gardens hosts an insight into the structure of apple varieties on Thursday, November 15th.

Dr Matthew Ordidge , Scientific Curator at the famous National Fruit Collections in Brogdale , Kent will discuss the work by the University of Reading with apple collections and how genetic fingerprinting is used to compare and develop apple varieties.

This lecture, organised by the Friends of the University of Bristol Botanic Garden will be held at the Frank Theatre, Wills Physics Laboratory, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TL. The lecture starts at 7.30pm and is free to Friends. Visitors will be asked for a donation (suggested £5).

JAN WALTERS HEAD UP WREATH MAKING WORKSHOPS Popular florist and organic cut flowers specialist Jan Walters is running a Christmas wreath making workshop at Hestercombe Gardens on Saturday, 1st December from 9.30 to 12.30. Jan, from JW Blooms just outside Wellington, will be using lots of fresh foliage. It is one of a series of six wreath making events and costs £35.

Hestercombe Gardens Cheddon Fitzpaine, Taunton.

Somerset Potato Day, Sunday 20th January. Crayford Community Hall, Maggs Lane, Ansford, Castle Cary BA7 7JJ. 10.30am to 1.30pm.

Williton Potato Day, Sunday, 17th January. Williton Pavilion, Williton Recreational Ground, Robert St, Williton TA4 4PG. 10.30am to 1.30pm.

Growing Frome Potato Day and Seed Swap, Sunday 24th February. The Cheese & Grain, Market Yard, Justice Lane, Frome BA11 1BE. 101m to 3pm.

Further details on all the potato days on www.pennardplants.com

The March issue of Country Gardener will be available from Saturday, 23rd February 2019 www.countrygardener.co.uk

3

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A LOOK AT NEWS, EVENTS AND HAPPENINGS IN SOMERSET

Grant secures long term future of Hestercombe Garden The restoration of the unique Hestercombe Gardens near Taunton is a major step closer thanks to a ÂŁ1.5million grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund.

The grant means the Hestercombe Gardens Trust can buy land totalling 320 acres, reuniting landscape, gardens and buildings.

What makes Hestercombe Gardens so important is it combines four complete period gardens spanning four centuries of garden design.

The newly acquired land includes the site of a rare, early 17th century water garden which it is planned to restore together with other historic features within the park.

Planted to its original design, Hestercombe’s formal garden is considered the finest example of the collaboration between garden designer Gertrude Jekyll and architect Edwin Lutyens.

The purchase also allows for the possibility of extending the contemporary art gallery in the house to include outside spaces for the display of art.

The Hestercombe estate was sold to The Crown Estate by

Hestercombe Gardens Trust can now re-unite landscape, buildings and garden

the Portman family in 1944. In 1961 The Crown felled all the eighteenth century designed landscape, parkland and woodland for its timber value. This process also drained the lakes and destroyed a number of garden buildings. The statuary from the Lutyens garden was sold off and the Georgian landscape and surrounding woodland were replanted as commercial forestry.

In 1953 Somerset County Council rented Hestercombe House from The Crown to provide a headquarters for Somerset County Fire Brigade. In 1973 Somerset County Council began the restoration of the gardens.

Country Gardener will be back in February

Forde Abbey’s Christmas Illuminated Trail Christmas in the gardens of Forde Abbey on the Somerset and Dorset border is a magical time of year, and this December you can join in the spirit of the season with an illuminated trail around the gardens.

After dark, the long borders will be lit, illuminating the champion trees and casting a shine over Forde Abbey.

Inside, there will be carols, mulled wine and seasonal treats to sample.

Father Christmas will also be on site on Saturday, 15th and Sunday, 16th December with a sackful of gifts. The gardens will be illuminated from Thursday, 13th December through to Thursday, 20th December daily from 3.30pm to 6.30pm. Normal admission prices apply.

Forde Abbey, Chard, Somerset, TA20 4LU. www.countrygardener.co.uk

Country Gardener will be back for a new gardening season with the March issue of the magazine which you should be able to pick up from Saturday, February 23rd so please make sure you look out for it.

Thanks also to the literally thousands of readers who took part in the Country Gardener Readership Survey in the September issue of the magazine. Your views help us to keep making sure we are supplying the magazine you want to read which helps you with your gardening knowledge and enjoyment.

The five winners in the draw to win Niwaki garden secateurs were: Mrs Allison Darby, from Williton; John Orton, from Exeter; Mrs Angela Davies from Poole; Malcolm Taylor from Romsey and Miss Anna Woodbine from Moretonin-Marsh.

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GARDENERS’ CUTTINGS IN SOMERSET

Somerset Wildlife Trust helps protect Mendips trees under threat

The seed bank will secure Mendip trees now under threat

Somerset Wildlife Trust is collecting seeds from a variety of trees across its Mendip reserves as part of a national project to protect the UK’s trees by creating a huge tree seed bank. The trust is part of the UK National Tree Seed Project, which has been set up by Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank, and made possible with funding from players of People’s Postcode Lottery.

Tree seeds collected as part of the project – and those collected next year - will be banked in the underground vaults of Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank – forming the UK’s first national collection of tree seeds. These seeds can then play a vital role in conservation work to protect UK trees and woodlands. The collections, and associated data, will be available to researchers working on solutions to tackle the many threats facing woodlands.

Deck the Halls at the Bishop’s Palace, Wells A Winter Flower Festival showcasing the National Association of Flower Arranging Societies South West Area competitions takes place at the Bishop’s Palace in Wells from Friday, 7th until Sunday, 9th December, when visitors will be treated to elaborate floral displays, the largest of which will be up to two metres high, in a variety of themes from pantomime to ‘A Christmas Carol.’

There will also be an opportunity to watch skilled florists giving hands-on demonstrations with top tips for amateur florists. Each day will run from 10am to 4pm, as part of the ‘Christmas at the Palace’ event. The festival will include a photography competition with classes open to both adults and children.

The rest of the palace will also be decorated in a variety of styles, and hand-made Victorian style decorations, many sourced from the palace gardens.

The Bishop’s Palace and Gardens, Wells, BA5 2PD. www.bishopspalace.org.uk 6

A celebration event at Brympton House saw a cheque for £16,600 given

to the hospice

Could you open your garden for St Margaret’s Hospice?

St. Margaret’s Hospice, the Somerset charity, wants to hear from anyone who would like to open their garden, allotment, orchard or farm next year, or to offer help as a garden volunteer.

Susan Bickle, the scheme co-ordinator, said: ”There are many ways to support the scheme, even if you are unable to open a garden, such as having a plant sale, serving refreshments at your local flower show, or having a scarecrow trail in your village.”

A celebration event at Brympton House, near Yeovil, was organised to thank the Somerset gardeners who opened their gardens, allotments and farms this summer to raise £16,600 for the hospice.

Marisa Lovell-Fox, head of fundraising at St. Margaret’s Hospice, said: “We are humbled by the generosity of the garden owners in the Somerset and Sherborne community, who have so kindly allowed people to share their beautiful gardens, while raising essential funds needed to keep our services free and accessible to local people. We have been overwhelmed by the donations received this season.”

Susan Bickle, the scheme coordinator, added: “We had an amazing response to our Open Gardens season this year, with a variety of different visits available, from small courtyard gardens to large woodland and lakes, with allotments and farms in between. Last year St. Margaret’s cared for 3,200 people -the majority of people are cared for in their own homes.

If you would like to be part the Open Gardens scheme contact Susan Bickle on 01935 709182 or 07736 886145 or by email on susan.bickle@st-margarets-hospice.org.uk.

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7

Natural dyes - colour all around you Caroline Bawn from Cornwall based Gorgeous Yarns specialises in natural yarns, including hand dyed varieties and here she shares the secret of finding and using natural colourings Throughout history, since weaving textiles became common, people have used natural dyes to create colourful garments.

People in medieval times would not have worn the dull browns we might think, but a range of subtle green, brown, yellows and oranges, all from foraged plants, berries, leaves and bark.

The most rare, difficult to obtain and process colours, like purple for royalty, were reserved for the wealthy and reflected the wearer’s status. At this time in history, most woven fabrics were woollen or linen/flax and it is only later that cottons and silks became available.

“The first khaki uniforms were wool dyed with stinging nettles for the First World War” The process for dyeing onto animal fibres is different to dyeing on plant fibres, and trial and error would have taught what worked best, often with stale and pungent urine as a fixative.

Fortunately we can now use mineral salt fixatives for our natural dyes.

Most natural dyes need this fixative or ‘mordant’ (from the Old French, Morder, to grip) as this helps the dye colour literally grip the fibre and remain fairly colourfast. Some dyes have their own built in mordant, especially barks and tree dye stuffs like oak galls and acorns.

Natural dyes, of course have no harsh petro-chemicals in them and so are ideal if you are dyeing fabric or fibre to make something for someone with sensitive skin. It’s also a positive choice to reduce your carbon footprint, enjoy nature’s bounty and create something special and unique.

The colour palette natural dyes give you are generally soft and subtle, and surprising colours go well together, for example mustard yellow of Rhubarb root (Rheum rhabarbarum) and rich rust of madder roots. (Rubia 8

tinctorum). Interestingly, lots of plants which have been used for centuries to dye with have tinctorum as part of their Latin name.

Each season, the garden and hedgerows give us a foraging and harvesting opportunity, and many will continue to give colour throughout the season. Early stinging nettle leaves give a pale greenish yellow, but as the summer comes and goes, the colour darkens, and by the autumn, the colour is more of a khaki.

In fact, the first khaki uniforms were wool dyed with stinging nettles for the First World War. So many uniforms needed, and not enough red dye which was traditionally used for British uniforms.

Spring gives us gorse flowers, bracken fronds, daffodils, and young comfrey leaves. A favourite of mine is Dyer’s chamomile (Cota tinctoria) which gives a reliable and stable yellow and can be overdyed to give other shades, such a lime green with weak copper solution.

Summer brings a riot of colour from flowers in the garden, hedgerow horse parsley, (Smyrnium olastratum) hawthorn berries, (Crataegus monogyna) rose hips (Rosa canina) and elderberries (Sambucus nigra) to name a few.

The gentle colour changes in nature around us in Chamomile dye flowers autumn are reflected in the gentler dye shades you can obtain. Alder cones, (Alnus glutinosa) acorns and oak galls, (Quercus robur) willow (Salix alba) and copper beech (Fagus sylvatica purpurea) all give beautiful tones of honey, beige, brown and grey.

In the winter, after a storm, lichen can be collected, but

Country Gardener

ONLY from fallen wood/twigs, and only in small quanities. I have never had any success with getting the lilac pinks you can get from lichen, so my advice would be don’t bother.

Lichens are endangered so best left alone on the forest floor.

The winter is the time to use the dye colours you have grown and harvested, like madder which grows like a weed in my garden. (Rubia Tinctorum) This year has been a great year from drying dye stuffs Early season stinging nettles naturally in give a pale greenish colour the sun, but the can be successfully dried in paper bags, hung up in a dry shed or outhouse.

Kitchen ingredients like onion skins and tea can be used to dye with too, that’s an article for another day.

Collect dye stuffs when they are dry, so that no mould will develop and either use them immediately, or dye then for later use. Generally, you will need 200 per-cent dye plant to fabric/fibre weight if using fresh, and 100 per-cent if using dry dye stuff. The mordant you use with your dye stuff will depend on what fabric/fibre you are using.

Once the fabric/fibre has been mordanted, the colour is “extracted” from the dye stuff, often by gently heating to make an infusion. Some dyestuffs, like acorns, oak galls and alder cones are better crushed; madder, nettles and rhubarb roots need to be chopped, and some flowers like daffodils need to be pulled away from the calyx before infusion. They all need to be strained as all those bits in your wool fibre is a nightmare.

Once you have the dye liquid, you are ready to go. Only use a pan which will not be used to cook in again. Dyes are pH

reactive, so stainless steel is best, aluminium can change the colour you expect. Even the pH of your water will make a difference, especially if you use spring or rain water.

Dye your fibre gently, particularly wool which can shrink and felt in the pan, and once you are happy with the intensity of colour and/or it is not getting darker, remove your fabric/fibre, leave to cool, then wash in cool water until no further colour comes out. Dye gently in the air, out of the sun. Hand dyed yarns and fabrics like this will not have an even, solid colour, that’s normal and part of their beauty.

You may notice there is still colour left in your pan. That’s because some dyestuffs are more generous than others and will give more colour. You can try dying another batch with this “exhaust” dye; the colour will be tonal but paler. I have managed to get 600g dyed Polwarth wool from 100g dried rhubarb root using the exhaust.

Colours can be modified by changing the pH of the solution in the dye pan, try adding vinegar or bicarbonate of soda to blackberry or red cabbage dye to change the colour more red or purple. Copper and iron modifiers are often used too, and oak galls can ‘sadden’ a colour and reduce it’s brightness.

Most of all, enjoy the colours of nature and the beauty they give us.

Now do you want to have a go?

If this has interested you and you would like a go for yourself, Gorgeous Yarns sell DIY dye kits which have everything you need, perfect to have a go or give as a gift. www.gorgeousyarns.co.uk and www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ GorgeousYarns for luxury yarns, dye kits and naturally hand dyed yarns.

Further Reading: I can recommend The Wild Dyer by Abigail Booth and Wild Colour by Jenny Dean.

Useful Websites: www.jennydean.co.uk and www.fieryfelts.co.uk

When foraging natural dye plants, follow the common sense rules; • Only pick what you need, and no more • Don’t strip one plant of dye stuff, spread your foraging • Get any permission from the land owner to harvest what you need • Be very sure of what you are harvesting, and if necessary wear protective gloves and use secateurs • Don’t put yourself at risk by climbing up trees or foraging on main roads • If in doubt, don’t pick. (That’s why I never use fungi to dye with, I’m not sure what I’m picking and don’t want to poison myself.)

9

Warming winter colour

The winter garden can often feel a little sparse, with only a few plants still flourishing in the colder months but there ways of keeping colour in the garden Colour doesn’t have to fade away as autumn dips into winter– some plants come up trumps when the temperature drops.

Interest in the depths of winter is there to be enjoyed if you make the effort. It may come from flowers, scent, berries, coloured stems or dramatic evergreen foliage. Plants with fragrance are best appreciated when planted by doorways or entrances in regular winter use.

Many plants with winter interest are scented, most are shade tolerant, and some are adaptable to life in containers so can be moved in and out of the limelight according to the season. The sight and scent of these valuable plants can cheer up a dull time of the year.

Hellebores produce a mass of beautiful white blooms in late winter, fading to a softer shade of pink, perfect for north or east facing patios, creating a calming outdoor atmosphere for entertaining.

Here are some specific winter colour selections.

White forsythia, Abeliophyllum distichum is the most elegant of winter plants – white, scented stars on bare branches between January and March. It should ideally be grown against a sheltered, south-facing wall, flanked by evergreens.

Viburnum Tinus ‘Gwenllian’ is a compact shrub that most gardeners will be able to find a home for, and it’s well worth it for its winter value. From red buds in early winter come white flowers later in the cold season and finally blue almost metallic looking berries.

Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Pallida’ (witch hazel) has bright yellow strands that promise to stand out against the usual grey hues of the winter garden.

Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’ has multi-coloured stems which give consistent bright colour from November to March.

10

Barmy and beautiful, Corylus avellana ‘Red Majestic’ charms all year. In winter its curly branches are on show and it is bejewelled with pink catkins, followed by purple leaves in spring and red nuts in summer.

Squill ‘Tubergeniana’ Dainty ice-blue flowers between January and March. Scilla mischtschenkoana’Tubergeniana’ is breathtaking mixed with snowdrops and planted in carpets beneath deciduous trees. .

Christmas camellia Camellia x vernalis ‘Yuletide’ is usually in flower on Christmas Day in appropriately festive colours – the scarlet and gold flowers are scented. It likes a sheltered, warm site in neutral to acidic soil. Plant a ring of red and yellow adonis around it.

Container pot

colour

Containers plante d up with a selec tion of foliage and flowers can br ighten up a patio or balcony, giving colour and interest over the co ld season.

Choose the bigges t container you ca n find space for, and make su re it’s frost proof.

The larger volume of soil w ill give more resis tance against extremes of cold .

Use classics like w inte add height with sh r pansies for deep colour and rubs that give a go od winter effect too. Consid er dogwood for its beautiful stems.

Images clockwise from top left: White forsythia Abeliophyllum distichum; Camellia x vernalis ‘Yuletide’; Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’; Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Pallida’; Viburnum Tinus ‘Gwenllian’

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11

Autumn

- the perfect time to get composting

Nicky Scott’s expertise in waste composting solutions has led him to be known as ‘Dr Compost’. Here he sets out what every gardener needs to know about creating their own garden compost Illustrations by Bob Gale

There is nothing quite as satisfying as plunging your hands into a pile of freshly sieved, homemade, mature compost.

Knowing that it derives from that bucketful of peelings, tea bags and coffee grounds mixed with hedge trimmings, weeds and other general garden stuff is pretty miraculous.

The alchemy of combining materials full of water, all those peelings and grass cuttings, with those full of air, those tough plant stems, twigs and so on create the ideal environment for the microbial life to flourish and generate that steamy heat, a bacterial bonfire, is always exciting.

Completing the cycle of the elements by creating earth, or at least, providing humus and life back to the soil, is a rich, rewarding experience.

I had the great fortune to have as a teacher the late and great Dick Kitto, who was the owner of ‘Powling’s Compost’.

He collected all the organic matter he could locally including, fruit and vegetable waste from Totnes shops and market, and even the blood and hair from the bacon factory.

This was all mixed up in huge steaming piles with spent mushroom compost.

In fact when you bought a bag of compost you were likely to get mushrooms popping up in your window box. I was paid a pittance to bag up the compost but it 12

certainly taught me not to waste anything compostable.

Being a ‘no-dig’ gardener I always want plenty of organic matter to mulch and compost, and I rarely have a problem finding what I need as there are so many people that want to rid themselves of it. We started a community composting project in Chagford on Dartmoor over twenty years ago, in the early 90’s, based on the amount of lovely compostable garden clippings being put in council skips every month in our town.

This project, ‘Proper Job’ is now a thriving Re-use, compost and recycling site, with a café, and now a reuse/upcycled shop in the town centre.

Community Composting can act as a kind of social ‘glue’ bringing people together socially and with economic benefits with so many environmental benefits. Instead of wastefully disposing we can compost building healthy soils, growing healthy plants and people.

Being a compost obsessive got me thinking about the wastage of all kinds; especially food waste. We are told to exclude food waste from our compost because of the horrors of rats, flies and smell. It is true you have to be careful but there are many ways of solving these challenges from secure ‘in-vessel’ tumbling or turning bins to using fermentation systems called ‘Bokashi’ or E.M. (effective microorganisms).

I have helped install over a hundred systems in schools, mostly in Devon and it all saves on wasteful disposal, instead creating wonderful compost.

Composting and mulching are really simple techniques and have the bonus of also controlling weeds.

A layer of flattened out cardboard boxes covered with sheets of newspaper and then layered with different organic materials, ‘greens’ such as grass cuttings or cut down plants and ‘browns’, like chippings or straw make a great barrier

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Composting - the key points PICK THE PERFECT SPOT It’s best to site it on a level, welldrained spot. This helps worms to get in and get on with the job of breaking down the content.

PUT THE RIGHT STUFF IN Good things to compost include vegetable peelings, fruit waste, teabags, plant prunings and grass cuttings. These are fast to break down and provide important nitrogen as well as moisture. It’s also good to include things such as cardboard egg boxes, scrunched up paper and fallen leaves.

These are slower to rot but provide vital fibre and carbon and also allow important air pockets to form in the mixture.

Crushed eggshells can be included to add useful minerals.

DON’T PUT THE WRONG STUFF IN mulch against grass and most weeds, leaving the field clear for the plants you want to grow, just look up ‘Lasagna gardening’ on the web to find out more on this.

So much can be written about compost that I have already written three books which I hope you will be inspired to search out, see www.dccn.org.uk My simple message is; be mindful of your materials.

By this I mean think about how they will be for the multitudes of microscopic organisms that will feed on them from bacteria, actinomycetes, fungi, and the vast web of life that a compost heap contains, springtails, mites, woodlice, millipedes, centipedes and so on.

All of the life in the compost heap needs air, water and warmth.

A large heap, a metre cubed or more, can contain the heat that the composting process generates. All those creatures multiplying, especially the bacteria, which can grow exponentially, meaning one colony can become over eight million in 24 hours, all that life gives off heat.

As long as there is sufficient air and water.

So you must mix those tougher, often hollow plant stems, wood chips, sawdust, twiggy stuff etc with the fresh soft, water laden material roughly half and half. Save up the tougher drier material and layer it with the fresh arisings.

It’s really very simple and it’s so satisfying to create your own compost.

Nicky Scott is co-coordinator of Devon Community Composting Network and Director of Proper Job one of the UK’s first community reuse centres. He is also chair of Growing Devon Schools partnership and a lecturer and author of a series of books on composting.

Certain things should never be placed in your bin. No meat or dairy products. No diseased plants, and definitely no dog poo or cat litter, or babies’ nappies. Putting any of these in your compost will lead to unwanted pests and smells. Also avoid composting perennial weeds (such as dandelions and thistle) or weeds with seed heads.

GET THE BALANCE RIGHT The key to good compost lies in getting the mix right. You need to keep your ‘greens’ and ‘browns’ properly balanced.

If your compost is too wet, add more ‘browns’. If it’s too dry, add some ‘greens’. Making sure there is enough air in the mixture is also important. Adding scrunched up bits of cardboard is a simple way to create air pockets that will help keep your compost healthy. Air can also be added by mixing the contents.

GIVE IT A GOOD AIRING A well-cared-for compost heap requires regular turning, which can be a tricky job without the right tools. Turning your compost helps to aerate and mix up the waste and cuttings, which leads to faster composting.

GETTING THE BEST OUT OF YOUR COMPOST When your compost is ready you’ll have a dark brown, almost black soil-like layer at the bottom of your bin. It should have a spongy texture and will be rich in nutrients. Spreading the finished compost into your flowerbeds greatly improves soil quality by helping it retain moisture and suppressing weeds. It also reduces the need to use chemical fertilisers and pesticides.

13

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Houseplants in your bedroom?

A new survey reveals that more of us are introducing plants into the bedroom to brighten the room -and more importantly to help us sleep!

You may not feel that having plants in your bedroom is a great way of improving sleep but the fact is, having vegetation in your sleeping space can and does improve the quality of your sleep. While any plant displayed in your bedroom will brighten the indoor environment, the key is to use the right plants to create a calm, and tranquil room.

Bamboo Palm

The bamboo palm or reed palm is one that acts as an air freshener by absorbing odors and toxins. It is easy to propagate and grow.

Palms have long been used for their versatility and their ability to bring a tropical flair to any space. Bamboo palms are no exception. These tend to be some of the most common palms grown, especially for the indoors because they are proven to filter the air in your home.

This genus has more than 100 species to choose from. Most have lovely green foliage born on the typical pinnate leaves.

A few varieties have smaller leaflets, and some have fused leaflets. Regardless of leaf size, most bamboo palms tend to stay fairly small.

Container bamboo palms also like to have some room to grow, so if they look cramped in their current pot, consider bumping them up a container size. While bamboo palms like to be fed, don’t go overboard when fertilising them. The easiest and safest route is to apply a slow-release fertiliser every three months.

To keep your plant looking its best, keep your bedroom around 20°C during the day and no lower than 15°C at night.

Jasmine Vine

As some studies have shown, the smell of jasmine vine bloom can reduce anxiety. This in turn will reduce stress and improve sleep.

There are several varieties of jasmine that can live happily indoors as a houseplant, although by far the most popular is Jasminum polyanthum.

A vigorous climber which bears numerous star shaped small

flowers that easily mislead because every flower, although tiny, packs an almighty punch to the nose. With just a few of these tiny Jasmine flowers open they can fill a room with their glorious, pungent and delicious heady, slightly sickly scent. You will never ever forget the smell and associations of jasmine once smelt, and it’s a delight in the bedroom.

Peace Lily

The peace lily is a superstar when it comes to enhancing the indoor environment. The blooms increase the humidity in a room by up to five percent. It also is known to kill airborne microbes and removes toxins in the air.

This is why the peace lily is one of those plants that you really need in your bedroom.

Whether you propagate your peace lily or you purchase one, you will need to move to a shady location.

Exposure too much sunlight can burn the leaves and will not encourage the plant to bloom. Also, you will need to keep the soil evenly moist. Feed your plant with a balanced fertiliser every six to eight weeks.

English ivy

English ivy is another superstar when it comes to purifying the air. It needs a bright light but not direct sunlight. It does well under fluorescent lights that are found in bedrooms. A study found that English ivy reduces airborne fecal-matter particles. It has also been shown to filter out formaldehyde found in some household cleaning products.

To keep the plant looking its best, mist your plant often or place the potted plant on a humidity tray. When it comes to feeding, only give your English ivy a dose of high nitrogen fertiliser during the spring and summer months.

While there is are no guarantees that these plants will get you to sleep, they will improve the air quality in any room they are displayed in. Besides, having these beauties in your sight when you go to sleep and wake up will put a smile on your face.

www.countrygardener.co.uk

15

HURDLING TO POPULARITY!

Traditional hazel fencing – or ‘wattle hurdles’ as they are properly known – is now more popular than ever.

They are a beautiful hand-made alternative in the garden to mass-produced fence panels.

Hurdles are woven wooden fence panels made from coppiced hazel or willow. They were traditionally used as moveable agricultural fencing, especially for sheep on chalk downlands, and much of the surviving workable hazel coppice is situated close to those downlands – in Dorset, Hampshire, Surrey and Sussex. Young trees are cut back to ground level in a regular cycle, the length of which depends on the species. Many shoots will reappear from one stump, providing a lot of new material in a relatively short time.

Hurdles have traditionally had two main uses for the sheep farmer.

Firstly, they were used to make lambing pens. Four hurdles make a quick, easy pen to keep a ewe and her lambs out of the worst of the weather, and to keep them close together so that they can bond properly. Secondly, they were used to make larger pens to contain sheep at night on arable land.

The old agricultural uses have now gone, and farmers don’t tend to buy or make them these days, but use metal hurdles instead. Traditional hurdles are still used by smallholders but over the past few years their popularity in gardens has increased enormously as windbreaks or rustic fencing.

Hurdle-making is a great skill to learn using locally-produced, natural materials. But you can’t make hurdles without coppicing, and it’s the production of the raw materials for hurdles via coppicing which has the most environmental benefits.

Hazel is arguably sturdier but willow may last longer. Both are natural products and will have a finite life but this can be enhanced by suitable treatment. The traditional method is linseed oil diluted in turpentine, but any suitable ‘off-theshelf’ wood preserver will help. The life of the hurdle will also be increased if it is lifted above ground level to allow an air passage underneath.

These hurdles make brilliant wind breaks as the weave of the hurdle lets a small amount of wind filter through thus reducing the vortex effect that would be caused by a solid barrier.

Depending on the level of exposure to wind and how well they are secured in place, they can be expected to last up to 10 years. They will age gracefully while maintaining sturdiness.

Hazel and willow fencing are coppiced. This means that branches are cut only from new growth. The purpose is twofold: to ensure that the branches or ‘wands’ are flexible and of reasonably uniform thickness, and to allow more growth for next year. Methods used today are the same as thousands of years ago when local farmers cut what they needed for this year’s fencing, safe in the knowledge that more would grow back for next year if required.

If you’re making your own hurdles, your biggest problem is likely to be sourcing the raw materials – often a stumbling block with old crafts. Most coppice in the UK is in a band along the south and west of England, so it will be much easier to get coppiced rods there. You could contact your local Wildlife Trust or other conservation organisation to see if they do any coppicing for habitat management.

MAKING YOUR OWN HURDLES

1. how to split hazel rods – commonly done with a hooknosed billhook

The use of hurdles in gardens is now hugely popular as either an alternative garden fence, an effective wind break or to section off parts of the garden

If you decide that you want to make your own hurdles the way to start is to attend a course. It’s physically hard work, so it’s great exercise (the part that most course participants find hardest is putting the ‘twist’ in, which is a tricky technique and physically demanding). There are three key things to learn: 16

2. how to put the twist in, so that the rod can turn back on itself at the edge of the hurdle, which prevents it from falling apart 3. how to start off and finish the hurdles; i.e. the specific sequences at the beginning and the end Useful websites: www.forestcrafts.co.uk - hurdle making in Okehampton, Devon www.windrush willow.com near Exeter www.drst.org/pg/skills www.dorsetcoppicegroup.co.uk www.heritagecrafts.org.uk

Country Gardener

Mark Hinsley

MSc.Res.Man.(Arb), OND (Arb), F.Arbor.A

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17

The amazing artichoke Architectually beautiful and underated in the kitchen

Elizabeth McCorquodale raves about the architecturally beautiful plant which provides a delicious, fun to eat and exotic vegetable in the kitchen Artichokes are wonderful plants; statuesque and stunningly beautiful when they are in flower, a magnet for bees, hoverflies and other pollinating insects, tough and hardy and of course absolutely delicious into the bargain.

Because of this litany of virtues it is often assumed that they must be difficult to grow, and it is widely accepted that they are an exotic in the kitchen as well. In reality they are neither demanding in the garden or in the kitchen.

They can be disappointing if you begin with the wrong variety or if you treat them with too much respect in the kitchen, but with the right variety and an understanding that they need far more cooking than any other vegetable they will reward you with the most exquisite of flavours and a stunning display year after year.

This venerable vegetable is a thistle, and the part that is eaten is the immature flower bud. When small, the bud can be eaten whole or they can be left to mature on the plant until they are four or five inches across when only the fleshy part of the leaves and the base of the bud at the top of the stem is used.

Artichokes and their close relatives, cardoons, have been popular vegetables for hundreds of years. In Britain they were one of the many plants prized by King Henry VIII for their supposed aphrodisiac qualities and, by the time seed was being sent over to the new colonies in the Americas by the famous 18

gardener Miller and his cronies the popular variety ‘Green Globe’ was already in existence.

Artichokes are equally at home in the flower garden and in a traditional veg plot, though my favourite place for a group of artichokes is growing, as if by accident, out of a gravel path or patio where their architectural beauty can be fully appreciated.

Despite their exotic appearance they are very easy plants to grow.

They like full sun and a moisture retentive soil in summer, and excellent Artichokes are equally at home in the flower garden or veg plot drainage in winter. If you are in a particularly cold spot, the crowns can be covered with layers of straw over the colder months. Feed and water them as you would any permanent crop to keep them healthy and productive.

Country Gardener

After four or five years, when they are coming to the end of their productive life, simply peel off some side shoots from the base of the plants and start all over again. You should get your first good crop in the second year from planting.

There are more than 50 varieties of artichoke in cultivation around the world but the real work horse, and the one that you will find in most garden centres, is the ubiquitous ‘Green Globe’. It is, however, a variable variety ranging from terrific to just okay but as artichokes grow so easily from seed, an average packet of ‘Green Globe’ seeds will give you upwards of 50 plants and a good proportion of those will produce really good artichokes.

If you have the space, this may be the way to go. There are, however, more reliable varieties to choose from; ‘Green Globe’ Improved and ‘Tavor’ are more uniform versions of the original and are more likely to produce a reliable bud. Some of the prettiest artichokes are the pointy, purple headed varieties, also grown from seed and so well bred that they come close-to-true each time. One of the best is ‘Violet de Chioggia’ (also called ‘Violet de Provence’) and another, ‘Romanesco’, while ‘Violetta Di Romagna’, ‘Violet Globe’ and ‘Purple Globe’ are all beautiful and delicious. ‘Gros de Laon’ is grown especially for its large heart.

Whichever you grow there are a couple of things to watch out for. Aphids in all their forms like artichokes and they are often guarded by a colony of ants who will defend their aphid partners with vigour. The easiest way to deal with this pest is to wipe away the aphids - and any intrepid attendant ants - with gloved hands or by directing a strong jet of water at them to dislodge them. Persist with this method until the crop is clean.

A lady bird poses on the artichoke

Lettuce root aphid can also be a problem in some gardens.

Deal with this one by checking any new plants and harvested side shoots before planting for signs of the bugs clustered around the roots and rinse them off with water or an organic fatty acid/soft soap spray. If you have some very precious plants that are worth trying to save, dig them up, destroy any aphids still in the soil (with a soil drench or the judicious use of a flame gun) and rinse the roots to remove any sign of the infestation, then plant them in a new position.

Plants that have had their roots washed can take a while to recover so cut the plant back hard (leaves and all) and mollycoddle it until it has recovered.

Cooking the Gourmet Thistle For the uninitiated, large, whole artichokes are eaten by peeling off the bracts (scales) one at a time and, holding them by the pointy end, scraping the soft, delicious flesh from the bottom of the scale with your teeth, then discarding the remains on the side of your plate. It is a much more delicate operation than it sounds! When you reach the middle of the mature artichoke you will encounter the fibrous ‘choke’, which is discarded, but at the bottom of which is the real prize, the heart of the bud.

This can be eaten whole, dressed with melted butter.

To prepare your artichokes, cut the bud from the plant with a few inches of stem. Soak the whole artichoke in well salted water to remove any insects that may be lurking among the scales, then dry upside down in a colander or dish drainer. Trim off any sharp spines and peel the tough outer layer from the stalk. Rub any cut or peeled surfaces with lemon juice to stop discolouration.

By far the easiest way to cook artichokes is to pick them young and cook them whole. Very small artichokes can be steamed, but larger specimens will need boiling. Add a good squeeze of lemon juice (to stop them fading as they cook) a large pinch of salt to a large pan of boiling water.

Keep the heads submersed by laying a plate over buds to stop them bobbing above the water. Young artichokes will take about 20 to 25 minutes to cook, while large specimens (four to five inches across) will take 40 to 45 minutes. Test for tenderness by inserting a skewer in the thickest part of the bud and peel a scale from the bottom of the bud - it should come away easily. When cooked through, remove the artichokes from the water and drain the heads upside down, covered to retain the heat, until they are dry and then pile them on a hot plate in the centre of the table.

Serve them with bowls of melted butter and finger bowls and plenty of napkins to mop up the drips.

For a something a little more exotic you can char your artichokes in the embers of a BBQ, soak small cooked and dried heads, or the tender heart of larger buds, in flavoured oils or roast par-boiled artichokes in the oven with plenty of oil and a sprinkling of herbs.

Delicious!

19

WINTER WALKING Gardens can be wonderfully dramatic and beautiful in winter, when it can be a delight to head outside for a walk to blow away the cobwebs More of us are now realising that winter gardens are to be enjoyed rather than endured and over the next few months winter walks will take us from autumn colour right through the January and February and the start of snowdrop displays.

Certainly the build up to Christmas and the New Year shouldn’t deter regular garden visitors from wrapping up and getting out to enjoy the unique drama beauty of winter gardens, many which now stay open longer to allow people to enjoy nature trails through woodlands and gardens.

Rangers and volunteers are often laid on to help with guided walks and whether its blustery coastal walks, countryside

Winter wonderland walks at magical Batsford Arboretum While Batsford may be famous for autumn colour and beautiful spring blossom, it is a delight in the depths of winter too. Wrap up warm and meander along paths beside streams and ponds and, if you’re lucky, the whole arboretum takes on a magical quality when covered in a coating of ice. It’s a wonderful chance to see the arboretum in all its deep midwinter glory, with the colourful stems of cornus and magnificent structure of the trees the stars of the show, followed by drifts of beautiful snowdrops in early spring. You can enjoy warming food in the Garden Terrace Café, a host of tempting plants and garden sundries in the garden centre and browse the wide range of gifts. Open Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm, 10am to 5pm on Sundays Batsford Arboretum & Garden Centre, Batsford, Moreton-in-Marsh, Glos, GL56 9AD. www.batsarb.co.uk

Snowdrops signal an end to winter

strolls or guided tours there’s so much to be said for winter fresh air.

And then further ahead there’s no greater assurance that the brighter days of spring are on their way, than the prospect of snowdrops.

Rightly called a harbinger of spring, snowdrops can start flowering in the depths of winter and are a sign the days are getting brighter and spring is indeed round the corner.

Colesbourne Park is the acknowledged home of snowdrops Started by Henry John Elwes with the magnificent Galanthus elwesii, the historic snowdrop collection at Colesbourne Park is the acknowledged home of snowdrops in England. The gardens, restored and extended by Sir Henry and his wife Carolyn, have around 350 varieties mixed with winter and spring bulbs: aconites, cyclamen, iris, miniature daffodils, snowflakes, hellebores and winter flowering shrubs. Visitors can walk beside the blue lake and along the woodland paths of the 10-acre gardens to see the snowdrops and planting schemes of winter and spring bulbs which complement the snowdrops.

The gardens are open from 1pm on Saturdays and Sundays from 2nd February to 3rd March. Teas and plant sales are available. Colesbourne Park is halfway between Cheltenham and Cirencester on the A435.

Colesbourne Gardens LLP, Estate Office, Colesbourne, Nr. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL53 9NP

Surely one of the best signs that winter is almost over is the sight of snowdrops pushing up through cold, dark earth and dead leaves. Whether it’s a single, brave flower standing alone that catches your eye, or great swathing clumps of white; the sight of the first snowdrop is a key moment in the calendar.

That moment at the back end of January or early February when a dark hedgerow suddenly has light in it is enough to show that spring is really on the way.

It’s the chance to discover the labelled snowdrop collection planted in herbaceous borders and naturalised with early flowering bulbs throughout the ten-acre garden.

Enjoy the early signs of spring. Open throughout February and March, every Friday, Saturday and Sunday 11am to 3pm. On Saturday, 2nd February the Garden House will be hosting an Avon Bulbs snowdrop sale, see website for details.

The Garden House, Buckland Monachorum, Yelverton, Devon PL20 7LQ. 01822 854 769 www.thegardenhouse.org.uk 20

Country Gardener

Old Court Nurseries & The Picton Garden

Celebrate Christmas at Batsford...

Enjoy magical winter walks, browse our gift and garden shops and treat yourself to a home-baked lunch or afternoon tea in our café. A perfect day out for all the family - dog friendly too!

Open every day except Christmas Day.

Visit www.batsarb.co.uk for details on our Christmas events BATSFORD ARBORETUM AND GARDEN CENTRE Batsford, Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire GL56 9AD. Tel: 01386 701441 E: arboretum@batsfordfoundation.co.uk www.batsarb.co.uk BatsfordArboretum

@BatsfordA

The Michaelmas Daisy Specialists since 1906 111 years of knowledge, passion and plants

It's a great time to plan your 2019 autumn displays.

Mail order catalogue available on request or order online www.autumnasters.co.uk for delivery in May.

Please ask to go on our snowdrop list and be among the first to see what we have available.

Closed to visitors over winter but please ring or email for help and advice.

Open for the NGS on 22nd February, 11am - 4pm.

Tel: 01684 540416 www.autumnasters.co.uk Old Court Nurseries, Walwyn Road, Colwall WR13 6QE

Cerney House Gardens A Romantic English Garden in the UK Cotswolds 46 acres of Cotswold parkland Romantic secret garden * Wildlife and woodland walks * Plants for sale * A large variety of snowdrops and hellebores * Refreshments available at the old Bothy Open from Saturday 26th January 10-5pm Admission: £5 adults, £1 children

Telephone 01285 831300 www.cerneygardens.com Cerney House Gardens, North Cerney, Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 7BX

Plant Sale and Show Saturday, 23 February 2019, 11am to 3.30pm Pershore High School, Station Road, Pershore WR10 2BX.

• • • • If you’re looking for an inspiring day out on Dartmoor you will love The Garden House Discover the snowdrop collection and enjoy the early signs of spring Open Friday, Saturday and Sunday throughout the Winter 11am - 3pm. Tearoom serving a ‘winter warmer’ menu and Sunday roast dinners Buckland Monachorum, Devon PL20 7LQ 01822 854769

www.thegardenhouse.org.uk

Thousands of unusual plants for sale Hundreds of specimen plants on show Discounted books for sale Refreshments

Gain half price admission for up to two people with this advert.

Admission £3. Under 18s and students free.

For further information contact the Alpine Garden Society, Avon Bank, Pershore, Worcestershire WR10 3JP, call or visit our website.

T: 01386 554790

Reg Charity No. 207478

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www.alpinegardensociety.net 21

W INT ER WALK ING

SNOWDROP DAY HAS UNIQUE PLANTS ON VIEW The Alpine Garden Society Snowdrop Day is a unique opportunity to see very rare snowdrops and also to buy some to take home and grow in your garden. Always a highlight of the year for the society, this is an opportunity to meet gardeners and plant enthusiasts of all abilities from across the country and to take home some special plants. The AGS Snowdrop Day is on Saturday, 2nd February at Ford Hall, Lilleshall National Conferencing Centre, Newport, Shropshire TF10 9AT. The day includes lectures, plant sales, Snowdrop ‘Question and Answer’ session and a twocourse lunch. Tickets are £35 for AGS members and £45 for non-members. www.alpinegardensociety.net

Abbotsbury Sub Tropical gardens offer calmness and serenity As winter sets into this ancient woodland valley, the pace and tone of the garden unwinds as Abbotsbury Sub Tropical gardens the change of season, shorter day length and misty mornings bring a calm and serene atmosphere to the garden. With the huge diversity of plants from all over the world comes an abundance of coloured fruits and turning leaves with brilliant yellows, reds and orange of Japanese maples and ginkgo trees. Throughout the winter months flowering mahonias, scented daphnes and early camelias continue to display along with evergreen fatsias, architectural bamboo and striking exotic looking palm trees.

Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens, Bullers Way, Abbotsbury, Nr Weymouth, Dorset DT3 4LA. Gardens direct 01305 871387 www.abbotsburygardens.co.uk

Cerney House Gardens Winter Snowdrop and Hellebore Trail

Cerney House gardens is a romantic English garden for all seasons: beautiful on a sunny day with the scent of roses filling the Cerney House Gardens air and magical on a frosty winters day. The house and gardens reopen at the end of January for the arrival of the fabulous winter display of snowdrops and hellebores. There is a snowdrop trail winding through the woodland with over 150 different appearing amongst swathes of pink and purple Hellebores. Cerney House’s charm is in its apparent informality and tranquility, heightened at the beginning of a busy gardening year. Open from Saturday, 26th January 2019 10am-5pm.

Cerney House Gardens, North Cerney, Cirencester, GL7 7BX. 01285 831300 www.cerneygardens.com

SHAFTESBURY READY TO CELEBRATE SNOWDROP FESTIVAL Snowdrops have become synonymous with the Dorset town of Shaftesbury- and rightly so. The snowdrop celebrations now include a festival market and a snowdrop exhibition in the Shaftesbury arts centre which last year showed 106 items from exhibitors ranging from eight years to 80 years.

More than 1,000 volunteers have planted over 220,000 common snowdrops for everyone to enjoy, free of charge and created a unique winter festival. Along the way, the Shaftesbury team have learned about the diverse and beautiful cultivars.

Snowdrop Season and the Snowdrop Festival runs from Friday, 8th to Sunday 17th February next year.

Shaftesbury Snowdrops, Swans Trust (Shaftesbury) Ltd, Swans Yard, Shaftesbury SP7 8JQ. www.shaftesburysnowdropsfestival.org 22

Country Gardener

East Lambrook Manor Gardens Festival of Snowdrops Cottage garden doyenne Margery Fish enthusiastically collected and popularised snowdrops, or Galanthus, which she planted in her now famous garden at East Lambrook Manor in Somerset. She was one of the first snowdrop devotees or ‘galanthophiles’ and amassed a significant collection in the 30 years she took to create this heartwarming garden.

She began her collection with a gift of the green-centred, double Galanthus ‘Ophelia’, bred in Norfolk by Heyrick Greatorex, a World War I cavalry officer who became a recluse but produced the first double hybrids, causing a sensation at the time in the 1940s.

The collection now includes over 120 different varieties and no longer fits in the display bed at the end of the nursery.

The festival will feature talks and tours and the annual NGS Snowdrop Open Day on 17th February. Over 40 varieties of snowdrop will be on sale in the nursery with a ‘Snowdrop Sale’ from 25th February with bulbs at reduced prices.

Throughout February the garden, nursery and cafe are open Tuesday to Sunday, from 10am to 5pm, Readers of Country Gardener can take advantage of the Two-for-One entry offer featured on the East Lambrook advertisement on page 23.

£5 entry per person to the Gardens

Voucher

(includes a hot drink)

www.abbotsburygardens.co.uk

This offer will run from November 2018 to February 2019. The offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. Please check our website for opening times as we are closed some afternoons through the winter.

$

£5 entry per person to the Gardens (includes a hot drink).

(Country Gardener)

SO

Visit the iconic cottage garden of gardening legend Margery Fish during the festival to see the sublime display of snowdrops and get in for half price with this ad.

The festival runs throughout February.

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Over 120 varieties of snowdrop to be seen with many rare snowdrops for sale in the nursery.

Garden, nursery and café open Tues - Sun in Feb | 10am - 5pm Entry £6.00 | Over 65s £5.50 | Groups £5.25 | U16s free Silver Street | East Lambrook | Somerset | TA13 5HH 01460 240328 | enquiries@eastlambrook.com | eastlambrook.com * Offer ends 28th Feb. Excludes group visits.

Shaftesbury Snowdrops Study, Sale & Social Day including the “Best in the West” Rare Snowdrop Sale

Saturday 9th February 1pm

The Guildhall, High Street, SP78LY Details of tickets from www.shaftesburysnowdrops.org or from the Tourist Information Centre on 01747 853514

www.countrygardener.co.uk

Image: ‘Snowdrop Words’

by Jane Shepherd 23

JOBS IN THE GARDEN

GETTING OUT INTO THE

November garden

The garden begins to wind down in November as deciduous plants enter dormancy. But there are still gardening jobs to do this month to prepare for winter. Make sure to get outside and enjoy the garden as it fades, leaving structural plants and evergreens to take centre stage. Here are the key gardening jobs for the weeks ahead.

Stay on frost watch every night

It is the time of the year when the first frosts will have blackened dahlias. If you haven’t done so already, move tender perennials into the shelter of a cool greenhouse, frame or garage and water less to bring on a state of semi dormancy. In colder frost traps, tuberous-rooted cannas and dahlias should be dug up and stored in just-damp compost in a cool, airy place. If you feel it isn’t necessary to move them and are confident about avoiding frosts, an ample mulch of compost or leaf mould should protect them and they can stay put.

BE SELECTIVE WHEN IT COMES TO LEAVES IN THE GARDEN Only collect leaves where absolutely necessary. Don’t leave them too long on the lawns or they will kill the grass underneath. Where they have fallen in the beds and have not drifted too deeply, leave the earthworms to pull them into their burrows and to rot on the surface. However, where leaves have drifted deeply or are smothering smaller plants or silver Mediterranean herbs and perennials, clear to keep the plants dry and airy. Sweeping leaves off paths and terraces is all you need to keep the garden looking cared for and covers for a wealth of disorder in the beds.

Feed the birds

Chopping the leaves with the mower speeds rotting

Harnessing the benefits of fallen leaves To make leaf mould gather up fallen leaves (avoiding diseased ones) and collect them in a bin ideally made from chicken wire so that air can circulate.

If you don’t have a bin you can put them in black bin liners and then punch in some holes. Stash these away somewhere out of sight and in a few months they should have rotted down.

If the weather’s been particularly dry you might need to water the leaves before storing. Another trick to help break them down is to chop them up before storing by running the mowing machine over the top.

NB: Do not make leaf mould using diseased leaves, rose leaves - which often harbour diseases - or evergreen foliage, which takes a long time to break down.

24

Country Gardener

Putting out high-fat (high-energy) foods for birds in winter will help our feathered friends to get through the worst of the weather. Adjust the quantity you put out according to demand, regularly wash bird feeders and throw away old food. A useful tip is to cut off the fine netting that fat balls come in so birds don’t get their feet tangled up. A tray is good for ground-feeding birds, such as blackbirds, starlings and chaffinches, but be aware of rats, which may also be attracted. One technique that can prevent rats climbing poles to reach hanging feeders is to thread the pole through an upsidedown plant pot.

The demand for high fat foods starts now

Put away the lawn mower

By November, the weather should be cold enough for the lawn not to need regular cutting, although it usually needs an occasional tidy-up during warmer spells during the next few months. Before you abandon your mower in the shed, give it a bit of tender love and care so you’ll find it in good condition when you need it next.

Clean the underside by scraping off dried clippings and make sure the collecting bag is empty. If it’s a petrol mower, drain off the fuel, as unleaded petrol doesn’t store well.

NOVEMBER IS THE TRADITIONAL TIME FOR PLANTING TULIPS

Buy pots of bulbs for indoors For colour and scent over Christmas, you can’t beat pots of bulbs such as hyacinths or paper-white narcissus. Don’t worry if you didn’t get around to planting some in autumn, as you can buy pots of ready-grown bulbs now.

To keep them at their best for as long as possible, put them in a well-lit spot in a cool room. The long leaves of narcissus look good when supported by a few twiggy stems from the garden. After the bulbs finish flowering, you can either throw them away or plant them in the garden.

Order bare-root plants Save money by ordering or buying bare-root plants, which are usually cheaper than the pot-grown equivalents. They are only available in the dormant season, so you need to be quick. Fruit, hedging, Bare rooted plants are freat value trees, roses and shrubs are the plants most commonly sold this way, but some nurseries also offer perennials. Try to plant them as soon as they arrive. Otherwise, give them a good soak in a bucket of water then roughly plant in a corner of the garden until you’re ready to put them in properly.

Time to get citrus plants under cover The timing of getting your citrus plants under cover is critical and many gardeners lose plants at this time of the year through bad planning.

Plants should now be kept indoors or under glass in a light frost-free place. It is important to continue feeding and watering as necessary using a proprietary winter citrus feed. Only water when the soil is dry. How often this is will depend on where the plants are being over wintered. Pick up and dispose of any fallen leaves. www.countrygardener.co.uk

Planting tulips in November won’t avoid the fungal disease tulip fire, but it is a good time to plant tulips, as they enjoy the cool, moist conditions that are associated with this time of year. Tulip fire is a fungal disease of tulips caused

by Botrytis tulipae, which produces brown spots and twisted, withered and distorted leaves. It is so named because plants appear scorched by fire and can be a real threat to the health of your bulbs.

Look for bulbs that have intact skins and don’t show signs of mould. Tulips should be planted two to three times the depth of the bulb. If squirrels are a problem in your area, cover the ground with chicken wire to stop them digging up the bulbs and eating them.

PLUS • Plant out rhubarb crowns in an open position from November to March as long as the ground is not frozen.

• Cut back herbaceous plants that are not needed for winter interest or food and habitat for wildlife but leave ornamental grasses to provide protection for overwintering beneficial insects.

• Protect planted containers with bubble plastic or bring under temporary cover, particularly during prolonged rain when compost can become sodden. Remove pot saucers and raise pots off the ground on pot feet.

• Take root cuttings of plants such as Japanese anemones, campanula, phlox and oriental poppies.

• Check bonfires before they are lit for sheltering and hibernating animals, such as hedgehogs, toads and frogs.

25

GET CREATIVE WITH GIFTS in the build up to CHRISTMAS When it comes to gifts with a gardening theme there’s a real opportunity to be really creative The countdown to Christmas can be a tense time especially if you have a lot of presents to buy.

Finding the ideal gift for gardeners or garden lovers provides some oppotunites to be both original and full of lateral thinking! There’s nothing wrong at all with a gorgeous favourite plant or maybe the latest in the great selection of garden books this year, but this Christmas perhaps it’s time for a change.

Increasingly popular are garden centre gift token (in units of £10 so they can be spent bit by bit) that you can buy over the counter or online at thevouchergarden.co.uk. Many garden centres and nurseries have their own bespoke vouchers.

Gift tokens from specialist plant suppliers are another option with many well-known nurseries offering their own exclusive vouchers.

And then there are subscriptions to garden-related

Everyone needs a pair of

organisations and publications: a year’s membership of the Cottage Garden Society or the Royal Horticultural Society, both of which include a regular magazine, make great gifts, as would a subscription to Which? Gardening, a respected magazine published by the Consumer Association and based on independent research. RHS Gift Vouchers make the perfect present for any occasion and can be used in RHS gift shops, plant centres, and mail order. www.rhs.org.uk/shop/vouchers.

If you’re still stuck for ideas then National Trust gift cards or vouchers make an ideal alternative to spend at over 2,000 sites and venues www.nationaltrust.org.uk/gift-cards-vouchers

And here’s some very specific ideas...

Backdoorshoes an ideal present as the weather changes Backdoorshoes® has introduced more designs to its already vast range of waterproof, lightweight garden clogs this year.

A revamped ‘Cats’ and also a beautiful ‘Daisy’ design means there is something for everyone. Prices start from £25 inc free standard delivery and sizes are available from UK 3-14.

There are a range of flip flops featuring their unique prints to include ‘Poppies’, ‘Meadow’,’ Grass’ and ‘Camo’. However, as the weather is changing an ideal gift for Christmas would be a pair of stylish Chelsea ‘Jumpy’ Boots. They are waterproof and easy to clean. The fantastic designs featuring coloured soles make these a fashionable versatile gift that can be worn to work or out for an evening.

Backdoorshoes is proud to be British designed.

For the full range please visit www.backdoorshoes.co.uk or call 01202 232357

Unique plants make a stylish and original present

LOOKING FOR THE ESSENTIAL CHRISTMAS GIFT THIS YEAR? TRY A PAIR… Backdoorshoes® are lightweight, waterproof, durable and ideal for slipping on when you need to go outside. We are delighted to launch our waterproof, stylish, versatile Chelsea Boots available in many different colours. With over 30 backdoorshoes designs we are sure there will be something for everyone on your list this year!

To see our full range visit www.backdoorshoes.co.uk or call 01202 232357 26

Here’s a Christmas present which will make an impact for gardens and gardeners. Stone Illusions design unique planters which they make themselves in the heart of Somerset made from polymer which is strong, durable and 100 per-cent frost proof.

They are a great and stylish asset for both small and large gardens, adding a height to the garden in any aspect and a thoughtful and stylish Christmas gift with primulas. The tops of the stones are screwed to the bases making them easier to move around as and when gardeners change our gardens around on and off the base. Full, the heads weigh about 30 kilos.

You will be welcomed if you visit Stone Illusions at their Buttermarket Poundbury, Illminster, Somerset TA19 0NT. Tel: 07707 208328 www.stoneillusions.co.uk

Country Gardener

THINKING OF CHJRISTMAS LUNCH F OR THE F ISH?

POND

If you know friends or family who have a fish tank then a thoughtful and fine Christmas present which will be particularly appreciated by the fish is Tetra’s 14 day holiday feed for fish. If nothing else it will ensure the fish enjoy Christmas lunch even if the owners are away. The 14-day fish food doesn’t cloud or pollute the water and costs £3.45 from www.tetra.net/en

As the weather cools down and the nights draw in, Dave Hulse, Tetra’s Aquatic Expert is keen to share his advice on how to prepare your pond for winter.He suggests switching to a wheatgerm diet, such as Tetra’s Wheatgerm Sticks, which offers fish a much more digestible protein, perfect for a slower metabolism. You need to switch off any filters and air pumps. Cold water holds much more oxygen while aeration increases the chance of contact between the water and cold air which can super chill the pond. When ice appears place a saucepan of boiling water on the surface to form a hole. Never smash the ice as this can shock, scare and even deafen your fish.

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Stone Illusions A completely unique type of garden planter, designed to emulate a traditional staddle stone. The planter is made of polymer, is strong, durable and 100% frost proof.

Perfect planted with beautiful winter colours, making a wonderful gift.

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stoneillusions2018@gmail.com 27

HOME OR

away?

Specialist garden themed holidays are now hugely popular with escorted group tours very much in demand There’s a tough decision coming up for those planning gardening themed holidays for next year.

Do they stay in the UK or head for the many and glorious delights of Italy, which still comes out on top when it comes to European garden visits?

A recent poll amongst gardeners who were looking for an overseas garden trip and tour showed over half were planning to visit the ‘classical garden capital of Europe’ a country which boasts of the wonders of the Italian lakes, the gardens of Venice, Rome, Naples, Milan and Tuscany.

Italian gardens it seems are setting the standard with classical designs ancient statuary, pools and fountains and all shades of green.

But the wonderful summer in the UK this year has meant that there’s renewed interest in home based holidays taking in some of the great gardens in Devon and further afield covering everywhere from Suffolk to Scotland.

ITALY BECKONS AS EXPRESSIONS HOLIDAYS OFFER READERS A REDUCTION OF £100 Expressions Holidays operates garden tours for small groups of up to 14 people to the gardens and villas of Italy featuring the regions of Tuscany, the Veneto, the Amalfi Coast, the Italian Lakes and the Rome area. Each tour with local garden guides shows you the most outstanding gardens, their history and planting. Prices start at £2,590 per person (double or twin share) and a single supplement from £320.

There’s a special offer for Country Gardener readers. Expressions Holidays offers readers a reduction of £100 per person for booking before 31st March 2019.

Also, now featuring –four nights wine tours for small groups of Piemonte and Tuscany. Where you can experience some of the most stunning ‘winescapes’ and wines of Italy. Fully protected by ATOL 3076.

Contact Expressions Holidays on 01392 441275 for full details. www.expressionsholidays.co.uk 28

It seems whichever option garden lovers opt for being part of escorted group and sharing the holiday experience with other garden lovers is very much in demand.

If you thought a small group tour wasn’t for you, it’s time to shake off all those preconceptions. The overall garden touring market is expanding, with small-group travel in particular showing stellar growth.

There are many advantages to travelling as a small group of no more than 25 people. It is easier to get to know your fellow group members, with a more social atmosphere prevailing as a result and the high quality experts who now accompany many garden holiday tours have succeeded in improving the whole holiday experience.

Here are two options for the holiday market in the UK and in Italy from specialist travel companies who put emphasis on the quality of their escorted tours.

Brookland Travel tours explore beautiful and diverse gardens 2019 will be the 19th year that Brookland Travel has been taking people on heritage and garden tours.

Based in Poundbury, Dorset, this small specialist tour operator offers escorted garden tours to see gardens at their very best and, where possible, without the crowds. Discover secret and famous gardens, stunning countryside, pretty villages and historic houses.

Many garden visits are private with the opportunity to meet the garden owners or members of their gardening teams.

Brookland Travel is one of the few tour operators specialising in UK heritage and garden holidays.

Since 1999 they have been organising short breaks and cultural holidays in the UK for the domestic and inbound travel market, individuals, groups and organisations.

An expert friendly horticultural tour leader accompanies every tour. Carefully selected three or four hotels, quality touring coaches and small groups (maximum 25 per tour) are the recipe for comfort and enjoyment. Whatever the level of garden interest, from amateur to professional, there is a joy to exploring beautiful and diverse gardens, not to mention the inspiration they provide. There are plenty of opportunities to purchase plants – rare, unusual or just a favourite!

Contact Brookland Travel on Tel: 01305 259467 info@brooklandtravel.com www.brooklandtravel.com Country Gardener

ITALIAN GARDENS

SMALL GROUP TOURS WITH GUIDED VISITS OF ITALIAN GARDENS TUSCANY

• Maximum 14 people per group

Visits: Poggio Torselli, Villa Vignamaggio, Villa Geggiano, Villa Grabau, Villa Reale 2019: 19 May, 9 Jun, 8 Sep From £2,650 per person

• Local garden guides and guided garden visits included

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Visits: Villa Babbianello, Villa Carlotta, Villa Monastero, Isola Bella, Isola Madre 2019: 14 May, 4 Jun, 25 Jun, 3 Sep From £2,630 per person

AMALFI COAST, CAPRI & ISCHIA Visits: Villa Rufolo, Villa San Michele Axel Munthe, La Mortella 2019: 9 May, 23 May, 13 Jun, 12 Sep From £2,650 per person

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29

ADVICE

Autumn garden

ADV ICE

Queries from Country Gardener’s postbag this issue cover a range of autumn tasks and problems

I don’t seem to have much luck when it comes to planting trees and shrubs in the new part of our garden. Too often they are slow to take off or as this year some of the die. Clearly I’m doing something wrong.

The most common mistake inexperienced gardeners make is when they are planting. What they fail to realise is the importance of proper planting depth.

New gardeners Planting at the right depth is key very often will do a great job preparing the soil with bone meal, peat moss, and other additives necessary to insure growth and survival. The mistake occurs at the final stage of the planting process. Dig a hole about one and a half times as deep as the height of the root ball on the tree you are planting. At the bottom mix a peat free compost and the original soil together in a 50/50 ratio.

When the tree is placed into the hole, the level of the soil on the trunk of the tree should match the level of the soil you are planting into. Add soil to the bottom of the hole, if necessary, to bring the crown (the crown is the dividing line on the plant between what is above the soil and the part below the soil).

Once this is done, finish planting by filling in the rest of the hole around the sides of the root ball. The top quarter of the hole should be filled in with the original soil with no more compost added. This is important below the tree to provide needed moisture and lure the root system down. Compost exposed to the dry air on the surface will dry out and act like a wick, drawing moisture from the soil below.

Since you have dug a hole and put something into it, there is dirt left over. At this point, many opt to get rid of it by piling it up around the stem of the plant. Do not do this .It has the same effect as burying the stem too deeply. If the stem above the crown is covered with soil, it stops the plants ability to draw moisture and nutrients from the root system to the branches and leaves above.

The importance of maintaining proper planting depth relates to all planting and transplanting situations.

30

This winter will be the first one where I have to try and keep the water quality in my pond as high as possible - specially for the wildlife we are encouraging. In the past in other gardens I haven’t been very successful.

Ponds are huge assets to wildlife but a recent survey by the charity Pond Conservation showed as much as 80 to 90 per-cent had poor or very poor water quality. Poor quality usually means an excess of nutrients, especially nitrates which favour algal blooms and low oxygen levels.

There are a number of ways nutrient build up can be prevented or at least managed in garden ponds.

Don’t add garden soil to ponds- always use specialist aquatic composts and fertilisers which are specially designed to prevent nutrients leaching into the water. An excess of nutrients will damage pond water.

High nitrate levels will encourage algae

Country Gardener

Excessive amounts of grass cuttings or leaves which blow into the pond also release nutrients as they decompose so make it almost a daily task in autumn and early winter to keep the pond as clear of these as you can. If you have to top up the levels in your pond remember that tap water is a last resort- use rainwater instead.

Pond fish such as koi carp or goldfish are not suited to well balanced wildlife ponds. They stir up sediment and add their waste to the water making a nutrient rich ‘soup’ often leading to excessive alga.

I am a great believer in preparing leaf mould in the garden but sometimes I get frustrated at the speed at which they decompose. Is it just down to the trees in my garden?

There is a famous often-quoted study into leaf decomposition rates. Leaves from 125 British plant and tree species were monitored over two years for their decomposition rates. The results were that the plants that decomposed fastest were woody climbers, followed by flowering herbs, deciduous shrubs, deciduous trees, grasses, and deciduous subshrubs. The leaves that were slowest to decompose came from evergreens.

In fact he best leaves for composting are those lower in lignin, which is important in the formation of plant cell walls and those higher in calcium and nitrogen. These leaves include ash, maple, fruit tree leaves, poplar, and willow. These ‘good’ leaves will typically break down in about a year. Leaves usually take this long to break down into compost on their own because they don’t contain the nitrogen necessary to speed the composting process. and le Leaves from fruit trees, ash, map r You can shorten that time to a few months if you build and tend your leaf faste se mpo deco willow will compost pile properly. Spread the dry leaves out in a one inch-thick layer.

Mow over them with a lawn mower to shred the leaves. Collect the shredded leaves in the lawn mower bag, or rake them into a pile after shredding. Smaller pieces of leaves break down more quickly.

I’m become a real enthusiast for growing sweet peas but have never tried sowing them in the autumn. Is this worth the effort?

The answer is yes- there is a distinctive advantage.

Sweet peas are naturally adapted to an autumnto-summer cycle. In the garden, sowing seed in the autumn ensures that by March or April, plants have bushy top growth and extensive root systems just at the time when many gardeners are sowing their seeds Sweet peas can be started off in the autumn in There’s a huge benefit in sowing autumn sweet peas most of the south and southwest.

If it’s really cold where you grow – the sort of penetrating, winters that freeze the ground solid for months at a time – wait until spring but if you can, autumn sowing gives a head start and hence early flowering.

Sowing itself is straightforward. Sow into pots of quality compost, setting one seed to each three-inch pot or several seeds into a larger pot. Seeds sown in autumn need to be kept protected, so place the pots into a cold frame or greenhouse. Cover the pots with newspaper until the seedlings emerge.

Seeds will likely need a little additional heat to help them pop up. Once they have germinated, remove the heat source to encourage the plants to grow stout and sturdy rather than tall and leggy.

Autumn-sown sweet peas should be kept in their cold frame or greenhouse to overwinter. While you don’t want to mollycoddle seedlings too much (cool temperatures will keep plants stocky and sturdy) they won’t appreciate being repeatedly frozen, so add extra protection in frosty weather.

Encourage plants to bush out by nipping out the top two leaves as soon as plants have grown four leaves. This stimulates new side shoots, which means more stems and, ultimately, more flowers! Watch out for the usual suspects: slugs, snails and mice have a penchant for early foliage and seeds respectively. www.countrygardener.co.uk

31

CROFT GARDEN NURSERY W EST & FARM SHOP Great range of trees, shrubs, climbers, conifers, roses, herbaceous perennials, top and soft fruit and hedging.

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Norway spruce, Nordmann fir or Noble fir?

The choice seems to get harder every year but there’s plenty of help and advice on offer from sellers.

December is on the way and now is the time for hard decisions to be made about your Christmas tree. When should you buy your tree, how should it be decorated and how much should it cost?

It was Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who popularised the Christmas tree in Britain. In 1841 he brought a tree over from Germany and set it up in Windsor Castle and a festive Christmas tree has remained a tradition ever since.

Choosing and buying your Christmas tree is one of the highlights in the build up to Christmas -a seasonal ritual and something to enjoy.

But what should you buy and where should you buy from?

When you’ve found a tree you like, pick it up and drop it on its stump from a few inches above ground. If more than a few needles drop, it has not been freshly cut.

Don’t buy Norway spruces too early, their needles can drop prematurely. If you prefer to put up a tree closer to Christmas, a spruce should last the twelve days.

Buy from a local grower if you can. The majority of Christmas trees are grown in a plantation and then cut from their roots around late November to bring to market. It takes seven years for them to reach saleable size.

Go to the British Christmas Tree Growers Association website, www.bctga.co.uk, and check out members locally.

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32

The perfect

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Do’s and don’ts on buying your tree • Avoid roadside sellers and ‘pop-up’ pub car park sellers-it might seem a bargain but it’s unlikely you’ll get a refund if it dies early.

• Resist buying a tree which is already netted. The net strains the branches causing the tree to dehydrate sooner.

Monkton Elm Garden Centre’s guide to making your tree look its best When it comes to choosing the perfect Christmas tree as a focal point of your living room, this it family ritual can be a confusing task. Monkton Elm Garden Centre outside of stock a huge range of fresh Christmas trees and have some good advice and help to offer.

“Buy a tree that doesn’t drop an excessive amount of needles when banged on the ground - the tree has been hanging around.

Cut off an inch from the base of the trunk to assist water uptake, plunge it into a bucket of water and leave somewhere cool until needed, leaving any netting on.

Use a stand that holds plenty of water. Never place your tree near a source of heat - it will dry out, causing needle drop.

Once the tree is erected remove netting, fill the water reservoir and get decorating. Check the water level daily, topping up if necessary.”

Monkton Elm opens daily from 9am to 5.30pm and Sunday from 10.30am to 4.30pm Tel: 01823 412381 www.monktonelmgardencentre.co.uk Monkton Elm Garden Centre, Monkton Heathfield, Taunton, Somerset, TA2 8QN.

• Do recycle. More local authorities than ever before plan to offer tree recycling services this winter. Check local details or see recyclenow. com/ what-to-do-with/ christmas-trees. Alternatively, chip it and use it in the garden, or re-erect it and decorate with apples, nuts and fat-balls as a New Year gift for the birds. www.countrygardener.co.uk

33

Bringing the garden in for Christmas cooking

by Kate Lewis

Anti clockwise from top centre: carrots and parsnips with maple and orange glaze; celeriac and garlic puree; parmesan Brussels sprouts; honey-roasted swede with chilli and cumin

There are lots of wonderful winter vegetables around which deserve to find pride of place on the festive kitchen table If you have memories of over-boiled cabbage in school dinners then you may not be exhilarated at the thought of cooking winter vegetables. For many people, a portion of vegetables is an afterthought to the meat, fish or vegetarian main event on a dish, and often boiled or mashed with little thought given to flavour. But there are many other ways of cooking that make your portion of veg really stand out on the plate.

The summer crop might be over but there are many wonderful vegetables - including carrots, parsnips, swede, celeriac and sprouts - to be picked and turned into inspirational and flavoursome dishes.

While boiling root veg is an adequate place to start, it is imperative that they are not over boiled – they quickly break to a watery mush - and should be seasoned well and lifted with a dressing of good quality butter or extra-virgin olive oil. The boiling process for vegetables that grow underground should start in cold water; this ensures the outside does not cook before the inside.

However it is the dry heat of the oven that really brings 34

these winter vegetables to life. This process reduces moisture, caramelises the sugars and therefore greatly enhances the flavours. Roasting a variety of root vegetables with a good drizzle of olive oil and a handful of herbs is the perfect side or even main dish for a cold winter’s evening. Potatoes are the only root vegetable that need to be par-boiled before roasting. If using a variety of types such as roots, squash and tubers, it is worth bearing in mind they need to be cut to different sizes according to their cooking times.

Although mashed potato is commonplace in many households, fewer home cooks think of using other root vegetables for purée. Parsnip, swede, sweet potato, celeriac can all be cooked and mashed (or blitzed with a hand blender) into a creamy purée.

One of the easiest ways to really enhance your vegetable dishes is to play around with added flavours – fresh or dried herbs, spices, flavoured oil, chillies, citrus fruit, honey.. the list is endless.

Here are four delicious and flavoursome recipes to get you started…

Country Gardener

Method: 1. Place the celeriac and garlic in a pan with just enough milk to cover, and a pinch of salt.

2. Bring to the boil, put a lid on the pan, then simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.

Drain any remaining milk and reserve.

3. Using a stick blender, whizz the celeriac to make a purée, pouring in just enough of the reserved milk to give a smooth consistency.

4. Add the spices, cream and butter, then whizz again.

5. Stir through the parsley, season to taste and serve.

Celeriac purée Ingredients: 2 celeriac, peeled and cut into chunks 3 garlic cloves 600ml whole milk Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg Pinch of ground ginger Splash of double cream Knob of butter Small bunch of fresh flatleaf parsley, chopped

Carrots and parsnips with maple and orange glaze

Honey-roasted swede with chilli & cumin

Ingredients: 400g chantenay carrots, cut into batons 400g parsnips, cut into batons 2 tbsp olive oil Small handful fresh thyme leaves Grated zest and juice of ½ orange 4 tbsp maple syrup Method: 1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas 6.

2. Put the carrots and parsnips in a large roasting tin, drizzle with the oil, salt and pepper and most of the thyme, and roast for 30 minutes.

3. Drizzle over the orange juice and zest and maple syrup, and roast for 10 minutes until caramelised. Scatter with thyme before serving.

(Copyright: Delicious Magazine) To freeze: Parboil the carrots and parsnips for 4-5 minutes, drain, and cool on a baking sheet. Freeze until solid then transfer into freezer bags. When ready to eat roast with olive oil for 15 minutes then add the glaze.

Ingredients: 1 large swede, peeled and cut into large chunks 2 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp clear honey 1 tsp cumin seed 1 large red chilli, deseeded and chopped small bunch coriander, chopped Method: 1. Heat oven to 200°C/gas 6.

2. Toss the swede in olive oil in a shallow roasting tin, then season. Roast in the oven for 35-40 mins, tossing occasionally, until the swede is golden and soft.

3. Stir in the honey and cumin seeds and continue to roast for 10 mins until just starting to catch. Remove and stir through the chilli and coriander to serve.

(Copyright: BBC Good Food)

Parmesan Brussels sprouts Ingredients: 1kg Brussels sprouts 2 tbsp olive oil 1 lemon 1 tsp chilli flakes 4 tbsp grated Parmesan Salt and pepper

Method: 1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas 7.

2. Trim and halve the sprouts and put on a baking tray 3. Add the oil, grate over the lemon zest, mix in the chilli flakes and a pinch of salt and pepper.

4. Roast for 10 minutes until starting to caramelise. Then scatter over the cheese and roast for a further 15 minutes until the cheese is crisp and golden brown, and the sprouts are tender.

(Copyright: Jamie Oliver)

www.countrygardener.co.uk

35

Looking forward to

New Year snowdrops IN SOMERSET

It may be a few months away but the promise of seeing snowdrops gives garden lovers something to look forward to in the New Year Snowdrops are a welcome sign that spring will soon be on its way. We may have the winter to get through first but plans and hopes are already in place for the 2019 snowdrop season which, weather permitting, will start in late January and run through to March.

Somerset has a wonderful tradition and following for snowdrop displays.

There’s certainly a wide variety of Somerset gardens opening for charity, displaying their carpets of snowdrops during February, from a plantsman’s cottage garden to the garden created by the celebrated garden writer Margery Fish in the last century, and a country hotel.

A collection of more than 350 varieties of snowdrops can be found at Elworthy Cottage in the village of Elworthy between Wiveliscombe and Watchet, when owners Mike and Jenny Spiller will open for the National Gardens Scheme on Sunday, 3rd February, Saturday 9th and Friday ,15th February between 11am and 4pm. The plantsman’s garden of an acre in a tranquil setting has island beds, ornamental trees and shrubs giving year-round interest, unusual perennials and scented plants, and plenty of seats to enjoy the peaceful countryside.

Teas will be available, proceeds going to Children’s Hospice South West, plants on sale in the adjoining nursery. Dogs are welcome, and there is space for coaches to park, but the garden is not suitable for wheelchairs. Admission is £4, children free. For other opening times and information phone 01984 656427, email mike@elworthy-cottage.uk or visit the website at www.elworthy-cottage.co.uk Elworthy Cottage, Elworthy, TA4 3PX.

is £6, children free. Teas will be available, plants for sale, coaches welcome and dogs allowed. The main features with narrow paths and steps are not suitable for wheelchair users.

East Lambrook Manor, Silver Street, East Lambrook TA13 5HH. For more information and other opening times contact the owners Mike and Gail Werkmeister on 01460 240328, email enquiries@eastlambrook.com or visit the website at www. eastlambrook.com At Ston Easton Park between Bath and Wells walk the glorious parkland of the historic Repton landscape along the quietly cascading River Norr where the garden team work 36 acres of 18th century parkland and a Victorian kitchen garden. The gardens open for the NGS daily from Friday, 1st February until Friday ,12th April from 10.30am to 4pm (the rest of the season runs from Friday, 26th April to Friday, 29th November, 10.30am-4pm). Light refreshments will be available in the hotel by the park (booking essential for meals). Dogs allowed, coaches accepted.

There are deep gravel paths, steep slopes and shallow steps.

For other opening times and information, phone on 241631, email reception@stoneaston.co.uk or visit the website at www.stoneaston.co.uk. Ston Easton, Radstock BA3 4DF.

Rock House, Elberton BS35 4AQ is a two-acre garden ten miles north of Bristol, with pretty woodland vistas and many snowdrops and daffodils, some unusual, an old yew

East Lambrook Manor Gardens have noted collections of snowdrops in the quintessential cottage garden around the old manor house created by gardening legend Margery Fish in the 20th century. The gardens will open for the NGS on Sunday ,17th February, 10am-5pm. Admission 36

Country Gardener

Rock House, Elburton

Clockwise from left to right: East Lambrook Manor where the collection features 120 different varieties

tree and pond. Later there are spring flowers, cottage garden plants and roses. Open for the NGS on Sundays 3rd and 10th February, 24th and 31st March, 11am-4pm, admission £3.50, children free. Limited wheelchair access. Visits also be arrangement for groups up to ten, contact Mr and Mrs John Gunnery on 01454 413225.

Sherborne Garden, Litton, Radstock BA3 4PP is open for the NGS on Sunday 10th and Monday 11th February, 11am to 4pm, a four and a half acre gently sloping garden with snowdrops and hellebores, a small pinetum, holly wood and many unusual trees and shrubs, and plenty of seats, a cottage garden, ponds linked by a wadi and rills with stone and wooden bridges hosta walk leading to pear and nut wood, rondel and gravel gardens with grasses and

phormiums. Dogs are allowed. The garden opens for private visits and parties; for other opening times and information, phone Mrs Pamela Southwell on 01761 241220.

Southfield Farm at Farleigh Rd, Backwell, Bristol BS48 3PE, a two-acre owner-designed garden of rooms with mixed shrub and herbaceous borders, much winter colour and scent, aconites, heathers, snowdrops, hellebores and more, opens for the NGS on Thursday 21st February, 10am-1pm. Admission £4, children free; home-made teas available.

There are courtyards, terrace, orchard, vegetable and herb gardens. Paths go through a native meadow to a woodland garden and large wildlife pond with bird hides. An indoor tearoom is in old stable yard, and there’s wheelchair access to most areas on grass paths but some gravel and steps.

Vine House, Henbury

Sherborne Garden

Road, Henbury, Bristol BS10 7AD, opens for the NGS on Sunday, 3rd February, 1pm-4pm, admission £4, children free, with 1½ acres of Vine House garden behind a listed Georgian house. There are mature trees, shrubs, herbaceous borders, rock stream and gunnera, and many unusual plants and trees.

Wheelchair access is limited; dogs are allowed. www.countrygardener.co.uk

37

number of gardeners will be going The search for a new A‘backrecordto school ‘ this winter to hone their

GARDENING SKILL skills or to get to grips with something new The search for new gardening skills is booming.

Almost a third of amateur gardeners now want to develop a new skill when it comes to making the most of their hobby.

The boom in learning is set against a recent claim that Britain has lost a lot of its gardening skills which need to be learnt afresh.

The claim is the loss of knowledge stems from people born after it became common for both parents to work so basic gardening skills were not handed down from parent to child-because there was no time in a busy working schedule.

There’s a new top five list when it comes to the skills gardeners are looking to add to over the winter months.

So if you are one of the many thousands who want make the best use the next few months by learning one of the wide range of courses and workshops available you might like to know what the RHS says is in vogue at the moment.

The most popular courses are built round: • Grafting and propagation • Planting a wild flower meadow

• Making a garden more bee friendly • Flower arranging and floristry • Willow weaving

Flexible training opens up career opportunities Increasingly women are looking for flexible training for a gardening career that fits around their family commitments, a fact that the Women’s Farm and Garden Association has tapped into. It runs an apprenticeship scheme called WRAGS - Women Returners to Amenity Gardening - which enables recruits to work alongside professionals in private gardens or nurseries. Barnsley House, the garden of the late designer Rosemary Verey, was one of the first training gardens in the scheme.

The organisation was established in 1899 by a formidable set of upper-class women who were interested in training other women in horticulture and agriculture.

The WFGA is a membership association offering training in gardening skills. The membership subscription includes; The unique practical training scheme • Excellent value workshops and skills days • Garden visits and garden tours • Access to Christine Ladley Fund, bursary initiative • Members discounts - seeds and tools • Members forum and newsletter • Online garden recruitment As a WFGA member you can apply for WRAGS placements. The association holds a register of working gardens, each offering practical training in gardening skills for one year. By the end of the year, trainees will be able to actively seek a career in horticulture.

To apply for membership or offer a placement opportunity please go to www.wfga.org.uk

Not just a Sculpture Park?

Sculpture by the Lakes has already become the go to venue for art, gardens and peaceful days out, but over the past few months this iconic Dorset sculpture park has added much more to what it offers.

Combining arts and gardens the team has devised a practical range of garden and outdoor workshops – rose pruning, fruit tree pruning, propagating, wildlife gardening – just a small selection of what is available.

Also launching this year is the Winter Art School, featuring highly talented lecturers and tutors from around the globe with courses on offer from oil portraiture to tassel making, stone carving to jewellery making plus a choice of drawing and painting disciplines.

The Gallery Café serves lunches, cakes, cream teas, plus hosts a monthly ‘Dining at the Lakes’ evening, ‘ all supplied by the vegetable garden just metres from the kitchen door.

Visit the website at www.sculpturebythelakes.co.uk and sign up to the newsletter for all the latest offers, courses and events.

Tel: 07720 637808 Email: info@sculpturebythelakes.co.uk Sculpture by the Lakes, Pallington, Dorset DT2 8QU.

Women are increasingly looking for flexible training

38

Country Gardener

Advancing horticulture Changing lives Join the WFGA to access our unique WRAGS placements and learn the skills you need for a new career.

www.wfga.org.uk

HUSBANDRY SCHOOL OFFER UNIQUE SKILLS TRAINING

GARDEN EVENTS AT

SCULPTURE BY THE LAKES An exciting and inspiring series of workshops and lectures that run through winter and into next spring. See below for what’s coming up this November and January.

Time honoured skill training at The

Husbandry School

The Husbandry School near Ashburton in Devon won ‘best training school 2018’ in the food and drink Devon awards. They offer a wide range of fascinating hands-on courses, running from March to November. If you are interested in learning how to tend your garden or growing more of the food you eat each week, a in a natural, ethical, time honoured and sustainable way then the skills courses could be for you. Or perhaps you would like to learn a new skill such as basket making, stonewalling, hedge laying, wood whittling. Or felt making.

You can explore new skills up on the hill, surrounded by the beautiful Devon countryside and enjoying the food provided from produce grown at the school. Gift vouchers available for all courses. For more information, dates and booking details please visit www.husbandry.co.uk.

Email:info@husbandry.co.uk Tel: 01626 821145 Mob: 07980 253677 or 07806 563373 Liddy Ball, Bickington, Nr. Ashburton, Devon TQ12 6NZ

PRACTICAL COURSES AND LECTURES Perfect Christmas Gift Ideas for Gardeners!

Winter Propagation Workshop

Saturday 24th November Propagating new plants from your existing favourites is fun and a great way to save money.

The Rose Masterclass

Wednesday 16th January Two one and a half hour talks and Q&A sessions covering The Mighty Rose – the nation’s favourite flower.

Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop

Saturday 26th January The secrets of getting the best out of your fruit trees.

Hardy Geraniums and Winter Interest Plants

Wednesday 30th January Two one and a half hour talks and Q&A sessions covering fabulous hardy geraniums and winter interest plants for your garden.

The Husbandry School, its gardens and its inspirational and knowledgeable tutors combine to offer a range of fascinating hands-on courses for 2019.

Liddy Ball, Bickington, Nr. Ashburton, Devon TQ12 6NZ. info@husbandry.co.uk 07980 253677 or 07806 563373

For timings, ticket prices, directions and further information, contact: Sculpture by the Lakes, Pallington Lakes, Tincleton, Dorchester DT2 8QU T: 07720 637 808 E: info@sculpturebythelakes.co.uk

www.husbandry.co.uk • 01626 821145 www.countrygardener.co.uk

39

CLASSIF IED Accommodation Lazydaze Holiday Chalet. Nestled Between The Quantocks, Exmoor & Blue Anchor Bay. 5 Miles From Minehead.

Sleeps 3. Private Enclosed Garden. Dogs Welcome. Phone Jan For Brochure & Details On 01984 641321 Cornwall, near St Just. Chalet, sleeps 4, heated indoor pool, open all year – near gardens/coast, golfing nearby. Prices from £300 pw. 01736 788718 Bosworlas near Sennen/St Just, Cornwall. Cosy Cottage, rural views, Sleeps 2-4 01736 788709 www.bosworlas.co.uk Glorious North Devon. Only 9 cosy caravans on peaceful farm. Wonderful walks in woods & meadows. Easy reach sea, moors & lovely days out. £125395pw. Discount couples. Nice pets welcome. 01769 540366 www.snapdown.co.uk

Accommodation Holiday Cottages

Three Cotswold Barn Conversions Sleeps 4-10 people. Visit England Four Stars In between Upton House, Hidcote and Chastleton

www.ascott-barns.co.uk

Sidmouth Devon Holiday bungalow in AONB overlooking Donkey Sanctuary. Sleeps 4. April – October. Ideal for walkers, nature lovers and children. jandtmercer@gmail.com www.sandwaysholidaycottage.co.uk 07842 514296

Creekside Cottages, Near Falmouth, Cornwall Carmarthen Bay South Wales Seafront chalet situated on estuary.

Sleeps up to 6. Seaview. Well Behaved Dogs Welcome. Open from 1st March - 31st Dec. For brochure Tel: 01269 862191

Pinnock Wood Shepherd Hut A Bespoke Craftsman Built Shepherds Hut situated on a working livestock farm in an area of outstanding natural beauty.

Ideally located for visiting all Cotswold Towns and Villages. Excellent walking Tel: 01242 604189 info@pinnockwoodfarm.co.uk www.pinnockwoodfarm.co.uk 40

Waters-edge, Rural & Village Cottages Sleeping 2-8. Peaceful & Comfortable.

Available year round. Dogs Welcome.

Open Fires.

Call us on 01326 375972 for our colour brochure www.creeksidecottages.co.uk Padstow house, 4 + baby, gardens, parking, Wi-Fi, Camel Trail, beaches 07887 813495 holidaysat55@gmail.com Wye Valley/Forest of Dean. Fully equipped 4-star single storey cottage.

Two bedrooms both en-suite. Central heating/bedlinen provided. Rural retreat with shops/pubs one mile. Short breaks available. Warm welcome. Tel: 01594 833259 www.cowshedcottage.co.uk Self-catering cottages in countryside near Lyme Regis. Japanese food available. www.hellbarn.co.uk 01297 489589 Lanlivery near Eden and other Cornish Gardens lovely woodland lodge 2/4 people www.poppylodgecornwall.co.uk 01726 430489 Country Gardener

or Karen on 01608 684240

Accommodation with Beautiful Gardens North Devon near Clovelly. 3 delightful cottages situated in 12 acres of idyllic countryside. Sleeps 2-4. 1 Wheelchair friendly. Prices from £190 p.w. Brochure: 01237 431324 www.foxwoodlodge.co.uk

Near Stratford-upon-Avon Lovely self-catering cottage in peaceful location: Large garden, Sleeps 2. Perfect for famous gardens, NT properties & Cotswolds.

Tel: 01789 740360 www.romanacres.com

Penrice Castle Gower 16 holiday cottages on an 18th century Estate on the Gower Peninsula with beautiful Grade I listed historic park and gardens.

Tel: 01792 391212 www.penricecastle.co.uk

CLASSIF IED Antiques

Garden Furniture

International dealer requires records (all types) old gramophones, phonographs, music boxes, radios, valves, telephones, early sewing machines, typewriters, calculators, tin toys, scientific instruments etc. Parts also wanted. TOP CASH PRICE PAID 07774 103139 davepauled1@yahoo.com

Bed & Breakfast Somerset 5* Restaurant with Rooms.

Close to many NT Gardens, Houses and Dorset Coast. Sculpture by the lakes in Dorset. Pet Friendly 01935 423902 www.littlebarwickhouse.co.uk

Home Services UKs leading supplier of Teak Furniture for the Garden

WINDOW BLINDS - ALL TYPES AWNINGS GIANT UMBRELLAS 07771 530401 sales@magshading.co.uk www.magshading.co.uk

Tel: 01256 809 640 sales @chicteak.co.uk www.chic-teak.co.uk

Garden Services

Polytunnels FREE BROCHURE

Cards & Prints A range of over 200 greetings cards and prints from the flower paintings of

ANNECOTTERILL

We sell to both individuals and trade. No order too small.

Contact us for your free 2018 catalogue Mill House Fine Art Publishing, Bellflower Gallery, Market Place, Colyton, Devon EX24 6JS

Tel. 01297 553100 info@millhousefineart.com

www.millhousefineart.com

Catalogues

Yenstone Walling Dry Stone Walling and Landscaping Patrick Houchen - DSWA member.

Tel: 01963 371123 www.yenstonewalling.co.uk Wisteria Pruning, Improvement, Oxfordshire, surrounding area. Richard Barrett wisteriapruning@tiscali.co.uk 01865 452334

Polytunnels from £399 available to view by appointment 01363 84948 info@ferrymanpolytunnels.co.uk

www.ferrymanpolytunnels.co.uk

Potato Day Events

Potato Days 2019 Coming soon to a venue near you!

‘Grow Your Own and Seed Potato’ days

Garden Tools/Sundries RECOMMENDED GARDENING TOOLS AND SUNDRIES DIRECTLY FROM A Request NEW & FREE 2019 catalogue on 01376 570 000 or www.kingsseeds.com

Apple trees from £8.50 Over 100 varieties Dessert, juicing, cider & cookers to suit your farm, garden or smallholding Many other fruit trees & bushes.

Discounts for wholesale, community projects & schools. Advice given.

Tel: 07870 576 330 / 01404 841166 sales@adamsappletrees.co.uk www.adamsappletrees.co.uk

The Walled Garden, East Pennard, Somerset BA4 6TP

www.pennardplants.com

PROFESSIONAL GARDENER

Situations Vacant

Fruit Trees

Adam’s Apples

Full Listing at:

www.potato-days.net

www.arthurandstrange.co.uk See me at the Cothay Christmas Fair 8th Dec

Cook/Housekeeper required for 20 hours work at weekends in exchange for three bedroom cottage in Warwickshire CV47 2YB. References please.

07836 539378

Advertise here...

Call on 01278 671037 for details, or email: ava@countrygardener.co.uk www.countrygardener.co.uk

Advertise here... ...from just £2 per word

41

CLASSIF IED Specialist Garden Products CustomTimberBuildings.co.uk Log cabins

Stables

01935 891195

Thornhayes nursery Devon’s specialist tree grower for a wide range of ornamental, fruit, hedging trees and a selection of choice shrubs.

‘The Killing of Cristobel Tranter’ 1930’s detective novel by me, Dennis Talbot finalist in ‘The People’s Book Prize 2016’

Courses, expert advice, arboretum, display fruit garden.

Tel: 01884 266746 www.thornhayes-nursery.co.uk

Garages

Garden Offices

Mushroom Compost, Farm Yard Manure, Horse Manure, Top Soil, Wood Chip Mulch, Wood Chip, Compost and Chicken Manure.

ALL £1.50 PER BAG PLUS DELIVERY

Discover the Diversity of Hardy Geraniums!

For more information or advice call Nick on 01404 891684 / 07860 459745

We stock up to 200 varieties throughout the year

Call Gary: 01684 770 733 UK and or 07500

600 205

Gary@cranesbillnursery.com

Europe

www.cranesbillnursery.com

DORSET WATER LILY COMPANY The Uk’s largest selection of established pot grown water lilies for public and landscape supply.

Speciality hardy marginals and moisture loving bogside.

Catalogue available or visit us MON/ FRI or SAT 9 - 4pm, Yeovil Road, Halstock BA22 9RR

Consultation/Design & Landscape Service Tel: 01935 891668

www.dorsetwaterlily.co.uk

Available on Amazon £8.99 Kindle £2.15

ATTENTION ALL GARDENERS!

Specialist Nurseries & Plants

Mail order

Look at the characters and plot on my website www.dennistalbot.co.uk

Treat yourself for Christmas!

Ex-display buildings for sale | Anything to order

Free printed catalogue & emailed guide available upon request.

For Sale

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Forton Nursery Top quality Perennials,Shrubs and Trees. Located in Forton village, near Chard TA20 4HD Tel 01460 239569 fortonnursery@ btconnect.com Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Wanted Wanted Old Radio Valves And Audio Valves. Tel: 07557 792091

www.connettsfarmdevon.co.uk

Advertise here...

Call on 01278 671037 for details, or email: ava@countrygardener.co.uk

Advertise here... ...from just £2 per word

Dorset ISSUE NO 162

.co.uk rygardener

Are you part of a garden club or society?

FREE

MAY 2018

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27 YEARS • ESTABLISHED DESIGN & QUALITY

Send them into us by email, giving us 10 weeks notice of the event to: timeoff@countrygardener.co.uk or by post to: Mount House, Halse, Taunton, TA4 3AD. Your event can also be listed on: www.countrygardener.co.uk Sign up to add your events today

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THORNHAYES

Where Quality is higher than the price

Large range of shrubs, perennials, trees and climbers Nursery sundries and composts Free advice given for planting ideas Autumn bedding available now Winter hanging baskets supplied, or we can refill yours Pots and autumn planters for purchase

Open every day

Godney Road, Glastonbury Somerset BA6 9AF

01458 834602

sweetacre@btconnect.com

Hardy Exotic Plant Centre Visit our new cacti and succulent house.

N

U R S E R Y

Quality Trees and Shrubs Amenity trees from whip to standard, fruit (including heritage apples) and hedging.

Conifers and broadleaves.

Range of choice shrubs.

Advisory/design service.

We also have a new range of restio and protea as well as great ranges of bamboos, tree ferns, ferns, cannas, gingers, bannas and shrubs, perennials, trees.

Open every day 10am-5pm Lower Henlade, Taunton, TA3 5NB (5 mins from J25, follow A358 to Yeovil, then signs to the Mt Somerset Hotel)

Tel: 01823 443701 www.deserttojungle.com

Thornhayes Nursery, Dulford, Open 8am-4pm Mon to Fri also 9am-1pm Sat Cullompton, Devon EX15 2DF Tel: 01884 266746 www.thornhayes-nursery.co.uk

A proper garden centre with plants at its heart Open every day

This year choose your Christmas tree in comfort, away from the wind and rain Norway spruce, Nordmann ďŹ r, Fraser ďŹ r - many home grown on our 12 acre site Fabulous Christmas shop for lights, candles and decorations Plus The Garden Tea Room for festive treats

Brackenwood Garden Centre, Leigh Court Estate, A369 Pill Road, Abbots Leigh, North Somerset BS8 3RA - Tel 01275 375292

www.brackenwood-plantandgardencentre.com

Country Gardener Magazine Editorial Publisher & Editor: Alan Lewis alan@countrygardener.co.uk Tel: 01823 431767

Distribution Pat Eade pateade8@gmail.com Tel: 01594 543790

Time Off: Kate Lewis timeoff@countrygardener.co.uk

Advertising Sales Cath Pettyfer - Devon & Dorset Corina Reay - Cotswolds cath.pettyfer@countrygardener.co.uk corina@countrygardener.co.uk Tel: 01837 82660 Tel: 01823 410098

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Accounts Sam Bartholomew sam@countrygardener.co.uk Tel: 01823 430639

Design & Production Aidan Gill aidan@countrygardener.co.uk Gemma Stringer gemma@countrygardener.co.uk

The Country Gardener magazines are distributed FREE at Nurseries, garden centres, National Trust Properties, open gardens, garden machinery specialists, country stores and farm shops in each county.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or made available in any form, without the written permission of the copyright holder and Publisher, application for which should be made to the Publisher. Unsolicited material: do not send or submit your only version of manuscripts and/or photographs/transparencies to us as these cannot be returned to you. While every care is taken to ensure that material submitted is priced accurately and completely, we cannot be responsible or liable for any loss or damage suffered. Views and/or opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent those of Country Gardener or the Publisher.

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43

TIME Off

COMPILED BY KATE LEW IS DIARY EVENTS FROM CLUBS AND ORGANISATIONS AROUND SOMERSET

Here’s a selection of Somerset gardening events to look out for through to the end of February.

Send us details of your event at least ten weeks before publication and we will publicise it free of charge. Make sure you let us know where the event is being held, the date and include a contact telephone number.

We are keen to support garden club events and we will be glad to publicise talks and shows held during the year where clubs want to attract a wider audience, but we do not have space for club outings or parties. We suggest that garden clubs send us their diary for the year for events to be included in the relevant issue of the magazine. Please send to Country Gardener Magazines, Mount House, Halse, Taunton TA4 3AD or by email to timeoff@countrygardener.co.uk.

We take great care to ensure that details are correct at the time of going to press but we advise readers to check wherever possible before starting out on a journey as circumstances can force last minute changes. All NGS open gardens can be found on www.ngs.org.uk or in the local NGS booklet available at many outlets.

NOVEMBER 14th KILMERSDON GARDENERS ‘FUNGI IN FACT AND FICTION’ – MARK BULLEN Details on 01373 813853 16th CARHAMPTON GARDENING CLUB ‘KITCHEN REMEDIES’ – HELEN KEARNEY Details on 01643 821085 17th HARDY PLANT SOCIETY, SOMERSET GROUP AGM & ‘ERYTHRONIUMS & OTHER WOODLANDERS’ – KEITH WILEY 19 BURNHAM ON SEA HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ‘SOMERSET THE MOORLAND WAY’ – PETER TRIGGS th

20th HOLFORD GARDENERS GROUP AGM & ‘FIELD OF DREAMS’ – TONY BAGWELL Details on 01278 741130 WIVELISCOMBE & DISTRICT FLOWER CLUB ‘CHRISTMAS’ – LUCY ELLIS Details on 01823 400156 21st BLACKDOWN HILL GARDENING CLUB ‘PRESENTATION AND SOCIAL – FORAGING IN DEVON’ – JOHN WRIGHT Email: twallen@btopenworld.com NORTH CADBURY GARDENING CLUB ‘BRITISH WILD ORCHIDS’ – ANNE & JOHN BEBBINGTON

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PILL & DISTRICT GARDENING CLUB ‘YEO VALLEY GARDEN’ – JAMES COX Details on 07771 887331 22 TAUNTON FLORAL ART CLUB ‘PAINT THE SKY WITH STARS’ – STEPHEN MACDONNELL Details on 01823 327844 HALSE GARDEN CLUB ‘ORCHIDS’ - LIZ FITZPATRICK Details on 01823 432959 nd

24th–1st December CONNECTIONS GROUP, LONG LOAD VILLAGE HALL EMBROIDERY & TEXTILES EXHIBITION Email: dragonflyliz@btinternet.com 26th CLEVEDON GARDENERS’ CLUB AMERICAN SUPPER AND QUIZ Email: clevedongardeners@gmail.com 27th ENMORE AND DISTRICT GARDENING CLUB ENMORE GARDENING QUIZ & SOCIAL EVENING Details on 01278 671654 ISLE OF WEDMORE GARDENING CLUB ‘WREATH AND GARLAND WORKSHOP’ – DI BARNARD MAGDALEN FARM, CHARD LEARN HEDGELAYING FOR FREE Details on 01460 30144 MERRIOTT GARDENING CLUB ‘THE WHITE GARDEN’ – NEIL LOVESEY Details on 01460 72298 28th ALPINE GARDEN SOCIETY SOMERSET GROUP ‘NEPAL’ – VERONICA CLEGG Details on 01404 850868

Country Gardener

DECEMBER 5th FRESHFORD & DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ‘TWELVE MONTHS OF COLOUR’ – NEIL LOVESEY Details on 01225 723447 WEST PENNARD GARDENING CLUB ‘WINTER HANGING BASKETS’ – GOLD CLUB Details on 01458 850734 6th MAGDALEN FARM, CHARD CHRISTMAS CHUTNEYS AND BREAD Details on 01460 30144 TATWORTH FLOWER CLUB ‘ENTITLED WINTER WONDERLAND’ – LISA FOWLER Details on 01297 33924 8th PLANT HERITAGE SOMERSET GROUP ‘GARDENING IN GOLD AND SILK’ – DEBORAH HASTINGS Details on 01278 451631 11th FROME SELWOOD HORTICULTURE SOCIETY CHRISTMAS HOUSE PLANTS Details on 01373 462162 12th NAILSEA & DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY CHRISTMAS QUIZ Details on 01275 855342 13th EAST COKER GARDEN CLUB FESTIVE EVENING Details on 01935 862447

QUEEN CAMEL & DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ‘MELBURY VALE WINERY’ Details on 01935 850673 WEST BAGBOROUGH GARDEN CLUB ‘COAT AMOUR: OUR HOME, OUR BUSINESS, OUR ADVENTURE’ – STAFFORD TAYLOR Details on 01823 430579 15th MAGDALEN FARM, CHARD LEARN HEDGELAYING FOR FREE Details on 01460 30144 20th YATTON & DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ‘DEMONSTRATION OF CHRISTMAS DELIGHTS’ – MYRA COX Details on 01934 834889 27th CHILCOMPTON GARDEN CLUB MONTHLY MEETING

JANUARY 7th CLEVEDON GARDENERS’ CLUB ‘GARDENING ON A SLOPE’ – CHRISTOPHER BOND Email: clevedongardeners@gmail.com 8th FROME SELWOOD HORTICULTURE SOCIETY TALK BY MEMBERS Details on 01373 462162 MAGDALEN FARM, CHARD LEARN HEDGELAYING FOR FREE Details on 01460 30144 SEDGEMOOR GARDENS CLUB ‘DARWIN AND THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE’ – NICK WRAY Details on 07903 030533 9th WEST PENNARD GARDENING CLUB ‘THS BISHOP’S PALACE WELLS – PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE’ – JAMES CROSS Details on 01458 850734 KILMERSDON GARDENERS ‘FRAGRANCE IN THE GARDEN’ – DON EVERITT Details on 01373 813853 NAILSEA & DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ‘INTERESTING TREES WITH A BIAS TO TYNTESFIELD’ – CHRIS WATTS Details on 01275 855342

10th SEAVINGTON GARDENING CLUB ‘THE BISHOP’S PALACE’ – JAMES CROSS Details on 01460 249728 16th PILL & DISTRICT GARDENING CLUB ‘MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR GARDEN’S MICROCLIMATE’ – NICK WRAY Details on 07771 887331 17th DULVERTON GARDENING CLUB A TALK BY NICK BAILEY Tickets available from Dulverton Post Office 18th CARHAMPTON GARDENING CLUB ‘PLANT ASSOCIATIONS’ – CHRIS YATES Details on 01643 821085 21st BURNHAM ON SEA HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ‘SEASONAL COLOUR AND INTEREST IN THE GARDEN’ – GOLD CLUB CLEVEDON GARDENERS’ CLUB ‘DAVID AUSTIN – A NEW STYLE OF ROSE’ – MERVYN REED Email: clevedongardeners@gmail.com 26th MINEHEAD GARDENING CLUB ‘GROWING VEGETABLES’ – JOHN ADDISON Details on 01643 706558 SOMERSET PLANT HERITAGE ‘GARDEN HINTS FROM WILD AND STRANGE HABITATS’ – LADY ROSEMARY FITZGERALD Details on 01278 451631 29th ENMORE & DISTRICT GARDENING CLUB ‘STAINED GLASS’ – LOU LLOYD Details on 01278 671654

FEBRUARY 4th CLEVEDON GARDENERS’ CLUB ‘I ONLY COUNT THE SUNNY HOURS: SUNDIALS’ – CYRIL ROUTLEY Email: clevedongardeners@gmail.com 6th CLEEVE GARDEN CLUB CHRIS BEARDSHAW Details on 01789 772550 12th SEDGEMOOR GARDENS CLUB ‘SWEET PLANTS AND SUGAR SOURCES’

www.countrygardener.co.uk www.countrygardener.co.uk

– GOLD CLUB Details on 07903 030533 13th KILMERSDON GARDENERS ‘I ONLY COUNT THE SUNNY DAYS’ – CYRIL ROUTLEY Details on 01373 813853 NAILSEA & DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ‘THE SCREE AND GRAVEL GARDEN’ – DON EVERITT Details on 01275 855342 14th SEAVINGTON GARDENING CLUB ‘ROGUES GALLERY – GARDEN PESTS’ – SALLY NEX Details on 01460 249728 QUEEN CAMEL & DISTRICT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY MONTHLY MEETING Details on 01935 850673 15th CARHAMPTON GARDENING CLUB ‘GARDEN PEST, DISEASES & WEEDS’ – JULIE STEED Details on 01643 821085 17th EAST LAMBROOK MANOR GARDENS, SOUTH PETHERTON. TA13 5HH GARDEN OPEN FOR NGS Details 01460 240328 Email enquiries@eastlambrook.com 18th CLEVEDON GARDENERS’ CLUB ‘A GARLAND OF EDWARDIAN GARDENS’ – YVONNE BELL Email: clevedongardeners@gmail.com 23rd CLEVEDON GARDENERS’ CLUB SPRING FLOWER SHOW Email: clevedongardeners@gmail.com MINEHEAD GARDENING CLUB ‘MY INTRIGUING LOW MAINTENANCE GARDEN’ – ROY CHEEK Details on 01643 706558 SOMERSET PLANT HERITAGE ‘STUMPERIES, FERNS & SHADY FRIENDS’ – ANDREW TOLMAN Details on 01278 451631 26th ENMORE & DISTRICT GARDENING CLUB ‘PEONIES & IRISES’ – SUSANNAH APPLEGATE Details on 01278 671654

45 45

P RODUC T REV IEW: SPADES

Calling a spade A SPADE!

Consumer writer John Swithinbank launches a new product testing series in which he looks in detail at some of the most popular gardening tools and accessories

I always loved to call a spade a spade, but I’m beginning to rethink this phrase because I’ve just come across three very different spades which make gardening easier.

Two are from a Dutch company Sneeboer and one comes from a British company Burgon and Ball.

Before I tried each one out I couldn’t help admire their beauty and craftsmanship.

I then got cracking and put each one through its paces.

Some proved more useful for general soil work but they all did a job on a variety of ground operations. So, what’s special and different about them?

Sneeboer Pointed Spade rrp. £96.95 Digging with this one was easy as this lightweight number was able to slice into the ground by way of its point of its blade. An important added feature is t the rear of the blade is made to be 90 degrees perpendicular with the back of its handle. This allows the blade to penetrate the ground with the minimal of effort with the only drawback of it is not taking out as much soil as a traditional spade but with much less effort and each spade full I would guestimate at about 50 per-cent load of a normal spade. The woody roots of brambles did not stand a chance with this spade as it was accurate and very light to use. If it’s got a downside then I would say don’t put too much torque on it when digging out root systems of established plants.

Sneeboer Transplanting Spade rrp. £96.95 Have you ever wished for a spade that could dig up established shrubs and small stumps? Well, this could be exactly what you may have been missing. To me, this is the world number one spade. Its narrowish blade is slightly concaved and the bottom of the blade has been designed to slice though the toughest of soils. I used it on compacted ground full of brambles and was blown away by its willingness to blitz out the root systems. I’ve lost count of the number of times in the past that I have broken a spade or fork trying to dig out an established plant. Within a few seconds using this I knew.

I found myself excavating and undermining the established root systems with ease and with confidence that this spade was indestructible. Put this one at the top of your Christmas list and you won’t need the gym this January!

Burgon and Ball Ladies Groundbreaking Spade rrp. £34.95 This spade, in my book, isn’t specifically for ladies. It is simply a great spade for all gardeners and is an affordable alternative to rival the Sneeboer pointed and transplanting spades. The wooden handle has a long metal sleeve cover which gave me confidence to really get stuck in without the fear of it breaking.

Sneeboer Dandelion Spade rrp. £59.95 To look at this tool I doubt if anyone would call it a spade, yet, once put to use, it’s qualities are many. Yes, I did find it useful for dandelion removal it the lawn but it was also a bonus put to use in a crowded border where few other long handled tools would be too cumbersome. In the border it withdrew the roots of docks and other taprooted ‘nasties’ as well as titivating the soil around existing plants.

All the above tools and more information are available online in the UK from HARROD HORTICULTURAL www.harrodhorticultural.com Tel: 0333 400 1500.

BURGON AND BALL - https://www.burgonandball.com/collections/spades-forks/products/ladies-groundbreakerspade-rhs-endorsed Tel: 0114 233 8262.

Some garden centres also stock these tools where you can get a feel for them before you buy.

Next issue: Wheelbarrows for a new garden season

46

Country Gardener

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