Garden News April 2

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SEEDS

B rit a inst'sed m o st t ru vo ice in g a rd e n in g

Carol Klein: "Try vivid anemones for shady corners"

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best new roses to brighten borders

Plant a Judas tree for yearround interest

JOBS TO DO !

THIS WEEK

✔ Put in slug deterrents ✔ Sow sea holly ✔ Plant Shasta daisy plugs

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rama Stand-out blooms for d owers fl d e p a sh te p m u tr g in DISCOVER UNUSUAL Amaz c garden ti o x e n a to s p e st 7 VEG WITH ROB SMITH

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Grow a Judas tree

About Now

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Plants and places The windowsill gardener 60-second expert Gardening genius Boredom busters Plant of the week: Judas tree Wildlife watch Weather wise

ON THE COVER

Features ON THE COVER

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Perfect plants for height and drama

13 Tall stories: Perfect plants for height and drama 18 From trash to treasure! Create a wormery from kitchen waste 21 Garden of the week 26 Choose amazing anemones for a shady spot, says Carol Klein 58 Homegrown: Upcycle plastic pots using twigs ON THE COVER

I like a surprise!

P.31 Put a stop to slugs

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Plant Shasta daisies Put a stop to slugs!

Sow sea holly Get a lush lawn in 7 simple steps Martin Fish is giving his agapanthus a tidy up Increase your stock of figs Like father, like son: Medwyn Williams on growing carrots Sow prize-winning onions Green means go for Terry Walton’s broad beans!

The globetrotting gardener, Rob Smith, on unusual veg ON THE COVER

ON THE COVER

ON THE COVER

ON THE COVER

Rob Smith, winner of BBC2’s The Big Allotment Challenge, on unusual veg

The Experts 47 Easy streptocarpus care, from Lynne Dibley 48 Plan your exotic garden, with Ian Cooke 49 Dave Kenny’s 12 best roses to brighten borders 50 Tony Dickerson answers your questions ON THE COVER

ON THE COVER

Rob Smith

OUR COVER STAR

Cosmos ‘Double Click Cranberries’: The ruffled and silky double flowers of this new cosmos are extra long-lasting.

You and Your Gardens 52 Readers’ gardens 54 Your letters and photos 66 My life in plants: Val Bradley

Offers & Competitions 57 Prize-winning crossword 60 Half-price patio plants 62 3 plants and 1 bulb for free!

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GAP

Garden News Editor

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Neil Hepworth

In January, I spent hours trolling through seed catalogues, drawing up a list of things to grow and getting completely carried away. The list was miles too long – no way did I have the space to grow them all, but everything always looks so irresistible. The seeds arrived almost immediately, followed by a few plants. There’s sometimes such a lag between ordering and delivery of some items that I almost forget I’ve got them to look forward to. Then last weekend, I received my hippeastrum Sonatini ‘Veneto’ bulbs that will flower outside this summer.

They’re quite a breakthrough, as they’re hardy and can be left in the ground. I wonder if there’s anything else to come that I’ve forgotten about!

What To Do This Week

April 2 2016 / Garden News 3

AboutNOW

RHS

Local shows have a future if garden groups are adaptable Alamy

Show debate identifies ways forward

Adaptability and use of social media are key

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ncouraging and actively supporting younger people and vastly improving communication, particularly the use of social media, were measures that could effectively help revitalise local flower shows, a recent debate identified. Over 120 people attended The Flower Show Forum, organised by garden-centre chain The Gardens Group (TGG) in Dorset, to hear representatives from garden clubs, plant groups and the RHS discuss reasons why local flower shows were experiencing problems.

RHS Affiliated Societies co-

ordinator Susie Corr summed up the mood, “Although there was genuine passion for horticulture and engaging with local communities, some clubs reported their show events were experiencing decline,” she said to Garden News.

“However, the successful ones had adapted to new circumstances, tuning into the needs of their communities, putting on new events and classes, and actively showing people how to ‘show’. We’ve found in recent years urban garden groups have increased membership, while those in the country are static or had fallen.”

Children will engage if opportunities are exciting

Other points raised included the need for clubs to warmly welcome new, younger members or first-time gardeners, listen to their ideas and actively encourage their involvement in shows, perhaps using incentives such as raffle tickets or free refreshments. Improving communication on all fronts was key and social media was essential, particularly if young people were to be inspired.

Fostering interest in growing plants for shows in local schools was seen as important for the future. “However, children need the right type of encouragement and any

efforts need to be tuned into the school year. It’s no good holding a show when children are on holiday. Children also need to have the right role models to engage with,” said Susie.

Use of the RHS’ latest edition of The Horticultural Show Handbook was also seen as important in guiding a broader appreciation of running shows and identifying methods of exhibiting and judging.

A second Flower Show Forum is scheduled for Thursday September 15 at Castle Gardens garden centre, Sherborne, Dorset, where participants to the first will be invited back to share experiences and how they implemented new ideas. l To attend, call 01935 814633 or email castle@ thegardens group.co.uk l Discussions from The Flower Show Forum debate will continue online at www. thegardeneronline.co.uk/forum RHS

Updated book is vital aid The Horticultural Show Handbook was cited as an essential guide for both show organisers and exhibitors staging competitive classes at local events. Published by the RHS, the revised 8th edition has been rewri en and reorganised to make it more user-friendly and relevant to amateur shows.

Revisions were based on advice from many national plant societies, with the sections on blueberries, bonsai, gladioli and orchids being rewri en. Criteria for judging Chinese artichokes, coloured cauliflowers, minicucumbers and tomatoes in a truss, among others, have been introduced. l Priced £8, the handbook is available from RHS bookshops or via mail order by contacting 01483 211320 or visiting www.rhsshop.co.uk

Experienced gardeners could help mentor the next generation

RHS

4 Garden News / April 2 2016

WHAT TO DO Meet the tea m

Jo Wright

Jo has an established garden with fruit trees, plus an allotment.

Ian Hodgson

Karen Murphy

A Kew-trained horticulturist, Ian is also a garden designer.

Keen fruit, veg and container gardener, Karen also loves wildlife.

THIS WEEK

Melissa Mabbitt Having previously worked at the National Trust’s Bodnant Garden, Melissa has RHS qualifications.

If y o u d o ju st o n e jo b...

Pot up Shasta daisy plugs

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othing sums up summer like a bed of daisies bobbing in the breeze. Shasta daisies, or Leucanthemum superbum, will flower for months on end. In fact, with regular deadheading, they can be in bloom from June until September – a good-value plant.

Shasta daisies are clump-forming perennials and make the perfect partners to all your other summer plants, particularly when teamed with hot border favourites such as heleniums and crocosmia. They’re superb as cut flowers, too, and bees and other pollinators love them.

They’re really easy to grow – stems can be left in place over winter, but they can be rather tatty, so you might want to cut them down in autumn after flowering, and then divide congested clumps in spring.

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Perfect to brighten borders

Summery Leucanthemum superbum ‘Red Glory’

Grow on your mini plugs Plant plugs outside from May

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Remove mini plugs from pots and tease out the root systems to loosen them from their confinement.

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Tuck the plants in tightly and then gently pat down on the surface of the compost.

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In 7cm (3in) pots, hold plugs while filling around them with good po ing compost.

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Give them a good drink to se le them in well.

Transplant from May when plugs are big enough.

Got 5 min ute s?

Rotate windowsill seedlings

Windowsills are sometimes tricky to produce good seedlings from, as the light source is usually limited to one side. This is why it’s necessary to rotate them every few days, otherwise they will become weak and leggy from lack of sunshine. You could also use a homemade foil-covered cardboard reflector to direct the sun back at your needy plants. For best results, though, grow in a conservatory or greenhouse, where plants will grow sturdier and straighter.

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April 2 2016 / Garden News 29

What to do this week

IN YOUR FLOWER GARDEN

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6 ways to stave off slugs!

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Nematodes – naturally occurring microscopic worms can be applied to soil and pots via a watering can.

They kill the slug from the inside.

Copper tape – copper is said to repel slugs and snails from walking over it. Stick it discreetly around your pots for good measure.

Alamy

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Pictures: Neil Hepworth, unless stated

Stop slugs!

How to prevent an infestation

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we’ve been having, slugs are in their element – plus it’s spring, meaning they are currently laying eggs, producing another generation of pests for us to deal with. Should you have an infestation and simply too many for your garden animals to eat, there are lots of ways you can try to keep populations down.

The RHS gardening advice service always say that slugs and snails top the list of phone calls every year with enquiries on how to deter them, so they’re clearly the bane of many gardeners’ lives. Take a look above right for some of the ways you can try to be rid. Good luck!

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Upturned grapefruit – slugs are drawn to grapefruit. Hollow one out and they should collect under it for you to dispose of.

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Beer trap – sink a vessel of beer into your soil, and slugs will be a racted to the yeast in it. They’ll climb in for a sniff and drown.

Slug pellets – unless organic, these should be a last resort, as they can be a danger to wildlife. Slugs will digest them and get poisoned.

Look out for Spanish slugs!

First reported in January 2013, there has been a new slug in town over the past couple of years, threatening to take over our native species – the Spanish slug, or Arion vulgaris.

Last year was a record year for slugs, which unfortunately paved the way for these Iberian monsters to take precedence. They can reproduce twice the offspring of British slugs, and are sadly not as susceptible to deterrent products. But they do eat our native species –

that has to be a bonus!

Spanish slugs are very large and can grow up to 15cm (6in) long, and they are light brown in colour. Be vigilant – pick them off, collect, and carefully dispose of them.

Super-sized Spanish slugs

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e have slugs for a reason in the garden – they are valuable members of the ecosystem, though it might not seem so most of the time! They are around to help with our gardens’ decomposing process and munch away on dead matter to break it down, but they like to get carried away at times and have a go on what often seems like all of our precious plants. They are also a great benefit to garden animals as an excellent snack for hedgehogs, toads, garden birds and chickens.

Due to the wet weather

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Egg shells – Slugs like soft surfaces to walk over, meaning a crumbly layer of egg shells can deter them.

Apply liberally to soil surface.

April 2 2016 / Garden News 31