GARDENING

SEED SOWING

By Mike Burks, managing director of The Gardens Group

CASTLE GARDENS

New Road, Sherborne DT9 5NR

Tel: 01935 814633

BRIMSMORE GARDENS

Tintinhull Road, Yeovil BA21 3NU

Tel: 01935 411000

POUNDBURY GARDENS

Peverell Avenue, Poundbury DT1 3RT

Tel: 01305 257250 www.thegardensgroup.co.uk

There is a huge joy in buying a packet of seeds, sowing them in a seed tray and watching as tiny green shoots start to pop up in the compost just a few days later. No wonder that gardening can become somewhat addictive!

It’s nearly the best time for seed sowing especially with summer bedding plants in mind. Starting too early will give you problems later on as most varieties will only be able to be planted out at the end of May because of the chance of frosts. Starting too soon will mean that plants will grow leggy and will lose their quality whilst you wait to put them out.

Due to the continued interest in raising plants from seed, made apparent in lockdown, we have a fabulous range available. So come along and make your selection! The seed packet has lots of really useful information and it’s worth reading this for each packet so as to understand the needs of each type of seed. Some can be sown directly into the soil, but others will need sowing in a seed tray first. Select a seed tray or better still a half seed tray and a good quality seed compost. For larger seeds the peat-free wool compost works well, whilst smaller seeds might be better off in the SylvaGrow Multi with added John Innes.

I like to mix the compost with a product called perlite. This lightweight, white material is sterile and opens up the compost allowing really good root development which falls apart easily when it’s time to transplant the seedlings.

Most seed will need covering and whereas instinct will tell you to cover them with a layer of compost it is much better to use another material called vermiculite. This again is very clean and is so lightweight that it will allow the seedlings to easily push through without getting distorted as they would do if you use compost as the covering.

With a watering can and a fine rose on the end, water the seeds in. Cover the tray with a propagator lid (a clear plastic cover) and place them in a warm position with good light levels. A heated propagator is ideal and will both speed up and even out the germination.

Label your tray with a description of what you have sown and the date the seeds were sown. This will hopefully avoid confusion later in the gardening year!

And then wait! The seed packet will tell you how long germination should take and the date on the label will remind you when you sowed the seed.

Once the seedlings have germinated, they will need pricking out (transplanting). Handle them carefully by the leaves only – never the stem. Loosen the compost and gently tease them out of the compost. The perlite will ensure that they come out easily and with a good root system.

Prick out these seedlings into cell trays filled with a quality potting compost such as New Horizon or SylvaGrow. Water them in well and put in a welllit and warm (but not too warm) spot.

Once we get to warmer days, the plants can go out during the day but are best brought back into a protected spot inside overnight. Come the middle of May they can finally be released into the garden.

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UP THE GARDEN PATH

By Julie Haylock, Sandhurst Garden Design

As I write my article, we mark the beginning of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations for Her Majesty the Queen and her 70 years of service and devotion to our country and the Commonwealth, what an amazing achievement! The Queen’s Green Canopy initiative is well under way with communities coming together to plant trees as a legacy to mark this historic event. banks or gravel gardens. It grows to a height of 15cm and has narrow silver leaves with white flowers.

Senecio cineraria ‘Silver Dust’ – this tender shrub grown as a half-hardy annual has fine feathery foliage, shaped a little like an oak leaf, and makes for an extremely useful addition to the front of a border or in containers. 30 x 30cm.

It started me thinking about all the planned events for the coming year and in particular the street parties planned for June, and the plants we might like to use in our gardens to reflect the occasion. What could be nicer than a patriotic hanging basket of red, white, and blue annuals combined with bunting to lift all our spirits, and boy, how we all need it!

Platinum or, in this case, silver plants make a fantastic addition at any time of the year to borders and containers. Silver looks amazing with any other colour you choose to pair it with, adding a splash of sparkle and sophistication.

I have suggested a selection of plants that you might want to look out for, but I suspect over the coming weeks, and with Chelsea Flower Show just around the corner when horticultural growers will be showcasing their new varieties, there will be many more aptly named plants appearing in our garden centres to tempt us even further.

Most of the plants I have chosen have a Mediterranean vibe. Common with plants that have silver foliage, they are often drought-tolerant so perfect for a sizzling summer.

An excellent choice for the front of your border is Cerastium tomentosum ‘Snow in Summer’. This vigorous mat-forming perennial is ideal for carpeting dry sunny Festuca Glauca – this dwarf perennial grass forms a dense tussock of blue/grey foliage giving an almost ‘misty’ effect and is totally drought-proof when established. It looks great planted in large drifts, between other plants in borders or in containers. 30 x 20cm.

For a mid-height border plant, how about Stachys Byzantina ‘Silver Carpet’? This tactile plant has soft oval leaves, which gives it its common name, lamb’s ears. This evergreen plant is perfect for a sunny border or gravel garden, forming a carpet of drought-tolerant silver foliage.

Santolina or cotton lavender likes a sunny spot or gravel garden, forms a neat clump of delicate grey/white aromatic foliage, and in late summer, a small yellow flower appears on wiry stems.

If you have the space in your border and want a statement plant, look no further than Cynara Cardunculus, cardoon or the artichoke thistle. This large architectural plant makes the perfect statement, either on its own or planted in a large herbaceous border with contrasting plants. In summer, tall stems of jaggededged leaves are topped off by a fat bud which opens to a large purple thistle which attracts masses of bees. 2m x 90cm.

Slightly smaller but just as magnificent is Melianthus Major with its large grey/ green toothed leaves held on upward branching Sandhurst Garden Design stems and in hot summers it produces a reddishJulie Haylock brown flower. Plant in a Garden Designer sheltered spot and mulch 20 Sandhurst Road, Yeovil, Somerset BA20 2LG heavily in the autumn Tel: 07899 710168 Email: juliesandhurst1@gmail.com to protect the roots from frosts. Perfect as a www.sandhurstgardendesign.co.uk stunning specimen for a Contact Julie for garden and border design, planting perennial border with an plans, plant selection advice and garden styling exotic feel. 90 x 80cm.

BBC Gardeners’ World Live Gold Medal Award Taunton Flower Show Gold Medal Award and The Western Daily Press Cup for Best Show Garden

Until next time, Julie

POEM CORNER

By Andrew Haylock

The inspiration for this poem is based on how excitedly the hare embraces the arrival of spring and the promise it holds.

THE MARCH HARE

The promise of spring was in the air, On the field edge sat a hare. It had been a mad March day, Full of sprint, chase, box and play. The chilly breeze warmed by the sun, The overwhelming desire just to run!

He had skipped in sunshine by day, dealing with rivals who got in his way. In the night sky, light from afar, Brown eyes watch planets and shooting stars. Twitching nose and long ears listening in tune, For predators that hunt under cover of the moon.

Early dawn and he joins the quest, To decide just which hare boxes the best. Now he has had many bouts, Winner by a whisker, never in doubt. Scent of primrose, bob of tail ‘catch me if you dare’ An icon of spring, we salute the March Hare.

CREATING A FUNCTIONAL OUTDOOR SPACE

By Liv Sabat

Having a functional outdoor space opens the gateway to being able to use your garden for many more purposes, not just purely decorative.

A deck or paved space can add so much more to a garden, not only aesthetically but also practically. It will give you more space to host outdoor gatherings come summer and also more space for you to lounge and enjoy your garden. Porcelain paving and millboard decking are two of our go-to products when it comes to expanding the useable area of your outdoor space.

The millboard decking would create the perfect base for a sunroom which is the ideal solution to expanding the useable space in your outdoor area. A sunroom allows you to bring the outdoors in which is particularly useful in the winter months. You could use your new outdoor flooring as a barbeque area, a hot tub area or even an outdoor gym. You can explore so many more possibilities with an area of outdoor flooring. Both types of outdoor flooring are extremely hard wearing so they can be used in almost any situation and there is also no need to worry about weather resistance either. Whether you want an outdoor seating area, lounging space or a play area for your children, these two types of outdoor flooring have got all your needs covered.

If you opt to have a sunroom installed on top of your millboard decking then that really does broaden your horizons; not only do you have an extended and more functional area, it is also covered. There is the option to have sliding glass doors on your sunroom which would create a beautiful enclosed space.

There are styles and colours to fit everyone, whether you are looking for light or dark, bold or minimal, there is definitely something for you. You may even decide you want an entire revamp: new plants, edging, planters, everything, and that’s great too. That would mean you get a fresh start so you can create a space that you can be really proud to say is yours.

Now that you know everything you need to know to create your new functional outdoor space it is time to get the ball rolling! Whether you want outdoor flooring, a sunroom or an entire garden regeneration project, we are here to help you.

Thank you for reading, see you in the next one.