Gardening

GROW A GOOD LOOKING, EDIBLE GARDEN

It’s not too late to plant for a harvest this year...

One of the positives to come out of the pandemic is much greater awareness of our food: where it Regardless of whether the size of your outdoor space is large or small, there are plenty of ways to pack comes from, how it’s been produced, and how rewarding in plants. Any vertical surface such as walls, fences, it is to grow our own. Not just vegetables, but fruit, posts, or trellis can support ‘living wall’ planters: herbs, even edible fl owers to give a pretty and personal innovative designs that vary from fl at panels to troughs touch to all kinds of dishes. Plenty of crops can be sown on frames, which can be as small or as extensive as or planted now to give a harvest this year, particularly space, time, and budget permit. Traditional containers leafy crops like lettuce, rocket, mixed salad leaves, like hanging baskets and window boxes can be made parsley, Oriental vegetables, radish, Swiss chard, and more productive and easier to manage with products spinach. Hardy veg that tolerates frost can be planted or such as special composts; ‘self-watering’ designs with sown outdoors to harvest next spring or early summer, integral reservoirs; and a variety of watering devices particularly brassicas such as spring cabbage and kale, from low-tech bottle top watering spikes to fully and onion sets or seed that are suitable to stand over automatic irrigation systems. A ‘no-dig’ bed system is winter. Fruit trees and bushes are best planted in autumn, the easiest and most soil-friendly way to grow crops in but you can order plants now and prepare the ground the ground, while raised beds are great for patios and thoroughly with plenty of time. small gardens. n 26 To promote your business to 16,100 readers - call 07450 161929 or email advertising@linksmagazines.co.uk

Sue’s tips for growing your own... your own...

• Choose a site that gets sun for at least several hours a day and is sheltered from strong winds. • Don’t feel you have to grow everything from seed. Ready-grown plants are fantastically easy and particularly good if you only want a few plants. Local markets and nurseries usually off er a good range of excellent value plants. • Most crops need a regular supply of water.

Collecting rainwater in butts or tanks saves using valuable mains water. • Keep on top of weeds – they’ll compete with your crops for water and nutrients. • Sow seeds into moist soil, rather than watering afterwards which can disperse seeds where they won’t grow. • Slugs and snails are very active in summer and can demolish seedlings overnight. There’s a wide range of barriers, traps and baits available to buy: choose wildlife-friendly to avoid harming creatures such as birds and hedgehogs (which will also demolish the pests for you).

ALL ASPECTS OF LANDSCAPING AND PROPERTY MAINTENANCE

• Decking & Fencing • Dry Stone Walling • Patios & Pathways • Timber Structures • Groundworks • Sheds • Turf Laying • House Painting • Hedge Trimming • Garden Clearance

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Gardening jobs for the season

- Summer-fl owering bedding plants can be encouraged to keep blooming until well into autumn by regular deadheading plus a liquid feed every week or two, using a fertiliser high in potash.

- If you have bare spots in borders or your patio needs a lift, add bursts of colour with a few bedding plants. Although it’s comparatively late in the season, if the autumn weather is kind you could enjoy up to three months of colour.

- Order bulb catalogues or bulbs themselves for next spring. Early fl owering bulbs like crocus and narcissi are best planted by the end of September to make lots of root growth.

- If you have a greenhouse, give it a thorough clean inside and out before it fi lls with plants for the winter. - Take cuttings of tender perennials such as African daisy (Osteospermum), shrubby Salvia and geraniums. Once rooted, pot up individually into small pots and keep on a windowsill over winter.

GARDEN DESIGNER & HORTICULTURAL SPECIALIST Inspirational ideas to transform your garden

Sue continues to be available for garden advisory visits and design work, operating according to Covid-19 social distancing guidelines. Gift vouchers available for garden advisory visits. Contact Sue for more details. Sue Fisher 01822 841895 | suefi sher@talktalk.net | www.suefi shergardens.co.uk

www.telluslandscaping.co.uk

07947154740