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pEaxgtersa! FREE SEEDS worth £2.40 31 JULY 2021

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Pond care: four key steps you must take

How to get more plants: dividing a bearded iris Tomato pests: smart ways to keep harvests healthy

Plant feed: when to use it, and when not to!

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Plants that need little water but still look gorgeous

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Jobs for this week 4 5 8 10 12

Keep the garden ticking over To feed or not to feed Dividing bearded irises Summer pond management How to sow hardy daisies/ Butterfly Watch: the painted lady

Great garden ideas

“Here are tips on keeping the garden ticking over,” says Ruth

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“Want free plants that you only have to grow once? Read this,” says Hazel

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Gardening wisdom 14 16 19 21 39 46 50 52 56 61 67

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26 Volunteers are free: our selection of the best self-seeding plants 30 Drought-tolerant plants: best plants to cope with heat and little water 34 Summer shrub cuttings: how to get gorgeous shrubs for free Peter Seabrook Bob Flowerdew Val Bourne Wildlife Lucy Chamberlain’s Fruit and Veg Ask John Negus A Gardener’s Miscellany All Our Yesterdays Advanced Gardening Anne Swithinbank’s Masterclass Letters to Wendy: from AG readers Toby Buckland

Garden News 7 Hampton Court Garden Festival Reader offers

24 A blueberry growing kit on offer

“I’ll show you the “Well done to the RHS for putting on a best drought-tolerant great event at Hampton Court, despite plants,” says Tamsin restrictions (see report on page 7). It was the first major show since the original lockdown in spring 2020 and a great relief to be almost back to normal. The only shame for me was what I can best describe as the ‘annual eyesore’. Do you remember the show garden of 2019 with rubble and coffins? Well, now we have a wrecked aeroplane fuselage to remind us that we need to be more environmentally aware. Does the message always have to be so ugly?

And is this what visitors want to see at a garden show?”

detiderc esiwrehto sselnu erutuF shpargotohp llA

Garry Coward-Williams, Editor

34

“Shrubs are expensive, but I’ll show you how to get them for free,” says Graham

Cover: Cistus x purpureus, the purple-flowered rock rose (pic: Alamy)

Contact us: Subscriptions: 0330 333 1113 Editorial: 0330 3903732 Email: amateurgardening@futurenet.com Advertising: 0330 3906566 31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 3

Gardening Week with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes Your

Weeding is an ongoing task

Filling a gap with a pelargonium cutting

Quick fixes Keeping your garden looking good

1

Deadhead flowers as soon as blooms fade to keep things neat.

This also encourages more flowers.

Tidying containers, deadheading and replacing faded plants helps keep the garden ticking over

Keep the garden ticking over Ruth explains how to help your garden look its best

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E are at that point in the also known as late blight disease. year when we enter a This disease occurs when spores holding pattern, helping contaminate tomato and potato crops, the garden to keep and it presents itself as brown, watery ticking over smoothly by carrying out a lesions on leaves, stems, fruits and selection of simple tasks in rotation so tubers. This is a common problem that things stay looking their best. without a chemical control, so all you It isn’t an ideal planting time as the can do is remove affected plants and ground is too hard and dry, but you can either bury them deeply or consign still fill pots with fresh plants and them to the dustbin or green waste add new ones to replace those Tomato blight is a bin. Do not compost them as that have turned up their spores will live on and common problem theyou toes or succumbed to will simply spread pests and diseases. the problem around Weeds will continue your garden. growing even in the Plants grown in driest months, so keep polytunnels or them in check every time greenhouses are less you are out in the garden. likely to be affected by Run a hoe over the soil to cut blight. You can also reduce off seedlings and pull out large the risk of attracting the weeds as soon as you see them. problem by growing early tomatoes, The same applies to pests, which can by not growing tomatoes and potatoes quickly colonise plants when you’re not close together, by giving plants plenty of looking. It’s much easier to deal with space and good ventilation, and by not small colonies than large infestations, wetting the leaves and top growth of and there’s something very satisfying plants when watering. about picking off and squishing There are also several varieties caterpillars and aphids. of tomatoes said to be more blightIf the summer continues as it began, resistant, including ‘Fandango’, with warm, humid conditions, then we ‘Fantasia’, ‘Berry’ and ‘Red Alert’. This is will have the perfect conditions for the worth bearing in mind for next year if fungal disease tomato blight, which is your plants succumb this season.

4 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

2

Harvest crops as they ripen so they aren’t lost to pests and before they rot or grow too big.

3

Watch for pests and problems, and combat them by physical means (removing pests, cutting out and binning diseased material) or by using organic controls.

4

Keep plants hydrated, as wilting and reviving will weaken them. Pots and baskets will need a daily soak in dry periods.

Free plants: In next week’s AG I show you how to take and care for cuttings, and plant out any that have matured since they were taken in spring.

Four areas to attend to Enjoy the garden, but don’t rest on your laurels!

1

Greenhouse: Feed and water crops regularly, (especially important with tomatoes that may otherwise develop bottom-end rot) and treat pests. Open doors and windows for ventilation and to help cool things down.

2

Lawns: Mow weekly with a high blade, as slightly longer grass holds moisture in the soil. Edge around borders and remove lawn weeds, either using a weed puller or proprietary lawn weedkiller rather than a general one.

Start collecting seeds, such as nigella

Store seeds Prepare for next summer by

collecting seeds from ripe pods.

Seeds from annuals such as nigella and cerinthe, and biennials including aquilegia and stocks, can be harvested now, as can those of early perennials such as campion.

Shake the seeds free from their dry seedheads into an envelope or pot.

Seeds of stocks will soon ripen

3

Trees and shrubs: Prune plums, cherries and summer-flowering shrubs, including weigela and philadelphus, when their blossom fades. There is no need to feed or water established plants.

4

Houseplants: Keep feeding and watering, deadheading, wiping the leaves and removing pests. Some, including spider plants and Christmas cacti, can go outside to enjoy the summer rain that will clean their leaves.

To feed or not to feed...

WHILE watering remains a constant So while annual plants, such as necessity for most plants in summer, feeding is not always essential as we draw closer to autumn.

Indeed, it can be dangerous for plants to be fed much beyond the end of July. This is because the extra nutrients can spur plants into growth so they throw out lots of new shoots that don’t have time to harden before the arrival of the colder weather.

The same applies to your lawn.

Stop using summer feeds, as the nitrogen they contain will cause fresh growth that can be damaged in colder autumn weather.

Remove the chaff and bits of seedpod, and store the seeds in a labelled envelope somewhere cool and dry that is also safe from pests.

Biennial seeds can be sown now so the seedlings can grow large enough to be planted out in autumn.

Feed container plants with liquid tomato fertiliser

bedding, and hungry crop plants that will be removed and composted once they have fruited, will thank you for feeding them, established perennials will be able to secure enough goodness from the soil to keep them going.

The exceptions are perennials growing in containers that quickly gobble up all the available nutrients.

Potted fuchsias, agapanthus and dahlias can be fed to keep them flowering for as long as possible, until they die back in autumn and are moved to the protection of a greenhouse or light porch for winter.

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 5

Gardening News The latest stories from around the UK Your

Hampton Court Festival report RHS beats Covid to stage the first big show of the season Compost heaps made from pallets were planted with salad leaves and edible flowers on the RHS No Dig demo garden gnoL ekiM LPA kassoK annaoJ/SHR

THIS year’s Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival was a great success, thanks to the tireless work of the RHS and its volunteers, writes Garry Coward-Williams.

It was the first RHS show since lockdown 17 months ago, and the RHS should be applauded for having the belief and commitment to go ahead. This is especially so given the fact that the government put back the change to Step 4 restrictions by four weeks to 19 July, with the show planned to open on 6 July.

Restrictions weren’t a problem Despite concerns over restrictions like social distancing, mask wearing in the marquees and visitors having to prove they had taken the rapid antigen Covid test, the event was very much back to normal. It was a delight to see so many people enjoying the displays just like a normal RHS Hampton Court show.

Floral Marquee and plant villages For many, the jewel in the crown of Hampton Court is the Floral Marquee and the amazing quality of the plants exhibited by expert growers, and this year didn’t disappoint, although there may have been fewer exhibitors.

Nonetheless, it was a joy to see these perfect examples. Also, there were two Plant Villages where specialist nurseries were selling plants.

Annual eyesore For all the beauty of the plants and arrangements on display, there is also stark ugliness. Some may recall the wheelchair, coffins and rubble that adorned the last Festival in 2019. This

The ‘A Place to Meet Again’ garden demonstrated that by repurposing materials, from scaffold boards to concrete water ducts, you can create a beautiful garden A novel path made from cut sections of tree trunks on this allotment exhibit continued the recycling theme

A wrecked plane this year and coffins in 2019. What next?

year it is the turn of a wrecked aircraft fuselage brandishing the legend ‘Homo Sapiens’. Titled ‘Extinction’, the aim is to make people aware of the threat to the planet caused by the exploitation of the earth’s natural resources. This is an important issue, but is this what people have paid their entrance fee to see? One also wonders about the environmental cost of getting the aircraft there in the first place and then taking it back to

wherever it came from. However, it did get lots of national press attention, so it may do some good. Let’s hope so, because I fear the ‘annual eyesore’ is here to stay.

Support the flower shows The RHS has proved that events can work, so try to get along to a show – big or small – if you can. You’ll have a great day out and be supporting the trade.

Wendy’s impressions ofthe Hampton Court Festival

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IF a flower show intends to give the visitor ideas to take home, then RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival provided them by the bucketload, writes AG’s Wendy Humphries.

It was refreshing to see so many ideas for upcycling what we’ve already got in order to reduce landfill. The Punk Rockery garden demonstrated how builders’ rubble could form the basis for Mediterranean plantings, and ‘A Place to Meet Again’ garden used repurposed materials throughout.

More recycling ideas came in the Community Allotment exhibits, with a sliced tree-log path, a rose support for climbing veg, and the prettiest compost bin I’ve ever seen made from pallets.

The vast Perennial Meadow garden was dreamy, and like much of the show, the planting was quite subtle and calming. But, I finally found the colour fix I’d been craving in the form of rose ‘Hot Chocolate’ in the Rose Festival marquee.

This was truly a show crammed with inspiration and innovation.

“A final pop of colour on Peter Beales Roses display, Rose ‘Hot Chocolate’, really stood out for me,” says Wendy 31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 7

Gardening Week with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes Your

Deadhead bedding and container plants

Deadhead irises after flowering

Cut back hardy geraniums after flowering to encourage more flowers

Trim plants

Bearded irises such as this ‘Carnival Town’ cultivar need regular dividing to keep them flowering well

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Dividing bearded irises Splitting clumps keeps them productive, says Ruth

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EARDED irises are some of the most spectacular flowers to grace an early summer garden.

Reaching their peak in late May and through June, their sword-like leaves and flamboyant, ruffled flowers make a statement wherever they grow.

Often seen in shades of purple and lilacs, bearded irises (Iris germanica) also produce flowers in yellow and assorted shades of russet, orange, white, salmon and blue. But if their clumps are not divided every few years, five at the most, they will run out of steam and flowering will falter.

Divide their clumps around six weeks

Step by step

after they have finished flowering and been deadheaded, as this will give the replanted sections time to put on growth and get their roots established for future flowering before they enter their winter dormancy.

Replant the divisions in sunny, welldrained soil that you have enriched by digging in a generous amount of wellrotted compost or farmyard manure. If your soil is heavy, lighten it and improve drainage by adding grit before planting.

Keep the soil around new plantings damp while they bed in, and mulch with more compost or manure to help retain water, suppress weeds and feed the soil.

Cut back to encourage flowers n Trim back hardy geraniums once they have finished flowering, removing the spent flowerheads and shearing them back into shape. n Feed and water them afterwards, and you may be lucky enough to get another burst of blooms. n Deadhead bedding plants in borders and patio containers. This keeps them looking smart and encourages the plants to bud more profusely and for longer. n Feed your containers and hanging baskets every 10 days with liquid tomato feed and water daily when there is no rain. n If compost is so dry the water runs straight off instead of soaking in, add a couple of drops of washing-up detergent to the watering can to break the surface tension and make rewetting easier.

Splitting and trimming bearded irises

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Dig all the way around the plant and carefully lift it with plenty of soil attached.

2

Replenish the replanting sites with lots of well-rotted compost or manure.

Divide using a sharp spade or knife, making sure each section has healthy roots and top growth.

4

5

6

Discard weaker sections and cut Plant divisions at the same depth back the plants you are keeping to as before, firming the soil as you around 6in (15cm) before replanting. infill around the roots.

8 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

3

Water generously and don’t let the ground dry out while the divisions get established.

Gardening Week with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes Your

Top Tip

Cover ponds with taut netting to stop herons poaching your fish and to catch any falling leaves and other debris.

Removing seed pods from a flag iris

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Ours is a low-maintenance wildlife pond, but marginal plants and weeds still need tending in summer

Do not overfeed pond fish

Pond points

Keep the water healthy in summer

1

Remove dead and faded foliage and flowers before they collapse into the water and rot.

Summer pond management Cut back plants and keep the water topped up, says Ruth

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T’S high summer and garden ponds are busy places, both in and out of the water.

Our little wildlife pond is rippling with life – beetles and water boatmen fighting for territories, damselflies mating and laying eggs, birds swooping down to drink. We may not have frogs yet, but I can happily lose hours watching everything else going about its business!

In ponds up and down the country, marginal plants and weeds, along with aquatic plants of all varieties, are growing fast. At the same time, water is evaporating and the warm weather may be causing the rapid growth of green algae and blanketweed.

This is further exacerbated by nutrients given off by rotting plant

matter, leftover fish food and fish faeces, which is why we need to cut back dead and dying plants, and only feed fish as much as they can eat.

Carefully weed around the pond’s edge, cutting back fading marginal plants, tidying up irises that have gone to seed and weeding.

If your pond has a flexible liner, make sure it is completely covered with mud and stones as protracted exposure to sunlight will eventually cause the material to perish.

Children are fascinated by ponds, especially in summer when the ponds are full of creatures and activity. Make sure youngsters are accompanied by an adult when they go pond dipping and exploring and, if necessary, childproof your pond with fencing.

Wildlife and watering

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Install a ramp or create a shallow end so that wildlife that uses the pond for washing and drinking can get in and out easily.

10 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

2

Ponds need topping up regularly as water evaporates. Rainwater is best, but tap water is fine if left for 24 hours so the chemicals dissipate.

2

Add some horticultural sand to create a thick bed where invertebrates can hide and breed.

3

Remove invasive weeds and oxygenators that threaten to cover more than a third of the water’s surface.

4

Leave the removed weed at the pondside for 48 hours so any trapped critters can return to the water. Then compost it.

Gardening Week with AG’s gardening expert Ruth Hayes Your

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Shasta daisy ‘Alaska’ is a robust, cheerful plant that has a long flowering season and can withstand bad weather

Cover with compost or vermiculite and label

Hardy daisies that bring joy These cheerful flowers will bloom for months, says Ruth

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NE of the mainstays of our garden, from early summer until well into winter, is a large clump of Shasta daisies.

They start flowering as the weather warms up and are often still bravely

blooming until around Christmas. They are cut back in late summer when they start to straggle and become unsightly, but you can guarantee they will soon start throwing out new buds to brighten the shortening autumn days.

Shasta daisies are also easy to divide, which is a good way of keeping the main clump at a tidy, manageable size, so offspring of our original plant are dotted around the rest of the garden.

If you would like these bountiful beauties in your garden, get sowing this week’s free seeds, which are for Shasta daisy ‘Alaska’, the most popular variety of Shastas that produce pristine white petals radiating out from an egg-yolk yellow centre.

Growing to a height of 3ft (90cm), they like a sunny, well-drained site and are relatively low-maintenance, though you may need to check developing clumps of plants for slugs and snails.

For the best results, sow your seeds in pots and germinate them in a coldframe, unheated greenhouse or light windowsill.

Fill a clean pot or tray with fresh seed compost, dampen it and scatter the seeds thinly on top. Cover them with a thin layer of vermiculite or compost and either seal the pot in a clear plastic bag or add a lid if using a seed tray. Remove these when the seeds start to germinate.

ButterflyWatch: The painted lady (Vanessa cardui) A stunning migrant that crosses the world to visit us

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I ALWAYS think that the Latin name of find enough food in years when there the painted lady butterfly would suit a are too many individuals in one place.

Painted ladies arrive in the UK in mid rather temperamental operatic diva.

Vanessa cardui would demand that all to late summer after travelling from as far afield as North Africa, the her needs be met, and stamp Middle East and central Asia. her feet if they weren’t.

They are beautiful For all its beauty, the creatures, with wings a painted lady is a very tapestry of delicate orange different animal. This and black shapes, and tough, resourceful insect white markings on the tips flies thousands of miles of the forewings. each year and causes The beautiful colours They can be spotted wonderful scenes in the of a painted lady everywhere in the UK, though years when it arrives en in some years they are more masse on our shores.

Nobody is sure why there are years numerous than others. Thistles and viper’s bugloss are the main food plants of mass migration, but the theory is that these butterflies have to travel to of the spiky black caterpillars, which

12 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

emerge and immediately shelter on the underside of the leaves.

They then eat The spiky grubs the leaf cuticle, blossom into creating transparent beauties patches that help us spot them. If too many caterpillars emerge on one plant, many will die of starvation as there won’t be enough greenery for all.

They moult five times before pupating, then head south again when they emerge as our climate is too cold for them at any stage of their life cycle.

Ruth Hayes

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Sow seeds onto dampened compost

Gardening Week with Peter Seabrook, AG’s classic gardening expert Your

An eye-ctaching display of Nemesia ‘Lady Penelope’

Listen to Peter’s free podcast every Thursday. Search for ‘This Week In The Garden with Peter Seabrook’ on iTunes

Peter’s top tips

1

Once the flowering stems of nemesia begin to set seeds, shear them back to stimulate another flush of growth and blooms.

The example pictured (Nemesia ‘Lady Penelope) started to flower again 10 days after being sheared.

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Rigorous standards

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Nemesia trials have really proved their worth, says Peter

“There are 114 different nemesias at the last count”

14 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

Recent nemesia novelties, with larger flowers and brighter colours, make a stunning display at RHS Garden Wisley.

3

Trial judges have to get down to check the fragrance.

Planting in hanging baskets and window boxes is advised for sweetly scented kinds, including N. Fairy Kisses ‘Boysenberry’ and N. ‘Pink Lemonade’.

4

Quite a range of nemesias are hardy to -5°C and will overwinter in free-draining soil, but cuttings rooted in late summer give the most reliable show the following summer.

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OFTEN refer to plant trials in my from a pathway up the twin herbaceous column, and while there are borders, can be heard to express nowhere near as many trial surprise over the number of different grounds across the country as nemesias – 114 at the last count. Plant there used to be, they remain the best breeders around the world have been way to assess garden performance. My busy and some of the latest cuttingsfirst job in 1952 was as a nursery hand raised cultivars have excellent garden on a seed trial ground in Essex, qualities, eye-catching colours, when there were at least 10 free and repeat flowering, companies with similar trials plus good fragrance. across the county.

The new trial site is Currently, in the Royal interesting, with all the Horticultural Society previous hard paving Wisley Garden there is an removed and soil brought extensive trial of nemesia, in for the turfed paths and mostly cuttings-raised rectangular trial beds. An Specialists meet four area named cultivars, although of decorative nemesia times in summer to there are a few seed-raised assess the trials planting has much stronger examples. These trials have growth, apparently the result of moved and are in a new site, which additional Wisley garden compost. previously held the container plant area Chopped straw has been used as a for the Wisley Garden Centre. weed-suppressing mulch between the Visitors coming into the new area, trial rows and it looked to me as if this were tying up nitrogen.

There is little doubt in my mind that recently introduced, long-flowering, seasonal bedding plants do need more feeding if we are to benefit from their extra vigour, which in turn yields larger flowers and more of them. This includes those grown in containers as well as others planted out in fertile soil.

2

Gardening Week with Bob Flowerdew, AG’s organic gardening expert Your

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Select strong runners with healthy plantlets, root these into small pots, detach and grow on in larger containers

‘Elan’ is ideal for hanging baskets and containers: it’s vigorous and produces very sweet fruits with higherthan-average sugar levels

Bob’s top tips for the week

1

When harvesting cabbages, leave the stumps and cut a cross in each, then water and feed to get bonus mini heads.

You don’t need dedicated beds – just find the biggest containers you can, and you can enjoy fabulous strawberries year after year

Start next year’s strawbs You can never have too much of a good thing, says Bob, 2 as he explains how to get a head start on next year’s fruits

I

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RECKON relatively few folk grow frequent watering. Note: I said bucket. strawberries, thinking it is made A tub of that size will do as well – but a complicated with dedicated bucket can be easily suspended. When strawberry beds needing continual you hang the plants up off the ground, replacement. All this might seem like too they’re in warmer, drier conditions and much faff. Worse, if you make a bed safer from so many pests that just Buckets are easily can’t get to them, so this is but don’t replace that third so your worth that extra effort. each year, then the cropping fruitsuspended, is kept safe from pests Moreover, in a bucket, becomes near-worthless.

Of course, if you want one plant produces a huge quantities of fruit magnificent quantity then a dedicated bed of fruit for two or three may make sense – if you years, then can simply be have space. However for discarded and replaced many, it’s more practical to renew heavy cropping. to grow a few plants in Initially, it pays to buy the containers, but only if these best virus-free plants, as old are decently sized! stock often has unseen problems.

A strawberry plant does well in a Once you have your first plants, you can bucket (with drainage holes made). root runners to replace these over many Smaller containers work out badly, years. It’s simple to select strong runners giving poor crops and requiring toowith healthy plantlets and to root these into small pots nearby. As soon as the plants root, they can be detached and given their own buckets. This is the important part: if your new strawberry plants are growing through August and September, they’ll be forming flower buds and will fruit heavily next summer.

So don’t delay – either buy those new plants or root runners right now!

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“Off the ground they are warmer, drier and safer”

16 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

If your plum trees are carrying huge crops, take time to prop their branches to stop breakages – or thin really ruthlessly.

3

Get Japanese onion seed now, before it all sells out, so you’re ready for the sowing window in a month’s time.

4

As water butts get emptied take the opportunity to clean these, and the gutters, and put the sludge on to the compost heap.

Gardening Week Your with Val Bourne, AG’s organic wildlife expert

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Slugs and snails love a hosta, so avoid any pots with lipped hiding places and go for straight-sided pots instead

Grow sacrificial salads and French marigolds like ‘Burning Embers’ amongst runners

As I duly purge my patch of pesky gastropods, there are some that I will spare, such as the white-lipped snail

Goodbye to gastropods Val considers the best ways to combat slugs and snails

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AST week, I wrote about slugs and the dangers of using slug bait, because it killed all your slugs whether good, bad or ugly.

If I have a slug problem, I use a hands-on approach and arm myself with gardening gloves (those I can feel through), plus a torch and a jam jar. I make sure that I’m wearing something heavy on my feet, if you get my gist, and off I go, just as it’s getting dark. If that seems a strange time to be gardening… well, the bad slugs are just like dirty old men. They come out at night and prey on the young.

That’s young plants, by the way!

Emerging runner beans are very vulnerable to slug damage, and I solve this problem by planting tempting slugfriendly lettuces and equally tempting tall, single French marigolds such as ‘Burning Embers’. Hopefully, these decoy plants distract any slugs from munching my bean tips. I get to pick leaves from ‘Salad Bowl’ and small hearting lettuces

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“Bad slugs are like dirty old men”

such as ‘Little Gem’, while the beans (hopefully) scale the poles on my tripods.

It’s too windy for rows here.

The marigolds will hopefully survive to produce single, warm-red flowers by June. These will attract hoverflies, and they’re useful in the garden, because most garden hoverflies have pest-eating larvae. The flying females lay single eggs close to aphid colonies, and once the larvae emerge they devour your aphids, including blackfly. Ladybirds and their larvae will join in as well.

My eight-by-four vegetable beds are separated by wooden planks, because you can stand on these rather than the soil. Slugs avail themselves of the damp, dark niche underneath, but not for long.

The planks are then regularly lifted and checked, and any small slug is stamped on. Ground beetles can often lurk underneath, too, so I’m careful not to walk on the planks until I’ve looked – ground beetles are our most efficient predators of slugs and slug eggs.

Snails can be equally damaging, but they feed throughout the day. They love to hide in a hemerocallis or a kniphofia, so I frisk these plants regularly. However, I only send brown garden snails (Cornu aspersum) up to heaven. I spare the

smaller white-lipped snail (Cepaea hortensis) and five-banded, brownlipped snail (Cepaea nemoralis) as they don’t do so much damage.

In winter, garden snails roost together in numbers, so I get rid of a fair few clusters should I find them. I collect any snail shells I find in winter; there’s lots of variety in the damage, and that leads me to believe a lot of things feed on snails The Best Beloved has a scientific bent. Like a small schoolboy, when he found a poorly garden snail he popped it into one of my jam jars! In April this year, small maggots hatched out in numbers and then pupated side by side, like a series of tiny brown slippers.

Then something else hatched out – a different maggot. It seems that the garden snail does not have all of its own way in a natural garden like ours.

We’re waiting for the adults to emerge.

Slugs and snails love a hosta plant, and many people grow them in pots.

If you do, avoid any pots with lipped hiding places. Use straight-sided pots instead, because those sheltered niches under the rim are slug bunks.

Slugs will avoid anything aromatic, because salvias, lavenders, nepetas and achilleas produce volatile oils. If it’s got a smelly leaf when you rub it, the chances are that it won’t be popular with slugs.

Members of the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae) produce unpleasant alkaloids, so hellebores, Japanese anemones, thalictrums and aconitums are rarely touched. However, delphiniums do get munched, because they emerge so early in the year. Slugs and snails will also avoid penstemons, peonies, euphorbias, hardy geraniums and foxgloves.

Harden off young brassicas so they are less appetising to gastropods

TIP

Hardening greenhousegrown or tunnel-grown plants off for a few days, in an airy spot, will help to make them less attractive to slugs and snails.

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 19

Gardening Week with Lucy Chamberlain, AG’s fruit and veg expert Your

Ribes rubrum ‘White Versailles’ is a vigorous currant that produces lots of sweet, creamy white fruit

Compact blackcurrant ‘Ben Lomond’ is a popular choice for small gardens and containers

Pinkcurrant ‘Gloire de Sablons’ yields plenty of pretty translucent fruits that are also beguilingly fragrant

Focus on ...

Currant care Whether your fancy is for traditional black fruits, vibrant reds or striking pinks and

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whites, it’s easy to grow your own tangy currants, as Lucy Chamberlain explains

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T’S the ultimate no-brainer: pay £3 per punnet for currants, or buy a bush for less than £10 to give you 20 punnets per year for 15 years?

Let’s think about that for a millisecond...

Why anyone buys currants by the punnet is beyond me. Established bushes yield roughly 4kg (9lb) of fruit per year, plus the plants are self-fertile, easy to maintain and trouble-free. Modern breeding gives us resistance to big bud mite in blackcurrants, such as ‘Foxendown’, extra-long strigs in

“Growing them is the ultimate no-brainer”

redcurrants like ‘Redpoll’, and many attributes in between – mildew resistance and frost-resistant flowers being two more to look for. Let’s not forget that you can buy white currants Redcurrant ‘Red Lake’ is a stunning choice with its generously filled trusses of shiny berry clusters

and pink currants, too. Ribes is certainly a diverse genus!

Growing essentials Growing methods for each do have similarities (see my pointers on page 22).

White and pinkcurrants are a sport of redcurrant (R. rubrum) so can be treated the same, whereas blackcurrant is another species (R. nigrum) so has differences linked to cropping, pruning and consequent nutrition.

Reds and relatives crop on older wood so can be trained into cordons, fans and even espaliers with lots of fruit buds. Consequently, the most important nutrient to supply them with is potash.

Blackcurrants fruit predominantly on one-year-old stems, so are pruned heavily each year to encourage lots more young wood, which requires ample nitrogen.

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Gardening Week with Lucy Chamberlain, AG’s fruit and veg expert Your

Lucy’s corner Lucy’s choice

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Try these easy growing currant tips ■ Buy certified virus-free blackcurrants if you can – these are assessed healthy (redcurrants frequently aren’t certified).

■ Currants like an organic-rich site, so add well-rotted compost or manure to the planting hole, and mulch annually.

■ Position your bushes in a sheltered spot (although some sun is beneficial).

Avoid frost pockets due to their early flowering tendency.

■ Prune any established plants every winter to ensure a succession of vigorous growth. Summer-prune restricted types.

■ Watering regularly from May until September boosts shoot growth and berry size, plus flower initiation for next year’s crop.

■ Net bushes against birds as soon as fruits begin colouring up. Harvest whole strigs to avoid squashing ripe berries.

Apply mulch around the base to retain moisture

Sheltered spots are great for blackcurrants like ‘Ben Connan’

Three of the best currants for you to try…

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‘White Grape’: This whitecurrant was also given its AGM in 1993. It yields mid-season, and plants can grow to over 6/2ft (m) in height. A novelty worth growing – imagine owning a jar of whitecurrant jelly.

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‘Big Ben’: A recent introduction of the Ben Series, awarded an RHS AGM in 01. Fruit size is around twice as large as standard blackcurrants and sugar levels are good, so eating fresh is pleasant. Plants grow 5ft (1/2m) tall.

Top tip

These shallots are now ready for lifting – dry them off for a few weeks under cover so they store well

IF you’re like me and you didn’t irrigate your alliums this year, then I empathise with your tiny bulbs!

Luckily, I don’t like large onions for the kitchen and shallots are intended to be small anyway. However, if you’ve watered beds of shallots, onions and garlic this summer, you might have a decent harvest. The foliage of nonwatered plants will be turning yellow already – a sign that the outer leaves

of the bulbs are drying up, which prepares the crop for storage.

If you have been irrigating, stop doing so now to give your bulbs the chance to dry out. Gently sliding fork prongs under each clump to part-ease the bulbs out of the soil also helps. Then either leave them on the soil surface or, if things turn wet, lay them on greenhouse shelving until September.

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s Make your last direct sowing of quick-to-mature baby turnip varieties (like ‘Oasis’) now,n.to steadily bulk up for autumthen.

Keep well watered until If you’re harvesting calabrese, cut the main head and then leave plants in situ – they’ll deliver baby heads on side-shoots.

If you find that your sowings ofrunning cultivated rocket are quickly drills of to seed, start off some short wild rocket instead.

Feed that hungry gap in May by making a sowing of spring cabbages (like ‘Advantaesge)ornow.

Either start off in modul soil. sow direct into a seedbed of If your locality experiences dryg crops spells, irrigate moisture-lovin such as celery and celeriats.c regularly to ensure decent harves

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‘Jonkheer van Tets’: I have grown this redcurrant for many years due to its cropping power and decent-sized strigs (whole clusters). An AGM winner in 1993 and of Dutch origin, it’s also one of the earliest to ripen.

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Next week: Focus on figs, sow carrots for winter, harvest early apples, take herb cuttings, try elderberries.

Step by step

“Wasting would be a crime”

Watch out for tomato blight Don’t let those precious tomatoes fall foul of this common foe. Here’s

how to keep this destructive disease in check with my three-point plan:

Sign up to the  blightwatch.co.uk website to receive alerts whenever the weather conditions for late blight are perfect in your area.

Late blight spores need specific moisture and temperature conditions to germinate, so understanding this is your first line of defence.

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Indoor tomatoes should be far less vulnerable to blight attacks than outdoor crops, as their foliage can easily be kept dry (leaves need to be wet for blight spores to germinate).

Avoid overhead irrigation of outdoor crops whenever you receive blight alerts.

Prune stone fruits FOR many stone fruit (peaches,

If the disease does strike your tomatoes, help prevent future attacks by growing resistant varieties next year. Resistance varies, but those tomato varieties with twin-gene resistance, such as ‘Mountain Magic’.

‘Crimson Blush’ and ‘Consuelo’, will be most successful.

Why not try..?

Pretty edible flowers of Tulbaghia violacea

Society garlic

Trained stone fruits will benefit from tidying now

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nectarines, apricots, cherries, plums, damsons and gages) their life need never involve a meeting with the secateurs – you can pretty much leave free-standing ‘orchard-style’ trees to their own devices. However, if you’re like me and you own pot-grown or fantrained stone fruits, then set about them now to ensure they keep within bounds.

Containerised plants can have overlong shoots cut back by between a third to a half – this will ensure they remain compact. Also, remove any central congestion or low-down suckers.

Fans just need old wood removed and new stems tied into their place. If trained

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against a wall or fence, cut out any shoots growing into or directly out from this structure. Complete this task now (or immediately after harvest) to ensure trees don’t succumb to two destructive problems: silver leaf and bacterial canker.

Beets like ‘Baby Action’ are more forgiving if you don’t harvest regularly

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courgettes will become marrows.

Lettuces, too, will bolt in hot weather, as will salads such as rocket and herbs like coriander. Raspberries will dry on the plant if left too long before picking.

French and runner beans are also best picked while small.

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checking over your edibles daily to guarantee picking them while at their best. Some veg are quite forgiving – carrots, spring onions and beetroot, for example, will simply keep on swelling – so if you don’t pull them for a week or more, nothing is going to spoil.

At the other end of the spectrum, though, are crops like peas, courgettes, radishes, sweetcorn, figs and peaches.

Their harvest window is small – check these on a daily basis to ensure you pick them at perfection. Otherwise, peas and corn will soon turn starchy, radishes will

Keep a close eye on peaches such as ‘Rochester’, so you can be sure you pick them at their peak!

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Check on quick-to-mature crops IF you have the time, make a point of become woody, fruits can rot and

FOR lovers of garlic who aren’t so keen on the associated antisocial aspects of odorous breath, why not give the pretty little perennial Tulbaghia violacea a try? Tasting and smelling of garlic, yet not as lingering on the tongue, this garlic is a borderline hardy South African plant that thrives in a sunny, welldrained spot. The leaves look similar to chives yet are more glaucous (grey), and the flower clusters, appearing from June onwards, are pinky-violet in colour and very attractive to bees. The foliage and flowers are edible, livening up leafy and grain-based salad dishes.

Provided the weather is mild the foliage remains evergreen, and plants will clump up year on year (ultimate height 1ft/30cm). If you live in a garden prone to prolonged chills, an insulating bark mulch will ensure plants survive through the winter months.

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Allow seedheads of foxgloves and lychnis to ripen on the plant and self-seed. But first, decide whether the self-seeders in your garden are welcome – and if not, deadhead them!

Volunteers are free!

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Pick the right self-seeders and they will provide plants year after year, says Hazel Sillver, as she reveals which ones to choose to save you time and money HE ideal garden guests are beautiful plants that gently seed themselves around and aren’t difficult to remove if need be.

These include orange splashes of California poppy blazing through a gravel border, Stipa tenuissima and Chasmanthium latifolium grasses billowing among perennials and forgetme-nots glowing blue in dappled shade.

The late gardeners Margery Fish, Christopher Lloyd and Beth Chatto all championed the use of self-sowing plants (or ‘volunteers’, as the Americans call them). Fish banned hoes in her garden; Chatto encouraged her team to ‘edit’ self-seeders, selecting the amount and location of the seedlings; and Lloyd emphasised that a good relationship with self-sowers sometimes “means eliminating 99 out of 100 seedlings.”

At Lloyd’s garden at Great Dixter in East Sussex, extreme self-seeders such as red orach, evening primrose and teasel are courted, as well as less vigorous ones such as the lovely magenta Lychnis coronaria. Of course, the enthusiasm of a self-seeding plant depends on the situation: if it likes the conditions it can be a nuisance, but if it doesn’t it won’t do much. For instance, Verbena bonariensis could overwhelm

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you with seedlings where it has elbow room, but in a thickly planted border it might only produce one or two.

Consider whether or not you like a self-seeding plant enough to want to live with it for years. Some people love the bold colours of opium poppies (which

Dianthus carthusianorum is a useful self-seeder in a prairie style border

Where to buy*

are easy to weed out), towering verbascum, acid-yellow Euphorbia oblongata and the architectural Allium cristophii, while others prefer cottagegarden self-seeders, such as columbine, ammi, nigella and Venus’s navelwort.

Try something unusual If you fancy trying something that none of the neighbours has, head to Special Plants, near Bath, which has umpteen rare volunteers, from hot-pink Silene armeria ‘Electra’ and purple-podded honesty (Lunaria annua ‘Corfu Blue’) to Bupleurum falcatum, which looks like yellow cow parsley. Also, there’s the Beth Chatto Gardens in Essex, where Mediterranean thistle Galactites tomentosa, slug-proof Delphinium requienii and airy pink Dianthus carthusianorum are a breath of fresh air.

If they like your garden, they will sow themselves around, providing free plants year after year.

Beth Chatto ✆ 01206 822007  bethchatto.co.uk Special Plants ✆ 01225 891686  specialplants.net

*Many nurseries are currently unable to send out plants – or despatch may be delayed.

5 self-sowers for sun Cerinthe major ‘Purpurascens’ Bees love the dangling purple bell flowers of this honeywort, which bloom under dark bracts, above glaucous leaves, from May to July. A hardy annual for well-drained soil in sun. H: 2ft (60cm).

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Verbena hastata f. rosea Pink candelabra flowerheads bloom atop the slender stems of this perennial vervain in summer and early autumn, and die into attractive seedheads. Well-drained soil in sun. H: 4ft (1.2m).

Papaver rupifragum The perennial Spanish poppy has orange flowers that look like they’re made of tissue paper, above blue-green leaves, in summer and autumn. Well-drained soil in sun. H: 20in (50cm).

Eryngium giganteum ‘Silver Ghost’ AGM This sea holly is an architectural biennial with silver stems and bracts, topped with lime-grey flower cones that morph into good seedheads. Well-drained soil in sun. H: 3ft (90cm).

Lychnis coronaria‘Alba’ AGM The white-flowered rose campion is a short-lived perennial or biennial with white flowers and felty grey foliage in summer.

Well-drained soil in sun or semi-shade. H: 2ft 7in (80cm).

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4 volunteers for semi-shade Geranium pyrenaicum ‘Bill Wallis’ This mountain cranesbill has small purple flowers on slender stems for months.

Being airy and floppy, it’s great grown through sturdy perennials or roses. Welldrained soil.

H: 16in (40cm).

Digitalis purpurea f. albiflora The white foxglove is luminous in dappled shade in late spring and early summer, and provides bumblebees with nectar. Remove plants with purple stalks if you only want the white form. H: 4ft (1.2m).

Angelica archangelica Wonderful architectural green globe flowerheads adorn this biennial in June. Since it attracts everything that buzzes (including wasps), place well away from the patio!

Moist soil in semishade. H: 40-80in (1-2m).

Smyrnium perfoliatum Perfoliate alexanders is a cheering biennial with bright limeyellow foliage and flowers in May or June. Good for cutting for the vase. Copes with most positions and soils – even dry shade. H: 2ft 7in (80cm).

Unwanted guests

Corydalis lutea is a prolific self-seeder Alchemilla mollis, also called lady’s mantle, provides a lovely finish to a path edge

Self-seeders for walls and paving THERE are many self-seeding plants that enjoy the cracks, crevices and good drainage of dry-stone walls and paving. These include Erigeron karvinskianus AGM (Mexican

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fleabane), Alchemilla mollis AGM, Erodium x variabile ‘Roseum’ AGM, Limnanthes douglasii subsp. rosea, Strobilanthes attenuata and Corydalis ophiocarpa.

SOME self-seeders seem to possess otherworldly powers of growth, so beware of introducing them. These thugs include valerian, ox-eye daisy, Corydalis lutea and purple moor grass. Sisyrinchium can also be annoying. Some unstoppable selfsowers are manageable if weeded when young – for instance, fennel is hard to remove once it’s big, so edit when seedlings are small.

Mexican fleabane (Erigeron Karvinskianus) will seed itself around in the right place – it likes a hot spot with plenty of light

Grasses and yuccas are just some of the drought-tolerant plants in the dry Beth Chatto’s dry Gravel Garden in Colchester, Essex

Drought-tolerantplants The spiky heads of drought-tolerant Eryngium x zabelii ‘Jos Eijking’ look stunning in a border

With the effects of global warming and growing concerns about water conservation, plants that need less water are becoming more popular, says Tamsin Hope Thomson

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OT, dry conditions can be seen as a problem, but I like to see it as an opportunity to use drought-tolerant plants that will save you time and money.

There’s a huge range of striking plants that can cope with little rainfall.

These low-maintenance plants will transform your sun-baked borders for the better. As well as giving your borders a boost, transforming your planting will help with climate change, save water and you’ll have a display that won’t wilt at the first sign of a heatwave.

So, what types of plants do you need?

The plants that can cope with hot, dry conditions usually originate from hot, dry and rocky areas of the world with a Mediterranean climate. They have evolved to thrive in these conditions, which is why you’ll have more success with planting in dry conditions if you choose the right plants.

Whatever your taste, you’ll find a plant to suit your style, whether it’s a gravel garden of flowering plants from phlomis to nepeta, or an exotic look with dramatic foliage plants like agave and yuccas.

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There are a few ways to spot droughttolerant plants – look at their leaves, as they tend to have one or more of the following attributes: spiky, needles, silver-coloured foliage, tiny leaves or waxy leaves. All these characteristics help the plant deal with heat.

Silver foliage Plants with silver foliage are able to reflect sun away from the plant, while plants with hairs can trap moisture and those with small or needle-like leaves lose less water through evaporation.

There are also ways to improve your soil conditions to help plants thrive.

Many Mediterranean plants like freedraining soil and will not like sitting in waterlogged sites over winter, so it’s important to improve soil structure.

Once established, you’ll have tough plants that won’t need much care.

Drought-tolerant planting is an exciting opportunity to transform problem areas of the garden into a fantastic display – and you won’t have to worry about asking your neighbour to do holiday watering.

Make your garden drought resistant Improve the structure of your soil by digging in plenty of organic matter.

Buy young plants so they have time to establish, as they will find it easier to get used to dry conditions than mature plants.

Plant Mediterranean plants in the spring to give them time to establish before winter and cold conditions set in.

Water new plants regularly to help them establish.

Add mulch to the soil to help retain moisture.

Plant young droughttolerant plants in the spring

6 low-maintenance plants

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Perovskia ‘Blue Spire’ Russian sage is a shrub with fragrant leaves and striking spires of blue flowers. It makes a good planting partner for other silver-leaved plants. It loves a sunny spot and will thrive in dry soil. Flowers August-September. HxS: 4x3ft (1.2x1m).

Lupinus arboreus The tree lupin is a shrub with scented flowers that are usually yellow. It originates from Californian sand dunes so is a good choice for a dry, sandy spot. Flowers May-August.

H&S: 6 /ft (2m).

Yucca gloriosa These evergreen plants provide impact all year round with their spiky leaves. There are also cultivars with variegated leaves in colours such as yellow or pink. This species is perfect for a hot dry border. Flowers July-August. H&S: 5ft (1.5m).

Lavandula angustifolia Scented plants from the Mediterranean are used to growing on sun-drenched soil with little moisture. This compact cultivar is perfect for a spot near a path where you can enjoy the scent.

Flowers July-September. HxS: 18x24in (45x60cm).

Sea holly Sea hollies (eryngiums) are perfect for hot gardens. Their spiky flowerheads look dramatic in a border or container and they range in colour from silver and green-grey to blue such as ‘Jos Eijking’. Flowers July-September. HxS: 18x12in (45x30cm).

Stipa tenuissima Grasses are low maintenance and this one is a great pick for a dry garden. It’s compact with wonderful flowerheads that sway in the breeze. It’s a great plant partner for colourful flowering perennials. Flowers June-September. HxS: 24x12in (60x30cm).

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3 flowering plants

Cistus ‘Sunset’ The rock rose is a plant that comes from rocky parts of the Mediterranean, so it’s used to a bit of drought. Its rose-pink flowers appear in midsummer, and although its display will only last until the end of this month, it’s worth noting for the future as it’s a top pick for drought-tolerant conditions.

Flowers June-July. HxS: 3ftx3ft 3in (90cmx1m).

Phlomis russeliana This long-flowering perennial is perfect for a sunny spot and very tolerant of drought – so it’s good for gravel gardens. Its yellow hooded flowers last for months and its seedheads stand well over winter. Flowers May-September. HxS: 3ftx2/ft (90x75cm).

Sedum (Hylotelephium) As well as providing late nectar for bees and butterflies, sedums love a hot spot. Cultivars such as ‘Autumn Joy’ provide vibrant pink flowers on flat flowerheads and the seedheads look good into winter. Flowers August-September.

H&S: 24in (60cm).

3 drought-tolerant picks with fantastic foliage

Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’ This is a good plant to partner with golden grasses or other sun lovers such as eryngium and sedums. Its silver, feathery leaves reflect the sun to help prevent water loss. Flowers June-August. HxS: 24x36in (60cx90cm).

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Euphorbia characias subsp. wulfenii This shrub originates from the Mediterranean where it grows on dry, rocky ground. It’s an evergreen, so even when its startling lime-green flowers are over, it still adds structural impact to a border. Flowers April-July.

H&S: 4ft (1.2m).

Stachys byzantina Lamb’s ear makes excellent droughttolerant ground cover with its evergreen silver foliage. Some cultivars such as ‘Silver Carpet’ don’t flower. Others, like ‘Big Ears’, have purple flowers. Flowers (depending on variety) June-September.

HxS: 8x18in (20x45cm).

As well as its dramatic foliage, Yucca gloriosa produces panicles of bell-shaped flowers

Semi-ripe cuttings of all kinds of shrubs and herbs can be successfully taken in summer

Summer shrub cuttings S

Why pay for expensive shrubs when, with a little time and effort, you can grow your own for free? Graham Rice explains how to take semi-ripe cuttings now

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shoots that have grown this year, with leaves on the lower half. Insert the leaves down to the base, and whose cuttings in pots of your made-up foliage is in good condition and not compost so that the lower leaves are damaged or diseased. Shoots just above the compost. Match tending to grow horizontally, the pot size with the size rather than vertically, often and number of cuttings. tend to root better.

Water in, place the Make up some pot and cuttings in a compost using your polythene bag and usual potting compost, stand in a shaded mixed 50:50 with greenhouse, or on a sharp sand or perlite windowsill out of direct for extra drainage. sun. Cuttings usually root Make the cut just Snip off your cuttings a quickly if you keep the below a leaf joint little longer than you need compost moist and don’t using sharp secateurs and collect allow your cuttings to be them in a polythene bag to keep them scorched. Once roots emerge from fresh. Trim the bottom just below a leaf the drainage holes in the pot, you joint, remove the tip and snip off the can pot them up individually.

Where to buy*

Mr Fothergill’s  mr-fothergills.co.uk ✆ 0333 777 3936 Suttons  suttons.co.uk ✆ 0844 736 4208 Two Wests & Elliott  twowests.co.uk ✆ 01246 451077

*Many nurseries are currently unable to send out plants – or despatch may be delayed.

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HRUBS can be expensive to buy, and one reason for this is that they can take a few years in the nursery to reach garden-centre size. So, as we often say here at AG, the answer is to grow your own – or, in this case, root your own shrub cuttings.

Evergreen and deciduous shrubs, hedge plants, climbers, bushy herbs – even a few trees – are easy to propagate at home without sophisticated equipment, and doing it yourself will save you money or provide popular donations to your local charity plant sale.

And what better way of sourcing hedge plants than to raise your own?

Semi-ripe cuttings There are two seasons in which growing shrubs from cuttings works well. One is early winter, and the other is in late summer and early autumn – August and September.

Cuttings take at this time of year are called semi-ripe cuttings. These are short shoots, usually 4-6in (10-15cm) long, where the tip of the stem is soft but the base is becoming hard. Choose

Shrubs ideal for semi-ripe cuttings

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Camellia Snip off the tip half of the large glossy leaves to prevent too much moisture being lost from the cuttings, insert into a mix of three parts of ericaceous (lime free) compost to one part perlite.

Brachyglottis Attractive, grey-leaved evergreen for bright sites with sunny yellow summer daisies. If the leaves start to rot, ease up on watering and open the bag every day to allow fresh dry air to circulate.

Choisya Use side shoots for cuttings and, as with camellias, snip the tip half of the foliage off to prevent too much moisture being lost. Sharp kitchen scissors may leave a cleaner cut than secateurs.

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Erica Trim the cuttings shorter than for other shrubs – 2in (5cm) is fine – and insert in the same lime-free compost mix as for camellias. Give cuttings of the related calluna and daboecia the same treatment.

Cistus Choose non-flowering side shoots for cuttings. Some dwarf compact varieties may only yield short cuttings, but they should still root. Cuttings can be taken as late as October. Check for rotting leaves and ventilate if necessary.

Hebe Hebes can be rooted almost all the year round, although they’re quickest in August and September. Cuttings can be rooted individually in 3in (7.5cm) pots and I’ve even rooted them in a jar of water on the windowsill.

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Fatsia Choose sideshoots that show no sign of flowering, and trim back the leaves to reduce moisture loss. I’ve found they root easily if set individually in 4in (10cm) pots, but don’t let them dry out.

Viburnum There’s a wide range of deciduous and evergreen viburnums grown for their flowers, berries and autumn leaf colour.

All root well from 3-4in (7.5-10cm) shoot tip cuttings taken in late summer.

Mahonia Individual cuttings in 4in (10cm) pots seem to work well, cut back the foliage of larger-leaved types. Some say March is the best time, others say June. I’ve had success with cuttings taken about now.

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3 herbs to root now

Bay Bay cuttings are easy to root so long as the compost is not allowed to become too wet. I’ve even seen them rooted in pure sand, although a 50:50 mix of potting compost and sand, grit or perlite works better.

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Thyme Thyme cuttings can be short – 2-3in (5-7.5cm) – and with the tiny leaves so close together it’s not really worth trying to snip below individual leaf joints or trying to cut the leaves off individually. Just rub them off with your fingers.

Hedera The young climbing growth of most ivy varieties roots easily from semi-ripe cuttings and they grow away quickly once they get started. The mature, broad-leaved flowering and fruiting growth from the top of the ivy is much more reluctant.

Passiflora Although you can root soft spring cuttings, waiting until now is usually more successful. The trick is to keep the compost moist but not allow the leaves to stay constantly wet. So open the poly bag each day for a couple of hours.

Solanum The potato vine is a vigorous and easy climber that roots readily in late summer – I’ve rooted it in water.

Cuttings may even start to flower before you’ve potted them up. It’s best to nip these off, though.

Trachelospermum This increasingly popular scented climber roots well from cuttings of nonflowering shoots, especially if you put them in a heated propagator. The cuttings can also be longer than with other plants, up to 8in (20cm).

Rosemary With its slender stems and foliage, you can root half a dozen rosemary cuttings in a 4in (10cm pot). Choose recent growth, not the old woody stems from last year.

Again, I’ve seen them rooted in sand, but would not recommend it.

Rooting tips Cuttings of shrubs and woody plants take easily at this time of year

Care after rooting

n When it’s clear that rooting has begun (look for roots emerging from the base of the pot) prepare for potting by removing the poly bag, or switching off the heated propagator during the day. n Feed with liquid feed the day before potting.

When roots appear at n Carefully slide the rooted cuttings out of their pots, the base, remove separate them gently, then pot them up individually cuttings from the pot into fresh potting compost n Stand them somewhere cool and shady for a few days until they’re settled.

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IF you’re thinking about planting a new hedge, you may find that the cost of the plants overruns your budget. But many hedging plants can be raised from summer cuttings and, although it will take the plants an extra year or two to reach planting size, it can be worth the wait.

Box, cherry laurel, lavender, griselinia, escallonia, holly, Lonicera nitida, Portuguese laurel and privet will all root from semi-ripe cuttings.

And you may be able to propagate enough from just one original plant.

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Cuttings for your own hedge

n Water the plant from which you’ll be taking cuttings the day before. n Use bypass secateurs, not the anvil type (they squash the stems) and never a knife (if you value your fingers). n Rooting gel can encourage speedy rooting of most cuttings. n If you’ve put your pot of cuttings in a polythene bag, you may have to open it for a couple of hours a day to prevent rotting. n A heated propagator will speed up the rooting of all cuttings, but check Dip the cuttings in rooting gel or powder that the compost remains damp.

Ask John Negus John will reply personally to all your gardening questions every week John has been answering reader queries for 50 years

Have my tomatoes turned into some sort of mutants?

Q

A

Weigela ‘Looymansii Aurea’ has pink flowers and striking golden-green leaves

Mystery shrub

Genetic mutations are relatively common in tomatoes

Q A

What is this shrub, please?

Mike Cant (via email) The shrub in question is Weigela I observed, too, that some trusses ‘Looymansii Aurea’, a striking of your tomato plants have flattened, strap-like stems. This is called fasciation variant whose pink flowers contrast and it is usually triggered by some sort strikingly with its golden-yellow foliage. of damage to the plant’s growing point, It’s happiest in light shade as bright, hot sunshine scorches the leaves. or by an infection.

Discovered as a seedling in 1873, it’s a fetching contender for gloomy places. It grows to around 6ft (1.8m).

Reversion happens when all-green leaves dominate spotted or variegated material

detiderc esiwrehto sselnu erutuF shpargotohp llA

Q

We bought an aucuba two years ago. At first it was very spotty, but now it is spotless but healthy. How can we induce it to get ‘acne’ again?

Allan Burton, Droitwich, Worcs I am sorry that your aucuba, which originally bore attractive spotted leaves, is now producing only plain-green ones.

The reason is that it has reverted.

That is, the variety you purchased,

A

which could have been ‘Crotonifolia’, ‘Gold Dust’, ‘Picturata’ or ‘Sulphurea Marginata’ – all with spotted leaves – has been outgrown by the greenleaved species, A. japonica. The latter is more vigorous than any variety and will, if left unchecked, take over.

Regrettably, it is too late to rescue the variety by removing its plain-green foliage. Fortunately, it is still a handsome shrub and its large leaves are spectacular.

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Can we bring our aucuba’s spots back?

Tomato moths feed on fruits and leaves

Tomato moths

Q A

What is dining on my tomatoes before I get them to my salad bowl?

Margaret Coney (via email) Bad luck! Tomato moth caterpillars have been feeding on your fruits.

They also devour leaves.

Initially, examine plants carefully and remove any small green caterpillars and feed them to the birds. Then, if more fruits and leaves are consumed, spray with Py Bug Killer, for which there is a seven-day harvest interval.

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 39

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What on earth has happened to my tomatoes? They are cherry red and cherry orange. All was normal, developing normal fruit, then there was a sudden masses of flowers and the fruits have gone a pointed shape.

Jane Campbell, Longlevens, Gloucester Remarkable! Indisputably, your tomato plants have changed character. From producing normal trusses of round fruits to those that are pointed, together with immense flowering trusses, indicates that your tomatoes have mutated. This is not an uncommon occurrence.

This crop is noted for gene aberration, when cells suddenly behave abnormally. There are varieties grown for their huge trusses of fruit. In this instance, your plants have ‘acquired’ this characteristic. Happily, the pointed fruits that result should be as tasty as the normal globular ones.

While John sometimes advocates using chemicals against pests and diseases as the most effective means of control, organic options are sometimes available and we advise readers to go with their preferences

Can I resurrect my sickly oleander?

Container-grown oleanders need regular repotting in order to thrive

Q A

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Why is my potted oleander looking unhappy and losing its leaves?

Genevieve Starkey, Maidstone, Kent I fear that your oleander’s pallid growth is due to it being pot-bound and hungry. The best way to regenerate it is to repot it in Levington ericaceous compost formulated for acid-loving or lime-hating plants.

Containing a high level of leafgreening iron, it encourages robust growth. Start by watering it the night before repotting to loosen roots clinging to the pot wall. Then gently remove the root ball, uncoiling roots and removing a little of the spent compost, but not enough to damage the root system.

Finally, fill in with a 4in (10cm) layer of crocks or gravel and replace the shrub in its pot, firming fresh potting compost around it.

Leave a 2in (5cm) gap at the top for watering. Next year, and the years

Contact John Negus by email address below Email: amateurgardening@futurenet.com

thereafter, feed it with sulphate of potash at monthly intervals from April to September to speed a wealth of blossom. Then water it in.

Rose leaoppers and caterpillars can take it out of a rose

My ‘Gertrude’ has so many problems!

Q A

This is our rather unhappy-looking ‘Gertrude Jekyll’ rose bush. My other three roses seem to be doing well but this one is looking distinctly unhappy. Any help would be appreciated as to why this rose looks ‘unwell’.

Gary Williams (via email) I fear that rose leafhopper lay eggs in leaf tissue. These hatch in (Edwardsiana rosae) has attacked August and September, producing a your bushes. Adults and nymphs feed on second generation, which lays leaf surfaces, which become finely overwintering eggs. mottled. Damage is worse in a long dry As for chewed rose leaves, the summer, often resulting in premature culprits are almost certainly caterpillars leaf fall. of one or more of the following moths: Eggs are laid in autumn and hatch vapourer, winter, yellow tail or buff tip. from May onwards. Nymphs of the first I suggest that you control both pests generation mature in July and females by spraying with Bug Clear Ultra.

Quick questions & answers

Q A

This is growing where our peony used to be. What is it?

Caroline Smith (via email) It is a peony. I suspect that when you removed the plant, a bit of the rootstock remained and produced a flower. If you wish to keep it, reset it in free-draining fertile soil in full sun in October.

Q A

What can I use bone meal for?

M. Laneres (via email) Bone meal is a beneficial balanced organic fertiliser.

Best sprinkled around shrubs and border perennials in autumn, it breaks down over winter to boost growth in spring. Keep it away from acid-loving rhododendrons and other limehating plants as it has an alkaline end reaction.

Q A

What is this plant, please?

Butterflies adore it!

Sue Wilkes, Chichester, W. Sussex The plant is marjoram (Origanum vulgare). A very colourful British wildflower, it colonises sunny banks on chalky soil and is amazingly hardy.

And yes, it is very popular with butterflies and other pollinators!

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 41

Ask John Negus John will reply personally to all your gardening questions every week John has been answering reader queries for 50 years

Potting up penstemon cuttings before overwintering them

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Caterpillars often chew holes in leaves

Holes everywhere! Can I overwinter penstemon cuttings?

Some of my plants have been

Q

attacked by an unknown bug that has made quite small holes on some of the leaves. What could it be?

Jennifer Wright, Holmfirth, W. Yorkshire Although you have not seen caterpillars around the holes, I suspect that the larvae of a moth is the culprit. Spray with Bug Clear Ultra, an insecticide that protects the plant for up to three weeks. Also, liquid-feed fortnightly with a high-potash tomato fertiliser to encourage your plants to produce strong new shoots.

A

Container mulberry trees should be grown in ericaceous compost

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Repotting a shrub

We have a mulberry tree in a large pot, which was a gift eight years ago. Should I change the compost?

Joy Bussey, Watford, Hertfordshire This tree prefers acid conditions, so repot it in loam-based ericaceous compost. When repotting, tease out a little of the spent compost to release any coiled-up roots and then set the plant in a pot 8in (20cm) larger in diameter than the present one.

Also, stand the container on pot feet to ensure that any surplus moisture freely escapes.

I have taken some cuttings from some of my penstemon perennial plants and they have all rooted, so I have put them in bigger pots. Will they overwinter in a cold greenhouse and is it OK to snip the tops off them to make them bush out?

Alan Redfearn (via email) I am delighted that you have taken be happy in your cold greenhouse some penstemon cuttings, which where they will develop a good root have rooted well. system. Then, in May, or when I suggest that when new growth temperatures rise and frosts cease, indicates that roots are flourishing, you transplant your charges outdoors in move cuttings singly into 4in (10cm) pots well-prepared, free-draining soil in a of loam-based potting compost and sunny spot. remove the shoot tips. Your plants will If you feed them monthly with fish, respond by developing side shoots and blood and bone meal or Vitax Q4, they becoming bushy. will develop strongly and flower As for overwintering them, they will bounteously in summer.

Mystery plants found in greenhouse

Q

My dear sister always labelled her seeds without fail. After her death I was sorting out her greenhouse and found a small brown bag fixed with a peg, but no label. I have planted them up but cannot find them in my RHS book.

What are they?

Sue Mason (via email) The mystery flower is apple of Peru or shoo-fly plant (Nicandra physalodes). A native of Peruvian fields and waste places, it is a handsome flowering plant, prized for its white blooms rimmed with a broad blue band.

It is a member of the Solanaceae or potato family, though it is not edible, and its decorative inflated seed pods follow fading flowers.

Self-seeding freely, it tends to appear indiscriminately in gardens, often as a result of composting

A

Shoo-fly plants are attractive, but spread easily

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Q A

Q A

seeding plants the previous year.

If you don’t want it to spread around your garden, deadhead and dispose of seedheads, rather than adding them to the compost.

It’s a fascinating plant and commands close inspection when it’s enhancing a border or patio pot.

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 43

While John sometimes advocates using chemicals against pests and diseases as the most effective means of control, organic options are sometimes available and we advise readers to go with their preferences

Contact John Negus by email address below Email: amateurgardening@futurenet.com

Can lavender be pruned into a standard?

Q

A

Tree lily bulbs are best left undisturbed

Q A

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Do I lift my tree lily bulbs at the end of the flowering season, or should I leave them in the tubs? the side shoots if necessary, and potting Ian McKenzie (via email)) up when appropriate.

There is no need to lift your bulbs Once the desired height has been – it is probably best not to disturb achieved, this is the time to start pinching out the shoots at the top of the them. In spring next year apply a top stem to encourage them to branch and dressing of Growmore and fresh compost. Our tree lilies ‘Manisa’ are form the head. getting on for 10ft (3m) tall and look magnificent. They have been in the same pot for the past three years. They are grown in the conservatory, mainly to protect them from the wind.

How can I cultivate sempervivums?

Could you tell me how to grow sempervivums? I would like information about the type of soil needed, cuttings and that sort of thing. I have got hooked on these lovely plants!

Thomas McKay (via email) I am delighted that you are keen singly in 3in (7cm) pots of the same to grow sempervivums, also potting mixture. called house leeks. There’s an These plants are remarkably amazing diversity of species and drought resistant and can withstand varieties, all of which are easy to grow. weeks of dry weather. No additional Ideally, plant them in pots, terracotta feeding is necessary and, once pans and decorative containers to established, they will last for years. create fascinating focal points around Contact Pottertons Nursery, the garden. Set them in an equal parts Moortown Road, Nettleton, Caistor, mix of John Innes No1 potting compost Lincs, LN7 6HX (✆ 01472 851 714, and coarse grit. Propagation is easy:  pottertons.co.uk), which stocks an simply remove offsets and plant them exciting range.

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Sempervivums are attractive and easy to grow

Q A

Lifting tree lilies

It takes time, but lavenders can be grown in a standard form

The Korean fir is a striking tree

Unknown fir tree

Q

Please can you help us identify this beautiful coniferous plant, which we have inherited in our new garden following a recent house move?

Steve Jones (via email) The conifer is Korean fir (Abies koreana). Growing to around 30ft (9m), its purple-blue cones are a striking feature, especially when the tree is planted to create a focal point.

Introduced from South Korea in 1905, it received an RHS Award of Merit in 1993. There are many forms of it and ‘Horstmann’s Silberlocke’, whose twisted leaves have reflective white undersides, is especially appealing.

A

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 45

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I noticed some standard lavenders at my local garden centre. As I have some French lavender that I started from seed, how difficult would it be to create standards from them?

Dawn Fraser (via email) Lavenders start to go woody at the base if left unpruned, and the general rule is to keep plants young and producing fresh new growth by pruning every year. However, it is this woodiness that makes a standard lavender possible, so plants need to grow as a single stem, with the top left intact and all side shoots removed, for as long as it takes to reach a decent height. Most of the bought plants seem to have their ‘head’ about 15in (40cm) above soil level.

I would assume that you start with a seedling or cutting that is straight up with no side branches. This is probably tied in to some sort of support, and left to grow upwards for several years, pinching out

AGardening’s Gardener’s Miscellany king of trivia and brain-teasers, Graham Clarke Water and watering facts

This week it’s: Refreshing tales about our vital gardening life force

MUCH has been written about the best ways to water plants – that is, early in the morning, thoroughly soaking the soil around the roots, and keeping the moisture off the leaves as much as possible. Much has also been written about conserving water – such as using water butts, mulching to prevent moisture loss from the soil,

and re-using household (or grey) water.

But I thought we could take a look at some lesser-known facts and figures about water that will be of interest to every gardener – and, in fact, anyone with a pulse!

People in Hertfordshire use more water than any other county in the UK (8% above the national average).

Water conservation is important – but how much do you know about water?

The thirstiest vegetables

Watering when needed

5

decorative garden plants with ‘water’ in name

WHEN growing vegetables, it’s useful to know what their water requirements are. In this way you can save huge amounts of water. For example: High water use: Runner beans, celery, calabrese, lettuce, spinach, early potatoes, tomatoes, marrows Carrots like ‘Early Nantes’ and beetroot and courgettes – these require require little watering daily watering in dry weather.

Medium water use: French and broad beans, peas, summer cabbage and cauliflower, maincrop potatoes, sweetcorn – these need daily watering in dry weather, but only at key stages in their growth (see right).

Low water use: Beetroot, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, winter and spring cabbage, winter cauliflower, carrots, parsnips, turnips, leeks, onions – these need little or no watering.

Depth of feeling

detiderc esiwrehto sselnu ymalA shpargotohp llA

LAWNS, bedding plants and annual vegetables concentrate their roots in the top 6in (15cm) of soil; for perennials, shrubs and trees it’s the top 12in (30cm).

So, how much water should you apply?

Well, for water to penetrate soil to 6in (15cm), you will need to apply 2-4.5 gallon (10-20l) of water per square yard/ metre, depending on the type of soil you have. Sandy soils are closer to the lower number, loam/clay soils tend to be nearer the Water permeates upper number. quickly in free It can take draining soil seconds for water to pass through 6-12in (15-30cm) of a light, sandy soil, but it can take hours if the soil is heavy clay. You can always use a finger, or a spade, to monitor its progress. This will allow you to judge how often and how much water to apply.

REQUIREMENT-suited watering (a bit of a mouthful, but it has sound scientific and environmental credentials) means you should ensure that you apply sufficient water when a plant or crop most needs it. Ideally, the crop should have evenly Moisture is key when moist soil at the crucial times (such as crops such as lettuce when potatoes and other root crops are developing leaves are forming roots; when salad and leaf vegetables are developing leaves; when cauliflower, broccoli and cabbage, and some lettuce, are forming heads; when peas and beans are developing pods; and when tomatoes and all fruiting plants are evolving their fruits).

By washing fruit and veg in a bowl rather than under a running tap, you cut down on water waste effortlessly. As a bonus, give the left-over water to houseplants!

Rose ‘Lady Waterlow’

Hemerocallis ‘Purple Waters’

Dahlia ‘Penhill Watermelon’

Narcissus ‘Rippling Waters’

Camellia x williamsii ‘Water Lily’ 31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 47

AGardening’s Gardener’s Miscellany king of trivia and brain-teasers, Graham Clarke

AG’s Garden Wall Feature Lidl Oak

It’s time for our just-for-fun puzzle: AG’s Garden Wall. This wall comprises 12 bricks in three courses. Each brick has a different word, or phrase on it. The first brick in each course (with words in BLOCK capitals) has been cemented in place and cannot be moved. Just rearrange all the other bricks, so that all four words in each course of bricks are linked.

There are three different connections to look

PINE LILY PLAYERS

Mint Cooking Nationals

Do you have hydrophytes?

Cider Arrogant Cress

for, one for each course. You may find that some words have more than one connection to other courses, but there is just the one correct answer. You’ll either find this puzzle fiendishly difficult, or incredibly easy!

Answers below.

Hint: In one of the courses, the words may all be preceded by ‘Water’!

.)sbreh fo smargana era lla( )anilotnas( slanoitaN ,)nogarrat( tnagorrA ,)llid( ldiL = )yelsrap( SREYALP .)’retaW‘ yb dedecerp eb lla yam( sserC ,tniM ,erutaeF = YLIL .)’elppA‘ yb dewollof eb lla yam( kaO ,gnikooC ,rediC = ENIP :rewsnA

W£3IN0

Word search

No: 580

This word search comprises E W A T E R I N G I words associated with water T T L I Q U I D R L and watering. They are listed below; in the grid they may be Y E Y A U Q A R T L read across, backwards, up, down or diagonally. Letters H R S H P M I S T A may be shared between words.

Erroneous or duplicate words P U R Y P G I H P F may appear in the grid, but O T I N A O I K I N there is only one correct solution. After the listed words R S J T M R R L R I are found, there are nine letters E I I E S E P D D A remaining; arrange these to make this week’s KEYWORD. X O R T T U B S Y R WATERING NM Y T I D I MU H AQUA HOW TO ENTER: Enter this week’s keyword on the entry form, and BUTT send it to AG Word Search No 580, Amateur Gardening, Unit 2, DAMP Eelmore Road, Farnborough, Hampshire, GU14 7QN, to arrive by DRIP Wednesday 11 August 2021. The first correct entry chosen at HUMIDITY random will win our £30 cash prize.

HYDROPHYTE This week’s keyword is ..........................................................................................

IRRIGATION Name........................................................................................................................

JET Address....................................................................................................................

LIQUID MOIST ...................................................................................................................................

MOISTURE Postcode..................................................................................................................

RAINFALL Email.........................................................................................................................

SPRAY Tel no........................................................................................................................

THIRSTY Future plc, publisher of Amateur Gardening, will collect your personal information XEROPHYTE solely to process your competition entry.

48 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

220 :oN

JUST FOR FUN PINE LILY PLAYERS

OVER millennia, plants have adapted to their climate.

Hydrophytes: Plants growing in or Aloe vera, an example near water (such as waterlilies, oxygenators of a xerophyte and bog plants). Most grow rapidly, have lots of leaves, and overwinter as buds, tubers or rhizomes.

Xerophytes: Plants growing in dry or arid places. They have reduced leaf area, as with moorland heather and broom. In deserts, succulents and cacti may go without water for months or even years; these have dispensed with leaves – their fleshy stems photosynthesise and store water.

Mesophytes: These are between hydrophytes and xerophytes, and represent the majority of ordinary plants.

Historical gardening event of the week: 28 July 1667

ONE of England’s most important 17th century poets, Abraham Cowley, died on this day, aged 49. Many say English poet he was a literary genius. He was born in Abraham Cowley the City of London, where his father had been a wealthy stationer. As a child, Abraham read The Faerie Queene, an epic poem stretching to seven books. He loved it, and read it twice – before he even went to school. By the age of 10, he was writing his own masterpieces.

Then came the English Civil War and the abolition of the monarchy.

Abraham was a fervent royalist, and was exiled to Paris for more than 12 years. When the monarchy was restored, he returned to England, and decided to become a physick (doctor). This required him to study plants – which at the time formed the basis of all medicine. He became obsessed, and compiled Plantarum, a six-book collection: two on herbs, two on flowers and two on trees.

However, he couldn’t just write about the plants: he also included anecdotes of prominent people and politics of the day, as well as poetry.

200 million: It takes 200,000,000 litres of water per second to grow food for the planet.

700,000: According to Water UK, Britain has more than 700,000 kilometres of mains and sewers – enough to stretch Exactly how much water to the moon and back. does a hosepipe use 85,000: The average house roof every 10 minutes? collects about 85,000 litres of rain in a year – enough to fill 450 water butts.

170: A hosepipe uses 170 litres of water for every 10 minutes that it is turned on.

150: In our homes (not gardens), the average person uses almost 150 litres of water a day; our great grandparents managed with about 18 litres. Since 1930, the rate of usage has been growing every year by 1%.

130-180: As we know, our weather is changing.

Currently, we still get an average of 130-180 days with rainfall each year. However, the UK has less rainfall per person than our northern European neighbours.

Also, apparently, London is drier than Istanbul!

Wow! I didn’t know that...

Since all life began, there has always been the same amount of water on the planet.

Since 1950, the number of people in the world has doubled, but water use has increased by six times.

Loch Ness in Scotland holds an estimated 263 billion cubic feet of water, which is more than Can you guess how all the water in all the lakes, rivers water is and reservoirs in the whole of England much in Loch Ness? and Wales combined.

The water from your tap could contain molecules that dinosaurs drank.

The South-East of England has less water available per person than the desert states of Syria and Sudan.

Trees are about 75% water.

My favourite nonwatering joke...

IF a clump of Japanese knotweed and a clump of horsetail were both dying through lack of water, but you only had enough water to save one of them, would you i) go to lunch or ii) read a newspaper?

evihcrA IT

Water in numbers

Crossword ...just for fun!

1

2

4

3

7

5

8 10

11

6

9

14

15

13

12

16 ACROSS 1 Genus of perennial plants

(many are now classed as actaea), with dense spikes of small, fragrant white flowers in early autumn (10) 7 and 9 across The subject, and the action, of this week’s Miscellany! (5) 8 Sagittaria sagittifolia (a 7 across plant) is known as _____head (5) 9 See 7 across (8) 11 This type of China tea is also a cultivar of monarda and saxifraga! (4,4) 14 The bog arum genus (5) 15 Botanical name for the lime or linden tree (5) 16 Evergreen shrub – a cross between a fatsia and an ivy – that is a member of the 10 down family (10) DOWN 1 This Isle of Wight town is

also a cultivar of miniature pelargonium! (5)

2 The codlin ____ is a serious pest of apple trees (4) 3 Agricultural plant whose starchy grains are used as food: wheat, rice, rye, oats, maize, buckwheat and millet (6,5) 4 The elm leaf tent is the common name for coleus (or solenostemon)!

(5,6) (anag) 5 Common name for Allium sativum (6) 6 Small branch, as found in a bright wigwam! (4) 10 A member of the ivy family, this genus includes the Japanese angelica tree (6) 11 Every four-fifths of a peach! (4) 12 Yellowish tropical fruit of the psidium genus (5) 13 A fruit of the blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) (4)

eolS 31 avauG 21 hcaE 11 ailarA 01 giwT 6 cilraG 5 eltten emalF 4 ssarg laereC 3 htoM 2 sewoC 1 NWOD aredehstaF 61 ailiT 51 allaC 41 yerG lraE 11 gniretaW 9 worrA 8 retaW 7 aguficimiC 1 SSORCA

DROWSSORC EVOBA OT SREWSNA

When push comes to shove, who would save horsetail?

KEYWORD TO WORD SEARCH 575 (26 June): HEMEROCALLIS AND THE WINNER IS: DEBORAH ATTRELL, PATCHAM, BRIGHTON

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 49

All our yesterdays from the AG archives

Plants with personalities

We look at poppies, the Indian shot plant, Virginian pokeweed and goat’s beard

50 AMATEUR GARDENING 24 JULY 2021

Indian shot plant

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Californian tree poppy The Californian bush poppy, when it is carrying its huge white silky blossoms with their boss of golden anthers, plays everything else off the garden ‘stage’.

When this fine plant with its silverygreen, elegantly shaped leafage was first introduced, it was given greenhouse treatment. Since then (1875), it has been found that Romneya coulteri is capable of braving English weather.

This plant should be pruned severely in April, and even when so snubbed it manages to attain 5ft (1.5m) of graceful growth. Pruning is not necessary in the favoured south-west, where it generally survives the winter unharmed and then, naturally, makes a taller plant, often attaining 7-8ft (2.1-2.4m).

If you grow romneya coulteri it is worthwhile looking at the blossoms at night. You will be amused to see how tenderly the innermost petals enfold the generous mass of stamens. For all this care it is rare for the plant to set seed in England, and root cuttings are the most popular method of increase.

Indian shot plant Though the flowers of the modern hybrid cannas are quite important (rather in the style of the gladiolus), it is because of the beauty of their foliage that one would regard them as ‘personalities’. This foliage has great formal beauty as well as a good range of colour, the deep purple-brown forms being especially valuable.

At one time many of the species were available. However, it is very rare now to find offered for sale any cannas except the hybrids which, good though they are, have not the strong individual quality of the species and certainly not the noble height (up to 8ft/2.4m) that many of these display.

When, with the onset of winter, the top growth dies off, the rootstocks may be harvested and placed in boxes in frost-proof conditions to await the spring planting season. Cannas may also be grown from their iron-hard seed, from which the plant gets its amazing common name of Indian shot.

Plume poppy This stately herbaceous plant is a member of the poppy family. While able to dominate the largest herbaceous

Californian tree poppy

Plume poppy

border (it reaches 10ft/3m in height if generously treated), it makes the best effect when allowed to stand alone in its tall elegance.

Macleaya cordata is of interest to children who are amused to see that the broken leaf stalks have orange-red ‘blood’. The strange sap imparts a warm tint to the leafage when this is seen against the sunlight. The only warning we would give to those about to grow this is that it does invade the surrounding territory. Thrust a sharp spade into the ground and you will sever the runners, which will provide a supply of new plants to distribute to deserving admirers of this

Virginian pokeweed

fine thing. The flowers, lacking petals, are by no means showy, but the buffcoloured plume has its own quiet charm.

The common name for this plant is plume poppy, but there is very little resemblance to the poppy flower.

Virginian pokeweed This large American shrub-like herbaceous plant must be among the most rapid growers in the garden, for in a single growing season the Virginian pokeweed (Phytolacca americana) may easily reach 8ft (2.4m). If this plant has a fault it is that its exuberant growth approaches coarseness. Besides the

These extracts from issues of AG in 1959 look at plants that have character, plus from 1964, plants that have a symbiotic relationship with ants common name of Virginian pokeweed there is another peculiarly apt name – red ink plant. This describes the vivid-red staining juice, which may be extracted from the cylindrical racemes of tightly packed, dark-purple berries.

Give the Virginian pokeweed a shady, moist spot and it will thank you by providing a fine luxuriant effect in a surprisingly short time.

Goat’s beard The goat’s beard (Aruncus dioicus) is a member of the rose family and closely akin to the meadowsweet that makes our late summer field verges fragrant.

This big fellow is most vigorous in growth when placed beside a pond or stream; and isolated thus, it can be seen

137 years of practical advice

1884 The World’s Oldest Gardening Magazine 2021

to full advantage, making in these dust-fine seeds, but as the plant favourable circumstances fully 5ft (1.5m) increases rapidly you may find a of fretted green foliage crested with gardening friend with a piece to spare. delicate ‘beards’ of cream-tinted blooms.

A lens will reveal that the minute clustered flowers are indeed typical five-petalled ‘roses’; the prominence of the abundant stamen giving the fluffy appearance to the ‘beards’.

Though A. dioicus is truly herbaceous, it has all the quality of a shrub and has many near relations which are, in fact, shrubs; though none of them has quite such a marked ‘personality’ as the goat’s beard. The handsome frondy leaves are described botanically as thrice-pinnate, and it is these which give this plant its striking appearance.

Goat’s beard This plant can be grown from its

This extract from AG 28 March 1964 looks at plants that have an association with ants

Peculiar plants

We look at some of the tropical plants that have a symbiotic relationship with ants THERE are a number of plants that are also some African and South provide food or shelter for ants and American relations. In these, the woody are defended against other insects in base of the plant has an exterior of return. We can see this at home in woody shields or cells that are inhabited plants like Prunus laurocerasus and by ants, though it is not certain here if Rosa banksiae, which have nectaries the plants benefit. Myrmecophila is the on the stems. These attract ants that name of a genus of orchids that has long actively keep off other insects, notably hollow pseudobulbs (storage organs) leaf-eaters such as caterpillars. that ants enter by a hole at the base.

Several knapweeds in southern Europe, including Centaurea alpina Ant defenders and Jurinea mollis, secrete honey from The trumpet tree (Cecropia peltata) – a special glands on the scales outside tropical member of the mulberry family the unopened flowers. A dozen that has very large many-lobed leaves ants at a time and dense spikes of small will be seen on such flowers – is so called heads, and these direct because the hollow stems formic acid sprays at were used by Indians as the approach of trumpets. Ants bore certain large beetles into these stems and that otherwise make colonies there, eat into the feeding on curious flowerheads. ‘food-bodies’ that Much more grow on the underside Ants live in association elaborate of the leaf stalks, and with the trumpet tree myrmecophily, as this defend the plant against (Cecropia peltata) living with ants is the leaf-cutting ants that technically called (after can otherwise shred myrmex, which is Latin for ant), occurs up a plant’s foliage. in many tropical plants. One is called A similar thing occurs in another Myrmecodia, belongs to the madder central American plant, Acacia family Rubiaceae, and inhabits tropical sphaerocephala [Vachellia Australia, living as an epiphyte. There sphaerocephala], where the large

The Australian ant plant (Myrmecodia beccarii) has a symbiotic relationship with ants

thorns are excavated by ants that feed on leaf-stalk nectaries and, again, peculiar food-bodies that grow at the leaf tips. Such instances of plants, which, to quote the RHS Dictionary, ‘in effect maintain a standing army of fighting ants’ are numerous in the topics – or is this an ant parallel to the human gangs that demand protection from betting shops and nightclubs?

The views, information and opinions expressed during this series of extracts from past issues of AG are solely those of the individuals involved, at the time they were written, and are not necessarily relevant or even legal today. Please treat these pages as a look back at how things were done in the past and not necessarily how they are done today. AG accepts no responsibility if readers follow advice given in these articles from past issues.

24 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 51

Advanced gardening New series on advanced gardening techniques with Steve and Val Bradley

You can listen to Steve on alternate Sundays 10am-2pm on BBC Radio Kent’s Sunday Gardening (BBC Local)

Take your semi-ripe cuttings from late summer into autumn, and keep them covered to increase humidity and prevent them from drying out

S

TEM cuttings can be divided into three main groups: softwood, semi-ripe and hardwood (there are also subdivisions within these main groups, such as vine eyes and mallet cuttings). These terms refer to the various stages of the plant’s growth at the time the cuttings are taken. Softwood indicates young, soft, sappy shoots (often shoot tips); hardwood indicates woody stems of 9-12 months old; while semi-ripe cuttings are made from shoots at an intermediate stage between these two.

Selecting and preparing In many respects, the process of selecting and preparing a semi-ripe cutting is similar to that for softwood but, because the tissue of the semi-ripe is more woody, they usually take longer to form roots. They can be taken from late summer into the autumn, with latesummer cuttings usually placed in a propagator and potted in a few months’ time, while autumn cuttings are often placed in a coldframe and left to root

52 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

slowly over winter so they are ready for potting the following spring.

These cuttings can vary in length, but what is important is the stage of growth at the base. You need the stage when the stem in this area starts to mature (or ‘ripen’) and turn brown.

Both deciduous and broad-leaved evergreen plants can be propagated in this way, and it is the most common method used for growing conifers from cuttings.

Wounding the cutting Many broad-leaved evergreens, such as bay, laurel and rhododendron, have large leaves and, in order to fit the cuttings into pots or trays, the leaves can be cut in half. This means the cuttings get roughly equal amounts of light, rather than the first ones being smothered by those inserted later.

Many of the plants propagated using this method will only form one or two long roots at the very base of the cutting so, to encourage a more fibrous root system, the cutting can be ‘wounded’,

which usually involves removing a shallow slice of bark at the base of the cutting. This technique encourages roots to form along the sides of the wound as well as on the base of the cutting, resulting in more, shorter, roots and so a more balanced root system.

Taking heel cuttings An alternative to a straight cut at the base is to prepare ‘heel’ cuttings by pulling the shoots from the plant with a sliver (heel) of bark from the main stem.

This method creates a natural wound, providing a larger site for potential root formation, but it is important to trim the heel, rather than leave a long ‘tail’ where fungal spores could enter.

Pulling the lower leaves from the cutting, rather than trimming them off with a knife or secateurs, can create small wounds that serve as potential sites for root formation.

The best cuttings tend to come from the ‘shoulders’ of the plant, where the growth is healthy and light levels have been high.

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Propagation by semi-ripe cuttings Steve andVal Bradley explain the best way to take late-summer and autumn cuttings

Steve Bradley MA MHort (RHS) has written (or co-written) over 40 gardening books, including Propagation Basics, The Pruner’s Bible, The Ground Force Workbook and What’s Wrong With My Plant? He is resident expert on BBC Radio Kent, Sussex and Surrey, and he has built medal-winning gardens at both Chelsea and Hampton Court Palace.

Step-by-step guide to taking semi-ripe cuttings

1

2

Select strong, healthy shoots from the current season’s growth, with firm wood at the base of the stem and no obvious signs of pests or diseases.

Prepare the cuttings by trimming the base of each shoot, just below a leaf joint, and removing the lower leaves. With heel cuttings, the sliver of bark may need to be trimmed.

3

Remove a thin slice of bark from the base of the cutting to create a ‘wound’.

4

Shorten the length of the cutting by removing a section of the soft, sappy tip. These cutting should always be shortened from the tip, not the base.

5

For larger-leaved cuttings, reduce the surface area of the leaf by cutting the leaves across horizontally.

6

Dip the base of each cutting in hormone rooting preparation (gel, liquid or powder) before inserting the cuttings into compost. Water the cuttings well to settle them into the compost without excessive firming.

7

Push the cuttings into the compost and drench the container to settle the compost around the cuttings without excessive firming.

Compost for cuttings

8

Cover the cuttings to keep the humidity high and help prevent the cuttings drying out and dying.

SELECT a compost that has an open structure and retains moisture. To give your cuttings the best chance of forming roots, never firm the compost in the way you would for sowing seeds. Fill the tray or pot to the rim and tap it to settle the compost. Unless the cuttings are very thin, don’t use a dibber – just push the base of the cutting down into the compost so that the bottom one-third is buried.

The only firming done to settle the cuttings into the compost should be when the container is drenched with water before a cover is applied to increase the humidity and reduce moisture loss.

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 53

54 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

Ask Anne!

Anne Swithinbank’s masterclass on: saving a satin pothos ymalA

Step by step

Silver vines are happy in filtered light, and left to their own devices they send out stems to span walls and floors My demonstration plant had produced many long stems.

Cutting them away from the parent plant, right up to the rim of the pot, was satisfying. At least now, we’ll be able to clean this corner of the room

Easy pothos propagation Q

My Scindapsus argyraeus has grown out of control from a small pot. There’s nothing to see on top and all the growth is lower down. How can I propagate and display this lovely plant?

Joanne McGovern, Exeter, Devon The silver vine, satin pothos or Scindapsus pictus ‘Argyraeus’ is a classy foliage house plant and one of my favourites. Neatly pointed heart-shaped leaves are a pale silvery green beneath, and on top they are olive green rimmed and splashed with silver.

The leaves are perfectly poised against their stems to catch light, much as they would in their humid Indonesian rain forest home. They belong to the aroid family (along with Swiss cheese plant and philodendrons) but rarely produce their small spathe and spadix flower structures in cultivation.

Silver vines are easy to grow in bright but filtered light, and left to their own devices, will send out long stems happy to travel down from a pot and along the floor. They are looking for something textured to climb and sometimes begin

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Their heart-shaped leaves are perfectly poised against stems to catch light, much as they would in native rainforest settings

to scale table legs or walls. While shade is tolerated, gloomy quarters encourage longer stems and smaller, thinner leaves, so consider moving your plant into a slightly brighter position but not into direct sun.

Straggly plants are easy to bring back under control by pruning back hard. New shoots should soon sprout from leaf nodes (where leaves arise) just under the cuts made. When these start to grow, pot the plant on to a slightly larger container (they don’t have massive root systems), let it settle and, after two new leaves have formed on each stem, pinch out the growing tips to encourage branching.

Handle the prunings gently, as these stems that have been cut away will provide material for cuttings. These root easily in pots of gritty cutting compost or even in water, especially as most will already have aerial roots growing opposite the leaf stalks. Another reason for careful handling is toxicity, as plant parts are poisonous and the sap is potentially irritant, although I have never been affected by it.

Taming your satin pothos

1

An overgrown pothos will send stems hither and thither. Notice how pertly the leaves sit on the stem and are cleverly angled towards the light.

2

Prune all the long stems away by cutting each just beyond a leaf close to the top of the pot.

New shoots will soon arise.

3

Locate the stem tips and take these as cuttings 3-4in (8-10cm) long. Take stem sections, too, trimming above a leaf at the top and below a leaf at the base, and remove bottom leaves.

SATIN pothos will climb a moss pole, but these are tricky to keep moist indoors. Plants look best trailing gently from a high position. Experiment with unusual containers like clay vases or pottery snail shells, even if they have no drainage holes. Set rooted cuttings into well-draining Scinadpsus pictus looks compost, water when the surface dries out and take care lovely trailing from not to swamp the roots. high positions

56 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

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detiderc esiwrehto sselnu ,erutuF / knabnihtiwS nhoJ

Displaying your plant

4

Insert the cuttings three or four to a 3.5in (9cm) pot of 50:50 multi-purpose compost and grit.

Cover with ventilated polythene and keep out of direct sun.

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 59

Letters to Wendy

Write to us: Letters, Amateur Gardening magazine, Future Publishing Limited, Unit 2, Eelmore Road, Farnborough, Hants GU14 7QN (please include your address). Email us: amateurgardening@futurenet.com

Star letter

Gloria says it’s a joy to see plants growing in wall crevices

Spreading the love

I HAVE always been interested in plants growing out of wall crevices, the fact that they manage to receive enough moisture to survive is a joy to behold.

I found this colourful campanula plant whilst out walking.

Gloria Wilding, Prescot, Merseyside detiderc sselnu lairetam redaeR

Jordon’s enviable collection of house plants, now settled in their new home

House plants galore!

A

FTER moving into our Edwardian home during autumn last year (first house), our house plants suffered. It was perhaps the initial lack of warmth in a draughty house and this resulted in a few casualties along the way.

But now they are pride of place and settled in the bay window which receives plenty of sun in the morning.

As you can see, the Easter cactus has re-flowered with brilliant scarlet flowers.

After living in an apartment with no garden for six years, I took the opportunity of installing a water butt in our new garden, as I find rainwater is best for tropical plants.

The philodendron on top of the middle plant stand was a single leaf cutting from a relative, it is now a fully established plant (and looks better than theirs, but we haven’t told them that!)

Jordan Whitelock Newcastle Under Lyme, Staffs

Tussie Mussie

MY thanks to Anne Swithinbank for the article on making a ‘Tussie mussie’ (AG, 10 July).

I was so enthralled, that I Celia’s tussie mussie posy went into the garden to see what I had got, and made this posy. I used sage, mint, lupin and dicentra leaves and placed an amethyst coloured pelargonium in the centre. It really smells lovely.

Thank you for introducing another aspect of gardening!

Celia Stanford, Manchester Wendy says How lovely, Celia, Anne will be pleased you followed her recipe

The red admiral butterfly needs nettles!

crucial part of the ecosystem, not to mention a vital part of the food chain for song birds, etc, is under enough threat from the chemicals that are still readily used and we need to do everything we can to protect it.

In the same article, it states: “old The stinging nettle is a carpet can be laid to smother weeds on food plant for paths between vegetable beds” – my butterfly allotment society has banned carpet caterpillars from the site as it can leach chemicals.

It is therefore not advisable to use Wendy says We’d love to hear from near vegetables or if you practise readers on the subject of leaving wild organic gardening. patches, what insects have you seen?

Elna Broe via email 31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 61

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I WAS very concerned to see Graham Rice’s condemnation of stinging nettles (AG, 12 June). The most important red admiral butterfly larval food plant is the stinging nettle (Butterfly Conservation’s website).

I appreciate that Graham says, “It’s sometimes recommended that we leave a patch for insect larvae to feed on,” but I think first, a mention of the enormous benefit of this plant to the red admiral would, I feel, have been very pertinent, we do not want to ‘banish them forever’.

Our amazing insect population, a

62 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

Letters to Wendy

Write to us: Letters, Amateur Gardening magazine, Future Publishing Limited, Unit 2, Eelmore Road Farnborough, Hants GU14 7QN (please include your address). Email us: amateurgardening@futurenet.com

Photo ofweek the

Each week we publish a reader’s gardening poem. This week, Jenny has written a poem on the theme of mindfulness and how we should all stop for a little while...

W £2IN0

The Mindful Gardener Let’s take a mindful moment,

Rose ‘Hanky Panky’ has beautiful red and cream markings

A gorgeous (cheeky) rose

I JUST love my roses, particularly as they were the birth month flower for my late mum. I had to buy this one as its name, ‘Hanky Panky’, gave me such a chuckle. As well as that, the gorgeous raspberry ripple colours just look so tantalising in the midday sun.

Had to share! Just perfect!

Kareena, Nottingham

Top advice from Percy Thrower

Reader’s Tip

TO quickly find the article about sowing the free seeds among my magazine collection, I write the date on the seed packets, and I am reminded of some great ideas as I turn the pages. Hope your readers find this helpful.

Stephen Ward, Northumberland

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AS a new subscriber to AG for the past few weeks, I am trying to decide which is my favourite part of the magazine, and I have come to the conclusion that it’s a dead heat, because I love every part in it by the contributing writers.

However, I have to say that I have been given some great ideas in the late Percy Thrower’s ‘All our yesterdays’ columns. I now have some China asters on the go and I am looking forward to ordering various spring and early summer iris varieties recommended by Percy.

To all of the staff and garden writers, thank you for my weekly fix of AG which I looked forward to through my letterbox each Saturday.

Tony Hoare, Bootle, Merseyside

As life rushes all around.

To learn that in the here and now, There’s a peace that can be found.

Gaze upon your garden, Like you’ve never looked before.

Absorbing all the beauty, With childlike wonder and awe.

Consider the presence of others, As an army of ants’ troop by.

Passing each and every second, Without need to question why.

Listen to summer’s soundtrack, Birdsong, joy, and laughter.

The perfection of a moment, No care for what comes after.

Crunchy leaves beneath your feet, The temptation of untouched snow.

New hope and life that arrives with spring.

A summer’s evening glow.

All these things and so many more, Will take you away for a while.

Allow yourself to notice, Allow yourself to smile.

So, when life is weighing you down, Stop for a moment, just breathe.

Use all your senses and take in the world, Till inner peace is achieved.

Jenny Dodd

31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 63

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Email: garry.coward-williams@futurenet.com & 0330 390 3732 (Mon-Fri 9.00am-6.00pm)

Gardening Editor: Ruth Hayes Assistant Editor: Janey Goulding Art Editor: Al Rigger Picture Editor and Letters: Wendy Humphries Email: amateurgardening@futurenet.com

“Doing the ‘Chelsea chop’ would deprive the bees of their food”

While out pottering in the garden...

I’VE never been able to bring myself to ‘Chelsea chop’ my geraniums as I would deprive the bees of their food.

I prefer to snip the seeds off with my scissors, a pleasant evening job.

I also snip the slugs in half and leave them in situ. I counted 200 one very damp morning. My frogs can’t keep up!

Maggie Stephens via email

Kathie’s hedgehog cam update

THIS is our latest hedgehog occurrence. Smokey Joe, our neighbour’s cat, decided to share the hogs’ food with ‘our’ hedgehog!

They do say sharing is caring. How cute is that. There’s no sign of hoglets yet. It could be any time now if their ‘getting together’ was successful. I will keep you posted.

Kathie Fitzgerald, Fareham, Hampshire

“Sharing is caring,” says Kathie

Here’s a trick to solve a slug problem Evidence that slugs do enjoy cat food – at their peril

64 AMATEUR GARDENING 31 JULY 2021

PREVENTING young plants growing in my planters from being eaten by hungry slugs and snails during the night was a problem as I do not use chemical slug bait.

Then I discovered that the slugs really enjoy cat biscuits and the chubby hedgehog who lives in our garden enjoyed eating both the cat biscuits and the slugs at night!

Problem solved.

Dr Rhoda Pippen Cardiff

Photography All copyrights and trademarks are recognised and respected Advertising Media packs are available on request Ad Manager: Rebecca Vincze, tel: 0330 3906566 email: rebecca.vincze@futurenet.com Amateur Gardening is available for licensing and syndication. To find out more contact us at licensing@ futurenet.com or view our available content at www. futurecontenthub.com Head of Print Licensing: Rachel Shaw Subscriptions Email enquiries: amateurgardeningsubs.co.uk/subsave UK orderline & enquiries: 0330 333 1113 Overseas order line & enquiries: +44 (0)330 333 1113 Online orders & enquiries: myfavouritemagazines.co.uk CRM Director: Louise Dudfield Circulation Head of Newstrade: Tim Mathers Production Head of Production: Mark Constance Production Project Manager: Clare Scott Advertising Production Manager: Joanne Crosby Digital Editions Controller: Jason Hudson Management: Chief Content Officer: Aaron Asadi Commercial Finance Director: Dan Jotcham Managing Director: Jason Orme Group Managing Director: Angela O’Farrell Printed by Walstead Group Distributed by Marketforce (UK), 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP. marketforce.co.uk & 0330 390 6555.

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Toby Buckland Plantsman and BBC gardening presenter The common field grasshopper makes a sound by rubbing its hind legs against the edge of its wing Sounding off: the frenetic adventures of the water boatman involve a novel manipulation of an extended body part

There’s the rub…

As part of his entomological education, Toby gets to grips with some of the rubbing techniques of his garden guests

I detiderc esiwrehto sselnu ,ymalA yhpargotohp llA

’VE met some amazing people on allotments in my time, none more so than Dr Ian Bedford – a man I ran into on a plot in North London who has introduced me to the wonderful world of entomology – that’s bugs to you and me. Ian is a man with an environmental conscience, a sense of humour and a love of telling stories – especially about invertebrates.

Among my favourites is what he called the mystery of the disappearing painted lady butterflies that fell from our radar every autumn. No-one knew where they went, until the unexpected discovery that they flew towards the arctic circle gaining altitude, before turning south for Tropical Africa at the remarkable rate of 30mph.

Then there was the ‘strigulating’ sound that insects like grasshoppers make by rubbing one plectrum-shaped part of their body over another. It’s the sound of summer, and can be extremely loud – especially if made by a water boatman that lives on our rivers and ponds. Micronecta scholtzi, as it’s

“It’s the sound of summer”

scientifically known, is only 2mm long, but generates an ear-blistering 99 decibels, which for its size makes it the loudest creature on earth.

Unlike the cicada, which has a special noise-making organ called a tymbal, or crickets that rub their wing to strigulate, the diminutive male boatman uses – and there’s no other way to say this – their appendage, rubbing it up and down their ridged chest. This practice is reflected in its common name, ‘The Singing Penis’.

Best stick to ‘Micronecta scholtzi’ if you find yourself in polite company.

On my radio show this week, Ian shared a fact that has shocked the

lanoitanretnI 0.4 ekilAerahS-noitubirttA snommoC evitaerC rednu desneciL tloVaxE :niaM

The cicada has a special noise-making organ called a tymbal, which comes in handy in mating season

Toby’s trivia

1

Look out for the small, green eggs of painted lady butterflies on nettles, mallows, and thistles.

2

The caterpillars are black and hairy with an echo of the flecked wing-tips on their skin. In autumn, when they’ve turned into butterflies, the whole British population will either die or emigrate to Africa. garden clubs that book him for Zoom talks. On average, he has calculated that each of us eats 140,000 insect parts per year. Some find their way into our mouths when we’re asleep, but most have been scooped up by combine harvesters and ground in with our flour, coffee or beer.

With an ever-growing population, utilising protein from easy-to-produce insects and deliberately adding to our food is the future. Though for now, I’m happy to see these miraculous creatures alive and well in my garden.

Encourage insect life to your garden CREATE insects nesting space by building bug hotels and habitat stacks made from bricks and hollow stems.

Piles of dead and decaying branches make homes and habitat for beetles, while nectar-rich flowers like buddleia and sedum will encourage butterflies and night-scented jasmine for moths.

They’ll also feed from windfall apples, especially cut in half. And if you have space in a sunny spot, leave an area of nettles and thistles – essential food for many caterpillars.

Build bug hotels from wood, bricks and hollow stems

Butterflies love sedum such as Hylotelephium spectabile 31 JULY 2021 AMATEUR GARDENING 67