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LOGS TRADES

Season Barn Dry Logs 20 miles radius of Sherborne Tel: 01935 815534

LOGS LOGS WELL SEASOND HARDWOOD WELL SEASONED HARDWOOD

Cut & split to your requirement Various size loads delivered from £140.00 1.6m³

Tel: 01258 857 824 | 07741 463 605

Card payment accepted ASBESTOS REMOVAL

Garages, sheds, lean tos,roofing and cladding Collection and dismantling by registered hazardous waste carrier. Call 07973 444620 or 01722 414478

CLASSIFIED ADS: 01963 400186

LOGS R US 1 ton pickup load of logs £90 double load £150 dumpy bag £60 All hardwood 07790 404593 01258 818081

FRANKS

D T L

MAINTENANCE GROUP Serving all your interior & exterior maintenance needs 01747 826656 franksgroup.co.uk

•Alterations •Renovations •Carpentry •Kitchen Fitting •Bathroom Fitting •Wall/Floor Tiling •Plastering •Hard Landscaping •Painting & Decorating •Plumbing •Electrical

MAINTENANCEBUILDING

Milton on Stour Gillingham SP8 5QA 01747 824015

Monday - Saturday 9am - 5.30pm Sunday 10am - 4pm

Geraniums and fuchsias for pots Lovely new hydrangeas French and English lavenders

Summer bedding for colour Tomato, courgette and pepper plants Vegetable seedlings and herbs

Home & Garden Gardening...

...with botanist Dr Dave Aplin Why some plants survive the frosts and others jack it in

It was going to be an early spring, record high temperatures were recorded at the end of March, then, April’s incredible run of consecutive frosts placed the season on pause. Frost poses a life-threatening phenomenon to plants. As water freezes its molecules become more spaced than in liquid form. This causes it to expand by around 10 per cent. If ice crystals form within the cells of plants they rupture with lethal consequences –killing cells, whole leaves and potentially entire plants. Many plants can adapt by protect themselves from environmental threats, such as frost. This protection is only triggered when the plant perceives the threat, because changes within the plant incur a cost. Unsurprisingly, they are unable to predict cold weather, so sudden drops in temperatures, as we have experienced, can damage native plants that would otherwise be robust in all weathers. Over the past month the sharp-eyed amongst us may have noticed stinging nettles and red campion frosted in the countryside. The price paid for luxuriant growth during warm weather followed by a sudden cold snap. Of course, these plants will recover, but some garden plants won’t. Plants are often divided into either ‘hardy’ or ‘tender’. This refers to their cold tolerance. Hardy plants normally withstand temperatures well below freezing whereas the same conditions make tender species curl up and die. The main factor for these differences relates to where they grow naturally. Those from warmer climates never experience a frost, so have no mechanism to avoid it. How do hardy plants survive the freeze? As plants sense cooling conditions, they gradually remove some of the water from their cells. This increases cellular concentrations of dissolved sugars and salts (solutes) and consequently lowers the freezing point, a bit like gritting highways with rock salt to reduce the threat of ice on roads. Many plants also produce an antifreeze protein, which further increases their cold tolerance. Some plants can even undergo supercooling, where the sap within cells remains liquid at temperatures well below freezing. ‘Hardening off’ is a phrase gardeners use – it means gradually acclimatising plants that have had protection from life outside. This often refers to temperature but is equally important for strengthening the entire plant. The idea is simple, protected plants need to gradually experience cooler conditions before initiating the responses that will safely bring them through cold weather. Gradually placing them in cooler conditions: from heated greenhouse to coldframe, followed by; coldframe with the tops off during the day; tops open partially at night; fully open at night, will prepare plants for outside temperatures. A few sheets of newspaper or horticultural fleece placed over plants provide good protection from spring frosts. If you forget and your prized plants get frosted you may still have a chance if you’re quick. Wash the frost off with cold water before the direct rays of the sun hits them, it doesn’t always work but sometimes it will save your plants. That said, all plants have their own tolerance limit for cold. Plants from the tropics and sub-tropical regions, which includes many of our summer bedding plants, will never tolerate frost. So don’t be tempted to rush out and plant your summer bedding after an unusually warm spell because, as we have learnt cold weather returns with vengeance. Next time, why do plants have tonguetwisting scientific names? soilvalues.com.

Soil Testing Service Professional laboratory soil tests • gardeners • landscapers • small holders

Wild昀ower meadows, veg, fruit, 昀ower, new & established gardens. Fast, accurate & easy to interpret soil report within 7 days www.soilvalues.com

07598 714 082

Home & GardenTREEWISEGARDEN SERVICES (see also Local Services)

GRASS & BRUSH CUTTING

Orchards, paddocks, plantations etc. ROTAVATING

Rough ground to seed bed

GREENHOUSES DORSET RURAL GARDENING supplied/erected Regular lawnmowing service, maintenance or alloy/ten colours single tidy up. Please contact 07787 544626 spares-repairs-glass MINI DIGGER/SLEW and high lift DUMPER Chris Abrams 01258 452632 TREE SERVICES

MOSS PROBLEM Scarifying, spiking & coring PATIO & PATH CLEANING etc. Call 01963 237890 24/7 MALCOLM KELLY. Grass cutting and hedge cutting. All garden maintenance. 01258 817541/07717 368134. GARDEN RESCUE TEL 01747 821 726 TJ AllardTree Surgery Professional tree care, 15 years experience NPTC qualified & Fully insured Felling and removal Crown reductions & thinning Specialists in large trees Tree dismantling & pollarding Site clearance & mulching Stump grinding Fencing Ground work Experts in all Tel: 01747 838342 Mob: 07825786449 Tree Surgery. Reductions. Felling. Hedge Trimming. Stump Grinding. Woodchip supplies. Family run business since 1946 Tel: 01963 250005 Mobile: 07976 934 252 www.bandgdown.co.uk Tree Surgery. Reductions. Felling. Hedge Trimming. Stump Grinding. Woodchip supplies. Family run business since 1946 Tel: 01963 250005 Mobile: 07976 934 252 aspects of TREE SURGERY, HEDGECUTTING & Tel: 01747 850544 Mobile: 07921 637227 amralphlandscaping@gmail.com www.ralphlandscaping.co.uk Landscaping, Groundworks and Garden Maintenance, Specialists in Patios, Fencing, Driveways, Walling, Ponds, Turfing Free Quotations TREE SERVICES Treecare Co. Tree Specialists TREE STUMP REMOVAL Pruning, bracing, shaping. Preservation of mature trees. Hedge cutting. Trees supplied & planted. Landscaping & maintenance. Heavy duty winch hire available. Tree Surgery BS.3998 Contractors to local authorities. WOOD CHIPPINGS FOR SALE Free Quotes & Advice Tel/Fax: Shafts 853512 Mobile: 07831 262083 Established in 1976 At TreeCare we care...

LAWN SCARIFYING Moss and thatch North Dorset Tree SurgeonsSTUMP REMOVAL MAN WITH MICRO-DIGGER WELL ROTTED MANURE, £50 TOPSOIL Always available Barn stored, screened or as-dug. Small or removal. 01747 821 726 WANTED - garden ornaments, garage clearance and also old tools wanted. Good prices paid, Mere 01747 860637 We carry out all aspects of tree surgery, hedge cutting and stump grinding. Fully insured and NPTC quali昀ed. Call Will today on 01747 854517 or 07872 970741 Professional Experienced Reliable NPTC qualified & fully insured No job too small, Friendly, personal advice and free quotations. Professional and experienced tree surgery and landscaping services Tree Surgeons (Established 1997) Garden clearance, patios, fencing, decking, landscaping, driveways. 30+ years’ experience. Contact Ken - 07882 441873 01963 32034 SCREENED TOP SOIL FOR SALE - Delivered tel no: 01258 861046 per load within 20 miles of Sherborne, 01963 210269 large amounts Tel: 01963 363208 07836 747895 LAWN MOWING SERVICE, Tel 01747 821726 OLD BYGONES & COLLECTABLES. Rural, garden & agricultural itmes bought & sold. Tim 01725 517268 / 07311 478301 47 Make a wise choice and call David Merefield today on 01747 850906 / 07966 522361 Tel: 01747 228484 Mob: 07770 833734 www.valetreesurgeons.com Vale Tree Surgeons Limited, Gillingham SP8 4LX to residential and commercial customers. We also offer a range of equipment for hire. Available 24/7 Free quotations Fully qualified team Full public liability insurance Safe Contractor Approved