Home & Gardens

Home & Garden Gardening...

...with botanist Dr Dave Aplin

The winter gloom seems to creep up gradually, until suddenly we realise how short the days have become and how low the Sun rises overhead. Over the next couple of months, the Sun won’t get any higher in the sky than it does at 7am on Midsummer’s Day, so no surprise that many plants retreat below ground until the conditions become more favourable. Maximising the reduced available light is important, especially if you, like me, grow plants in the greenhouse over winter. Glass can become very grubby during the summer and if you have been growing tomatoes then it is likely the glass will be coated by their green sap. Cleaning this off makes a huge transformation to light levels, making the difference between a cloudy and a sunny day. Washing glass need not be a burden, I use a soft-headed kitchen broom dipped into water with a dash of washing-up liquid. The broom is then carefully manoeuvred over the panes. Once done, and before the solution dries, spray the glass with clean water from a hosepipe to reveal a sparkling finish. Do this on both sides of the glass to maximise light penetration. Maximising the available light is easy but increasing the day length will make languishing plants flourish. Staggeringly, the difference in day length between midwinter’s and midsummer’s day is almost nine hours, so it is no wonder deciduous leaves are shed in autumn. Some years ago, supplementing light in a greenhouse would have been expensive. Recent advances in technology, however, have reduced running costs allowing this luxury to be obtainable for keen amateur gardeners and exhibition vegetable growers wanting to get ahead of the game. T5 fluorescent grow lights are the least expensive and are especially good for propagation and plant growth. LED lights are more costly but super cheap to run. They can be used in places with no natural daylight. When I worked in the United Arab Emirates, I was invited to view a setup known as a vertical farm. This comprised a large, windowless warehouse on a dusty industrial estate in Dubai. This space was full of young potted herbs at various stages of growth destined for restaurants in the Emirates. Plants grew on multiple levels under LEDs. While our intentions are less grand, our rewards will be greatly enhanced simply by applying soapy water and a little elbow grease to greenhouse glass. n soilvalues.com

ALL THE WHILE: A vertical farm in the UAE

Bring me sunshine!

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New Stour & Avon, December 17, 2021 35 Home & Garden Magical levels laying beneath a wreath

Jo Green is a former allotmenteer, forager, amateur herbalist, pickler and jam maker who squeezed her allotment greenery into her tiny garden I have ventured beyond Home & Garden in my project today – I know, what a rebel I am! After eyeing the gifted Poinsettia plant on the mantelpiece and the Honesty I had picked from the garden – I just had to put them together in a Christmas wreath. As I had already decided on this cannabalistic course of action, it didn’t seem too bad if I raided my stash of keepsakes from past floral gifts. First I pruned a few leggy tendrils of Boston Ivy wrapping itself each year further round the house. Next, I stripped the side shoots off and wound them one by one into a circle to whatever size wreath you choose. I tied them a little with cord to keep them under control and then wove the last few tendrils around, binding them together. Adding some bouquet leftover Eucalyptus I just poked the pieces in where they looked right. If I was going for the ‘less is more’ look, that would have been that but hey it is Christmas! Now that I had the bare bones of the wreath I felt confident to have a photo shoot in the woods and add more foliage as I went. I knew I would find some windfall pine cones and needles which would add some festive bulk. Possibly it wasn’t very sensible to take a flimsy hand-made wreath for a dog walk in the windy woods but what I lost in pristine petal I made up for in fun. I was going for a Christmas portal look with the sun streaming through the aperture of the wreath but inspiration didnt quite reach application! Once home I added some holly and ivy from the garden and Bob’s your uncle. Season’s greetings!