'Garden Column - October 2009'

 

Start planting new areas.

 

 

Now that autumn has really kicked in it is time to put those new planting plans into practice.

When creating new areas of plants you should always start with the backbone plants like the large conifers, shrubs & trees slowly working your way forward to the herbaceous and bedding at the front.

When choosing plants for areas of new planting in the garden flower colour can be important to your plans but also look at the foliage, the texture and the structure of the plant.

One thing I was always taught is that the flower is the most insignificant part of any plant.

It has been proven that you can have plenty of interest in a garden and there can be not one flower in sight – I have seen complete gardens made up of just conifers and even grasses & ferns creating superb impact and structure.

When planting new introductions to your plot make sure that they are well watered before planting and prepare the soil with a good mixture of YHS Advance Soil Conditioner and either Vitax Pelleted Conifer & Shrub Fertiliser for woody plants and Vitax Pelleted Q4 for herbaceous. If you are planting new ericaceous plants insure that they are planted with Levington Ericaceous Compost & Vitax Pelleted Ericaceous Fertiliser.

Dig a hole about twice the size of the pot it sits in and loosen the soil up in the bottom.

This will allow the roots to get established.

If the plant you’ve purchased has quite a tight root system tease the roots apart before planting.

Once areas are planted water the plants in and then apply a mulch of Wessex Cocoa Shell or Levington Forest Bark to help suppress weed growth.

 

 

Clear and remove canes and sticks.

 

 

Start clearing areas of bean and pea sticks.

Remove and harvest what is left of your crop then place all unwanted plant material onto the compost heap or into your green recycle bin.

Lift your sticks and clean them up.

Any damaged sticks – trim out the damage and then store using a pair of secateurs.

Then store in the garden shed until next year.

If you use an awful amount of bamboo cane then why not plant a bamboo plant that will give you a continuous supply canes that can be cropped from.

Choose a tallish variety which will grow between 2-4m.

 

 

Encourage fruit trees.

 

 

Old fruit trees this week will appreciate a good top dressing of Vitax Pelleted Q4 Fertiliser.

Remove the top 5-9cm of soil carefully and replace with a mixture of YHS Advance Soil Conditioner & the Q4.

If you haven’t done it yet - apply some Vitax Fruit Tree Grease to the trunk to help stop some of those over-wintering pests.  

 

 

Plan your fruit garden.

 

 

October is the ideal month to plan your fruit garden.

First dig the soil over and prepare it well for planting.

Dig in a good amount of Wessex Clavering Horse Manure Compost and scatter a good sprinkling of Growing Success Organic Summer Fruits Fertiliser.

Build frames for caned fruit like Blackberries & Raspberries.

Place wires and trellis on boundary walls and fences for wall fruit like vines and fan trained fruit.

When your preparation is complete then make your choice from the wide variety of fruit plants that are available.

Study your books and list varieties that not only have good flavour and high yields but also that have a good disease resistance which will help reduce the amount of pesticides that may need to used on your plants.

If you are limited on space certain varieties will grow very easily in containers giving not only colour but also productivity to the patio.

 

 

Apply autumn lawn care.

 

 

There is still time to apply an autumn lawn fertiliser to prepare the lawn for the hardy winter months. Before applying scarify and spike the lawn to get the most from the fertiliser.

Use Evergreen “I want complete autumn lawn care” – this will help strengthen the roots of your grass and help combat any moss problem that is occurring on your turf.

 

 

Heathers for winter colour.

 

 

If you want to plant up something this autumn for winter colour especially into a hanging basket then why not try something a little different then why not plant up your hanging basket with some winter flowering Heather.  

Winter flowering forms of Erica can give plenty of colour to match any winter flowering Pansy or Viola.

To gain some extra interest – why not plant a small dwarf conifer as a central plant and add some dwarf flowering bulbs such as Crocus or Iris to sprout through giving some extra colour throughout the late winter/early spring.

Remember to use Levington Ericaceous Compost as this will provide the heathers with the acidic soil that they prefer to grow in.