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Garden Diary – Raindrops on roses to wilting in the heat
Seriously, can you believe our British weather? It’s no wonder it makes up a huge amount of our national conversation. We started last week with the heating on, moaning about all the rain. Discussing how April had clearly got mixed up with May, as we endured heavy ‘April’ showers. Worrying about the freshly opened flowers being ruined. And bursting into song about, ‘raindrops on roses…’ surely everyone was brought up on The sound of music? And then, by the end of the bank holiday weekend we were all moaning we were too hot! Struggling to keep up with the watering, especially in the greenhouse where twice a day was necessary,…
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Biological slug control, after a G&T
If you garden organically, then nematodes are really the only option if you want to kill slugs. Slug pellets are an absolute no no, as they are poison. They contaminate your soil and can lead to the deaths of beneficial predators of slugs like, hedgehogs, birds, frogs, or even worms. They can also cause harm to your pets. The RSPB offer advise on different methods for deterring slugs. Using Nematodes Firstly order Nemaslug, it should take two to three days to arrive. When it arrives, start by making yourself a nice Gin & Tonic. You need to have more than one to use up all of the tonic. Put the…
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Bamboo and Hosta raised beds
Garden transformation Part 7 – Raised shady beds A month after moving in, we’d taken out some unruly overgrown conifers. There was a beautiful old sandstone wall hidden behind the conifers but it wasn’t high enough. We needed to put something back in their place to give us privacy from a house at the back. As we’d had a raised bed with bamboo growing in it at our last house, we thought of it straight away. It’s a perfect screen as its evergreen, but somehow feels light and airy not heavy and overbearing. I love how it sounds and how delicate it looks as it moves in the wind. October 2013…
