Over the past year, I’ve watched in despair as algae has wrapped its ever extending arms around my pond; I feel like algae is threatening to suffocate my pond at any moment. The other ponds I’ve created in the past have never really suffered with algae to the same extent that my current pond has.
Meadows present a natural, seemingly effortless beauty, with an undeniable allure. For the most part, meadow guardians save much of the energy that gardeners spend repeatedly mowing and maintaining traditional lawns. Nevertheless, meadows are not an easy option; creating a meadow requires endeavour, careful planning, and time, to ensure success.
Perennial meadow plantsOur native British, perennial meadow plants flourish in poor soils, where they grow contentedly alongside sedately-growing, fine-leaved grasses.
I’ve always had a great interest in ponds, to me, the underwater world is fascinating. I’ve been interested in aquatic plants since I was a young child. I can still remember the feeling, as my heart leapt and did a little somersault when I discovered a clump of Marsh Marigolds (Caltha palustris) for the very first time, whilst I was out for a walk with my Grandparents; I was utterly captivated by the beauty of this large clump of Caltha palustris.
Autumn is such a magical season. Each year, I’m utterly enchanted by autumn; I watch in delight, as the leaves on trees and shrubs turn from green to gold, burnished amber, and a stunning array of fiery autumnal hues. Autumn leaves twirl and dance, as they make their descent, gliding and tumbling through the air, whispering softly as they flutter, before gently landing on the ground below.
Home grown garlic is one of life’s joys. The best garlic is planted in autumn. So, if you’re thinking of growing your own garlic, don’t delay, this is the time to plant it!
Garlic Growing ConditionsOver the years I’ve grown a lot of garlic. The best garlic I’ve grown was planted in a free draining, sandy soil, in early autumn.
Garden designer Jackie Currie, runs Euphorbia Design with her business partner, Lorraine Cooke. Together they design and revitalise gardens in the Surrey area. Jackie enjoys growing many plants, but her real passion is for Alliums. She’s utterly devoted to this genus of plants, so much so, that Jackie’s garden and allotments are packed full and beautifully planted with thousands of Alliums.
I love terrariums and bottle gardens! I so enjoy designing tiny plant worlds and creating miniature gardens. This is the ideal time to build a terrarium or bottle garden, these Lilliputian microcosms are fun to make! Terrariums will enhance your home and provide the perfect gardening therapy through the autumn and winter months.
The photograph above shows some of the ingredients that I use to formulate my own compost mixes for terrariums and bottle gardens.
For me, deliciously scented flowers are a delightfully uplifting feature of the garden. A beautiful moment spent enjoying garden flowers and their fragrances is utter bliss! Time spent with delectably fragrant flowers eases life’s worries and stresses, brings joy to our day and makes everything feel better. I have a particular fondness for scented daffodils or Narcissus. Narcissus is the botanical name for this genus, while daffodil is the common name we use, but both names refer to the same group of plants.
I am particularly fond of scented daffodils; last year I conducted a Scented Daffodil Trial, to showcase beautiful and enchanting daffodil cultivars, which produce exquisitely fragrant, long lasting flowers.
I’ve been looking forward to sharing the finest performing daffodil cultivars from my Scented Daffodil Trial with you, and as September is a great month to plant daffodil bulbs, this column offered me the perfect opportunity.
For many gardeners, the slug and snail population seemed to explode last year, with many fraught and distressed gardeners asking for my advice on the best way to protect their plants from slugs and snails. I am strongly opposed to slug pellets. I wouldn’t wish to kill any of the slugs or snails in my garden, as I believe a healthy eco system is important.
I love hedgehogs! Hedgehogs are so endearing and entertaining. Every time I have encountered a hedgehog has been such a special and uplifting moment; each hedgehog I have seen shuffling along or snuffling about has touched my heart, lifted my spirits and brightened my day.
Sadly, nowadays there are many threats to hedgehogs – hedgehogs are in danger as they try to cross our busy roads, but even away from the roads, hedgehogs face many dangers in our own gardens, because of these dangers, hedgehogs are becoming more scarce.
This is such an exciting time of year, with so many beautiful colours in the garden to enjoy and Harvest Festival to look forward to! There are lots of lovely ideas of things that you can do to make the most of your garden now, and to ensure that your garden will look better than ever, next year!
If your fences are looking rather tatty or wobbly, have you considered planting a hedge?
The end of summer is often a magical time, bathed in golden light and sunshine. There’s certainly a lots of lovely things you could do in the garden, or at your allotment during the month ahead!
Vine weevils are a real pain, especially if you’ve got lots of container grown plants. The adult vine weevils damage plant leaves, leaving a notch-shaped, irregular edge to the leaves, resulting in a rather ragged looking, tatty plant.
