O.K. AUTUMN - BRING IT ON!

24TH SEPTEMBER 2019 - NORTH YORKSHIRE

Autumn has arrived. Heavy rain caused by tail end of Bahamas Hurricanes and a distinct chill in the air each morning. Plants still surviving well – third bloom of Roses has arrived with glorious results. Petunias, Geraniums, Begonias and dahlias soldiering on until the first frost strikes – possible in next fortnight, and the Fuchsias and Pansies just coming into their own.

Lots of lovely roses!

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Late clematis

Cascading begonia

Tumbling fuchsia

Fuchsias and geraniums still happily blooming together

Window box petunia almost touching the ground

Dahlias better than ever this year

Hydrangea paniculata just beginning to fade

Favourite dahlia  Bishop of Llandaff

Just another dahlia!

Enjoying an amazing crop of Chillies (Cayenne, Piri Piri and Habanieros) – some in the green house – been ready for early picking for last four weeks – those outside have just started to go red. Head Gardener busy finding ways to preserve for winter use, all three varieties making excellent Chilli Oil – in various strengths of heat from Cayenne through Piri Piri to ‘Blow your Head Off’ Habeniero Oil. Fill an empty one litre Olive oil bottle with a third of the volume of prepared Chilli ( cut length ways and remove seeds – unless you are ready for a ‘Journey into Space’) and top up with good quality Olive Oil –leave for four weeks until oil starts to colour (longer if you are very brave) before using sparingly in all your exotic cooking. When you have filled your cupboards with bottled oil try freezing some or simply string together and dry for winter use.

Cayenne chilli on the vine

And many more to come

The four tomato plants grown outside from early June have started to produce a usable crop of small tasty fruits – truly amazing and pest free in the open air, one up for Climate Change then? 

Hoping that these will ripen

May have to make Green Tomato Chutney!

Have always had an addiction to local flower shows and the one in our local village beckoned – so on the morning of the show decided to go to the show site early and get hold of an entry schedule (HG had warned as the poster was advertising a ‘Produce Show’ that this would preclude ‘Flowers’ – she was wrong). Returned to garden to see what was almost ‘showable’ and returned to venue with thirty minutes to spare before entries closed. Showed two vases of three Dahlias ( White cactus and Red/White ‘Danish Flag’), Three individual Roses – Gertrude Jekyll, Summer Sunshine, Falstaff) one single white Hydrangea and two Cayenne Chillies. Got it all set up with two minutes to spare before the Judges arrived. On return after lunch was astonished to find cayennes got First Prize and Best Vegetable in Show, Gertrude Jekyll rose got First and best Single Bloom in Show, White Cactus Dahlias got First and Bishop of Llandaff Dahlias and Hydrangea both got Second Prizes. (All down to watering and feeding).

Prize winning chilli peppers

Second prize for the white hydrangea (looking rather green!)

First and second for the Dahlias

And First prize and Best in Show for Gertrude Jekyll

So with Autumn in the air it’s the time to sort out last year’s ‘Summer Stored’ Bulbs to check and plant the survivors together with the new acquisitions (Aldi Tulips and Daffodils still best value at £1.69 per pack of ten). As the summer tubs fade they are each being emptied, washed and sterilised, filled with fresh compost and planted with two layers of bulbs ( around twenty per pot for Tulips and fifteen for Daffodils) bottom layer 200mm deep, second layer 150mm from top and then the tub is topped off with winter flowering Pansies and Heartease ensuring continual winter colour and Spring flowering until late April next year.

Everything that is ‘Straggling’(ie growing long and ‘leggy’) has just received a late September ‘Haircut’ – if it stays mild they may come again; if cold they will soon die off completely. As Roses are still flowering well, will leave Autumn prune until first frost. Geraniums will be brought in and cut back (take plenty of cuttings) for winter store – free of frost. Dahlias will also require winter frost free environment – found cutting back to 75mm and leaving in tub produced best results rather than trying to dry out the tubers for storage.

Lawns and Hedges are at last showing signs that their growing season is slowing (lawns have often needed two cuts per week this year and hedges have already had three cuts). So with time now available a start can be made on the clearing of the Herbaceous borders and the winter planting with miniature evergreen shrubs of the Hanging baskets.

Ah well - now exhausted 

getting old and ready for a welcome cup of the HG’s coffee.

See you soon

Stuart

MIDSUMMER MAGIC

22^ND JUNE 2017 CENTRAL PORTUGAL

Mid Summer’s day, temperature in the mid ‘Thirties’ (been up to 40 plus in the last few days), terrible and very tragic forest fires in the ‘Beiras’. Certainly a time for contemplation and giving thanks for the glories of the garden.

Most plants find excessive heat and prolonged exposure to blistering sunshine a little difficult to deal with. Generally our garden plants come from temperate regions (usually moist and cool) or jungles (mostly very hot and very moist), the other bits are either covered in snow and very cold or devoid of vegetation and blisteringly hot in the day time and cold at night. So our cultivars are designed ( yes, most plants have been designed or ‘naturalised’ over the centuries to acceptable taste, smell or appearance ) to maximise our growing pleasure. It is only when extremes of climate occur that the true hereditary traits in plants revert to their wild origins.

Masses of sun and no water is the formula for defeat in the garden unless these possibilities are planned for and taken into consideration when planting. Shade is a very good friend to those plants that dislike strong sunshine so always consider planting a screen of broad leafed trees in front of any sunny vegetable patches. The elixir of crop maximisation then becomes that much sought after ‘dappled shade’. Not only does this minimise leaf burn from direct rays but also reduces substantially the use of water due to the lack of evaporation. Whilst another mantra of the horticultural world is ‘free draining soil’ this condition is of little merit when there is a water shortage. The lining of growing beds with a non porous membrane allows the ‘New Gardener’ to ensure that water resources in future will be used to their best. It may mean that more careful cultivation, feeding and watering will be required to maximise the crop return on effort. So in future don’t plan for the next year  - plan five years or more into the future, give the shading trees time to grow, be more realistic in the flowers and crops you want to grow, as the cost of garden water becomes prohibitive and ever more scarce ensure that yours is the garden that nature intended.

So have put away the ‘Soap Box’ and returned to the pleasures currently on offer.

The Tomatoes, Sweet Peppers, Aubergines and courgettes being grown in tubs on the Belvedere terrace are in fine form and all just starting to crop with lots of flower and future growth to come. Feeding every week with the ‘Blue Balls’ and daily with measured water (five litres for a 90 litre pot with four tomato or pepper plants, little more for the Aubergines)

Big flavoursome somatoes

Gorgeous plum tomatoes

First aubergine (eggplant)

Peppers in abundance

another variety of pepper

Cherry tomatoes ripening

Roses are revving up for a further summer bloom .

This rose never stops flowering and smells divine

This is a miniature variety of rose

 The Brugmansias (Angels' Trumpets) are sensational, (lots of cuttings taken in February in full flower),

Pink Trumpets - this year's cuttings

Head Gardener's favourite

The whole plant, from a cutting given two years agon

 Buddleia are stately – much maligned by many just now (vagaries of fashion again). They always give a splendid show and the Butterflies are the added bonus (twelve varieties seen feeding in the last week).

Buddleia with Cardinal butterfly

Spot the butterfies on this buddleia!

 Dahlias, Fuchsias and Geraniums really paying their way this year (just keep feeding and watering till October).

Bedding Dahlia Bishop's Children

Pot of Fuchsia and geraniums

 Fruit trees as predicted in March are full of ripening fruit, the recalcitrant Damascus Apricot, devoid of fruit for nine years, has gone overboard this summer with branches laden with golden fruit. Apples and Plums are ripening and there may even be a few Olives this Autumn.

 The  Impatiens in the hanging baskets are floriferous, even in direct sun (filled half the basket with high water retention ceramic ‘balls’ which seem to be working their magic). The tubs of African and French Marigolds have cheered up the roadside no end.

French Marigolds enjoying the afternoon sunshine

Hanging Impatiens (Busy Lizzies) and more Marigolds

And just a few of the other plants flowering for us now.

Heavenly blue Agapanthus

Clematis Hagley Hybrid still flowering

A nice shady spot for hydrangea (Hortensia)

Bright cheerful flowers of the pomegranate tree

Must finish the watering before heat exhaustion sets in. 

There goes the HG bell for large quantities of well iced water today (hopefully), 

must dash,

See you soon

Stuart.