Indholdsfortegnelse for Septemebr 2022 i BBC Gardeners' World

Years ago I wrote a book about annuals and I started the chapter on tagetes with the definitive phrase: “I hate marigolds!” I then went on to make fun of African marigolds in particular, about why I didn’t like them (“dish mops dipped in paint”, that sort of thing). But, frankly, it was all a little bit snobby! These days I’m much more: “If you like it, grow it – and take no notice of a bloke writing in a magazine”. So, let’s hear it for marigolds! One thing we cannot deny about marigolds is that they’re colourful. The problem with some, African marigolds in particular, is that while they bring us colour, it’s not always matched with elegance, although the recent arrival from India of the tall varieties used…

HOT TOPIC Family fun I recently had great fun following the tips from the Family Gardening Special (July issue) with my own family. We are new to gardening and are now subscribers to your magazine. The children loved getting involved in our new garden and making your bird feeders! David Lyon, by email I love my garden and spend a lot of time in it. I have a long side border with lots of perennials and annuals, with filled pots all around and plenty of colour. My lawn is fairly long and a great place for my grandchildren to play football, badminton, chase etc. Therefore, it’s always patchy and scuffed, and my flowers are regularly deadheaded by footballs, usually followed by an “Oops, sorry Nan!” But it’s a family garden…

Before planting in shade, improve the soil – not by digging, which will damage any tree roots and compound water loss, but by mulching the surface with garden compost and/or leaf mould. This will hold in moisture and deter weeds. When planting in the shade of trees, probe the ground gently with a hand fork to identify pockets of soil between the roots. Dig a hole slightly larger than the rootball and fork in leafmould or garden compost to help get your plant off to a flying start. Small, young plants settle in more quickly than larger, older ones. Give an initial thorough drenching after planting, then keep watering regularly until well rooted in. Once established, your plants will spread, and the more the merrier in a shady spot, so…

Terracotta Clay containers help to keep roots cool and they look especially appropriate in cottage gardens or where you’re growing herbs and Mediterranean plants. They vary in the shade of orange – from bright to pale and dusky. Check they are frost-proof (and note, frost-resistant doesn’t mean frost-proof), otherwise they may crack and crumble in icy weather. Galvanised tubs and tanks look great filled with vegetables, fruit trees and spring bulbs such as tulips and daffodils. The galvanising will prolong their life but they may still start to deteriorate after five years or so. That said, I love them and they seem to suit almost any garden. Keep them off the ground on ‘pot feet’ to prolong their life, and bear in mind they can get hot in the summer.…

◾ Check your container drains well – it must have one or more drainage holes in the base that are large enough to allow excess water to escape. Keep the holes from getting blocked with compost by adding a couple of inches of gravel in the base of the container. Avoid using other materials, which can block the holes. ◾ Avoid using garden soil in containers – it won’t drain well enough and may contain pests. Instead use peat-free multi-purpose compost for temporary (seasonal) plantings and a mixture of this and soilbased John Innes No.2 potting compost for plants that will stay in the container for longer than a year. ◾ Give plants a through watering both before and after planting. Then continue watering regularly throughout the growing season. ◾…

IN THIS COLLECTION: ◼ Triumph tulips x 30 A classic shape in various vibrant colours. Flowers Apr-May Height x Spread 50cm x 10cm ◼ Narcissus ‘Marie Curie Diamond’ x 15 Bright yellow jonquilla daffodil. F Mar-Apr H x S 20cm x 10cm ◼ Crocus ‘Barr’s Purple’ x 15 Purple flowers with orange stamens. F Feb-Mar H x S 20cm x 5cm ◼ Muscari x 30 Grape hyacinth with clusters of purple-blue flowers. F Mar-May H x S 15cm x 8cm ◼ Ipheion uniflorum x 80 Star-shaped, silvery blue, scented flowers. F Mar-May H x S 25cm x 15cm ◼ Allium neapolitanum x 50 Pure white flowerheads. F Apr-May H x S 40cm x 25cm ◼ Allium moly x 80 Clusters of bright yellow flowers. F May-Jun H x S 50cm x 25cm 300…

Introducing new plants into our gardens is always an exciting process, and whether they’re trees, shrubs, bulbs or herbaceous perennials, it’s vital to give them the best start for their continued health and success. Planting them well, in aerated soil and at the right depth, is crucial, and there are several tools designed to help you do this. The Gardeners’ World Magazine reviews team regularly tests planting tools to ensure you can buy new kit with confidence and choose the right tools for each planting task. From forks and spades that help you break up the soil, dig holes and lift plants, to trowels for planting in pots and raised beds, we’ve reviewed a whole host of tools, giving our coveted Best Buy award to those that were outstanding. Every…

Look after the plastic you’ve got Every garden has a reserve of plastic built up over the years, and the best way to keep it out of landfill and avoid buying more is to look after it and keep using it. Place plastic items in the shade, as UV light makes them brittle, and store them in sheds over winter. Sitting plants in plastic trays and pots up on shelves helps to avoid accidental damage. TOP TIP Recycle your plastic before it gets too old and starts breaking, to avoid shedding microplastics directly into the environment. Turn troughs into water butts Plastic water butts last for years, even decades. But if they do eventually break, replace them with non-plastic second-hand cattle troughs or old water tanks bought at reclamation yards…

Dried French beans are my top choice for harvesting and drying as a homegrown store-cupboard staple. Their life begins in mid-April as the sun starts to warm the soil. This sounds ideal for direct sowing, but instead, I sow my beans into deep root-trainers filled with peat-free compost to get them off to a good start. Once watered in, I keep the tray in the greenhouse and not long after they germinate, I move them into my sheltered cold frame. After the last frost, I’ll plant them into an area enriched with well-rotted compost, against a beanpole wigwam. After plants have settled in, a beer trap and nasturtium plants are added to the area, too. The yeasty brew draws and traps the molluscs, whilst the nasturtiums lure black bean aphids…

Jonquilla daffodils are known for their scent and multiple flowerheads THE COLLECTION INCLUDES: ◼ Narcissus ‘Pipit’ Lemon-yellow flowers with creamy white cups. H x S 30cm x 15cm Flowers Apr ◼ N. ‘Pueblo’ Creamy-white blooms with pale-yellow cups. H x S 30cm x 15cm F Mar-Apr ◼ N. ‘Sun Disc’ Lemon-yellow petals and canary-yellow cups. H x S 20cm x 10cm F Apr ◼ N. ‘Martinette’ Yellow flowers with bright orange cups. H x S 35cm x 10cm F Mar-Apr ◼ N. ‘Suzy’ Paired or single yellow and orange flowers. H x S 40cm x 15cm F Mar-Apr 50 bulbs (10 of each variety) £49.95 £19.99 SAVE £30 Each variety also available at £9.99 for 10 bulbs YOU MAY ALSO LIKE… ◼ Crocus Value Mix Plant in rockeries, below trees…

Picked by hand in paper bags ◼ Tulipa ‘Brisbane’ Eye-catching ruffled double blooms. A long-lasting cut flower. Height x Spread 45cm x 15cm Flowers Apr-May 10 bulbs £6.90 £5.87 ◼ Iris reticulata ‘Blue Note’ Deepest blue-purple with a white blotch. Fragrant iris (unusual). H x S 15cm x 10cm F Feb-Mar 20 bulbs £4.60 £3.91 ◼ Tulipa ‘Apricot Pride’ Tall and elegant, with large, goblet-shaped flowers. H x S 45cm x 15cm F Apr-May 10 bulbs £6.90 £5.87 ◼ Scilla litardierei Amethyst meadow squill. Looks feathery when fully open. H x S 15cm x 10cm F Apr-Jun 20 bulbs £4.80 £4.08 ◼ Narcissus ‘Dinnerplate’ Large bright yellow centre with crimped and crinkled edges which H x S 40cm x 15cm F Mar-Apr 5 bulbs from £7.50 £6.38 ◼ Fritillaria imperialis…

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It starts with smooth, green plums becoming longer and banana-shaped as if making a pocket on the short side. Later, they turn pale and take on a shrivelled appearance before developing a whitish bloom and falling from the tree. No stone has formed inside, and the fruits are inedible. The fungus causing this is Taphrina pruni, which is related to the disease that causes peach leaf curl. It is thought to have a similar life cycle, with airborne spores infecting the twigs, which in turn may become thick and deformed, sometimes forming dense clusters of live and dead wood called witches’ brooms. The fungus then spreads from the twigs into the tree’s flowers and fruits. Cut off infected branches with all their fruits this month. Don’t leave it any longer,…

How I Garden, by Adam Frost, published 15 September In this new book from Gardeners’ World presenter Adam Frost, he takes you through his process for getting the most out of a garden space, whatever its size – whether it’s a window box, a terrace with a few pots or a bigger space with dedicated veg plots and borders. Offer ends 22 September 2022 Your friend can experience more as a BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Subscriber Club member with: 1 FREE delivery direct to their door 2 Premium Access to special subscriber-only content on GardenersWorld.com 3 Rewards pages and Extras section, sharing extra content in every copy 4 Exclusive money-saving offers, competitions and discounts 5 Subscriber events and opportunities to meet the magazine’s experts 2 EASY WAYS TO SUBSCRIBE Call 03330…

Now it’s official: plants are good for us. A new study by scientists in Florida* confirms what I think everyone reading this knows – that being around plants makes us feel better, while gardening helps reduce anxiety and boost our wellbeing. Why are plants so powerful for us? Researchers believe that because we’ve come to rely on them through evolution, for food and shelter, our connections run deep. Today, plants are every gardener’s source of joy, giving back in happiness and optimism far more than any inconvenience from the odd failure or bad weather. Being part of plants’ growth connects us even more – and this month is the perfect time to dive in. As we leave behind the languid days of August, our gardens are ready for us again, with…

Trees ‘will survive’ ash dieback devastation Ten years on from the discovery of the first confirmed case of ash dieback in the UK, the hunt is still on for trees with natural immunity.Ash dieback, caused by the fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus, has spread to almost every area of the UK since it was first identified in 2012. Hundreds of thousands of ash trees have died: last year alone, the National Trust felled over 30,000 affected ash trees. “The devastation here has been almost total,” says Mark Ballard, curator at Westonbirt, The National Arboretum in Gloucestershire. He’s had to fell about 5,000 trees affected by ash dieback in the Arboretum’s ancient Silk Wood, which dates back to the 13th century. But Mark says he’s seizing the chance to future-proof the woodland by…

What to plant: There are different degrees of shade and different kinds of shade. The dappled shade created by a dainty tree, such as a silver birch, apple or Cercidiphyllum, is a vastly different proposition to a place where no direct sunlight can penetrate, such as the north side of a tall fence or building. In truly dense shade, few flowers will grow and the go-to plants are ferns. In such places you can create a sea of green, relying heavily on texture, shape and form, using ferns in all their amazing diversity. Hostas are often recommended for urban shade, but walls harbour snails and slugs, so they may be quickly decimated. Instead, choose tougher plants such as Brunnera macrophylla, whose heart-shaped leaves may not be quite as big and…

How long will it take? Plants in containers require consistent upkeep. You’ll need to water regularly in spring and summer (although you can install an automated watering system controlled by a timer fitted to an outdoor tap) and apply a liquid feed every week or so between June and September. Long-term plants in containers – trees, shrubs and perennials such as hostas (great in pots) – should be top-dressed with fresh compost each spring or repotted into larger containers as they grow. How do you save money? Much depends on the containers you choose and their price tag. However, good containers will be durable and the only additional outlay will be the potting compost and liquid feed – and the plants of course. Cheaper containers may not last as long,…

Autumn Creating your own cut flower patch couldn’t be simpler. Start by preparing the area, removing any weeds, and add a mulch of garden compost to the soil surface. You can start sowing hardy annuals right now, to the end of September, to provide an early crop of flowers next spring. Sow in traditional rows or, for a less formal look, mark out areas with sand and scatter different seeds into each one (see right). If you didn’t sow biennials such as Sweet Williams and wallflowers in summer, you can buy young plants now in garden centres. Then simply plant them where you want them to flower next year. Over the coming months, in October and November, plant extra spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils, tulips and alliums, so you have…

A few years ago, I was invited to Barakura English Garden, Japan, to lead a series of workshops. When I arrived, I was enthralled by the pot displays, each with a carefully curated selection of plants, chosen at peak, to give an instantaneous display. There seemed to be a playful disregard for any spacing advice shown on labels. It was about the here and now. This was ‘flower arranging’ with plants. The team, and their gardening school students, were selecting plants from across the garden centre – a shrub might end up with a border perennial and some basket plants. There was no such thing as a ‘patio plant section’. The freedom this gave was exhilarating. We would often split plants such as thyme, or mould the rootballs to shape…

Fill baskets and pots with pansies to lift the winter gloom Pansy Cascadia XL Trailing An improved variety of an old favourite that will look beautiful in hanging baskets. Easy to grow, the extra-large flowers come in a mix of yellow, purple and red hues, and will gently cascade over the sides of pots and baskets. Winter hardy. Trail x Spread 50cm x 25cm Flowers Sep-Mar ◼ 10 garden-ready plants £14.99 Buy 10, get 10 free SAVE £14.99 (401193) ◼ 60 medium plug plants £17.99 SAVE £2 (401172) Pansy Can Can In a variety of pastel shades, each bloom has ruffled edges and a striking dark centre. H x S 25cm x 25cm F Mov-Mar ◼ 10 garden-ready plants £9.99 SAVE £5 (401191) ◼ 60 medium plug plants £17.99 SAVE £2 (401161) Easy-fill hanging baskets The perfect…

Although garlic can be planted at any time in autumn, September is ideal. This gives it the maximum possible time to have the sustained cold period that it needs for the individual cloves to form properly. I like to plant hardneck garlic and elephant garlic in September, and a second batch of softneck ones in October. This staggers planting and harvesting but gives both a fighting chance of developing well. Softneck varieties such as ‘Solent Wight’ or ‘Germidour’ are smaller but keep much better than hardneck varieties such as ‘Sultop’ and ‘Sprint’ – these have a woody scape around which the cloves cluster. They need rich but free-draining soil, so I use a container or raised bed, and the individual cloves should be planted (pointy end up) 6-9 inches (15-23cm)…

Don’t forget • Place tender plants under cover before the nights start to get cold • Harvest aubergines, chillies, grapes, melons and tomatoes • Reduce watering and feeding your plants at the end of the month as growth slows • Continue opening vents and doors on warm days to reduce humidity 10 MINUTES TO SPARE Dig up and pot up herbs such as chives, lemon balm, mint and parsley for a fresh greenhouse supply in winter. Pot them up using an equal parts mix of soilbased and peat-free multipurpose compost, and they’ll produce more fresh shoots. Clean greenhouse glazing Make sure you get maximum light into the greenhouse by cleaning the glass panes of all the dust, debris and algae that may have built up through the summer. Use warm soap…

20 MINUTES TO SPARE Sow an oriental salad mix in a pot outside for tasty leaves later in the autumn. Fill the pot with peat-free compost, sprinkle the seeds thinly on the surface and cover lightly with sieved compost. Then, taking care to avoid displacing the tiny seeds, water with a fine rose attachment. Don’t let the surface dry out. Give apples a ripeness test Assess whether your apples are ready to pick by choosing one with good colour for the variety then twisting it slightly in your hand. If that’s enough for the stalk to detach easily then it is ripe. You could also wait for some to drop off the tree and of course the absolute decider with dessert apples may be taking a bite to see if it…

Bob Flowerdew Bob is an organic gardener and has designed his garden to produce lots of veg, fruit and cut fowers. Christine Walkden Garden writer Christine appears on BBC1’s The One Show. She is also a lecturer and tour leader. Matt Biggs Matt trained at Kew and has been gardening professionally for more than 30 years. Q Help! My veg patch is shady and full of snails Jess, London A CHRISTINE SAYS I would not give up on the vegetables, despite the shade and snails. Leaf vegetables such as lettuce, cabbages, Brussels sprouts and salad crops do reasonably well in this situation. Is it possible to prune the trees a bit to reduce the shade that they cast, by lifting or thinning the canopy? Control the snails by going out…

PLUS Composting know-how ◼ Leaf blowers on test ◼ Autumn lawn care ◼ Pruning buddleia ◼ How to make a cold frame…

This July, when being interviewed on stage at the Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival, I was asked “Who is Gardeners’ World for?”. It was an interesting question, partly because, in a thousand previous interviews, I had never been asked it before; and partly because it is one that I, and everyone involved in the production team, constantly ask. Gardening is changing. I would argue that this is inevitable and perfectly natural but it is more than that. For varied reasons, we are becoming a society that my parents – both born over 100 years ago – would barely recognise. I believe that most of these changes are a good thing, but I know adapting to change is demanding and disturbing. This means that for many, Gardeners’ World is a sanctuary…

Emma Bridgewater’s cottage chic earthenware pottery, with its trademark polka dots and nature-inspired designs, charms tea-drinkers and decorates kitchens around the world. She started the business after she couldn’t find a mug to give her mum as a birthday present: it’s now one of the largest pottery manufacturers in the UK. Your designs have always shown a huge affection for gardens and gardening – where does that spring from? I come from a long line of competent gardeners. But I thought gardening was something I’d come to later. Then when I was in my early 30s my mother had an awful riding accident: she lived for some time, but she didn’t ever speak again. So I wasn’t able to do the planned download, ‘All right Mum, tell me about gardens’.…

Because our winters are so wet at Longmeadow I don’t risk planting bulbs, such as Iris reticulata, that need very good drainage directly into the ground, but grow them in bulb pans instead. I use a very gritty compost mix and plant the bulbs quite thickly in each pan, always using one variety per container but having a range across as many as a dozen pans. A layer of grit over the surface stops a crust of soil forming and, having watered them well, they go into a cold frame with a glass top but open sides, which keeps them dry but cool. As the shoots appear in the new year, I bring a few pans at a time into the greenhouse to spur them into a succession of glorious flower to…

The essence of container gardening is a restriction at the roots, so it can include everything from patio pots to windowboxes, hanging baskets to upcycled water tanks, and even raised beds. With the latter, the root restriction is relatively minor unless built on a hard surface, when a depth of at least 30cm is needed to keep most plants happy. When choosing a container, look for one that holds enough compost to nourish and sustain your plants and allows water to drain out. If you grow plants in containers without drainage holes, there is a risk they’ll literally drown – especially in damp British winters. While lots of small pots on your patio, doorstep or balcony might create an interesting effect, bear in mind that the compost will dry out…

Once you have successfully planted up your container, make sure you are giving the plants within it the correct care for long-term success. Water containers thoroughly morning or evening, so that the compost is given a good soaking. Twice-daily watering may be needed in the height of summer if the weather is especially warm and dry. Set up an automatic irrigation system if you’re unlikely to find the time to water regularly. Give all plants in containers a dilute liquid feed every week or ten days from June to September. Organic tomato feed is good for anything that flowers or fruits. Protect any pots that aren’t frost-proof by wrapping them in bubble polythene over winter or moving them close to the house wall. When plants outgrow their containers, move them…

Small-space solutions aren’t the first things that spring to mind when you think of the world’s grandest flower show, but Chelsea 2022 was packed with ideas for tiny plots. We scoured the show for the best, finding clever ideas for containers, seating, water, homegrown crops and more. Here are our favourites, all proving that high-end design can have a place in any garden – even if space and budget are in short supply. Many of the ideas were spotted in the gardens of first-time Chelsea designers, showing that the rising stars of tomorrow are in tune with the everyday challenges of today. So, read on and soak up the latest designer inspo that could transform your small space. Bite-sized design Chelsea was packed with creatively planted containers, all showing that…

Sally Nex is an eco-conscious professional gardener and writer. Her book How to Garden the Low Carbon Way helps you bring your garden in tune with nature and the environment Next time you’re in your garden, count how many things around you are made of plastic. British gardeners get through about 500 million plastic pots every year. You’ve probably got your own stash, and a fine collection of compost sacks, not to mention plant labels and fertiliser bottles… It’s not hard to see why we’ve become dependent on plastic – it’s cheap, lightweight and waterproof. There’s the obvious plastic – pots, labels, watering cans – but also hidden plastic, like blister packs with mailorder plug plants, or the green coating on garden wire. Some doesn’t even look like plastic: horticultural…

What would you discover if you carried out a plastic audit in your garden? Compost bags, netting, tool handles, lawn mower, pots, water butts and landscaping materials like decking? We know a lot about how easy it is to buy and use plastic, but we don’t know everything about how harmful it is for the planet. For example, we’re unsure about the residues left behind by bioplastics, which are thought to be less harmful than plastics made from non-renewable resources. We do know that both broken pieces of plastic and the chemicals they release are harmful to life on Earth. So it’s vital to think before buying, take care of the plastic items we have, and reuse or dispose of them sensibly. Go to: GardenersWorld.com/growing-greener COMING UP in Growing Greener…

Collect opium poppy seed to control the position of this pretty annual, for flowers next summer. Sow them where you’d like them to grow next year, rather than leaving them to randomly drop seed and turn up unexpectedly in your border. Opium poppies grow best with full sun in free-draining soils, so they make an ideal plant for a gravel garden or to add colour to a sunny herbaceous border. Companies sell the seed of specific varieties of Papaver somniferum, if you want to be sure of the right colour-effect. If your style is more wild or cottagegarden, just let them cross-pollinate freely and you’ll get colours ranging from white and mauve to reds, pinks and even some with dark purple tones. Collecting your own seed saves some money, though,…

Tidy up evergreen ferns Remove old fronds on evergreen ferns to improve the winter display. The newest fronds emerge in the spring at the centre of the plant, so the oldest are found around the outside – by now they may even have dropped to the ground. Cut them right back to the base, being careful not to damage any of this year’s fresh growth. Throw it all on the compost heap or chop it up and add it to your rotting leaf mould. BEECHGROVE ON TV Catch up with the Beechgrove team on Thursdays in Scotland and on Fridays and Sundays nationwide. Check TV listings for full details. VIEW FROM BEECHGROVE Plant out bedding wallflowers The ground is still warm and soil moisture is increasing, so now is when…

Ideally when you plant a tree, you will have done your research. You’ll know how big it will get because it can be tricky to prune trees well, and many look best if left alone. Some trees need pruning when young: those to be used for timber or coppice, those with dead material or diseased branches, fruit trees, and young and vigorous trees that require formative pruning to achieve a good shape. Pruning a tree when it’s young means the cuts are smaller and will heal better. Pruning a birch tree while it’s young will give it a better shape in later life, with a clear stem and a rounded but open top. Step by step Top tip Always make your cut clean and right up to the main trunk…