In the Christmas month, the garden will have one of two appearances: either it will be bare and clean, with branches and twigs silhouetted against the sky, the grass short and green and the soil borders and beds nicely brown, or it will be completely white, with only the evergreens and the red berries and … Read more
Shrubs and all sorts of hardwood plants will be arriving from nurseries in November, provided they were ordered in good time, back in the summer, and will need planting. The site will have been prepared last month, and now, about ten days before planting, a light dressing of bonemeal can be scattered over the area … Read more
The atmosphere about the garden now is that of clearing up after the party – the guests have made heir bow and graced the scene, they have been fed and watered and now they are leaving, and only the debris remains to be sorted and cleared away or used. The perennials will mostly have finished … Read more
The focus this month on work in the purely decorative part of the garden is on the lawn, as it Is at this time that established lawns can be repaired and generally cared for, and seed can he sown to produce new ones. Brushing, raking with a wire rake, and spiking all help to improve … Read more
Traditionally the month for holidays and merrymaking, August is, in fact, one of the quieter months in the gardener’s year; the production of new growth has slowed down, and the process of ripening and maturing is evident. One can relax a little and the ornamental garden can be left to itself to a large extent, … Read more
The herbaceous border comes into its own this month and, done well, carries a splendid display of colour. With careful choice and blending of plants, however, it can be highly decorative for most of the year. The use of plants which have coloured leaves, silver-grey, purple, and variegated, and using plants which are ‘architectural’ in … Read more
Gardens in June have only one equal - gardens in April. The blend of the colours and fragrances of leaves and flowers is nowhere excelled; their tranquility, beauty, and splendour combine to make a scene found nowhere else and to which gardeners the world over return constantly for their inspiration. Plants of all sorts spill … Read more
The warmth and wet of the last two months will, one hopes, have brought outdoor plants on fast, and flowering will really get under way. Border plants will shoot up and may need staking, particularly peonies. Annuals sown out of doors should be thinned. Dahlia cuttings or tubers which have sprouted can be planted out … Read more
The traditional sunshine and showers of April, and rising temperature, bring the garden to life with a vengeance; time is at a premium. The spring-flowering perennials begin to colour the border, blue lungwort with its white-spotted leaves; primroses and polyanthus, aquilegias in early gardens, aubrieta, alyssum, the Pasque flower, violets, brunnera, trollius and bergenia. But … Read more
Spring arrives officially this month, on March 21st, and by then the garden will be well on the way to a new season. The earliest shrubs will have started to bloom, Mahonia japonica with its bright yellow spikes of strongly scented flowers, the mezereon (Daphne mezereum), equally strongly scented but purplish-pink in flower, camellias, japonica, … Read more
‘February fill-dyke’ is the old saying, and it can certainly be that in a good many parts of the country, either because of rain or melting snow. But the days have steadily begun to lengthen, and the extra light -and sometimes warmth – will start plants into growth towards the end of the month. Lawns … Read more
The first of January may be the start of the Roman calendar year, but as far as gardening is concerned it is only the beginning of the end, spring being more commonly regarded as the start for gardeners. However, in January some plants begin to flower, snowdrops, winter aconites, the occasional primrose, and winter heliotrope … Read more
Gardening Through The Year needs careful planning to get the most done with the least effort. You don’t want gardening chores piling up all in one month and with this garden job planner you should be able to get well organised and see in advance what gardening month by month you will have to do. … Read more