The last few months people have been spending more time in their garden. New flower beds have been created and new trees & hedging planted. New window boxes have been installed, displaying fabulous summer colour. With all this new colour, I just though a few tips might help you to get the most out of your plants this summer.
Tip 1: Mulch – This helps to reduce the spread of weeds in the garden. Mulch can be any material spread over the ground between your plants. For example, decorative coloured stones or even bark chip. I put cardboard down between my plants first. This blocks out the light and then I cover the cardboard in bark mulch. Therefore, if weeds try to grow in the mulch, their roots don’t penetrate the soil and are much easier to pull out.
Tip 2: Feed – Your plants, much like yourself, need nourishment to grow and thrive. If you are working all day on just a cup of coffee, then you don’t have as much energy. It is the same for our plants. Using products like tomato feed or chicken pellets will help your plants to thrive and give you a better show of flowers throughout the season.
Tip 3: Deadhead – This means removing the spent flowers that are beginning to go off. It encourages the plants to produce more flowers rather than trying to put the energy into producing seeds. The new flowers that your plants produce, will make this job really worthwhile.
Tip 4: Water – Ensure that your plants are well watered. If you have newly planted flower beds/borders/trees, these have not yet established their root systems into the ground. That means that they are depending on us to provide them with the valuable water that they need to survive. Check your plants regularly. Pots need to be checked nearly every day, particularly if they are close to the house where the rain might not reach them.
Tip 5: Plan for the season ahead. If you have planted over the last few months, you may have concentrated on things that were already in flower or coming into flower. These may now be starting to loose their blooms and be getting ready for the Autumn. There are still some things that are coming into flower, for example Rudbeckia, Actea or things that are going to continue to flower for months yet, including Alstromerias and Salivas. Spring flowering bulbs are also something to think about as we come into the next few months. This is the best time to plant them for the Spring next year.
I hope these few tips will help to enhance your gardening adventures. Gardening is frequently a generational experience which is passed down from grandparent to parent and parent to child. A neighbour might pass on a tip about what has worked well for them this year. It is a learning experience we have together as a community and a joy that can be passed on so easily.
If you’re looking for any advice, or I can help in any way, don’t hesitate to call and see me at Rockbarton.