SUMMER HOLIDAY

WE’RE ALL GOING ON A SUMMER HOLIDAY
This time of year most of us look forward to a holiday away from the usual routine and we are no different. We have some friends and relations coming to stay over the next few weeks so we thought it would be good to get a few days holiday in ourselves before the rooms start to fill up with people. As we haven’t been organised like most families and booked in advance we were reduced to skimming through the classified sections of magazines to find somewhere to stay, after a few false starts we found a small house that sounded very pleasant only about a two hour drive from home. The house accepted dogs, which meant that Max could come with us as well.

After no time at all we arrived at the little village where we were to spend the next three days only to find that the house we rented had no garden and the front door opened out onto a busy main road with lorries and cars rushing by. Not very safe for two kids and a dog! We made our apologies to the owner and set off to look for somewhere more suited to our needs. We raided the newsagents’ shelves for more magazines to look through and found places very hard to come by that accepted our furry friend. Eventually we found somewhere advertised as a very quiet and relaxing cottage that wasn’t too far away from where we were. We arrived at a house in the early evening, and as the cottage was hard to find, a woman was to drive us in her car with us following, into the wilderness to our three-day hideaway. This was the first instance that alarm bells should have been ringing. The woman went on about how she likes to be paid in cash as some “undesirables” had stayed a night or two in the house and done a runner without paying and some had even stopped cheques….

IT WASN’T CLEAN – BUT IT WAS GREEN (WITH MOULD!)
We drove over a mountain road and the woman took us to a cottage in the hills, all looked OK until we opened to door to the kitchen. The smell of old grease and damp tunnelled into our pores and even the dog was reluctant to go inside. We had paid cash for three days so I was determined to have a good time and was going to work hard at making the place habitable for our stay, after all who likes to come home and admit to people that you have had a grim time away on holiday. The first thing I did was to boil a kettle full of brown, rusty water in the kettle. The glass chopping board was so greasy that the kettle moved across the work surface as it boiled. The cups were greasy and had to be washed. I opened the cupboards and saw that the plates and bowls were mouldy where the food hadn’t been washed off properly. You couldn’t see through the glasses for dirt and grease was covering the cooker. Things got worse when Julie came from the other rooms. The three beds were covered with plastic sheets to stop the damp killing us in the night and even the settee was damp. I got to work and lit a fire using wet, three month old papers from the coffee table and wet turf that was stacked where a washing machine should have been. It was warm outside but the house was freezing. Alarm bells should have rung when a house is still for rent at the height of the season!

No matter how big I got the fire it didn’t help the feeling of damp. We sat there in front of the fire and played some games with the kids, determined to have a good time. We put on music and danced (to keep warm as well as for fun)! We went for a walk up the hill and found a scenic dump full of old cars and fridges. When it came to bedtime we put the lads into the driest of the beds and then Julie and I sat in front of the ashes next to the fire until seven thirty in the morning, unable to sleep, shivering under a damp duvet. We had to do something so I phoned the woman who owned the house and told her that I had been called back home for work and would have to leave straight away. I hear you ask if I said anything to the lady about the state of her holiday home, well I didn’t I’m afraid. Mainly because I negotiated to get half of our money back and I wasn’t going to jeopardise that by upsetting the woman. I can see now why she doesn’t like people paying by cheque. As honest as I like to think I am, I would probably have cancelled my cheque too if that were how I would have paid.

What have we learned from our rather uncomfortable outing? For a start it’s a good idea to do a bit of research into a place if you are parting with your hard earned cash. Booking by a referral from a friend is a good idea and certainly it is advisable to plan these things in advance, well in advance! Next holiday I will enrol in some assertiveness classes!

Environmental.

CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW

I have a couple of friends who have a job that some would see as ideal. About ten years ago they gave up a very successful arts and crafts shop to enter into the world of estate management. Their job at the moment is to look after two houses, one country house in the Midlands in England and one in central London. An Australian business person owns the houses. He and his family only turn up to the houses about three times a year when he has meetings in the country. This leaves the couple free to run things as they see fit. They have their own house that comes with the job, the use of a brand new seven series BMW and Range Rover and they get a good wage between them as well. There is no cooking or touching of forelocks when the family come over either as they cater for themselves. One of the jobs that they look forward to at this time of the year is to head on down to the annual Chelsea Flower Show, which just happens to be very close to the house in London. Every year they are given a budget to go and buy some new plants and trees for the gardens and to pick up ideas for improvements to the designs that they can implement throughout the year.

CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW
I watched the highlights of the show last week on the telly. I must say there were some very innovative designs this year. The amount of work and money that goes into the affair is staggering and I must confess it made me feel a bit of a novice when it came to the design and planting of gardens.

We here in Inishowen have a few practical factors to take into consideration when we plan our own plot, two of those being the salty air and of course the wind! I would like to see some of the fine structures the designers put into their plots after a year on the Donegal coast. This year there were some designers who managed to blend plants and structures beautifully and again the use of water features was extraordinary. A good water feature can make a garden, partly because of the movement but mainly because of the gentle noise that can calm the nerves so well. Lighting is another feature that was very well utilised this year. I complain sometimes when gardeners use full power lights to illuminate features. Too many of them make the garden look like a runway for a plane to land on and you spend all year never seeing any stars as the light blocks them from view. Soft lighting such as the type given out by solar lamps is ideal for most gardens and these can highlight your best features really well, whilst softening hard areas. The show is criticised a lot for being old fashioned and stuffy. The judges seem to be allowing more offbeat designs into the show. Dermott Morgan came up with a garden that included thousands of brightly coloured steel balls. It looked like an advertisement for the lottery but was full of innovative ideas. (06) Dermott won a silver award and the Chelsea flower show got loads of hip publicity. There was even a series made of Dermott getting the idea from a scribble on a piece of paper to being made into a reality. I haven’t spoken to my friends since they went to the show but no doubt they will come away with lots of new ideas for their gardens and the Range Rover will be full of exotic plants from around the word which they will be eager to put into place!

SWILLY GARDENING CLUB
Who needs the Chelsea Flower Show? Especially when we have the Swilly gardening club to go to every month! This month the evening will be held on the 21st of June. I thought I would give you plenty of notice this month, mainly because I forgot to mention the May meeting. This month will see a plant sale. As far as I know anyone can come with plants, shrubs and trees to sell on the evening. I haven’t got all of the details yet but you have nearly three weeks to get your plants tidied or potted up for sale on the night. I promise there won’t be any of the judges from the Chelsea Flower show to examine your stock!

The gardening club have set up an e-mail service to give you more information it’s swillygardeningclub@yahoo.co.uk

Horticultural.

ALCHEMILLA MOLLIS

Ian
I have planted Alchemilla mollis in my path as it gives good cover. Have you any advice as to how I should look after it? Thanks I.N. by e-mail

Reply.

These plants, which are also known as 'ladies mantle' produce a frothy haze of tiny, yellow flowers appearing from June to September above softly hairy, rounded, pale green leaves. They look after themselves very well. I worked on a garden where the owner had planted them in the garden and they self-seeded all over the place. They were a particular nuisance in between the cracks on the patio and path that ran through the garden. Once the roots got a hold the only thing that could get rid of them was to take up the slabs to dig the roots out. Do not let that put you off though. As the flowers go to seed snip them off to avoid them getting out of control. The plants like full sun or partial shade and the soil needs to be humus rich and moist. They will make excellent cut flowers so get a big vase ready! Cut back the faded flower heads and foliage in August and the plant will often produce a second flush of flowers.

Horticultural.

WATERING AN ESCALLONIA HEDGE

Ian
I have planted a new Escallonia hedge. Will it need watering in the dry weather? D.E. By e-mail

Reply
Almost definitely yes. Unless of course you planted them in a bog, then that would be a different matter! I planted an Escallonia hedge two years ago. I walked past it the other day in the dry weather and it was showing severe signs of water deprivation. The bottom leaves were yellow and the new growth was wilting. This is after two years; there are some deciding factors why the ground dried out so quickly. Firstly the site is raised up so water can drain easily. Second the hedge is near trees, which usually get the upper hand for the available moisture should it become scarce. Keep and eye on them throughout the summer and if they show any symptoms of drought, get the hosepipe out.



Horticultural.

JUNE IN THE GREENHOUSE

IN THE GREENHOUSE

Cuttings
As soon as cuttings taken earlier in the season have produced a good root system, or plants have outgrown their pots, pot them into a slightly larger pot. Try and use the same compost as they were potted in before. Don't overfill with compost, but leave a gap at the top of the pot that can be watered into.

Fuchsias
Many young plants, including fuchsias, benefit from having their shoot tips pinched out to encourage branching. If left, shoots can grow very long and lanky, while pinching out creates bushier plants with more stems that ultimately carry more blooms.

Take cuttings
Take cuttings of geraniums, fuchsias, coleus and other houseplants. They will root quickly at this time of year

Tomatoes
Tap the blooms on greenhouse tomatoes to improve pollination. The same can be done for the ones you grow in the porch or windowsill

Horticultural.

KITCHEN GARDEN

We are reaping the rewards for doing a bit of seed sowing in the garden recently. Already we have a bumper crop of lettuce and rocket as well as parsley, coriander and spring onions. The beans and peas have started to entwine themselves around the hazel rods that have been put up and we have even seen the first signs of sweetcorn plants emerging

KITCHEN GARDEN
If you are lucky enough to have vegetables in your garden, they will benefit by a bit of attention in their early days. Keep weeds away from them, as these will take up valuable nutrients away. Thin out rows of vegetable seedlings growing from earlier sowings, such as beetroot, lettuce and radish. Final spacing are usually indicated on seed packets. Congested seedlings never reach their full potential, as they distort one another as they grow, resulting in a much smaller crop. Carefully pull out unwanted seedlings, leaving the rest at the desired spacing, and then water the row to settle the soil back around the roots of the remaining ones. Do not despair if you haven’t planted everything out as crops such runner beans, dwarf French beans, kohl rabi, carrots, marrows, cauliflowers, peas, ridge cucumbers, sweet corn, swede, lettuce, endive, squashes and spinach, will all catch up if you throw the seed out now.

Horticultural.

BEDDING TIP

BEDDING PLANTS
Save money by buying small plants for pots and containers as well for bedding displays. Most need to be potted up into 7.5cm (3in) pots and grown on in warm, bright conditions ready for planting out at the end of May. Be sure to acclimatise plants to cooler outdoor conditions before planting out. You could save even more money if you buy the plants such as verbena, petunia, busy lizzie, and many trailing plants, then take cuttings. I have had at least twenty cuttings off of one petunia alone!

Horticultural.

CLAMP 'EM DOWN

I see that some gardeners around the country have to clamp down their pots and flowers. This is because of a spate of plant thefts from people’s gardens.

This by no means is a new phenomenon. I can cast my mind back quite a few years when I was doing some work on my garden in Nottingham, England. I had built a large circle in the middle of my lawn and decided that it needed a central focal point. My mother had a giant eight-foot yucca in her garden that had outgrown its place so I obliged by painstakingly digging it up. I had the problem of getting it to my house but after wrapping the roots in a dustbin liner bag I struggled onto the 18:30 train avoiding the funny looks I was getting on the half an hour journey. . From the centre of the city I walked with the plant for half an hour up a steep hill until I was back at home. The yucca was no worse for wear (unlike me!) and as soon as I got home I planted it proudly in the centre of the circle I had prepared. It looked very majestic, and probably still does, wherever it is. The plant only lasted in the garden overnight. When I woke up the following morning it was gone, stake as well, leaving just a large hole in the centre of the bed.

Pinching plants is big business; it’s costing us growers in England and Ireland at least 150 million euro a year or more. I was talking to a rose grower once who lost all of his stock overnight to a team of night crawlers in a lorry. That alone cost him about 100 thousand euro. The team were in and out of his site in two hours. Callous thieves have realised it is easy money and have even stolen a lawn from a 90-year-old woman, taking the new turf away in wheelie bins. Thankfully we don’t seem to have much of a problem here in Inishowen. In the years that I was growing plants in Clonbeg I had just one container pinched. I was more used to people leaving plants in the garden for me than any disappearing!

The councils around Inishowen have had a few problems though. Most of them are when people are too drunk to realise what they are doing and roll into a flowerbed. There have been a couple of random acts of vandalism of containers, probably by people again with too much drink taken. There were one or two instances where the acts were obviously planned though. One person was caught filling their car boot up with rose bushes from a bed (who apparently claimed they thought they were there for the taking) and then there were three hundred hedging plants stolen from the shorefront in Buncrana last year. Obviously not a random act, but something that was well planned. There’s not much lower someone can go than to pinch plants from gardens or public places for profit. Taking milk off of the doorstep or emptying the coal bunker perhaps?

Horticultural.

JUNE IN THE GREENHOUSE

One of the most challenging jobs to do in a greenhouse at this time of year is to keep the temperature down. A lot of summer plants will grow far too quickly in the excessive heat and you will be left with straggly, tender plants that will be severely checked back when they are put outside. I remember one time I planted a large amount of petunias in the tunnel and left them a week too long in the hot weather and they were ruined. If the plants cannot be taken outside into the cooler areas then shade netting could be put up or the structure of the greenhouse can be painted white to reflect the heat.


DO NOT FORGET
Feed containerised plants. Most composts only contain sufficient nutrients to feed plants for about four to six weeks after potting up. Potted plants will then benefit from a weekly liquid feed to promote strong growth and generous flowering and fruiting.

Horticultural.

HOLLY HEDGE

HOLLY

Ian

I love holly bushes. Would they make an effective hedge? D.M. Newtown

Reply
The mere mention of holly brings to mind conical trees with spiny leaves and red berries in winter. That image is valid, but the shrub also makes a very hardy hedge. They range in size from a 6-inch-tall spreading dwarf to a 70-foot-tall towering giant. Leaves may be small and spineless or large and armed. Berries can be red, orange, yellow, or black.


Containerised plants have a better success rate than bare rooted specimens but they are very expensive when you have to buy a lot of them, so you could chance buying a load of bare rooted ones and hope for the best. If you do plant now then make sure that they are watered in well and water them if the weather is dry for a long spell. They can tolerate dry soil when they are established and they grow well in shady areas and on the sites on old hawthorns. If the soil is going to be very wet or really heavy then maybe you could think about planting something else instead because holly doesn’t like those conditions. Escallonia maybe?



Horticultural.

PRESERVATION ORDER

Ian
I have put up a fence from tannalised wooden planks. Should I treat the wood to preserve it in the first year? Thanks A.B. by e-mail

Reply
There are two trains of though on this. I feel that the treated wood doesn’t need to be painted with preservative because the wood has been pressure treated. Pressure treating in this way soaks the preservative right into the centre of the plank. When you paint on preservative in the traditional way, this just coats the surface so it isn’t as effective. Some disagree though and say that the wood should be painted with preservative after the first year as the wood dries out and the pressure treatment looses its effectiveness. The bloke who built my shed paints his wood with decking varnish. This feeds the wood and keeps the moisture in which reduces cracking. Maybe that might be worth using on the fence after the first year.

Horticultural.

CONSERVING WATER

Have you noticed that plants slow down their growth in really dry weather? The man on the donkey has, and he has a theory behind the phenomenon. He reckons that weeds are particularly good at conserving energy when a drought occurs like the one we had last week. Unlike your favourite petunias, which will wither and die if not watered, weeds just send the available water to the small new growth areas and sit tight for a drop of rain. I will agree wholeheartedly with the man on the donkey because weeds are so successful (and because the man on the donkey is very rarely wrong!). Take the daisy for example; they can drive some people crazy when they get into the lawn. I’ll bet the humble daisy would still be there long after the grass had died off. Grass is very, very drought resistant though and we are luckier than some areas that are issuing drought warnings and banning the use of hosepipes, but grass doesn’t really need to be watered as the greenness will come back as soon as the rain appears. The fact that plants more or less close down in hot, dry weather will make the use of weed killers totally useless as most of them rely on the activity of the plant to work. The man on the donkey advises you to save your money and not buy weed killers in dry weather

There are things we can do to save water in the garden to avoid getting into trouble with the water police. Use plenty of mulch on the flowerbeds to conserve moisture. Get water butts fitted to the down pipes on the house to collect rainwater and reuse water from the washing up bowls to water the tubs and containers as well as the veggie patch.

Horticultural.