PLANNING A WINTER BORDER PART 1

There are plenty of plants that produce colourful effects in winter so your garden can be a welcome site at any time of the year. When you plan any planting, think about plant form, foliage and colour. Don’t forget colourful stems too. It's easy to get diverted by flower colour, but for good seasonal effects look at how, when, and where plants deliver colour and interest.

In winter, seed heads not only look great left on grasses and some other herbaceous plants but also provide food for birds and other wildlife. Topiary shapes really come into their own in the winter months. Think about plants in terms of their height - aim for interest at each level - tall, middle, low and ground level. Even in small gardens, make more impact with seasonal planting by grouping plants in borders or areas rather than having it dotted about your garden. You may want to plant up winter borders or corners where they can be appreciated from the warmth of inside

CREATE COLOUR IN YOUR GARDEN
Although at first it seems an impossible task, creating colour and interest all year around in a garden is an achievable project-with some careful planning.

In the spring its easy to create colour with the use of bulbs and spring flowering plants such as forsythia and dicentra, however as the year progresses the two most difficult times to produce colour are at the end of August and the period between late December to late January. The key at these times of year is plant your flowering plants nearer to your house, this will help to give the impression that the whole of your garden is still flowering rather than just two or three choose shrubs or plants.

BARGAIN PLANTS FOR LATE SUMMER
You can pick up bargains in the garden centres at this time of year, especially with herbaceous plants that have started to go past their best. Buy them now at a reduced price and plant them in your garden for a glorious show next year.

Rudbeckia 'Goldstrum'
A border perennial 60cms high orange yellow flowers late August to September. Planted in groups incorporating garden compost into the soil Rudbeckia will produce an excellent show in the first season. Because they grow quickly they will need to be staked or supported by other plants in a border for maximum effect.

Japanese Anemone –
This is a useful plant at this time of year. It is easy to grow in most soils and positions, but particularly useful to grow under trees or larger spring flowering shrubs. The great advantage with Japanese Anemone is the flowers are produced on long stems making it possible to produce the flowers above existing plants with in a border.

Cosmos –
These are annual plants that can be sown under glass in early spring Cosmos will produce an excellent late summer display. An ideal plant for the new garden as it produces quick results and colour in the first year when colour is difficult to come by.

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PLANNING A WINTER BORDER PART 2

Photo: A tin bath blending into a painted brick wall

PLANTS FOR LATE WINTER
It is time to think about looking for plants that will be a splash of colour around the winter months.

Prunus Autumnalis Rosea - A small winter flowering cherry tree. Flowers with small highly scented flowers well before the buds break. An ideal tree for the small garden.

Helleborus Niger - The Christmas rose, seems unremarkable even boring during the summer months. However as Christmas arrives the display of waxy flowers is nothing short of spectacular. When planting, incorporate some peat if you have a sandy or clay soil in your garden. The plant grows best in semi shade in a sheltered spot near to your house.

Cornus- Dogwood. These shrubs are a great asset to a border in winter as the bark is bright and colourful. There is Cornus Alba, which has the vivid red stems and then there is the Cornus stolonifera, which has yellow stems. Both of these plants look terrific when the late sun catches them. They will generally grow anywhere and all they require is to be severely cut back every year in spring. This ensures that there is bright new growth the following year. If you want to increase your stock then the plants take root easily from cuttings. Cut off a stem that is the same size and length as a pencil and push into the ground or put into a pot. They will be rooted by late spring

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STREET LIGHTS

This week a row of streetlights has appeared on my road and one of them is right outside the front garden. I must confess it is taking some getting used to. You should see how the marigolds glow in the orange fluorescent light! I don’t have to switch any indoor lights on in the evening, and I’m able to go on my midnight slug hunting expeditions without my torch. I know it will be safer for the kids walking home on those long winter evenings, but being the old traditionalist I’ll miss my stargazing.

My tunnel is a pleasure to be in at any light at the moment though, all because of one plant, an aromatic lily (Lilium Henrii) this striking flower has an almost overpowering scent that fills the tunnel. Originally these plants were from China (I managed to salvage this one out of a skip last year) and they prefer well drained soil .As they are bulbs they can be prone to rotting if conditions are too wet. The best time to get the bulbs, if you grow them yourself, is in late summer-October is probably the best time. Pick healthy bulbs, not bruised or shrivelled. If you are out visiting garden centres in the near future it’s worth checking out the flowers in full bloom, or you will also see them in florist shops in cut flower displays.

Cutting flowers
Cutting flowers and decorative leaves to take indoors for arranging is one of the pleasures of gardening. This form of summer pruning generally does no harm but there can be pitfalls. Taking too much, not only diminishes the garden display but it can also harm next year’s growth. Of course some keen flower arrangers grow flowers specifically for cutting and it is worthwhile putting aside a bed for this purpose. Of course as I mentioned last week sweet peas love to be cut and some flowers such as Lupins and Delphiniums if cut at this time of year can encourage a second blooming. Deadheading flowers can prolong displays too but of course it is not practical for all plants for example, Poppies, Honesty and Chinese Lanterns are often grown for their seedpods.

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JOBS TO DO IN AUGUST

Harvest your blackcurrants and then cut the stems that have fruited back down to ground level.

Take cuttings from bay trees, using the soft new growth and leave to root on a sunny windowsill.

Feed clumps of autumn flowering bulbs with a balanced fertilizer such as growmore or compost from your bin.

Sow winter flowering bedding, such as pansies and ornamental cabbage and kale. We grew the kale and cabbage last year and they were very attractive in the winter months. The leaves grow brighter (purples, reds and creams) as the weather gets colder. I was told that top class restaurants use a leaf as a bed for a starter such as a prawn cocktail and that they are edible. Mind you we didn’t try them ourselves!

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JOBS TO DO IN AUGUST

ONIONS
Never let onions go short of water in the dry weather or their yield will be severely reduced. Water plants thoroughly once or twice a week if conditions are dry, and keep down weed competition by hand or using a hoe.

PRUNING
Cut out plain green shoots growing on variegated shrubs to prevent them spoiling the appearance of your shrubs. The same applies to variegated trees. I saw an example of a lovely variegated willow recently that was neglected. The offshoot coming form the base was getting to be larger than the tree. Unfortunately I did not have my secateurs with me!

WEEDS
Keep up the battle against problem weeds, removing any flowering stems before they have a chance to set seed. Many can be removed by hand, digging deeply to get out every last piece of root, or some chemical treatments can be effective, if you want to go down that route. Larger areas can be cleared by smothering them with a large sheet of black polythene, left in place until next spring. If you do think of using carpet to cover the area, make sure it is a good quality axminster with a natural backing. If not you will find that the top rots over time but you will be left with a tangled weave of nylon that will be a devil to get out.

LAWNS
Mow it at least once a week, (unless it is synthetic of course), twice if possible, and finish by cutting the edges neatly. The clippings can usually be mixed into the compost heap, but remember to discard them for the first few mowings if you have applied any weedkillers.

MULCH
Protect new and established plants by mulching the soil between them with composted bark, cocoa shells or another ornamental mulch. This will not only look attractive, setting off the surrounding plants, it will also reduce annual weed growth and conserve soil moisture. Always mulch over moist ground, never on to bone-dry soil, so be sure to water well first if necessary.

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DIVIDE BEARDED IRISES
Lift and divide bearded irises once they have finished flowering. Remove any dormant sections from the centre of the clump, and replant the fresh new shoots.

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TOP TIPS

FEEDING HOUSEPLANTS
An old salt I spoke to recently recommended these additions to your house plant soil for healthy plant growth. Feed house plants with melted snow (in season obviously!) It is rich in minerals. Or use water in which eggs have been boiled. Or use flat soda water. Or use the water in which fish has been frozen. I would recommend you do not use a combination of all of these ideas as you might get a strange chemical reaction!

FERNS
Feed ferns with leftover weak tea or bury a weak teabag in the soil beside the roots. The other idea that is said to be beneficial to plants is to feed them with a teaspoon of caster sugar or olive oil every three months.

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PLASTIC GRASS

Are you fed up of the lawn looking brown in this heatwave? Well fear not. Companies who make plastic and rubber grass are recording record sales as the public decide that they have had enough of watering and mowing. It seems unbelievable but some people actually prefer synthetic grass to the real thing. Thinking about it though it would save time and you could guarantee that it looked the same through the summer. It would cost you about €1000 for an area of about 650 square feet, so if you have a large garden I would be a bit wary of putting it down as it would probably be cheaper to get the area re turfed every year. Environmentalists do not seem to be too keen on it either. Birds cannot get to feed on the worms underneath as there is a plastic membrane on the base to hold the fibre. I suppose this is true but then again if the grass would be covered in growth and weed killer chemicals, this wouldn’t be much good either. When people ask me what they can do with a troubled garden area I usually suggest that they concrete it (Tongue in cheek I might add) now I can add that the area could be covered in a non bio-degradable plastic that will fetch the skin of children’s legs with friction burns when they try to plat football on it!

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LAWN CARE

As the weather is perfect for grass to be growing at full speed, let us have a look at some basic lawn care tips.

Feeding
Feeding with a lawn fertiliser will make it greener and thicker, which helps it resist weeds and moss. There are different formulations depending on when you apply.

Filling hollows
If your lawn has a sunken patch, repair by making an H-shaped spade cut across it with a half-moon edging tool and then peel back the two flaps of turf over the hollow. Add some topsoil, level and firm down the flaps. Fill in the gaps left by the cuts with more topsoil.

Removing weeds
Learn to tolerate a few weeds in the lawn or you will be out every day pulling them up, but if small patches or single weeds need to be removed, pull up by hand with the help of a fork. This helps to get the deeper roots of perennial weeds out.

Surviving dry weather
During long dry spells, mow less frequently, let grass grow longer and don't use summer feeds that will make lots of new growth. There isn’t much chance of our lawns going brown this summer. If they do then don’t worry, they will recover in autumn.

Worn areas
If part of the lawn is used regularly as a path, prevent it from becoming worn away by laying stepping-stones. Dig out paving-slab slices of turf and set these just beneath the surface of the lawn so a lawn mower can pass over them safely

Trimming edges
Tidying lawn edges keeps the grass looking neat and prevents it from spreading into borders. After mowing, trim any grass that overhangs the edges with long-handled edging shears or a rotary trimmer.

Repairing edges
Parts of an edge that have been severely damaged are easy to repair. Use a spade to slice through the turf, cutting out a small rectangular piece from around the damaged area. Lift from the ground with the spade and turn it around, so the damaged part now faces the lawn. Press down firmly and fill the damaged area with compost. Sow grass seed over the compost and water.

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