by Mark Evans
Whether you subscribe to the meteorological view that it begins on the first day of the month or to the astronomical view that it begins on the vernal equinox on the 23rd day of the month, September brings us into the season that many consider the beginning of the gardening year, namely spring.
This is our favourite time of the year to get plants into the ground. Planting or re-potting this month means that plants will be ready to get growing … Read more »
Mark Evans
For thousands of years humans have cultivated shrubs and trees, and dug and distributed them as bare-rooted young plants, often wrapped in damp rags or bound in a damp ball of sawdust. For growers, this is the most economical way to produce and distribute plants, and for buyers it means we get a bigger, better plant for less money. August is the perfect time to plant bare-rooted roses, fruit trees and ornamentals, because with spring … Read more »
Mark Evans
While it is often said that ‘the best time to prune is when the knife is sharp’, as we move beyond the winter solstice (22 June) and the days start to grow longer, now is one of the best times to prepare your garden for the upcoming growing season by sharpening up your pruning shears.
Late winter is a great time to prune any deciduous trees or shrubs while … Read more »
by Mark Evans
As winter arrives and the days grow shorter and darker, just because the sun is fading it doesn’t mean that your garden has to also. You can overcome the dreariness of winter in the short term by injecting some colour with annuals like calendula, pansies, primroses, violas or Iceland poppies … Read more »
by Mark Evans
Like most gardeners, I have a big pile of plant labels that I have collected over the years. I hang onto them because the labels contain handy growing information (not to mention their names). Recently, however, I developed a dilemma. I went on a bit of a cutting spree in a couple of gardens and the problem arose as to how to keep track of the needs and names of all these plants?
Mark Evans
As gardeners, we should all try and learn the botanical names of our plants as well as their common names. The reason is that because the same common name sometimes applies to multiple plants and, conversely, a single plant may have multiple common names! Knowing the botanical name helps to remove any confusion, especially when you are talking to other plant lovers.
Each botanical name is unique to that species and is composed of two, (usually) Latin … Read more »
