Arthur's top tips

• When the first flush of roses is over, prune back lightly and feed with a rose fertilizer.
• Be on the lookout for developing pest problems and take action.
• Re-seed bare patches in lawns.
• Treat weeds with a lawn weed killer before they get a firm foothold.
• Sow seeds of salad leaves, beetroot, radishes, spring cabbages, kohl rabi, Swiss chard, spinach, Oriental greens, chicory, swede and turnips for green tops.
• Pinch out the shoot tips on fuchsias and bedding plants for bushier growth.
• Cutting back growth in hanging baskets can encourage new flowers and foliage and will revive the display. Make sure you that feed your baskets well after doing this.
• If you need to prune your deciduous Magnolia, now is the best time to do it.
• If you're growing aubergines pinch out the growing tip once they have 5 or 6 fruits. Pick fruits while they are young. You can expect to start harvesting in mid to late summer.
• Harvest garlic when the tops start to bend over and yellow. To find out more about harvesting and growing garlic read my ‘how-to' guide.

How to Protect Veg Plants from Pests

Just when your vegetables are almost ready to eat, invariably something else finds it first & feasts on your hard work before you get a chance for harvest. The first step in protecting your crop from pests is to ensure that your plants are strong & healthy. A well-grown plant withstands the ravages of pests better than an ailing one. Keep the soil well fed & well drained by incorporating plenty of organic matter before planting such as organic Farmyard Manure& feed your plants with a quality and dedicated plant food to keep them at their peak all of the time. Many pests that affect our plants are transitory problems moving around the garden at will. Before you reach for the pest spray, consider whether you could protect your plants with a mesh, a barrier or a trap. This keeps edible plants free from residues and helps support a wildlife friendly garden. Use a fine mesh over brassicas and carrots to keep out cabbage white butterflies, carrot fly and many other flying pests. Remember to use slug barriers around susceptible plants to protect against slugs & snails, or trap them in beer traps.  The best weapons in the war on slugs are natural predators that eat them for breakfast. Frogs, beetles, hedgehogs& birds consider these slimy slugs a protein-rich delicacy. Keep an area of the garden wild. Feed the birds consistently to identify your garden as a food source and try to use pesticides as a last resort.

Harvesting your garlic. Garlic is best planted between November and April although you will generally get a bigger and better crop if you plant it in the autumn. Garlic bulbs are sold according to their suitability for spring or autumn planting.  Autumn-planted garlic will be ready to harvest in June and July and spring-planted garlic will be ready slightly later. Simply wait until the leaves have started to wither and turn yellow, and then loosen the bulbs from the soil with a trowel. Be careful not to cut the garlic bulbs with your trowel as this will reduce their storage potential. Also, be careful not to leave the bulbs in the ground too long after the leaves have withered as the bulbs are likely to re-sprout and may rot when stored. Lay the garlic bulbs out somewhere warm and dry before storing them. Any dry soil left on the bulbs can be gently brushed off. Bulbs should then store for up to 3 months in good condition. It really is so easy to grow your own garlic so maybe give it a try this autumn and ease yourself into the GYO movement!

• Scatter granular fertiliser around the base of roses, shrubs, perennials and hedges, and water in thoroughly if rain does not fall over the next week
• Spray roses to protect them from pests and diseases, organic sprays would be preferable
• There seems to be a good crop of cherries forming this year so net all your developing soft fruits to protect them from birds
• You can now cut the foliage of daffodils and tulips down to the ground
• Tie greenhouse tomatoes to their supports as they grow and feed plants with fertiliser solution once a week
• Add lawn cuttings to the compost heap, or use them to mulch around fruit trees
• Mow and edge your lawn
• Tie stems of tall perennials to supports to prevent wind damage
• You should be feeding your  houseplants every week with a liquid fertiliser
• Clean out filters of pond pumps to get rid of any debris
• Run a 'seeping hose' - a hose with holes in - through dry shaded borders or along the base of hedges so they can be watered weekly in dry weather.
• Lightly trim broom and genista after flowering to keep plants in shape
• Trim box topiary and formal edging to keep it neat and tidy
• Stop cutting asparagus by the end of June to allow the ferns to form
• Sow veg seeds now. Try rocket, spinach, beetroot, carrots, calabrese, mini-cauliflowers, spinach, chicory, endive, kohl rabi, peas, spinach beet, swede and turnip

Give it a try

A couple of weeks ago a very nice lady dropped me in some information on National Biodiversity week. Biodiversity seems like a complicated word that but it has a simple meaning; the vast diversity of nature which can be seen all around us. Biodiversity is a term that was coined by joining the words “biological” and “diversity”. This contraction is now routinely used to discuss the high number and wide variety of organisms in the world, including humankind. So the grass that you walk on, the tree growing in your back garden, the bees buzzing from flower to flower and the birds flying over your head are all part of the world’s biodiversity. All gardens contribute in some way to the biodiversity of an area. Every plant that is planted increases the variety of life and provides habitat for other plants, animals, insects, fungi and so on. Ireland is lucky enough to have a rich biodiversity across the country, but our modern lifestyles can affect much of this natural variety. The good news is that there is a lot we can do in our own gardens to halt these threats. As long as we all pitch in, are rich biodiversity should continue to flourish. Biodiversity relies upon ecological systems completing and complementing each other. The food chain is the best example I can think of. Soil nurtures plants, plants are eaten by animals, and animals are raised and used by humans for a variety of purposes. If one link of this chain were to go missing the chain would be destroyed. And if one link of this chain were changed, the entire chain would be different. Today there is enough biodiversity to support a multitude of chains, all of which can benefit humans.  Here are some ways to encourage biodiversity in your garden. Plant a tree, preferably native; like a birch or rowan in a small/medium sized garden or an oak or ash in a large garden. Put up bird, ladybird and bat boxes .Leave some areas for grass and wildflowers to grow long. Leave dead wood and leaves lying around for over- wintering insects. Create a pond for aquatic life. Plant berry, fruit and nut producing trees, fruit and nuts for you, blossoms for the bees.  

• Plant out dahlias into well-prepared soil that's been enriched with manure.
• Clip box hedging and topiary.
• Regularly tie in tall stems of delphiniums to supports to stop them flopping over.
• Plant out crops being raised under glass, such as courgettes and tomatoes.
• Sow seeds of salad leaves every two to three weeks to ensure a regular supply.
• Sow seeds of dwarf beans and climbing beans alongside canes, plant the poached egg plant along side to help keep away the black fly that seems to love all manner of beans.
• Check plants regularly for signs of pests.
• Feed lawns now with a long lasting feed.
• Cut down pulmonarias to just above soil level after flowering to encourage new foliage.
• Feed fast-growing plants with a diluted liquid or powdered fertiliser.
• Build simple log piles at the back of borders to provide shelter for frogs, toads, hedgehogs, beetles and other pest-eating wildlife.

Give it a try.. plant your vegetables now, they’ll grow! Now is the perfect time, the ground is heating up and the forecast is good. Most roots vegetables can still successfully be grown from seed. As a matter a fact you can still sow potatoes, there is an old saying “if you can see through an Ash tree, you can still sow potatoes”. Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower etc. are best sown from plants at this stage rather than seed. If you haven’t planted vegetables before start small, prepare the ground well ie dig in some compost and some organic fertilizer and throughout just keep an eye out for slugs and hopefully dry spells. If you don’t have green fingers start off with salad leaves, spring onions, beetroot and radishes. Enjoy the salad and remember practice makes perfect.

It’s time to colour your patio. Summer is on the way, so it’s time to plant up your hanging baskets, window boxes and tubs. Basic principles for successful container planting are as follows; knowing which plants like sun or shade, whether they like wet or dry conditions and whether they grow upright or trail down. Once you have chosen the plants compatible to your situation your next consideration is colour combination. There are no strict rules in relation to this as you can put pink, red and orange in a hanging baskets and it will look great. The colour of the pot and the colour of your house should be taken into account, however, red geraniums against light coloured walls look very well, whereas yellow is quite good with a brick background. To get the best from your arrangements always choose good quality fresh plants as I find plants that may have dried out and look a bit sad, stay sad for a long time!  Always use good quality compost, never plant into last season’s compost as the results will not be good. Some summer bedding plants are easier to maintain than others, if your planting containers for a loved one's grave, you may not get to visit it every second day to water it, so choose plants with a low water requirement such as Geraniums, Alyssum, Cineria and any plant with a silvery grey foliage. You can also add water retaining crystals to the compost which reduces the need to water by up to 50%. I have come across a little name plant Heliotropium ‘Cherry Pie’ which makes the perfect centrepiece for containers, it’s royal blue , scented and goes with most colour schemes

• Water, water, water!  Best done in the evening or very early morning.
• Brilliant time to plant herbaceous as a lot of varieties are starting to flower, you can pick your colours.
• The same goes for roses, the new varieties are sure to please the most discerning gardener.
• Keep an eye on gooseberries for mildew.

There is only one problem with doing an article on Clematis, my space is limited so I won’t be able to cover the subject completely.  Clematis make up a vast group of plants, there are ones for growing up through trees 40-50 feet, some will even grow in hanging baskets and there are some herbaceous varieties.  There are many families all requiring different growing techniques and all pruned differently, so you need to take a little time and watch your plant growing for the first year or two.  If you have a grasp of the essentials, your plants will tell you when they need pruning.  In general the main families can be broken up into three different groups.

Group 1 – varieties that flower in late winter, early spring, Montana varieties are a good example.  They grow quite vigorously and flower on wood produced the previous year so it makes sense to prune them immediately after flowering and leave them alone for the rest of the year to produce their flower buds for the next season.  The Clematis alpinum are treated much the same but as they are not as vigorous and they don’t require much pruning. 

Group 2 – these are the varieties that flower in early summer.  This is probably the trickiest group, they flower on the previous year’s growth but they need a light pruning in early spring to remove any dieback or very weak stems.  The problem being that the stems can all look quite dead in early spring so you cut the stems at the extremities and if it’s totally brown and there’s no sap, it should be removed.  If in doubt leave it alone and when they burst into leaf in late spring you can revisit the pruning.

Group 3 – probably the most popular group, these are often referred to as the Jackmanii group, they flower in late summer/ autumn and flower on current year’s growth.  On established plants some of the older wood is removed after flowering in the autumn but they are pruned back quite hard to a pair of strong buds in early spring, just up from the ground level.  They will burst into bud in spring, grow all summer and flower thereafter.  There are some exceptions to every group but unless you are a connoisseur the fore mentioned is quite adequate.  The biggest problem I find with clematis especially the large flowered hybrids is that they never live long enough to need pruning because they are planted incorrectly.  The hybrids have specific requirements, they like their heads in the sun and their feet in the shade.  They require good moisture retentive (not soggy) soil with good quality homemade compost, leaf mould or rotted farmyard manure mixed through the soil.  They like to be planted deep so dig the hole at least a foot deep and flood the planting area after planting.  An occasional liquid feed during the summer with tomato food will give brilliant results.  I think I need to continue this next week.  Enjoy the sun!

Everybody knows lilac, and you will probably smell it before you see it. One sprig will fill a room with scent. To me it symbolises the beginning of summer. In the language of flowers, lilac symbolises first love and youthful innocence hence its popularity at weddings. Lilac comes in a variety of colours from pure white, myriad mauves through to rich carmine reds. The traditional lilacs tend to grow rather large for the modern garden, reaching a height of three to four meters. You can however seek out more compact varieties , such as Syringa prestoniae “Miss Japan” and “Miss Canada” and Syringa pinnatolia which have all the attributes of their larger cousins, but much more suitable for the modern garden. Lilac flowers in general may/june and can be rather dull for the rest of the year, but you can use them as a support for the very fine climber Tropaeolum speciosum (flame creeper) which will cover the bush in July/August with the most fantastic red flowers. Tropaeolum needs a little encouragement but is well worth the effort. For the moment enjoy your lilac. Lilac thrives in any well-drained fertile soil. It may take a number of years to flower. If pruning is necessary it should be done immediately after flowering. A handful of potash in July/ August will result in an abundance of colour the following season.

Veg of the week… broad beans

While all else is wilting or being eaten by slugs these little plants will flourish. Broad beans are the sweetest when perfectly fresh. They will cope in large pots but fare better with more space. Maybe choose a dwarf variety for pots. Blackfly are the main enemy. Pinch out the plants growing tips when in full flower . broad beans are very versatile, you can eat the whole pod when very young, the little beans when they start to become visible through the pod, or the tougher ones left at the end of the season are great in soups and stews (I’m told).

Unusual bits - How to start growing your Lunch (Peppers)

Unusual bits… not so unusual anymore, as most people I’m finding can now provide a protected environment, glasshouse or a tunnel or even one of the modern cold frames. To produce peppers you follow the same procedure as with tomatoes. The larger sweet peppers, yellow, red ,green and orange are the most popular, while their smaller hot, hot chilli sisters are gaining momentum as they can be quite easily grown on a windowsill. The plants are much smaller and easier to handle. Feed them with the osmo universal as the peppers develop. Leaving them too long on the vine however detracts from the flavour.

• Cut back overgrown honeysuckle stems close to their base, just above new shoots.
• Be on the look out for slugs and snails, which will attack emerging shoots of perennials.
• Plant Jerusalem artichokes in well-prepared soil.
• Grow early-maturing potatoes in a bag of compost.
• Fork compost into beds to prepare soil, for planting.
• Chit potatoes by standing them in trays in a warm bright position until they develop small shoots.
• Dig out problem weeds and emerging annual weeds.
• Plant Jerusalem artichokes.
• Cover rhubarb with forcing jars to encourage long, delicious pale stems.
• Sow seeds of the following crops outside or under cloches: carrots, beetroot, broad beans, salad onions, cauliflower, cabbage, spinach, leeks, lettuce, rocket, coriander, mixed salad or stir fry leaves, radish, turnip, peas, lettuce and Swiss chard
• In your greenhouse, you can sow summer bedding plants, such as petunias, geranium, verbena and busy Lizzie. In the vegetable world, you can sow seeds of cucumbers, tomatoes, aubergines and peppers to raise summer crops
• Trim back old shoots of perennials left for winter interest, taking care not to damage emerging new growth

A Rosy outlook Now is the time to hit the garden armed in your toughest clothes and sharpened pruners for the annual task of cutting back the roses. While gardeners may share different insights on the art of rose pruning, one thing is certain: While roses’ winter dormancy persists, it’s time to prune, ensuring a prolific bloom and healthy plants in spring and summer. Pruning is regenerative. It stimulates new growth and can enhance and open up the form and shape of the plants, it also removes dying or diseased portions that can damage the overall health of a garden. Roses are sturdy and forgiving, and will be healthier plants because of it. While you may not prune perfectly every time, it’s always better to prune than not to prune. You can find a detailed, How to on our facebook page or find a leaflet in the garden centre.

Plant a tree week has come and gone, nearly the best kept secret, of the year. The horticultural industry and I include myself in this should really do more to promote the planting of trees, as we all know they are the lungs of this fragile earth we live on. They provide us with food, shelter and of course their beauty. From the majestic redwoods to the humble spindle tree, no garden should be without a tree. Space shouldn’t be an issue as there are even dwarf varieties that are quite happy in a large pot on a balcony or patio. When choosing a tree there are a number of questions you should consider. The first and most important, what eventual height you would like your tree? This is very important as large trees should not be planted too near buildings. When you look at trees in the garden centre most of them appear to be the same size this can be deceptive because, with age, there is a vast difference. One such tree is the majestic oak which takes hundreds of years to mature and is fantastic given enough space. Oak is quite easy to grow and is even tolerant of damp heavy soil. There are a number of varieties well worth seeking out, Quercus coccinea (Scarlet Oak) has fiery red leaves in autumn, as the common names suggests, and Quercus ilex the evergreen oak is one of the few broad-leaved evergreens that can successfully grow in Ireland. For the smaller garden, there is a vast choice, my top choice, however, are Magnolias and Malus. Both will give you flowers in spring and splendid autumn colour and in the case of the Malus family many produce fruit which, persist into the winter. For flower, foliage, interesting bark or just somewhere to sit under on a hot summer’s day, plant a tree.

• Spread a layer of compost over borders, around shrubs and along the base of hedges as a mulch.
• Thin out the top growth on standard roses to prevent damage and wind rock.
• Use cloches to warm the soil in preparation for early sowings.
• Plant fruit bushes and trees.
• Give fruit trees a winter wash with Armillatox to kill overwintering greenfly.
• Apply potash to strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries and red currants.
• Remove dead leaves & flowers from stored geraniums and fuchsias to prevent disease.
• Remember to open the windows in your greenhouse on warm days to give ventilation.
• Prepare a trench 24” wide and a spades depth for runner beans and add a bag of manure for a bumper crop.
• Force rhubarb by digging up a crown and replanting it in total darkness or placing a large bin over the existing crop.
• Plant roses in well-prepared ground.
• Trim away unwanted suckers from tree bases.
• Clear borders and rake up leaves.
• Spread a thick layer of mulch around fruit trees and bushes.
• Prune blackcurrants.
• Bring potted peaches under cover to prevent an attack of leaf curl.

Getting your garden into shape

Winter pruning check-list
Fruit; cut out the oldest and weakest branches of blackcurrants, removing about one shoot, in three. For gooseberries, cut out the oldest weakest shoots and reduce new growth from the main branches by half. Side shoots to just two buds from the old wood. Now is the time to cut autumn fruiting raspberries down to the ground. With apple and pear trees cut out any branches that are diseased, dead or damaged. Also any that cross or rub, or that are spindly and badly placed. For pears and most apples which bear their fruit on spurs, shorten the new growth on each branch by about a third. Also, prune side shoots to five or six buds and thin out overcrowded spurs. With pleached trees or tunnels the work of tying in new shoots continues all year round, but the dormant season is the time for structural pruning and shaping.

While winter pruning is best avoided with stone fruit such as peaches, plums, and cherries, fine-tuning the arrangement of branches if grown on a wall is a lot easier before they come into leaf. For the more adventurous among us that grow kiwi fruit, you can now cut back the plant to three or four buds beyond the last fruited stems. I would recommend though leaving figs alone till all risk of frost is safely past. Late flowering shrubs; to stop plants such as Buddleja, Spiraea, Lavatera (marshmallow plant) and hardy fuchsias becoming leggy, chop back last year’s growth to within two or three buds of the old wood.  With Clematis, the rule of thumb is “flowers before June do not prune” however the large flowered hybrids such as ‘Jackmanii’ and small flowered Viticella, Texensis and Orientalis groups, cut back to first or second pair of buds from the bottom of each stem. When doing all this important to have a sharp secateurs as a squashed cut leads to disease. A clean cut just above a bud at an angle is always best. With apple trees and roses prune to an outward facing bud.

• Pick off hellebore leaves with black blotches as this is a symptom of leaf spot disease.
• Lift and divide congested snowdrops when in leaf, also known as 'in the green'.
• Prepare plant supports ready to pop into position to support tall or floppy perennials, such as delphiniums. When planting freesia bulbs it’s also handy to pop supports in at the time of planting..
• Feel like a challenge now is the time to prepare areas for planting asparagus.
• Cut down willows and dogwoods to their base to promote strong new canes and cover with a compost mulch.
• Plant new fruit trees, canes and bushes.
• Use cloches to warm soil for early sowings, if you have a greenhouse you can raise lettuce and salad crops in pots for early pickings.
• Now is time to prune grapevines before they come into growth when their sap starts rising.
• If the rain and murky skies are keeping you indoors, you can still get your hands dirty Start sowing seed of summer bedding and crops that need a long growing season to mature, such as pelargonium, petunia, verbena, salvia, lobelia and begonia. You can now get windowsill propagators that won’t take up the entire back kitchen.
• Start Chitting your Potatoes. To get the best value and results from your potatoes it’s time to get started. If you want the early new potatoes then choose First Earlies and start to prepare them now. It’s too cold to plant them out, but you can give them a head start and chit them in a light frost-free place. It just means that they are allowed to sprout and start growing, so that when it’s warm enough to plant them they have already developed strong healthy growing shoots

Getting your garden into shape Problem solving:
Canker. Left unchecked, canker can gradually spread to affect whole branches and sections of trees. Severely-infected old trees may be beyond rescue, while young trees are vulnerable to infection, particularly where other susceptible trees are growing in close proximity. Where trees are suffering stress as a result of drought or waterlogging, they may be more liable to infection. Canker may also infect fruit, so they rot on the tree before harvesting or when in store. If your trees have suffered this in the past and you're considering replacing them, choose canker-resistant varieties such as the apples 'Grenadier', 'Laxton's Superb' and 'Newton Wonder', and the pear 'Concorde'. The signs of canker are Leafless shoots, or twigs with sparse, small foliage. Also, bark that's sunken and distorted, or swollen and cracked. Use secateurs to cut out all infected growth. Infected branches show dark staining of the creamy coloured wood inside, so prune back to healthy wood that shows no sign of staining. Carefully slice away cankers on large branches and trunks using a sharp knife. Afterwards, sterilise your knife and secateurs with methylated spirits to avoid cross-contamination. Where canker is a problem, choose resistant Bordeaux mixture can also be applied after fruit harvest and during leaf fall. If you are in doubt of the diagnosis, bring a branch out to me and ill try and give you the prognosis.

Flower of the month: Heather's
Bring life to your garden with all year round colour and low maintenance, with our busy lives, many of us don’t have the time to spend evenings and weekends looking after our gardens. The beauty of Heather's is that once planted you can sit back and enjoy the benefits of your work, with little aftercare, giving you more pleasure every year.  

• Snowdrops look great in clumps around the base of shrubs and in borders and are a welcome sign that spring is on its way.  Now is the time to lift and divide clumps and replant your new plants throughout the garden.
• Apply slug pellets around emerging spring bulbs.  If you can use the organic bird friendly pellets as many birds will be on the lookout for an easy meal.
• Continue to tidy beds and borders, then mulch with compost, well-rotted manure or bark.
• Prune gooseberry bushes to open up the centre and apply a winter wash of Armillatox.
• Chit seed potatoes in trays in a bright, frost-free position.
• Clear away old plant debris from around the margins of ponds and scoop out leaves that have fallen into the water.
• Prevent seedlings being affected by damping-off disease by watering compost with a solution of chestnut compound.
• Growing from seed is a simple and economical way of raising new plants for your garden.  If you are starting out, get your hands on a simple windowsill propagator as they are designed to sit neatly on your window ledge.
• If you like you can sow the following crops in pots or trays in your greenhouse ready to transplant outside later: Brussel sprouts, spring cabbage, cauliflower, onions, leeks, lettuce and salad leaves.

Getting started on a vegetable plot what way should it be laid out?  Raised bed, lazy bed or ridges (see last week’s article for advantages of raised beds).  This week I will cover lazy beds and ridges, how to make them and the advantages of one over the other.  Constructing a lazy bed is quite simple, the first step is to dig over the whole area breaking up the soil to a workable consistency, you do not need a fine seed bed at this stage.  Lazy beds are usually 4 feet wide, so you start at one side and dig a path about 18 inches wide putting all the soil on one side.  When you reach the end of the bed go across 4 feet and make a path through the soil in the opposite direction.  This should leave you with a bed between the two paths approximately 4 feet wide and 6-9 inches higher than the path.  Breaking the soil down in the bed to a fine workable consistency will not be possible this early in the season but the raised beds tend to dry quickly and in a couple of weeks you will find it much easier to form a finished seed bed.  Over working the soil in wet conditions can do more harm than good.  Lazy beds are suitable for nearly all vegetable production.  For potatoes and all the cabbage family ridges will probably give you a better result as well as been more practical.  Potatoes and the larger vegetable plants like cabbage need a lot of space and light so they need to be planted up to 18 inches apart and 18 inches between rows.  To construct what we call a ridge you dig a path down along one side approximately 1 foot wide, when you reach the end move over 18 inches and dig a path in the opposite direction piling the soil in the middle, this should give you a ridge 18 inches wide at the bottom and tapering in at the top, your soil will have to be quite dry and workable to attain this.  On a new vegetable plot it will be well into spring before this is possible in most gardens.  You can however, do the initial first dig just turning over the soil to the depth of your spade and leaving it for a number of weeks.  Nature will help you break down the lumpy soil, again I stress don’t overwork wet soil, you will destroy the structure and it will take longer, in the long run to dry out.  Just do the initial dig, take a break until next week and I will explain why carrots split and fork, why onions won’t store and why cauliflower just turns into leaves, it’s all to do with fertilizer, what type and when and how much to us

• Check crops that are in store and discard any showing signs of rot.
• Trim back ivy and Virginia creeper from around windows and guttering.
• Clear away dead foliage from perennials, chop it up and add to the compost heap.
• Remove weeds from borders, and dig deeply to sieve out roots of perennial weeds, such as bindweed, ground elder and couch grass.
• Improve compacted soil by mixing in extra compost. Take care not to walk on or dig up spring bulbs.
• Spread a layer of compost over borders, around shrubs and along the base of hedges as a mulch.
• Give fruit trees a winter wash with Armillatox  to kill overwintering greenfly.
• Force rhubarb by digging up a crown and replanting it in total darkness or placing a large bin over the existing crop.
• Plant roses in well-prepared ground.
• Trim away unwanted suckers from tree bases.
• Tidy up piles of flowerpots and debris that could harbour snails.
• Raise patio containers on feet or bricks, to ensure their compost drains properly.
• Avoid walking on lawns covered with heavy frost, as you'll kill the grass.
• Provide birds with fresh water and food.
• Fork compost into the soil and clear old crops from the veg plot.
• Getting your garden into shape.

Winter pruning check-list it’s important to remember that cutting back flowering trees and shrubs severely at the wrong time may lead to the loss of a whole season’s floral display. The standard advice I would give is to check the precise pruning requirement for each individual tree and shrub before reaching for the secateurs or shears. The number one rule is to buy good quality tools and make sure they are sharp.  Winter prune wisteria .Vigorous wisteria needs pruning twice a year if it is to flower well. Cut back all the long whippy growth that has been made during the summer and prune again in July to encourage the development of flowering spurs.

Flower of the month: Daphne.
This might sound a bit odd but if you’re a committed gardener you will know what I mean. If I were going to be reincarnated I think I would like to some back as a Daphne. Anybody who is familiar with Daphnes will know why, and if you haven’t got a Daphne in your garden, consider it incomplete. There is no excuse to have at least one they are quiet, easy to grow in the midlands and they like a bit of shelter from the prevailing winds as they flower in winter early spring. Not too shaded and will grow in any reasonable soil. Most of us can accommodate these requirements. There are many different varieties of Daphnes, Daphne mezereum being the most freely available, growing to about 4 feet, covered with highly scented lilac blooms early spring. There is an exquisite dwarf variety called Retusa which flowers in May/June. Not easy to get but well worth putting your name down on a waiting list. My favourite Daphne is Daphne Bholua ‘Jacqueline Postill’ which is evergreen, now going into its third week and will flower for at least another 3 or 4 weeks. The scent is heavenly, plant one if you can near your house where you might pass by in winter (i.e. on the way to the turf shed) I guarantee it will shorten your winter.

• Thin heavy fruit crops, picking off the smallest. Aim to leave developing fruits about 10-15cm apart along the stems, perhaps thinning congested spurs down to just a single fruit.
• Sow seed of herbs now, including basil, parsley and coriander.
• Sow vegetable seeds now, including endive, lettuce and salad leaves, beetroot, radishes, spring cabbages, ‘Eskimo’ carrots, Swiss chard, winter spinach, Oriental greens, spring onions, turnips.
• Summer prune your wisteria.
• Water tomatoes regularly to prevent fruit splitting and blossom end rot.
• Spray potatoes and outdoor tomatoes with Bordeaux mixture to prevent blight.
• Resist the temptation to harvest more rhubarb stems. This allows the plant to build up reserves for next year.
• ​Pick runner beans regularly to prevent them becoming stringy and to make room for developing pods. Leaving mature pods on the plant can prevent further flowers forming and reduce your crop.
• Prune your plum, apricot, peach and cherry trees now. Pruning these species in the summer reduces the risk of these trees getting silver leaf disease.
• If you've trained your apples and pears as cordons, fans or espaliers, give them their summer prune now to maintain a good shape.
• This is your last chance to feed your lawn with a special lawn fertiliser to encourage healthy green growth.

Over the last number of weeks I have covered hydrangeas in all their many forms. All the beautiful colours that you would hope for will only materialise when you care for your plants by feeding and pruning properly, but firstly you need to pick the right location and soil. There is nothing new about this as the same apples to most plants. The problem that arises for most of us is deciding when all these different plants need pruning. With hydrangeas, there are basically two sets of guidelines when it comes to pruning. All the Macrophylla family, that is the hydrangeas with big round heads in pinks, blues, whites and reds that you see in many peoples gardens require very little pruning. A light pruning in late march removing the previous seasons flower heads and taking out any wispy old branches. If the plants are overgrowing their space reduce the overall size of the plant by taking out a number of the old stems right back to ground level, this will encourage new growth and flowering in subsequent years. In the midlands leaving on the flower heads over winter is very important as it protects the emerging buds from late frosts. Not following these rules will explain why some hydrangeas never flower. Apart from benefiting from a good feed in early spring hydrangeas are best planted where they get shade from the early morning sun, especially after frost in late spring. The hydrangea Paniculata family they are the ones that produces a large white cone shaped flowers on current seasons growth and are pruned right back to ground level every spring. Given a good feed they will grow strongly and flower in the same season. Hydrangeas planted in groups in the garden or individually on the patio are excellent for summer/Autumn colour.