Posts in "Gardening with Ken"
One of our dearest friends in the horticultural world is the gardener and broadcaster Ken Crowther. We got to know Ken a few years ago after he interviewed one of my colleagues on his Saturday morning BBC Essex radio show. Ken talks on the show with great knowledge about both gardening and cooking ( also available on the BBC Essex web page if you are out of the area).
In 2007 Ken designed our display stand at Chelsea, for which we won three certificates of commendation, one for each of our RHS stands that year. Chelsea, Hampton Court and Tatton Park.
You can go to Ken's dedicated gardening web site at www.gardeningwithken.com. Whichever way you look at it, Ken will give you the right information again and again and again.
Posted by Clarington on 23rd February 2009
Shorter days, cold nights and regular falls of colourful leaves herald the start of Autumn. It’s time to tidy up, prepare for winter and finish off planting new roses, shrubs and trees. But don’t be depressed because Autumn gives us some fantastic colours; from the large shrub Rhus through to Acers, Colchicum or Autumn Crocus`s with their attractive purple flowers and those gorgeous Cyclamen nestling in shady places.
There are bulbs to plant, winter Pansies and Polyanthus, the displays in your local garden centre can be enough to prompt you into action. It will soon be time to dig up Dahlia tubers after the first frost has blackened the leaves. First take time to wash the tubers carefully to remove the earth between the fingers. Then leave them for a few days upside down in a shed to allow the stem to drain and the tubers to thoroughly dry. For maximum protection dust the tubers with yellow sulphur before storing in several layers of dry newspaper in a cardboard box, and keep frost-free.
Gladioli corms should also be dug up and stored in a frost-free place to protect them from “average” winters that freeze the ground for several days. Again cut off flowering stems close to the corm and allow to dry for a week or so. You could then wrap them in newspaper or hang in an old onion bag, again, somewhere frost-free.
For the earliest Sweet-pea flowers next summer, sow seeds this Autumn to give them all a head start. Individual seeds sown one per cell, or even use old toilet roll centres filled with compost will give great results. Store them in an unheated greenhouse or frame and remember to pinch out the tops as soon as they have produced three or four true leaves.
If you have already fed your lawn with an appropriate Autumn feed such as EverGreen Autumn it’s now time to improve drainage and repair bumps, hollows and bare patches. Drainage should be improved each Autumn with an overall spiking of the surface. If your soil is fairly light then use a garden fork to drive holes into the surface about 10 cm (4in) deep. On heavy clay soils, and where the lawn gets a lot of traffic, you would be better to use a hollow tine fork that removes plugs of soil. Simply push the special fork into the lawn and then sweep up the plugs. The resulting air channels then provide much better drainage and aeration, especially if you sweep in a ‘top dressing’ of Lawn Soil mixed 50:50 with sharp sand.
After a time lawns start to look thin and show bare earth between the individual grass plants. This indicates that you need to sow some new grass over the whole area to thicken up the turf and provide fresh young grass that will enliven the whole look of the lawn. First check on the height of cut of your mower as scalping the grass will gradually weaken it over time.See that the grass is being left to a height of at least 2cm (1in) during the Autumn and Spring so that existing grass has the energy to recuperate. Now you need to feed and reseed the whole area. Simply rake the soil to roughen up the compacted surface and use an all purpose grass seed, which will work wonders really quickly.
Cut the edges of the lawn with a half-moon edger to give a sharp definition between the great expanse of lush green lawn and the replanted flower borders that surround it.
Last but not least my second book a novel about two young lads on a holiday in Southern France in the 60`s is out now. ‘Two Weeks in Nice’ is published by Pegasus costing £8.99 and available from www.pegasuspublishers.com
Posted by Ken Crowther on 20th November 2009
With winter here we need to think of presents, not just for Christmas but a living present, and what better than to plant something with a little perfume. Witch Hazel (Hamamelis), winter Honeysuckle (Lonicera ‘Winter Beauty’) and Daphne will add attractive fragrance to your winter border. Plant variegated shrubs such as Eleagnus, Osmanthus, Phormiums and Pieris which can create great colour in the borders with their highly attractive gold or silver-edged foliage.
Even the most boring gifts can be made totally individual and exciting with the addition of a packet of seeds. All you need to do is have the recipient’s garden in mind. If its jam-packed with plants then think along the lines of climbers such as Sweet Peas, Morning Glory (Ipomoea) or Black Eyed Susan Vine (Thunbergia). Everyone can find a piece of fence space for these lovelies to clamber up, or you could splash out with a clematis plant. Men will tend to prefer a packet of vegetable seeds and an unusual variety of runner bean or tomato should hit the spot. Yes, pop a packet of seeds inside those socks or in the pair of pyjamas or naughty nighty you are giving as presents, it will cause a laugh if nothing else.
Children will appreciate a complete kit rather than a simple packet of seeds. Choose one that includes some compost and a plant pot so they have everything they need to start growing immediately. For windowsill gardening try Geraniums, Bonsai trees and decorative ferns to give children hours of enjoyment and years of interest. So too will simple packets of vegetable seeds that can be sown in patio pots where they are to crop. If the child you have in mind has little growing experience, buy them carrots or courgettes as results are almost guaranteed. For the more experienced teenager perhaps sweet corn or climbing beans are more appropriate. Never rule out tools for the garden, all youngsters like to own their very own spade and fork don`t they.
Its amazing how much we spend on our feathered friends protecting and fattening them up with bird food, regular fresh water and nesting boxes. With the demise of natural populations of song birds around the country we can all do our bit to make gardens a safer haven for them all. Sprinkling seed onto a bird table is likely to encourage unwanted visitors such as wood pigeons, bullying magpies and hungry grey squirrels. That’s why double caged bird feeders make such good gifts. They allow easy access to the central core of seed or nuts for small songbirds such as robins, finches and sparrows, while the outer cage helps to keep out bigger birds and squirrels.
Providing clean fresh water for garden birds to drink and bathe in will not only improve their well-being, but it will also increase everyone’s enjoyment of their antics.
Posted by Ken Crowther on 14th December 2009
Let us hope now that the worst of the bad weather has passed and we can get on in the garden. In between the cold spells I have been helping plant trees with Vivienne my wife and friends, a mix of trees varying from just 15 inches to five feet high, and yes planted quite thickly so as they grow they can be thinned. We also fenced it to prevent wildlife making a meal of the trees as they try to develop. The next project is to add native bulbs and perhaps some wild flowers.
At this time of the year you should dig the area where you want to grow vegetables such as brassicas, broad beans, peas and runner beans, but only if the soil is not sodden or frozen solid. Whilst digging, why not add well-rotted manure from the bottom of your compost heap, or the matured results from a pile of stable manure. Or you may have to buy bags of organic matter derived from a combination of various sources. Any organic material dug into clay soil will improve drainage and structure to make digging easier and reduce the splits and cracks that often occur in hot, dry weather (just dreaming of those days ahead!). On sandy and chalky soils it will increase the water and nutrient holding capacity of the soil and reduce the tendency to dry out. Any soil improver can also be spread over the root area of existing plants such as roses, shrubs and fruit to reduce evaporation of moisture from the soil and to give the worms a good source of organic material to drag down to root level.
Don't walk on the grass while it is frozen or frosted. Crushing the frozen blades of grass results in a burn that turns brown and the footsteps will be visible for weeks. In mild spells you may want to cut the grass to keep the lawn looking trim, especially if we get mild spells. Don’t be tempted to cut the grass to it’s shortest summer setting, but leave it much longer to reduce any harmful effects from subsequent frosts. Trim the outer edges of the lawn into shape to provide a clear definition between lush green lawn and the surrounding flowerbed. Remember do not feed it yet, it’s too early.
You can still plant some fruit trees, bushes and canes to provide tasty apples, gooseberries, redcurrants, blackcurrants, strawberries and raspberries. If your family don’t appreciate the health promoting benefits of home grown fruit, then it’s time to educate them.
Last but not least clean up any green mould growth on the patio slabs, brickwork or walls with one simple treatment with Patio Magic! Just water or spray on during a dry spell – the active ingredient works for several weeks to give great control of mould, lichen and algae.
Posted by Ken Crowther on 22nd January 2010
Now is the time to plant up beds, borders, hanging baskets and patio containers with tender bedding plants that will turn gardens into a riot of colour for summer. Watch the weather though for cold frosty nights that could damage these tender plants, and cover with fleece, or Peter Seabrook’s favourite was to use old net curtains.
When planting out bedding give the plants a thorough watering before planting. Try and choose plants for the right position in your garden. For a shady spot you can plant Busy Lizzies and fibrous rooted Begonias, they thrive without too much direct sun. So too will Pansies, Canterbury Bells, Lobelia and even Coleus. For a hot, sunny spot plant Geraniums, Petunias, Zinnia and Eschscholzia (Californian poppy) as they are much more tolerant of hot, dry conditions.
When planting its better if the soil is moist but never wet, so it ends up claggy. Lightly dig the hole with a trowel and firm down with the fingertips, and don’t push too hard as compressed soil is not what you want. Water well in, then leave for a couple of days for the roots to start looking for water, then when they start to grow you could add Miracle-Gro All Purpose Plant Food or other soluble plant food so you can feed and water at the same time. By applying the plant food over the leaves and around the roots you will quickly help the plant to get moving. The nutrients that are absorbed in the first few weeks will help the plants roots to establish quickly.
A little tip for those of you growing strawberries; water and feed them with a Soluble Plant Food just as the fruits are forming. This will supply extra nutrients for maximum fruit set. Then it’s time to slip some protection onto the soil surface so the berries aren’t splashed with mud whenever it rains. Traditionally this would be straw, but you may find this difficult to get hold of. Instead you can use modern fiyba or coir mulch mats that can be pushed under the plant. As straw and the mulch mats can provide ideal hiding places for slugs and snails, you need to sprinkle SlugClear Advanced pellets thinly over the complete area before you put them in place. If this is too much trouble for new gardeners, you can always plant up six strawberry plants in a Strawberry Planter. Placed on a sunny paved patio it is usually free from too many slug problems so you can usually forget the slug pellets. But wherever you grow strawberries you will need to protect the fruits from marauding birds. Out in the garden or on the patio, you will need to cover the crop with netting before the first fruit has turned colour. A cage is an important element to this protection as simply draping the net over the fruits is not enough to keep blackbirds from eating your berries for their breakfast and it's better you enjoy them than the birds!
Posted by Stuart Elsom on 5th May 2010
