The Hampton Court Palace Flower Show takes place from 7th-12th of July (book tickets here). This year a major theme will be ‘Garden Energy’. The RHS has commissioned garden designer Sarah Eberle to design zones that illustrate 100 years of climate change from 1950 to 2050; green energy and environmentally responsible materials for the garden; and sustainable ways to ‘Grow your Own’. As ever, there will be much, much more, with plenty of opportunities to buy anything from a single plant to a greenhouse. Be sure to call by and see the Gabriel Ash stand at C78.

From July 1st - August 31st, Merriments Gardens and Nursery www.merriments.co.uk near Hurst Green in East Sussex (2 minutes off the A21) will have a programme of Summer Events. The gardens were originally established as a display area for the nursery, but are now a destination in their own right. The entrance is inspired by Monet’s ‘Grand Allee’ at Giverny, there are impressive colour-themed borders, large ponds and a wild garden with a bird hide where dozens of bird-feeders attract around 60 different types of wild bird.

The National Gardens Scheme is running two day-long garden tours in July. Three gardens in South Oxfordshire on the 8th (pick up at Earl’s Court Tube at 9am) starting with the stylish Blewbury Manor, moving on to The Filberts in North Moreton (with lunch at the local pub, The Bear at Home) and then the enchanting riverside garden, Evelegh’s at Long Wittenham.

On July 9th (pick up at Victoria Coach Station at 9am) three major Hampshire gardens. This begins with a splendid new garden Hambledon House, then to the superbly planted borders of Bramdean House*, lunching at the Hinton Arms nearby, before heading to the elegant Abbey Cottage at Itchen Abbas.

For information and booking, please contact Janine Wookey, tel: 020 8693 1015/mob: 0771129636. Email: j.wookey@btinternet.com

The tulip tree is covered in thousands of flowers right now. To appreciate their full beauty it is best to pick one and examine it closely. With each flower measuring about 8cm across, the tree s quite a spectacle.
Having bided their time while most of the other alliums flowered early, Allium christophii blooms are exploding from the surrounding foliage in the borders, their shooting-star flowerheads making the wait worthwhile.

Fox & Cubs is the common name for a rather glamorous weed Hieracium aurantiacum. A hawkweed, it was originally a garden escape, but has now naturalised in the wild. It is easy to grow from seed and will grow readily on a dry bank.

The tomatoes in the green house are now up to their third flower trusses. The jury is still out on the spiral ‘Veggie Cages’ – it will be easier to tell how effective they are once the fruit sets.

The strawberries are cropping prolifically. The early varieties are coming to an end but Mara de Bois is beginning to ripen. This is a cross between the wild strawberry and its cultivated cousins with good size very intensely flavoured fruit.

The Texas Rose Rustlers

I first heard about this wonderfully eccentric organisation when I read one of my favourite gardening books ever ‘People with Dirty Hands’ by Robin Chotzinoff (available from Amazon). In it she writes about Americans with a passion for gardening that goes way beyond enthusiasm. The rose rustlers are a group of Texan women who visit old graveyards, abandoned gardens or country lanes looking for old-fashioned roses that may no longer be commercially available – and then propagate them. To find out more about them go to www.texasroserustlers.com . I have followed their fine example and successfully taken cuttings from our local churchyard –with the vicar’s permission!

Timely Advice

Keep the cabbage white butterflies at bay by netting brassicas with Enviromesh from Gardening Naturally.
Protect fruit crops from marauding birds
Deadhead in the borders to ensure continued flowering
Top up ponds if water levels drop in hot weather
Keep up the successional sowing of crops

I Couldn’t do Without

My Felco secateurs – whenever I go out into the garden they are the first thing I pick up to take with me. They are the Rolls Royce of secateurs, robust and reliable and, for left-handers like me – there are left-handed versions. They come with a lifetime guarantee and can be sent for sharpening and general sprucing-up to Burton Mcall Burton McCall, 163 Parker Drive, Leicester LE4 0JP. Include a cheque for £12.99 and don’t forget to include the return address. Good deals on Felco products are available from Garden 4 Less.

It does seem to be a spectacular year for roses and - from the rampant to the refined - they have never looked better in our garden. At the rampant end, the Cooper’s Burmese rose has defied its tender reputation despite the cold winter and has now entirely clothed our rather ugly garage.

Mind you, the first time I saw it was in Italy, where it was up to the roof of an old monastery, so I can’t say I wasn’t warned. Although it only flowers once, its pure-white single flowers have a simple beauty and are followed by great clusters of orangey-red hips in the autumn. The other charming thug is Treasure Trove which grows 30 feet in either direction along a fence, has colonised an adjoining hedge and clambered up a large bay tree.

Although it does look spectacular at the moment I’m not sure I would recommend it – it is just too vigorous and the flowers don’t die very attractively. Moving on to the more refined contenders, climber Buff Beautyhas finally asserted itself among its companions on the garden wall where its soft apricot flowers peer out from the vine’s foliage.

The extraordinary Giant Fennel planted in the border in front of it has now reached 12ft! Of all the roses in my garden, the one that has most significance is one that I bought many, many years ago. It spent most of its life in a pot and it was only once I moved here that I finally felt it had found its home. I always thought it was Omar Khyam, which was reputed to have been propagated from the grave of the poet, but it is too deep a pink. Nevertheless it is utterly gorgeous and intensely fragrant and I am now trying to get it identified – for the moment it is my ‘Mystery Rose’.

In the greenhouse: all the windows and doors are wide open all the time to keep the air circulating and the blinds are pulled down on sunny days to stop scorching. I also follow the old tradition of watering the path on hot days to keep the humidity high and cool the air.

In the coldframe: my experiment with sowing carrots in rootrainers to get better and quicker germination seems to be paying off. They are growing like grass at the moment. Of course it could all go horribly wrong – I still haven’t worked out how, or when, I am going to transplant them.

In the garden: After rain, dig up self-sown seedlings that might be useful elsewhere or make nice presents. Euphorbia mellifera and Euphorbia stygiana self sow enthusiastically and I’ve collected up dozens of young hellebore plants that germinated last year. I’m rather excited about a seedling rose that is poking through the fence of the vegetable garden – I think Cooper’s Burmese has had a pink semi-double baby!

In the greenhouse: all the windows and doors are wide open all the time to keep the air circulating and the blinds are pulled down on sunny days to stop scorching. I also follow the old tradition of watering the path on hot days to keep the humidity high and cool the air.

In the coldframe: my experiment with sowing carrots in rootrainers to get better and quicker germination seems to be paying off. They are growing like grass at the moment. Of course it could all go horribly wrong – I still haven’t worked out how, or when, I am going to transplant them.

In the garden: After rain, dig up self-sown seedlings that might be useful elsewhere or make nice presents. Euphorbia mellifera and Euphorbia stygiana self sow enthusiastically and I’ve collected up dozens of young hellebore plants that germinated last year. I’m rather excited about a seedling rose* that is poking through the fence of the vegetable garden – I think Cooper’s Burmese has had a pink semi-double baby!

Dahlias at a Discount - Sarah Raven selects her premium range of dahlias with a discriminating eye. It is not too late to plant them now, especially while she is offering her remaining stock at a discounted price.

Make your life a little bit Rosier - If your own garden is a bit short on roses, take advantage of the current offers from David Austin Roses. Choose from several selections including The Premium Border Collection and The Highly Fragrant English Rose Collection. These multiple collections all offer good savings on the normal prices. Log on and look for ‘Special Offers’.