I find that the best way to succeed with hardy annuals is to sow them in the autumn – that way they establish a really good root system and romp away before the slugs start munching their way through their spring sown cousins. I’ve just potted on my (at times neglected) seedlings and was delighted to see Continue reading
Last autumn I dug up a clump of vulnerable cyclamen seedlings and potted them into individual cells. They have spent the winter in semi-shade near the greenhouse and are looking good. I’m planning to let them grow on until next autumn when I will plant them in the woodland garden. One of the best indicators of getting the conditions right is when your precious plants self-seed – very satisfying.
First hellebore flowers
The first hellebores are in bloom and are particularly welcome as I had to dig them all up in the autumn and put them in pots while I waited for building work to finish. It is generally said that they hate being moved and won’t flower for a few years afterwards, but I think the combination of the time of year and the mild winter means that they have dealt with the move far better than I expected and seem very happy back in their newly enriched beds. I’ve been around the various plants removing last year’s foliage and making sure that any affected by blackspot (as in the photo below) is put in the rubbish rather than composted.
There’s always a time around Christmas when I wonder what possessed me to buy so many bulbs – and when I’m going to finish planting them. Somehow I managed to get them all in this year and although planting them couldn’t always be described as ‘fun’ – it’s lovely to see all my pots filled and bulbs starting to show. This is the time of year when friends ask me ‘is it too late to plant bulbs?’ and I generally reply that bulbs are more likely to flower in the ground than in a paper bag.
Some years I succumbed to the charms of the winter honeysuckle with its delicate and fragrant winter flowers. Having just spent the best part of two days prising its tough-as-old-boots roots out of the border I would recommend that it isn’t planted – except where nothing else will grow. Starting as a small plant in a 1 litre pot (as illustrated in the photo perched atop the roots), it sent out runners and popped up in several places. It’s boring in summer, grows very large and I’ve decided should be relegated to understorey planting in woodland.
