Growing
Pruning Your Helianthemum Once A Year Can Help To Extend Its Flowering Lifespan
IN THIS GUIDE When To Prune 1) Prepare Your Tools 2) Deadhead Daily 3) Prune After Flowering 4) Remove Weeds & Mulch As hardy plants with low-growing tendencies helianthemums are the perfect choice for a rock garden or for providing ground cover. It’s no surprise, then, that they’re more commonly known as rock roses and are hugely popular all across the UK. Their year-round perfumed foliage provides intrigue throughout the winter months, while the profusion of delicate flowers in spring is a true delight to behold. They generally bloom for five or six years, but their fragrance and foliage will endure for far longer. The durable nature of helianthemums means that pruning them is not strictly necessary; they’ll do just fine on their own in almost any soil as long as they receive enough sun. Difficulty Easy Equipment Required Gardening gloves, pruning shears or secateurs, cloth, isopropyl alcohol, compost When To Prune Spring (or just after flowering) However, pruning helps to retain their shape, prolong the lifespan of their blossoms and even encourages a second flowering in the same year. Here’s how to go about it: Prepare and clean your tools Deadhead daily throughout the flowering season Prune foliage back fully after flowering has finished Remove weeds and any clippings; mulch the ground To make the job of pruning your rock rose plants as simple as possible, we’ve elucidated each of those steps in greater detail below. When To Prune As mentioned above, pruning rock roses is not obligatory, but you may wish to do so after the blooming period has come to an end for several reasons. Firstly, this will prevent the mat-forming plant from encroaching on the terrain in its vicinity and keep its aesthetically pleasing form. Secondly, pruning helianthemums just after they have stopped flowering can encourage them to produce more blooms in late summer or early autumn. However, the climate of the area in which you live must be favourable for this to occur, since helianthemums are of Mediterranean origin and love the sun. Finally, pruning your helianthemum once a year can help to extend its blooming lifespan. Normally such plants only produce flowers for a handful of years, but if you stay on top of your specimen and conserve its energies for the future, you can prolong this by a year or two more. 1) Prepare Your Tools This step is often overlooked by both amateur and veteran gardeners, but as someone who has suffered personally from the use of tools unfit for the job, I can’t recommend it highly enough. Blunt blades can damage stems, while dirty ones can spread disease. To avoid either undesirable outcome, simply sharpen the blades of your secateurs or pruning shears before use. Next, soak a clean cloth in isopropyl alcohol and thoroughly wipe all debris from them. Repeat the clean-up job after use, as well. 2) Deadhead Daily Helianthemum’s beautiful blossoms are extremely fleeting, with many flowers lasting just a single day. However, the plant makes up for this shortfall by producing an astonishing profusion of blooms throughout the season. As such, it’s a good idea to remove all deadheads as soon as they appear. This will not only keep your plant looking vibrant and resplendent but also allow for better circulation of air among the stems and prevent the development of blights and diseases. Of course, the sheer rate of blooming may make daily deadheading unfeasible, but doing the job as often as possible will suffice. 3) Prune After Flowering Once the plant has stopped flowering altogether, it’s time to prune it back. Target longer, woodier stems which distort the shapeliness of the plant’s form, trimming it back into the desired shape. You can pare back these stems to around two-thirds of their length to keep things neat and tidy. As a general rule, you don’t want to take any more than 5-8cm away from a single stem, and you should never cut back more than a third of the whole plant. Leave the old wood alone to avoid jeopardising the helianthemum’s health come winter time, and instead focus on newer growth. 4) Remove Weeds & Mulch Gather up all discarded stems and foliage and dispose of them appropriately to minimise the risk of disease. Remove any weeds or invasive plants which may be encroaching on the rock rose’s territory to ensure it does not have to struggle to compete with others and that its appearance remains attractive. “Removing plants that might compete for light is key to maintaining Helianthemum, as competition will cause shade and without adequate light they will not thrive,” explains Horticultural Consultant Colin Skelly. Finally, mulch with compost after pruning to keep moisture in the soil and give the new shoots the best chance of developing and of producing a second bloom later in the year. Well-rotted compost or manure can be used for this task, but bark chips are overly acidic and should be avoided.
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Cannas Work Well In Pots - You Can Move Indoors To Protect The Rhizome In Cold Periods
IN THIS GUIDE Can You Grow Canna Lily In Pots? Choosing Growing Pots Potting Compost For Canna Planting Canna In Pots Potted Canna Care Cannas display a profusion of fan-shaped leaves that are usually in rich tones of green but many varieties feature dramatic foliage in red and bronze shades – with some even flaunting variegated striped leaves. They are irregularly shaped and have wavy, ruffled petals. For the most part, they are seen in warm, vibrant tones but elegant whites and soft yellows are also available. These plants usually grow to 1-1.5m in height but can be taller if the right conditions are provided. Can You Grow Canna Lily In Pots? Yes you can! In fact, if you are located in a region with a hardiness of H4 (most of the UK) or colder, then it will probably be to your advantage to do so. That’s because canna rhizomes must be overwintered indoors in cold parts of the country, and a pot can simply be moved as-is indoors. Here is a canna I grew from seed and placed on the windowsill of my bedroom at home: Living in Leeds, I found it highly advantageous to be able to move this to suitable climes during summer and then winter, though it needed regular watering – especially in such a small pot. It has flourished in a north-facing windowsill of my home in the colder months of the year – and grew much faster when placed outside in the summer months. I will transplant this into a much larger pot next year and expect it to flower for the first time. Choosing Growing Pots Cannas require large containers as they are big plants – they grow to at least 1m and 2m tall varieties are not uncommon. Though small pots are perfectly suitable for the relatively unusual dwarf cannas, you will need 30-40L pots for full-size canna varieties. Besides size, the container has to be sturdy enough to accommodate the necessary amount of soil and the size and weight of the plant. It must also be strong, so sturdy plastic or ceramic pots are better choices. Whichever type of container you choose, it must have drainage holes of sufficient size and number because very good drainage is required. Potting Compost For Canna Cannas require well-draining, loose soil that is rich and fertile with little clay and that retains moisture. A mixed loam amended with grit, perlite, or both, and with ample organic compost or even some well-rotted manure, will be perfect for these plants. Although these plants tolerate many kinds of soils, blooming will be affected in less fertile soils. Further amending the soil with vermiculite or laying a thin layer of mulch on the surface will retain moisture, which is especially important for outdoor potted Cannas in the summertime. A slightly acidic soil pH is ideal, but not essential. Planting Canna In Pots Canna rhizomes should be planted when the soil temperature is 10°C or higher. Late spring to early summer will work fine in most regions of the UK. As a rule of thumb, rhizomes should be planted about twice as deep as the rhizome is wide, which usually means a depth of 6-10cm. They should be planted horizontally with the eyes upward. If the rhizome has any roots, you know which is the downward side. Cannas are sun-lovers by nature, so full sun is just about mandatory for these plants. Initially, water sparingly just so that the soil becomes moist. Continue doing so until the rhizome sends up stalks and leaves, increasing the amount of water thereafter. As the plant matures, water it generously so that the soil stays moist throughout. How Many Cannas Per Pot? You should plant Cannas one to an appropriately-sized container. They are big plants and also grow very quickly, so they need room to develop their root system. However, you could plant several cannas in a large planter, but they will need to be spaced according to their respective heights and spreads. Most Canna varieties should be spaced by 40-50cm. Potted Canna Care These tropical plants prefer moist soil and soil in containers dries out quicker than that of a bed, so special attention should be paid to watering, especially in hot weather. The soil should not be allowed to dry out and stay dry as moist soil is preferred. Fertilise these plants with a granular controlled-release fertiliser in mid-spring or with a ready-to-pour liquid fertiliser once a month before and during the flowering season. Choose a high-potassium formulation. Canna rhizomes multiply and periodic division is even more important for container-grown plants than those growing in the ground. If rhizomes are allowed to keep multiplying, they will choke one another and compete for the limited nutrients in container soil, and, as a result, plant health and blooming will adversely be affected. In most regions of the UK, cannas need winter protection. If grown in a container, they can be moved indoors into a warmer location over the winter months.
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'Make Sure You Start Sweet Peas At The Right Time Of Year' Advises Expert Grower
IN THIS GUIDE When To Sow 1) Prepare The Growing Area 2) Sow The Seeds 3) Prick Out & Pot On 4) Plant Out Sweet peas are popular annual flowers and are often planted in a cut flower garden. As nitrogen-fixing plants, they can also be beneficial as companion plants in a kitchen garden. These are cottage garden favourites, with a delightful visual appeal and scent. Fortunately, if you want some in your own garden, they are very easy plants to grow from seed. Sweet peas can be sown either in spring or autumn, and the process is very simple: Prepare seed trays, small pots, or soil blocks with a moist, peat-free seed-starting compost. Plant the seeds in trays or pots around 1cm deep. Place seeds in a sunny spot indoors, or in a greenhouse, polytunnel or cold frame. Harden off and plant out sweet peas into their final growing positions once all risk of frost has passed. Difficulty Easy Equipment Required Seeds, seed tray or pots When To Sow March-May or October-November When To Plant Out April-June When To Sow “The best piece of advice I have for sweet pea newbies is to make sure that they start sweet peas at the right time of year,” says Georgina, the owner of the specialist plant nursery, Sweet Pea Gardens. “Sweet peas are hardy annuals, so they like to get started in cooler temperatures. “Some people even start them in the autumn so that they can overwinter them in a cold frame or unheated greenhouse.” As Georgina mentions, you can sow sweet pea seeds in spring or autumn. If you sow in spring, the plants will be placed out the same year, but if you sow in autumn, you will need to have somewhere frost-free that they can overwinter before being placed out into the garden the following spring. 1) Prepare The Growing Area “Trying to germinate seeds directly in the ground is too tempting for marauding birds and mice who just love to eat a fresh sweet pea seed,” explains Georgina. Instead, sweet peas can be sown into a range of different containers. “Even in my greenhouse on benches, mice love to eat my sweet pea seeds, leaving perfect seed-size holes where they gratefully extract them,” Master Horticulturist Colin Skelly adds. “To get around this, I cover pots with fine metal mesh until they have germinated.” You might choose to sow your seeds into seed trays before potting them up into their own containers. You can start them in soil blocks, in toilet roll tubes or in other biodegradable pots, and you can plant up to 3 seeds in 9cm pots. I like to start sweet peas in toilet roll tubes since these plants tend to do well if they are placed in long, thin containers so their roots grow deeply and narrowly. Also, when you plant in toilet roll tubes, you do not need to prick them out but can simply let them grow and then plant them out into your garden as is. I have also grown sweet peas in sowing trays with an amazing success rate: 2) Sow The Seeds Some people suggest steps like nicking the seeds (avoiding the eye) or soaking and sprouting seeds prior to sowing. However, I do not bother as I tend to get good germination rates with sweet peas without any additional steps, which one of our experts also agrees with. “Modern seeds have soft shells so do not need to be soaked or chipped before sowing,” says Carole Tate from the National Sweet Pea Society. I simply place the seeds around 1cm deep into the tubes, covering them with my growing medium and firming the soil gently into place. 3) Prick Out & Pot On I keep my sweet peas on a sunny windowsill indoors until they germinate, then move the seedlings into my polytunnel. Your next steps will, of course, depend on which containers you have chosen and where you have sown your seeds. Prick out and pot on seedlings as required, Georgina says, but just make sure they are large enough to handle. “Sweet peas are hungry and thirsty plants, so make sure that you add plenty of compost to the area where they are to be planted,” she explains. “After, add some water to keep the soil moist but not drenched.” 4) Plant Out Once the sweet peas get around 10cm tall, pinch out the growing tips to encourage the plants to bush out. Harden off your plants to gradually acclimatise them to outdoor growing conditions, then place them into their final growing positions in your garden once all risk of frost has passed in your area.
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Here's How Emily Cupit Sows Cornflower Seeds For An Annual Meadow Display
IN THIS GUIDE When To Sow 1) Prepare The Site 2) Sow The Seeds 3) Keep The Soil Moist Cornflowers are popular plants for beds, borders and wildflower meadows. They are incredibly easy and low-maintenance annuals to grow in your garden and are wonderful for the wildlife with whom you share your space. Cornflowers are simply sown in spring, directly where they are to grow. Commonly, they are sown alongside other annual meadow plants like corn, marigolds, and poppies to create an annual meadow display. You can also directly sow them as companion plants in a vegetable garden. Difficulty Easy Equipment Required Seeds, a rake When To Sow March-May or September When To Sow The seeds should be sown in spring or at the end of September. However, I would recommend that cornflower seeds should be directly sown where they are to flower in March or April. 1) Prepare The Site If you are interested in creating an annual meadow area or you are sowing wildflowers in your garden, you might have to sow seeds every year even though many of the plants self-seed. These planting schemes produce stunning displays of colour throughout 3-4 months of the year. You will need to make sure that you have a clear and weed-free area in full sun. “Fork the soil to the depth of the fork’s tines to ensure good drainage and then lightly rake back level,” says Peter Lickorish, a Lecturer on Horticulture at Bedford College. “The cool blues, purples and white tones of cornflowers can be lifted by planting colours that sit opposite them in the colour wheel, such as yellows and oranges. “Californian poppies fit this scheme and so do Eremurus, the foxtail lily, which could be planted bare-root into the same soil conditions as cornflower, at the same time as spring sowings. “Alternatively, select a mixed seed pack or a variety of cultivars.” 2) Sow The Seeds If you are sowing cornflowers as part of a more ordered bed or border, you might like to sow the seeds in rows. However, in most cases, cornflowers look best when broadcast over an area and covered over lightly using a rake. “Tamp down the soil with the back of the rake to ensure good consolidation,” advises Peter. Should you wish you can also grow cornflower seeds in propagation trays, though this is usually not necessary. Remember, you might use a cornfield annual meadow mix, with cornflowers mixed with other seeds. “If there is a lot of grass in the seed mix, a poorer soil is best, to restrict grass growth,” Peter adds. 3) Keep The Soil Moist Make sure that you keep the soil moist during dry spells until seeds germinate and while planting is young. Other than this, cornflowers will require little care. In ornamental beds or borders, you can stake tall, wiry cultivars in exposed locations, and deadhead in summer to prolong the period of blooming. However, in general, you can simply watch and enjoy through the summer months then leave flowers to set seed towards the end of the season as a feast for garden birds.
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Planting Winter Cropping Potatoes You Can Grow To Enjoy For Christmas Dinner
IN THIS GUIDE Plant Them In July Or August 1) Choose Your Potatoes 2) Find A Suitable Location 3) Plant Your Tubers 4) Earth Up Potatoes 5) Remove & Compost Dead Foliage 6) Keep Tubers In Pots Until Required Potatoes are a staple crop for many home growers, and most will plant tubers in spring to harvest in summer or autumn. However, what many do not realise is that if you have an undercover growing area such as a greenhouse or polytunnel, you can enjoy not only stored maincrop potatoes for your Christmas dinner – but also potentially delicious new potatoes too. Christmas cropping potatoes are the first or second early potato varieties that are planted not in the spring, but in mid-late summer or autumn. These potatoes will create a crop of new potatoes that you can harvest over the festive period. In order to be able to grow potatoes late into the year, you will generally require an undercover growing area. However, this job may also be possible in some more sheltered and warmer parts of the UK if you use cloches, row covers or other forms of protection. If you would like to grow fresh potatoes for Christmas, here is what you need to do: Choose a variety of potatoes (such as ‘Charlotte’ or ‘Maris Peer’) to grow and source your seeds. Select a suitable location for your potatoes. Plant your potato tubers into the container you have chosen. Earth up your tubers, and ensure that frost-free conditions are maintained. Once foliage dies down in late autumn, remove and compost this, leaving tubers in place. Keep the tubers safe in their pots until the festive season. Difficulty Medium Equipment Required Pots, greenhouse or polytunnel When To Plant July-August Plant Them In July Or August When precisely you plant Christmas cropping potatoes will depend on where you live and the conditions to be found there, and when the first frosts are expected. Generally speaking, this is a job that you undertake either in the second half of July or in August. Here in Scotland, I tend to get a better crop if I plant Christmas cropping potatoes close to the end of July, while for growers in most of England, August planting in a polytunnel or greenhouse is typically recommended. 1) Choose Your Potatoes My favourite potatoes for Christmas cropping are ‘Charlotte’ and ‘Maris Peer’, but any first-early or second-early potato varieties can be used. It is important to note that you cannot simply take summer-harvested tubers and replant these. The tubers go through a long period of dormancy after harvesting so they will not grow. What you need to do is either purchase cold-stored potato tubers from a commercial vendor in the summer or hold back tubers purchased in spring by keeping them in a cool light place throughout the warmer months. The latter is more difficult because these held-back tubers will develop long and rather fragile shoots, which can get aphid problems and must be checked often for issues. I sometimes hold back some tubers to plant but have experienced mixed results. 2) Find A Suitable Location Once you have chosen a variety and sourced the seed potato tubers, you need to decide where to plant them. As mentioned above, growing new potatoes for Christmas will usually involve undercover growing in a greenhouse or a polytunnel or, at the very least, giving outdoors-grown plants more protection to keep them frost-free in autumn. Container growing is generally the easiest option, since containers won’t take up much space in your growing areas and can be protected more easily as the weather grows cold. There are a number of different container options to consider. You can use large pots, barrels, buckets, sacks or grow bags. I use large reclaimed buckets to grow my Christmas-cropping potatoes, placing these outdoors and then moving them into my unheated polytunnel which, with added thermal mass, stays frost-free in all but the most extreme of winters where I live. 3) Plant Your Tubers Once you have decided on a container for your Christmas cropping potatoes, place a little of your growing medium in the base (around 15cm deep), then place your tubers on top. Cover them over with another 15cm or so of the growing medium so your containers are around 1/3 full. Any peat-free multipurpose potting mix will be fine, and I use a homemade mix of 1/3 loam soil, 1/3 compost and 1/3 leaf mould. I also lay the tubers on a bed of comfrey leaves, to provide additional nutrients upon planting. A rough guideline to follow when deciding how many potatoes to place in a container is that you should allow 10L of capacity for each tuber you plant. So, in a container with a 50L capacity, you can place 5 seed potatoes. Using this as a rule of thumb can help you determine spacing, but use common sense as well. 4) Earth Up Potatoes Once shoots emerge from the top of this growing medium, you will gradually ‘earth up’ the potato plants as they continue to grow, just as you do when growing potatoes in the ground. Remember to water consistently, watering at the base of the plants rather than from above, for best results. Don’t allow the growing medium to dry out but avoid waterlogging. To give potatoes a boost you can also consider watering with an organic liquid plant feed. I use a seaweed liquid feed or compost tea when watering around 3 times over late summer and early autumn. The most important thing, however, when growing new potatoes for Christmas, is to make sure that the area where you are keeping your potatoes remains frost-free. Taking steps like increasing thermal mass and adding insulation can help keep an unheated undercover growing area free from frost as winter approaches. 5) Remove & Compost Dead Foliage In late autumn, the foliage on your potato plants will die back. Once this happens, remove and compost this material (as long as it is disease free). 6) Keep Tubers In Pots Until Required The tubers should remain safe below the surface in your containers. However, look out for squirrels, rodents or other pests, and where necessary, cover the tops of the containers to make sure no one gets to the tubers or unearths them before you do. When you want to harvest, you can just delve into the container to find potatoes to harvest if you need only a few at a time, or you can tip out the whole container and harvest the tubers from within it all at once for a special festive meal. “I have never grown potatoes for Christmas but growing in a container in my greenhouse looks like a viable option,” shares Master Horticulturist Colin Skelly. “I may need some metal mesh to keep out the mice as they would definitely take an active interest.”
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Planting Muscari (Grape Hyacinth) Bulbs In Autumn With Gardener Emily Cupit
IN THIS GUIDE When To Sow 1) Choose Muscari Bulbs 2) Choose A Suitable Location 3) Plant Your Bulbs Muscari, also known as ‘grape hyacinths’, are small spring bulbs that produce attractive, usually blue-purple blooms to provide for pollinators and provide visual appeal early in the year. They look wonderful on their own and can spread to create a ground cover, but are perhaps at their best when combined with other beautiful spring bulbs. Muscari are a very simple bulb to plant and grow in your garden. In autumn, simply: Select a muscari variety to grow and source your bulbs. Choose where to grow your muscari. Plant your bulbs around 10cm deep in a bed, border or container, with the pointy ends upwards. When To Sow Plant Muscari bulbs in autumn – between September and November. 1) Choose Muscari Bulbs If you would like to grow Muscari in your garden then the first step is to select bulbs to plant. There are a number of different species and cultivars that you might consider. You could try M. armeniacum ‘Christmas Pearl’, M. ‘Jenny Robinson’, M. azureum or M. latifolium. 2) Choose A Suitable Location You can plant the bulbs in containers, or a bed or border. These spring flowers look wonderful at the front of a bed or border, where over a few years they will spread and create a good ground cover. Muscari can also naturalise in a lawn or meadow scheme, in the open or below deciduous trees. As a good ground cover, early pollinator and spring ephemeral, they can be beneficial within an eco-friendly fruit tree guild or forest garden. These flowers draw in early pollinators, ensuring these are present by the time that a fruit tree blossoms. They can also catch and store nutrients and water during this early part of the year. When planted around the drip line of a tree, muscari, like other spring bulbs, can also help keep grass out of the guild area. “Layering your planting both in height and across the growing season maximises the amount of garden plants that you can have in a space,” says Colin Skelly, a Horticultural Consultant. “Any gaps in space throughout the season will be an opportunity for unintended plants (weeds) to find a place to germinate. “Bulbs like muscari are great spring flowering layering plants whose leaves will continue to occupy the space long after flowering has ceased.” Muscaris also work very well in pots, and as well as growing them on their own, you can also create mixed container displays using muscari alongside other spring bulbs. You can create a bulb lasagne by layering different spring bulbs within a container, to create displays that look good all through spring. 3) Plant Your Bulbs Planting muscari bulbs is very easy. Wherever you wish to grow muscari, simply make trenches or holes around 10cm deep, place the bulbs, and then cover them back up again. You can also layer bulbs in a pot a little over 10cm from the top of the container, before placing the bulbs and covering them with 10cm of soil. If you wish to plant muscari in the ground, it is best to plant them in clumps for a more natural look. Make holes or trenches and place a handful of the bulbs within each one. The bulbs should be around bulb width apart, and the pointed end should face upwards. In a container, the bulbs can be placed more closely because a display of bulbs in a container will not be intended to be as long-lasting as bulbs in the ground. If you are layering bulbs in a container, make sure that you do not place your muscari bulbs directly above the bulbs you have placed in a lower tier.
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Planting Iris Bulbs In Autumn: Remember That Good Drainage Is Key To Good Results
IN THIS GUIDE When To Sow Irises 1) Choose Your Bulbs 2) Pick An Ideal Location 3) Plant Your Iris Bulbs Bulb irises can be impressive and reliable plants to grow in your garden or in containers. They thrive in a sunny position and can cope with a range of different soils. There are a number of different species and cultivars to choose from, some of which flower between February and March, and others that flower in May or June. Fortunately, these spring bulbs are very easy to grow. In autumn you should: Select an iris cultivar to grow and source your bulbs. Choose a suitable location. Plant your bulbs around 15cm deep and usually around 5-7.5cm apart. When To Sow Irises Sow iris bulbs between September and November, ideally earlier in the autumn months. You should aim to plant bulbs as quickly as possible once you have them. 1) Choose Your Bulbs The first thing to decide if you would like to plant iris bulbs is which particular irises you would like to grow. As you can see I opted for Iris x hollandica ‘Tiger Mix’. You should think about their bloom time, as well as the colours and the size to which a particular species will grow. 2) Pick An Ideal Location Once you have decided which type and variety of irises to grow, your next decision to make is where to grow them. Some types prefer neutral or alkaline soil and some can also cope with shade, however, the optimal growing conditions depend on which variety you have chosen to grow. Full sun and free-draining are the key things to remember for most bulb irises that you might grow. You can grow bulb irises in a bed or border in your garden, naturalise them en masse below deciduous trees or in a lawn or meadow scheme, or plant them in pots. If you choose to grow irises in a container, you can consider creating a bulb lasagne and you can layer them along with other spring bulbs to create attractive displays that bloom over a longer period of time. “Iris bulbs, both spring and summer flowering, are brilliant for adding vertical accents to borders or pot displays in combination with other bulbs or perennials,” says Colin Skelly, a Horticultural Consultant. “This type of ‘lasagne’ planting is called layering and means that several flowering plants can occupy to same space through time. It is the mark of a skilled gardener to combine these artfully.” “If you want to make an impact, buy three of the same variety, and, if you are prepared to wait, buy single varieties and allow them to bulk up,” recommends Simon Dodsworth, the owner of the specialist nursery The English Iris Company. 3) Plant Your Iris Bulbs If you plan on planting quite a few iris plants, a bulb hole maker or planter will make your job easier. It is typically best to plant deeply for better chances of successful flowering, so as a general guideline, I’d recommend planting bulb irises around 15cm deep. If planting in the ground, simply make your holes to this depth, then fill them back in and firm the soil gently into place. The bulbs should be placed no closer than 5-7.5cm apart, according to the RHS. However, if growing in containers, you can get away with closer spacing since this won’t be a permanent display. Make sure the bulbs are not touching, but you can place them as little as 1 bulb width apart, or even a little less. Remember, when growing in a container, you might use irises in a bulb lasagne with other spring bulbs. One important thing to remember is that, if you want to create a bulb lasagne, the bulbs should not be placed directly above those in the tiers below. “Apply a bone meal fertiliser and water in well after planting,” says Simon. “Check the bulbs in 2-3 days to make sure that roots have taken hold. In dry conditions, continue to water sparingly every 2-3 days.” Wherever you plant your irises, remember that good drainage is key to good results. So, whether in the ground or in pots, make sure that excess water can drain away freely.
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Plant Your Amaryllis Bulbs In September And They'll Bloom In Time For Christmas
IN THIS GUIDE When To Plant 1) Soak Bulbs Before Planting 2) Choose A Container 3) Plant The Bulb 4) Leave In A Warm & Dark Place 5) Move To A Bright Location Amaryllis are subtropical plants popular for growing as houseplants in the UK. Their flamboyant blooms are a cheerful sight to brighten up your home over winter and in early spring. When amaryllis bulbs are planted in September, they should bloom in time for your Christmas festivities. Here is the process involved in planting amaryllis bulbs: Soak the bulb in tepid water for a few hours before planting. Select a pot in which to plant your bulb that is just large enough to accommodate it. Sit the bulb on top of the compost, top up with compost and water in well. Leave the bulb in a warm and dark location for a couple of weeks until a shoot emerges. Once a shoot emerges, place in a bright spot out of direct sunlight in your home. Watch our video explanation of this process or read below for further information: When To Plant Plant amaryllis bulbs indoors around 6-8 weeks before you would like it to flower. If you would like your plant to be in bloom for Christmas, planting in mid to late September is generally the best idea. Results can vary somewhat, but counting back 8 weeks from when you want the plant to bloom should tell you roughly when to plant. 1) Soak Bulbs Before Planting Once you have sourced your amaryllis bulbs, you should soak them in tepid water for a few hours before you plant them into containers. This helps to rehydrate the roots and can speed up the process of growth. 2) Choose A Container Select a pot that is just a little larger than the bulb. Don’t use a container that is too large, since these are plants that like to have their roots constricted. They actually do best when they become pot-bound, so there should be no more than 1cm or so of your growing medium on each side of the bulb. You can fill your pot with any peat-free multipurpose compost. “I prefer to use peat-free John Innes no.2 for Amaryllis bulbs,” shares Colin Skelly, a Horticulturist with 5 years of experience working at The Eden Project. “If using peat-free compost, I will always add horticultural grit to the mix to ensure that the mix is free-draining.” It is also a good idea to top the pot around the edges of the bulb, with horticultural grit. 3) Plant The Bulb Place some compost in the pot and place the bulb so that it is sitting on top. Top up a little compost around the sides of the bulb and then water it in well, making sure that the medium is moist but excess water is able to drain away. 4) Leave In A Warm & Dark Place Next, place the bulb into its pot in a warm, dark place. Leave it there, checking on it regularly, until a shoot emerges. 5) Move To A Bright Location Once a shoot emerges from your amaryllis bulb, you should then move the plant in its pot to the position where it will flower within your home. A suitable location will be bright, but out of direct sunlight, and should also be draft-free and somewhere where the temperatures do not fluctuate too much. Again, make sure excess water can drain away and don’t water too much, as the bulbs need reasonably free-draining conditions. Follow these steps and you should only have to wait around 6-8 weeks to see your amaryllis bloom.
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As A Basic Rule, Sow Violas Indoors Around 10-12 Weeks Before Spring Planting
IN THIS GUIDE When To Sow Violas 1) Sowing Seeds Indoors 2) Sowing Seeds Directly Violas are a varied genus of plants that includes pansies, which are hybrids bred and derived from the Viola species. When we talk about violas in the UK, we are usually referring to the smaller-flowered and typically perennial flowering plants from which pansies were derived, not pansies themselves. Most commonly, we are talking about Viola tricolor or Viola odorata. Both of these can be grown from seed, though the latter can be more challenging and take longer to germinate. When sowing viola seeds, there are two main options: Sow indoors 10-12 weeks before spring planting. Sow directly in early spring or autumn. Difficulty Medium Equipment Required Seeds, seed tray or pots, compost, propagator When To Sow Late winter or early spring When To Plant Out April-May When To Sow Violas Viola seeds can typically be sown indoors around 10-12 weeks before they are planted out into your garden in spring, after the last frost date in your area. There is also the option of directly sowing viola seeds in your garden, which you can do either in the early spring or in the autumn. The natural stratification process can help some violas to germinate more successfully. 1) Sowing Seeds Indoors Start preparing for indoors sowing around 10-12 weeks before the last frost date in your area. Prepare a seed tray or a container by filling it with a seed-starting growing medium. Sow the viola seeds on the surface of the growing medium then cover them lightly with a little more of the growing medium. Make sure the seeds are covered as they require dark conditions for germination. With most species, you can expect germination to take place within 2-3 weeks. Ensure the soil remains moist during the germination process but that waterlogging does not occur. A heat mat or heated propagator can aid the germination process. You should then prick out and pot on seedlings as required. You may need to use grow lights when starting indoors to make sure that the seedlings don’t become weak and leggy due to the lack of light for early sowings. By spring, when the time comes to harden them off and plant them out, they should be close to the size at which they will flower. 2) Sowing Seeds Directly You can also directly sow viola seeds in containers or growing areas outdoors in the autumn or the early spring. When sown in autumn, the seeds will undergo natural stratification over the winter and will then often germinate more successfully come spring. “When sowing directly outside, make sure to accurately mark where you have sown them,” says Master Horticulturist Colin Skelly. “Keeping the area seed-free will be critical to good germination.”
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