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November 11 2023 £2.50

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Dramatic
blue-tinged
foliage to
catch the eye

WORTH £2.69!
‘So many
reasons to love
the mint family!’

Expert
advice!
Rob Smith
is guarding

A TREE
against the
weather

FOR ALL
Martin Fish
on how to

SEASONS!
repair your
autumn lawn

Stefan Buczacki
answers your Why crab apples are the
thorny garden perfect fit for any garden
problems PLUS plant up a spring basket
 s ide! Snatch what
Look in you can outdoors! time
ABOUT NOW

T
4 News from the gardening world
5 New for the Book Shelf
6 The Natural Gardener
FEATURES
10 Garden of the Week
14 Grow wonderful crab apples that delight
both us and our garden wildlife
18 Lift the spirits by planning a post-winter
plot full of fabulous blue-toned foliage
22 Carol Klein sings the praises of the
huge mint plant family, plus her
gardening week at Glebe Cottage
WHAT TO DO THIS WEEK
27 Plant a pot for spring, with a cheap and
simple hack to protect it for winter
28 Look for your garden’s self-sown
perennials, plus how to care for
ferns, poinsettias and more
31 An autumn lawn repair
masterclass with Martin Fish
32 Plant grapevines and tidy rhubarb
34 Kitchen Gardener Rob Smith is
protecting plants for winter
35 A delicious apple and berry sponge
recipe from Karen Gimson
THE EXPERTS
36 Medwyn Williams reports back from
a summer of showing and judging
38 Stefan Buczacki solves your plot problems
– the pests that go for beet and chard, sad
cypress, why trees won’t fruit, the truth
about bitter pit, wisteria in pots and more
YOU AND YOUR GARDENS
8 Your Garden Gems! You share your top tips
24 Over the Fence – real readers’ gardens
47 Your letters and photos
OFFERS & COMPETITIONS
45 Win prizes with our crossword
49 Buy a bargain Oriental poppy collection
he days are suddenly very
short, aren’t they? I’ve
mentioned before how
the changing of the clocks
always catches me out – and this year
is no exception! Gone are the days
when I can turn off my computer at
the end of the day’s work and have a
few minutes of fresh air taking a look
around the garden. I can still get the
fresh air, of course, but it’s very dark!
And with November’s weather
changeable (and that’s a kind way of
putting it!), snatching time outdoors
can be a tricky proposition. But if you’re
able to get out there it can be very
rewarding – and I
love our idea of
planting up a
spring pot (see
page 27).
As the days
get shorter
and colder, it’s a
lovely, hopeful
Write to Simon Caney, Garden News, Media House, Peterborough Business Park,
Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA
thing to do – it will not only survive
but flourish through winter and be
ready to burst into flower when the
days get warmer again. And there’s a
great hack to protect your planter, too.
There are plenty more things to do
in the garden now, as you’ll see on
pages 28-33, and many of them involve
sowing and planting. Autumn really
isn’t just a season of chopping back,
tidying up and hunkering down!
That said, I do find it satisfying to
fill my brown bin at this time of year
as I slowly put the garden to bed. It’s
surprising how many weeds still seem
happy to pop up no matter what the
weather, isn’t it? And I’ve now cut all
of my perennials back so the borders
look a little bare but at least they’re neat.
Next job will be to apply some lovely
leaf mould to the soil. At the same
time I’m collecting leaves and bagging
them up to make more for next year. I
won’t even think about them until next
autumn! Have a great gardening week.
Garden News
Editor

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the Week

Our cover star:

Malus ‘Butterball’
This small ornamental
crab apple is known
for its stunning golden-
31 42
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yellow fruits. For more Carry out Plant
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fabulous compact varieties grapevines
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November 11 2023 / Garden News 3
 UK MAKES STRIDES
IN PEAT-FREE
GROWING
RHS rolls out initial list
of nurseries embracing
eco-friendly practices,
reports Ian Hodgson
A
survey of hundreds
of nurseries and
growers from around
the UK has provided
an insight into the status of
peat-free growing in the UK.
The study, carried out by the RHS,
shows significant progress is being
made by commercial and retail
growers, with almost a third of the
427 respondents growing peat-free
across all plant ranges, with the
exception of young or plug plants,
where it’s difficult to find alternatives,
or which are imported growing in
peat from Europe. A further 17% of
respondents were verified as being
100% peat-free across all operations.
WHAT DOES PEAT-FREE MEAN?
If a nursery has been
verified by the RHS as being
100% peat-free, it means
there is no peat present in
the growing media used
for its plant production,
including young or plug
plants. These nurseries
offer a wide range of plant
types and are located across
the country, with online
options too. The list is
divided up by region, with
online-only retailers also
included in the relevant
The memorial
sculpture was
unveiled in 1991
4 Garden News / November 11 2023
In-house trials are being held
in a number of wholesale growers
such as Lovania, Hillier, Allensmore
and The Bransford Webbs Plants
Company, who collectively
supply hundreds of thousands
of plants to garden centres.
The RHS hopes the list of 70-plus
peat-free growers will allow more
gardeners and suppliers to access
peat-free plants. RHS director
regional list, so from a
sustainability perspective,
it’s easy to see which
suppliers are based locally.
■ To see the list of peat-
free growers visit rhs.org.
uk/peatfreenurseries.
Use the list to find
a peat-free grower
Memorial garden gains listed status
A memorial sculpture and
garden founded to honour
those killed in the Piper
Alpha oil rig disaster of 1988 has
been awarded listed status.
The ‘Piper Alpha Memorial
Garden/North Sea Memorial
Rose Garden’ at Hazlehead Park,
Aberdeen, is considered nationally
of science Alistair Griffiths said:
“The survey provides a snapshot
of the industry at this point in
time and highlights the gathering
momentum and desire for change
within much of the sector.”
The government has committed
to stopping the sale of peat to
amateur gardeners by the end of
2024, with peat use in professional
horticulture scheduled to stop
in 2026, with some exemptions
to 2030. But ongoing challenges
include the consistency and
reliability of supplies of raw
materials, such as chipped
bark, coir and green waste to
produce peat-free alternatives.
“During 2023 over 50% of
our range has been trialled
successfully in peat-free compost,”
said Bransford Webbs’ technical
production director, Karl O’Neill.
“Looking ahead to 2024, we hope to
increase the size and depth of our
commercial trials with the aim of
becoming completely peat-free in a
realistic timescale that allows us to
continue to supply excellent plants
to garden centres across the UK.”
important by conservation body
Historic Environment Scotland
(HES) because they mark an historic
event of international significance
and are strongly valued by the
public as a site of memory.
Following a public consultation,
the Piper Alpha Memorial has been
listed category B, while the Memorial
PHOTOS: ALAMY, FIRST WE FEAST
Trials are being held
by a number of UK
growers who supply
plants to garden centres
Ben Malin, director of growing
media manufacturer EJ Godwin,
said at a recent Horticultural Trades
Association (HTA) conference:
“As an industry we know how
to make peat-free compost,
but the availability, quality and
sustainability in the supply of
products is a problem. There will
be no cheap, peat-free composts.”
With cheaper, peat-grown
plants still imported from Europe,
growers are worried that such
stock will generate inequality in
the marketplace, undercutting
their market share. The HTA
continues to press government for
clarification on the issue to prepare
for the looming UK ban. However,
there are indications some
European countries are starting to
transition to peat-free. The German
government is introducing an
environmental plan to reduce
peat use in hobby gardening and
landscaping, as well as in public
works. The Netherlands aims to
increase the amount of renewable
raw materials in the retail sector to
60% by 2025, then 85% by 2050.
Garden is added to the Inventory of
Gardens and Designed Landscapes.
Piper Alpha was the world’s worst
offshore oil and gas disaster, where
165 men from a staff complement
of 226 were killed. The 80m x 95m
garden was recognised by a special
award in 1989 and is representative of
the work of David Welch, Aberdeen’s
 New chilli
breaks the
heat record
A chilli pepper that was bred
in complete secrecy is now
officially the hottest in the
world after being unveiled online.
‘Pepper X’ has a Scoville Heat
Unit (SHU) rating of an average
of 2,693,000, beating previous
record holder ‘Carolina Reaper’,
which averages 1.64 million SHU.
The dangerously hot pepper
was grown by Ed Currie, founder of
PuckerButt Pepper Company in the
USA, who crossed ‘Carolina Reaper’,
which he also bred, with another
‘brutally hot’ pepper. After trying
the pepper, one of only five people
to eat a whole one, Ed reported he
“was feeling the heat for three and
a half hours”. He said: “Then the
cramps came. I was laid out flat on
a marble wall for approximately an
hour in the rain, groaning in pain.”
The status has been confirmed by
Guinness World Records. Breeding
astronomic levels of capsaicin, the
substance that gives chillies their
heat, took Ed more than 10 years to
achieve. “Only a few of my closest
family and friends knew what was
going on,” said Ed, who now wants to
protect the intellectual and business
rights to his new offspring so has
no plans to sell pods and seeds, but
make it commercially available
in hot sauces and other products.
And he’s already hard at work on
his next potential record breaker.
‘Pepper X’ is
officially hot stuff!
former Director of Parks, who is known
for establishing the city’s reputation
for roses and floral display in its green
spaces in the 1970s and 1980s. The
Piper Alpha memorial by artist Sue
Jane Taylor was unveiled in 1991.
“Designated status for these sites
means their cultural significance
will be taken into account in
future decisions about their
management,” said Dara Parsons,
head of designations at HES.
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November 11 2023 / Garden News 5

Help out our
wildlife this winter
Words Karen Murphy,
GN’s eco-gardening expert
I
t’s easy to think our
gardens can’t offer
anything particularly
appealing to wildlife in winter.
We’ve got soggy soil, squishy
plants and leafless trees, which
isn’t exactly a banquet or a warm,
cosy home is it? In spring and
summer we go all out with bee
plants, billowing climbers, bulbs
and bee hotels, but there’s so
much we can bring in to bulk up
our winter gardens, which will
be so vital for them during the
cold season. And it’s a bonus that
it can look beautiful to us, too.
It’s at this time that we can
observe winter gaps, look
around and plan well. I’ve got
a bit of a blind spot in summer;
when I’m immersed in the buzz
of bee flowers and basking in
the warmth under leafy trees,
I simply can’t imagine what
will be needed later in the year.
But it’s not all about one or two
seasons – we should try and cater
for wildlife all year round.
Our birds are fond of evergreens
in which to nestle, where they
SMALL WAYS TO MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE
Give a frog a home
To create a pond with shallow
areas, pools and bog garden,
try a mini wetland kit, £125
from gardenpondshop.co.uk.
6 Garden News / November 11 2023
hide in sheltering, warming
branches. While some
conifers get a bad reputation
for being green, stout and
dull, there are so many that
light our outdoor spaces
up. Try a blue spruce or a fiery
orange incense cedar for standout
colour – perfect for planting now.
As for ivy, with the most
vigorous bits kept in check it
can work well as a lovely garden
addition and wildlife will love
it. Every garden animal favours
ivy for different reasons; its
pretty autumn flowers are
visited by bees and butterflies, it
provides shelter and butterflies
lay their eggs on it in summer.
Winter berries, of course, offer
a reliable supply of food. Try a
Berberis thunbergii, with glorious
flame-coloured foliage, so birds
such as blackbirds, thrushes and
waxwings can devour its bright
red fruits while spiky branches
provide predator-proof roosting.
Next is something for insects
as well as us to enjoy. Verbascums
are a wonder of eye-catching
architectural planting, with
huge flower spikes that turn to
crisp seed heads, adding form
Help save wild plants
Buy some gin, tea towels
or cards from Plantlife and
help save our wild plants.
Visit plantlife.org.uk.
Ivy is a favourite plant
of lots of garden visitors
to the winter garden. They add
function, too, as hibernators such
as ladybirds and lacewings tuck
themselves into the nooks and
crannies. Root cuttings taken now
will be ready to plant out in spring.
It’s also not too late to plant
winter aconites; these little yellow
buttercups are a welcome sight in
late winter as they bring sunshine
to shady spots. Bees, awaking
early from their winter slumber
are sorely in need of pollen and
nectar at that time and will lap up
these little blooms. Plant winter
heathers for the same reason.
Plant a tree
Plant a tree – any tree – but
one with berries, fruit or
open spring flowers helps
wildlife even more.
PHOTOS: SHUTTERSTOCK, ALAMY
Keep an eye out for...
November
moths
This demure
autumn moth
is common
over most of
the UK and can be
seen in gardens now.
And we mustn’t forget our
trusty mammals, amphibians and
reptiles. Leave a little grass long
on your lawn so they can shelter
where they’re not overlooked.
Long ornamental grasses such as
stipa, miscanthus and pampas look
stunning but are useful shelter, too.
Record the seasons
Note down seasonal changes
and observe the marvels of
your wildlife and weather to
best understand and enjoy it.
 TO
TIP!P
PAR-FECT
STORAGE
SOLUTION!
I’m a keen golfer

WIN!
as well as gardener.
I have several old
golf club bags and
they make an
excellent storage A Gardman Beach
container for the
garden canes. Hut Nest Box
You can store £17.99
different sizes
in the different Rob wins a green Gardman
holes in the bag, as well as twine Beach Hut Nest Box, which is a
and bits and bobs in the pockets! great way to help birds during
USE YOUR LOAF Rob Humphreys-Jones, by email the breeding season, courtesy
Simon says: Now there’s an idea, Rob. And of Westland. For more details
I love nothing better than fresh veggies
from the allotment; sprouts and cabbage a great way for me to justify putting a new about this product visit
are my favourites, but the smell when golf bag on my Christmas list, too! www.gardenhealth.com.
cooking is not! So I place a slice
of bread on top of the saucepan
and it helps to eliminate the

PHOTOS: ALAMY
rather pungent odour! WATER ON THE ‘CHEEP’
Claire Jackson,
I’ve had a ‘posh’ expensive bird bath for a few years
Leicestershire and it has always been well used. In spring I decided
to put out another source of water for the birds, but
just bought a plastic plant saucer for £ 2.50 from the
garden centre. I’ve had just as many birds using this
cheap alternative as the posh one. Shows you don’t
need to spend a fortune to keep the birds happy!
Jane Edwards, by email

SPRITZ
WITH SPRAY
When my cut flowers
have been in the
house for a few days
and will soon likely
start to wilt, I spray
them from beneath, in
an upwards direction,
with hairspray. It
prevents the petals
from falling and I get
several extra days of
pleasure from them.
Eva Kowalczyk,
by email

A TIGHT SQUEEZE! Got a great

Never throw out an old pair of idea or time-
tights! I have a bag full of them saving tip?
as they can be useful as tree ties. Share them
Now the weather is colder I dug out with our
my hot water bottle only to find
TOOTHPASTE TRICK it has a leak. Rather than throw it
out, I’ve stuffed it with some of the
readers. See
page 3 for
Got some worn out plastic garden furniture? To get rid of our contact
old tights and now I have a new details
unsightly scratches, apply a small amount of toothpaste and comfy knee pad for gardening!
to the surface and rub it in, then buff with a clean cloth. #GNREAL
Tracey O’Driscoll GARDENS
Dan Dunne, by email
Armagh, Northern Ireland

8 Garden News / November 11 2023

Gardeners Laura and
Derek Harrison (with help
with hedge-cutting)
Location South Glasgow
Size 2/3 acre
Aspect South-facing
Soil Heavy clay but
much improved
Been in garden 36 years
Open to public
Occasionally,
through Scotland’s
Gardens Scheme;
scotlandsgardens.org

Owl cottage, under

Full of free
the redwood, is a
cosy retreat for all
the family and a

SPIRIT
perfect spot for a cup
of tea on a chilly day

This Scottish garden has been created around

instinct, artistic experiments and pure joy
Words Naomi Slade When Laura and Derek Harrison you see what I mean. When we a semi-circular terrace outside
Photos Ray Cox first arrived, the good-sized garden started cutting back and tidying and this was surrounded by a

W
hile some gardens
are meticulously
planned, carefully
laid out and
precisely managed for a particular
effect, others just kind of happen.
And at a house called Kamares,
situated in the little town of Newton
Mearns just outside Glasgow, several
decades of gentle pottering have
resulted in something rather lovely.
that enveloped the single-story
house was nothing special. It did,
however, have a backbone of shrubs
planted by their predecessors
in the 1960s and there were
still a few treasures to find.
“The gardens were very sparse
at that point,” says Laura. “There
were just lawns and shrubs around
the outside, but it had all gone
very wild. It was over-mature,
but with not much planting if
up, it turned out there were a lot of
azaleas that had been swamped
by the bushes, so one of the first
jobs was to free them up!”
Next, Laura and Derek started
work on somewhere to sit and eat
outside. With the two sides of the
house wrapping around a central
courtyard and connected to the
garden via a wide colonnade, they
decided to extend the space into
the garden. To this end, they built
low wall and a couple of juicy
mixed borders, partially screening
a table and set of chairs.
“There are big windows all
around the building, and in
many ways the whole garden is
designed to be looked out upon,”
says Laura. “But the courtyard
has a very Spanish feel and we
spend a lot of time out there, and
particularly in summer it’s the most
important room in the house!”

10 Garden News / November 11 2023


From pots to borders to
evergreens, yellow foliage is
a theme that runs through
the garden. The dining area
on the half-moon-shaped
terrace in front of the
courtyard is immersed in
planting and sees a lot of
use in the summer months
As the garden developed, a
pergola was added to support swags
of climbing roses, along with a pond
and trickling water feature. A little
octagonal cottage, meanwhile,
was dubbed Owl Cottage after a
family collection. A much-loved
playhouse for the grandchildren,
it’s now Laura’s favourite place to sit
in winter with a cup of tea, looking
out onto a garden that’s full of
wonderful, happy family memories.
Over the years the garden has
become colourful and eclectic.
Trees and shrubs, clipped
topiary and acers, perennials
and roses jostle together with
joyous abandon, united not so
much by an overarching plan so
much as the things that Laura’s
currently interested in and likes
to put together. All this is evident
in the garden’s bold colours and
forms, and Laura clearly has an
eye for structure and framing.
“I’m an instinctive gardener; I like
to experiment and see what works.
I make lots of mistakes, but you
learn along the way, don’t you? I’m a
The trees and the height
they bring to the garden
is central to its success.
Below, over the years,
the trees have grown
and vistas have evolved
Laura’s planting style is characterised
by bold combinations of foliage
shape and form, like at this striking
pond area with gunnera, burgundy
painter and I think I see things like acers and tall conifers as a backdrop
the contrast between the textures
and shapes of different leaves and
I combine them unconsciously.”
She continues: “We have a
smoke bush with small, lime-green
leaves, and another that has large,
deep-red foliage, which looks
amazing when the sun shines
through them. I also use a lot of
evergreen shrubs, like Choisya
ternata, which gives a splash of
colour in winter when everything
dies down. Golden grasses are nice,
too, as it gets very dark up here.”
Continues over the page
November 11 2023 / Garden News 11
 Laura’s pick of four fabulous plants…
Redwoods
Grow to be giants, so not
one to take lightly planting
in your own garden!
Beautiful, tall conifer trees.
In recent years, Laura has
developed a passion for
roses, filling borders with
standard shrubs. Here
topiary, billowing perennials
and pots mix with the roses
to create a lively scene
All is not plain sailing, however,
and this being Scotland, the climate
always has its say. “We do have
issues with the weather sometimes,”
she admits. “We had a lot of big
phormiums for structure, but we
had a very wet winter followed by
a couple of freezing nights. It killed
most of them – but it’s a chance to
reconfigure the space, I suppose.”
In the three decades since the
family arrived, the trees have
grown and the space has changed
accordingly, with the three original
Betula pendula joined by a bevy of
bright acers together, surprisingly,
with two Sequoiadendron
giganteum, descended from
the General Sherman Tree in
12 Garden News / November 11 2023
Hakonechloa macra
A bright green perennial grass.
While deciduous, its leaves
take on tints of red in autumn
and can stay through winter.
California, which is thought to
be the largest tree in the world.
“We actually went to visit the
General Sherman Tree and brought
back a couple of cones – you could
in those days, you know,” reveals
Laura. “My mother propagated
them in the greenhouse, although
it’s supposed to be terribly difficult,
and we planted two in the garden!”
As Laura has discovered, being
surrounded by trees is both a
blessing and a challenge. On
the one hand the leaves can be
converted to useful leaf mould,
which she lavishes on the flower
beds. On the other, the garden is
now much shadier than it used
to be. But she’s relaxed about it.
Nepeta ‘Six Hills Giant’
Great for bees, this produces
big clumps of lavender
flowers on mounds of
minty foliage all summer.
“We mulch at the start of winter
and any time I think it needs it,” she
says. “The mulch suppresses weeds
and you don’t have too much bare
earth, and I also plant geraniums
all over the garden to fill gaps and
act as ground cover. But now more
areas are shady, we need to work out
what to do with those spaces, too.”
“There’s no real plan, it just
evolves in a fun and creative sort of
way. Some things work and some
things don’t! The garden has been
a sanctuary for us; it’s something
we do together and it’s been an
emotional and physical release in
challenging times. But it’s good fun
and we enjoy it with friends and
family, and that’s what it’s all about.”
Geranium ‘Rozanne’
PHOTOS: ALAMY, SHUTTERSTOCK
Perhaps the best-loved hardy
geranium due to its sky-
blue, large flowers, which
also attract pollinators.
… and her
top tips
1
When deciding what to
plant, take a look around
and see what’s growing
well. All areas are different,
so get to know the plants that
2
like your neighbourhood!
Gardening is all
about trial and error.
Put the plants in
and they’ll soon tell you
3
if they’re happy or not.
I always say to new
gardeners they should
go to the garden centre
every week to find out what’s
coming into flower and what
looks good. If you go often
enough and pick up a few
things each time, there’ll
be something of interest all
the way through the year.
 Grow
CRAB
APPLES
this autumn The perfect trees for small gardens,
they look stunning and offer treats
for us and wildlife to share
Words Louise Curley
A
s the last of the leaves
fall to the ground on
a blowy autumn day,
the emerging bare
branches of crab apple trees are
festooned with glowing miniature
apples, like nature’s own Christmas
baubles. In a good year they
can be so laden with fruit, the
branches sag under their weight.
If crab apples only produced this
display they’d be worth growing,
but for these fruit to form there
PHOTOS: SHUTTERSTOCK, ALAMY
The wild crab apple,
Malus sylvestris
14 Garden News / November 11 2023
is another seasonal spectacle
earlier in the year, when the
branches erupt, producing clouds
of spring blossom. Add to this the
autumn leaf colour and the fact
they’re one of the best trees to
attract wildlife – the flowers are a
magnet for pollinators, the leaves
are important for the caterpillars
of several moths and the fruit
draws in blackbirds, thrushes
and small mammals in winter The spring flowers
when other food sources are are a spectacular sight
scarce – and you have one of the
best garden trees you can grow.
Now’s the time to order a crab Europe and North America – the
apple from a specialist nursery. wild ancestors of the thousands of
Available between now and March, apple varieties that exist today.
bareroot plants are a budget-friendly
way to plant one. It also means Seasonal delights
the tree can get established before The blossom varies with variety,
summer, meaning it’s less likely from pure white to deep pink and it’s
to suffer if the weather is dry. often scented: a fresh, subtly sweet
perfume. The little apples can be
In the wild red, orange, yellow or purple from
It’s now rare to see our indigenous as small as 1cm in diameter up to
crab apple, Malus sylvestris, in the 5cm. Unlike some trees, which can
countryside. Any apples you do take time to be mature enough to
see growing in hedgerows, on produce flowers, crab apples will
woodland edges or by the side of a bloom after just two to three years.
road are most likely ‘wildings’: trees Most have a rounded, spreading
that have grown from discarded canopy, but there are varieties with
apple cores. It’s possible to buy M. weeping or more upright habits.
sylvestris from specialist nurseries
and it’s a good choice for wilder Care of crab apples
gardens and wildlife hedges, but To plant a crab apple, dig a hole
there’s a wide array of ornamental twice the width of the rootball, place
crab apples to choose from that the tree at the same depth, back-fill
are varieties of species from Asia, with soil, water thoroughly, and
 Top varieties to grow
The crop
A crab apple will will usually
enhance your plot hang on until winter
and contributes to
a healthier and more
diverse ecosystem

Malus hupehensis
is a prolific flowerer
Malus hupehensis
The Chinese crab apple has a
rounded canopy and pink buds
that unfurl to reveal white
blossom that blooms later than
most crabs, in late May into
June. Autumn brings a display
of dark red fruit. H: 5m, S: 4m.

Malus ‘Butterball’
A striking variety thanks to
its butter-yellow coloured
apples that persist well into
winter, and in spring the
white flowers have a subtle
blush of pink. H&S: 4m.

mulch around the base for moisture

retention and weed control.
Unlike cultivated apples, which
need pruning to keep them healthy
and produce a harvest, crab apples
are low maintenance. Just remove
any dead or damaged branches in
late winter when the tree is dormant
and you can see the bare branches.
You can also remove lower branches
if you want to lift the canopy.
‘Butterball’ is known
The yellow fruits for its exceptional
are both sweet disease resistance
and crisp
Malus toringo ‘Aros’
This relatively new variety
has unusual purple-bronze
foliage, deep pink flowers
with flashes of white and
tiny, dark red/maroon apples.
It’s compact and upright so
ideal for small gardens and
containers. H: 3m, S: 1m.

The dark, shiny

leaves match the
Plant in a sunny location Purple foliage and flowers maroon fruits
with well-drained soil have a luxurious appeal

Continues over the page

November 11 2023 / Garden News 15

 Top varieties to grow... continued
Malus ‘Sun Rival’
Said to be the best
weeping crab apple,
the sweeping branches
tumble to the ground,
creating a cascade of
white blossom and bright
red fruits. H: 4m, S: 3m.
This variety is
known for its
bright fruits
Malus ‘Evereste’
One of the most popular crab
apples, its deep pink buds open
into white blossom with a hint
of blush pink. The orange-red
fruit are particularly long
lasting on the tree, remaining
well after Christmas when
they’re gobbled up by
blackbirds. H: 6m, S: 5m.
‘Evereste’
is popular
with pollinators
Bright foliage is an
added attraction
16 Garden News / November 11 2023
‘Sun Rival’ has an
unusual umbrella shape
Dazzling white flowers
appear in April
Malus ‘Roberts Red’
A very ornamental tree with
purple-red foliage, crimson
blossom and large (for a crab
apple) purplish black fruit
that are red when cut open,
adding wonderful colour to
jams and jellies. H: 4m, S: 3m.
These fruits are
suitable for juicing
The cherry-like fruits of
‘Red Sentinel’
Malus robusta
‘Red Sentinel’
Pretty pink-
tinged blooms
are succeeded
by glossy, deep
red, cherry-
like fruit and
Dainty blossom attractive autumn
lights up late spring leaf colour.
H: 5m, S: 4m.
CRAB APPLE TREATS
● Crab apples are hard and sour
so need to be cooked before being
eaten. The most common way to
use them is to make a jelly to serve
with cooked meat. The apples, which
contain a high amount of pectin
that helps the
jelly set, are
boiled in water to make a pulp. This is strained
through a jelly bag and the resulting liquid is
then heated with sugar and lemon juice.
● For something a bit different, make crab
apple liqueur by steeping the apples with
some sugar in vodka, gin or even whisky.
SUPPLIERS ■ pippintrees.co.uk ■ ornamental-trees.co.uk ■ chrisbowers.co.uk
Dianthus ‘Coconut Sundae’
Singing the
You’ll feel far from sad if you plan a post-winter garden
now that includes foliage in a beautiful array of tones
Words Graham Rice
O
bviously, most foliage
is green. And we all
grow plants with
golden or variegated
leaves. But blue? Just to be clear,
I’m not talking Mediterranean
blue or cornflower blue. We’d have
to resort to dyes to create foliage
in colours like those and we’re
gardeners, after all, not chemists!
But the blue colouring of hosta
and euphorbia leaves is created
by a waxy coating, or ‘bloom’
as it’s sometimes confusingly
known, which covers the leaf
surface and is easily rubbed off
18 Garden News / November 11 2023
with your thumb. It’s sometimes
known as glaucous blue.
In garden dianthus and
eucalyptus, the leaf colour is often
closer to silver than it is to blue, but
these tones are also influenced by
the conditions, including even the
angle of the sunlight, on the day.
But whether it’s the broad
heart-shaped leaves of hostas, the
juicy knife-like leaves of so many
increasingly popular succulents
or the slender shards of some
beautiful ornamental grasses, bluish
foliage makes for bold specimens
and harmonious partners. And
this intriguing colouring is spread
across a wide range of plants,
DIANTHUS
Most garden pinks, as
dianthus as they’re commonly
called, have slender blue-grey
foliage, colouring best in full
sun and with good drainage.
But choose carefully. The
shortest varieties have little
foliage impact as their tuft
of leaves is often hidden
by flowers, while taller Dianthus
types over 45cm in height ‘Memories’
are better for cutting.
Choose varieties in the
25-35cm height range,
including ‘Coconut
Sundae’ in crimson
and white flowers, pure
white ‘Memories’ and
vivid red ‘Passion’.
Dianthus
‘Passion’
Hosta ‘Big Daddy’
Hosta ‘Blue
Mouse Ears’
from mighty eucalyptus to
sprawling euphorbias, from bristly
conifers to seaside wildflowers.
There are blues for many different
situations: hostas for shade, sedums
and succulents for sun, euphorbias
for raised beds and for hot and
dry sites and conifers for ground
cover. In containers, blue-leaved
hostas and grasses are splendid
partners for each other and for the
wide range of foliage colours and
patterns now available in heucheras.
Broad and narrow blue foliage
also looks wonderful with summer
seasonal flowers and patio plants,
from petunias to white impatiens. Hosta ‘Hadspen Heron’
There really are plenty of options...
 EUPHORBIA
These are impressive
foliage plants for hot and
dry situations with good
drainage and plenty of
sun and are striking both
in colour and structure.
Look out for these three.
Euphorbia myrsinites
is probably the most
familiar, its shoots
sprawling across the soil
and ringed in pointed
blue-grey leaves. E.
rigida is a scale up in
size with arching shoots
making a metre-wide
mound with bright
yellow, early spring
flowers. The hard-to-
find E. nicaeensis is more
upright, with foliage
that may develop pink
tints on the blue-grey.
HOSTAS
Blue-leaved hostas, for retentive
soil in at least some shade, come
in many shapes and sizes. At
one end of the scale there’s
the tiny ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ at
just 30cm. With neatly cupped
leaves, it has spawned over 40
similar but mainly variegated
varieties. At the opposite
extreme is the huge ‘Big Daddy’,
65cm high and twice as wide –
the corrugated, slug-resistant,
blue-green leaves make an
impressive mound. But look
too for 35cm-high ‘Hadspen
Heron’, perhaps the bluest of all.
Euphorbia
rigida Euphorbia
nicaeensis
Euphorbia myrsinites
EUCALYPTUS
Most eucalyptus have
wonderful leaves, but Eucalyptus pulverulenta
many grow far too
tall for most gardens
– and then they blow
over! There are two
approaches. Choose
a tree-type such as
E. pulverulenta or E.
gunnii and prune it
back very hard each
spring – without fail.
This encourages
the best foliage
on manageable Eucalyptus gunnii
plants. The
other approach is
to choose one of the few naturally small varieties,
and in particular the beautiful, silver-blue, narrow-
leaved and red-stemmed ‘France Bleu’ (‘Rengun’). Eucalyptus ‘France Bleu’
Sedum ‘Blue Elf’
SEDUM
The bluest sedums come in
the SunSparkler Series of
exceptionally hardy dwarf,
ground-covering perennials for
sunny and well-drained sites.
The small, rounded, evergreen
leaves develop into a spreading
mound, which in late summer
is topped by clusters of flowers
that just allow the leaves to
peep through. Look for ‘Blue
Elf’, featuring a mass of neat
blue rosettes topped with pink,
late-summer flowers, while
‘Dazzleberry’, with grey-blue
leaves on pink stems, darkening
in summer, has deep red late-
summer flowers. ‘Dream Dazzler’
catches the eye with dark purple
Sedum Sedum ‘Dazzleberry’ leaves and a hot pink edging.
‘Dream Dazzler’
Continues over the page
November 11 2023 / Garden News 19
 Picea
‘Fat Albert’
CONIFERS
Many conifers have blue needles, WILDFLOWERS
including junipers and spruces. There are three British
The blue spruces (Picea pungens) wildflowers that, perhaps
are among the most appealing unexpectedly, fit here. All
of blue conifers but can become are seaside sun-lovers that
large for small spaces. So, appreciate good drainage.
choose dwarf varieties with the Wild sea kale (Crambe
bluest foliage such as ‘Hoopsii’, maritima) develops large,
reaching 2.4m in 10 years, crinkled, blue-green
or the endearingly named leaves that are especially
‘Fat Albert’, making a dense well coloured as they first
cone about the same height. emerge in spring and are
Reaching little more than topped with clusters of
30cm tall, there’s the rather white summer flowers. Mertensia
spreading Juniperus squamata Sea holly (Eryngium maritima
‘Blue Carpet’ with intense maritimum) has jaggedly
silvery-blue foliage, especially in lobed, blue-green leaves
summer, while ‘Blue Star’ is more and pale blue summer flowers. The stems
rounded and more compact. of the oyster plant (Mertensia maritima)
snake across the shingle and carry bluish,
slightly fleshy leaves and blue spring and
summer flowers opening from pink buds.

Crambe
maritima

Eryngium
maritimum
Juniperus Picea ‘Hoopsii’
‘Blue Star’

Panicum
Mangave ORNAMENTAL GRASSES ‘Heavy Metal’
‘Lavender Lady’ Some blue-leaved grasses are neat and
well behaved, while some are dangerously
vigorous. We know which we prefer. At
the smaller end of the range are the blue
fescues, plants like clusters of soft needles
in blue-grey tones. The 30cm-high Festuca
glauca ‘Elijah Blue’ is an intense icy blue.
At the other end of the scale, reaching
about 1.5m, comes the strikingly vertical
Panicum virgatum ‘Heavy Metal’ with
blue-grey to blue-purple leaves turning
Seek out a yellow in autumn. In between is the bluest
blue echeveria! of all, Elymus magellanicus, whose slender
leaves mature into attractive blue clumps.

SUCCULENTS
The dramatic arrival on
the scene of mangaves
(agave hybrids) with their
fat and fleshy rosettes in
blues and purples, many with
dramatic markings, has opened
our eyes to the world of succulents. Elymus
Look for ‘Frosted Elegance’, with magellanicus
silvery blue rosettes, and ‘Lavender
Lady’ in greyish blue-purple.
More and more succulents will be
arriving in garden centres in spring,
so look too for silvery blue varieties
of echeverias and crassulas. Best
in containers, all appreciate plenty Crassula
of sunshine, well-drained compost ‘Blue Bird’ Festuca
and frost protection in winter. ‘Elijah Blue’

SUPPLIERS ■ hayloft.co.uk ■ knollgardens.co.uk ■ siennahosta.co.uk ■ whetmangardenplants.co.uk

20 Garden News / November 11 2023

 Keeping it in the
FAMILY!
The large mint clan graces our
gardens with both culinary
delights and visual enchantment

F
inding out to which
family our plants belong
can be fascinating. It
isn’t necessarily useful
in horticultural terms; it doesn’t
give us the information we need to
know about what conditions they
require and therefore where to plant
them and how to look after them,
but it’s enthralling nonetheless to
see the family traits in each one.
There are as many as 250 genera
and 7,000 species within the
Lamiaceae family and they occur
throughout the world. The habitats
with which they’ve evolved are
widely varied, from tropical to
sub-polar, meaning for us gardeners
that there are plants within
the family that we can employ,
whatever the conditions within
our gardens. In terms of both their
ornamental, medicinal and culinary
WHAT’S LOOKING GOOD NOW
value, we have much for which
to thank the family Lamiaceae.
In common parlance, Lamiaceae
is often referred to as the mint
family. Wherever its members are
from, there are certain similarities
that signpost their common family
line. They have square stems.
Most have small, twin-lipped,
tubular flowers, joined together
but open at the front. Often the
lower lip forms a ‘landing stage’ for
insects prior to their diving in to
feast on nectar. Flowers are often
arranged in clusters, whorls or
spikes, several to a stem. Another
similarity is that many members
have aromatic flowers and foliage.
Many of our best-loved herbs
belong here. Some, like basil and
mint itself, are wet herbs with fleshy
stems and leaves and generally
prefer moist conditions. In contrast,
so many Mediterranean plants,
inhabitants of sun-dried hillsides
and poor baked soils, are Lamiaceae:
lavender, sage, rosemary and thyme.
It’s starting to sound like a famous
Simon and Garfunkel song! Except
parsley is an umbel, a member
of a different family – Apiaceae.
Within the garden here at
Glebe Cottage, we’re lucky
enough to have a wide range
of situations and in all of them,
one or other of this fascinating
family play an important role.
Lamium orvala has
an elegant charm
One of my favourites includes
Lamium orvala, not a ‘look at me’ sort
of a plant but relying on its inherent
grace and its dark, good looks
to attract admirers. Each flower
consists of a deep bowl into which
pollinating insects are invited via
a broad landing pad, spotted and
marked like the lights on a runway
to guide them in. Each flower has
its own canopy, both to protect
its pollen and to collect plentiful
deposits of new pollen from visitors
as they fly in for a nectar treat.
Happy in sun or dappled shade,
we grow it on both the shady side
of the garden and elsewhere in
full sun, but in both cases it has

The katsura tree the rich, deep soil it needs.

In full sun, in a huge half barrel
For me, autumn is the most atmospheric We once at the foot of the steps beside the
of seasons. It has its own pace and rhythm, planted a large- vegetable garden, herbs of many
contemplative and wistful. It has its own smells leaved vine, kinds grow happily together. The
too: ripe fruit, wood smoke and, mingling with Vitis coignetiae, The katsura tree soil is free-draining with loam,
them in my garden, the unexpected aroma of which made has a delicious grit and sand. Almost all the
PHOTOS: JONATHAN BUCKLEY, SHUTTERSTOCK, ALAMY

toffee apples emitted by one of my favourite trees,
Cercidiphyllum japonicum – the katsura tree.
After a cold night you become aware of its
perfume while its elegant, rounded leaves
change to russet and pink. Apparently, the
same process is responsible for both the scent
and the colour change – it’s the breakdown
of sugars and the release of maltol!
itself at home caramel scent
and proceeded to
take over any available
host. It’s climbed all over the two nearby
cercidiphyllum and an adjacent copper beech.
The vine has enormous leaves, the cercidiphyllum
is dainty by comparison and the contrast in the
scale and colour of their leaves is striking.
residents belong to the Lamiaceae
clan. Thyme with its tiny, fragrant
leaves, a prostrate rosemary
cascading over the edge, a purple-
leaved sage, lavender and, last
but by no means least, masses of
marjoram or oregano. The last
was in flower for months and was
constantly buzzing with bees.

22 Garden News / November 11 2023

 MONDAY When planting out
perennials in pots, a surplus of soil
was displaced. We’ve collected it,
some for planting bulbs and some
to save for potatoes next year. We
should make full use of our ‘soon
to be potato pots’ by sowing salad
crops to take us through winter.
TUESDAY We still
have several half
seed trays, sown
by Emily at Beth
Chatto’s, which
went into our
‘demo’ greenhouse
at Hampton Court.
They’re congested but
still alive. I’m pricking out Scabiosa
columbaria ochroleuca, a pretty,
pale-lemon scabious, into individual
module compartments so they can
grow on quietly through winter.
WEDNESDAY Amarines from
Steve Hickman at the Hoyland
Plant Centre have flowered
profusely. They’re best kept in pots
and planted out in late spring in
the most sheltered spots we can
find. Amarine belladiva ‘Tomoko’
is my favourite, with dark stems
and shocking pink flowers.
THURSDAY Continuing to make
leaf mould. If we let leaves fall
and decay by themselves in our
intensively planted garden, less
robust plants might not survive in
six inches of leaf cover. So they get
the benefit from the leaf mould.
FRIDAY It’s colder, but we still
need to sow seeds. Some, like leafy
salads, will germinate rapidly on
the greenhouse bench, whereas
some trays will be put outside as
they need several cold periods to
flower. Climate change may have
consequences for many plants.

‘One of my favourites SATURDAY We had an intruding

includes Lamium orvala,

bramble in a run of variegated
box with honeysuckle running
through it. I left it, hoping for

relying on its inherent grace fruit, but none ripened and it’s
all rotted. So it’s coming out!

and dark, good looks to SUNDAY Along our native hedge

we planted out a couple of apples
attract admirers’ grown from pips. One’s fruited for
the first time this year. Its fruits
are yellow and egg-shaped and
have only just started to ripen.
They’re crisp and delicious.

November 11 2023 / Garden News 23

 Violas for the
charity sale

With failures
come successes!
Stephen
Matthews
A modern take on
a cottage-style
garden, with
deep herbaceous
borders, trees, shrubs and a
pond in Little Clacton, Essex.

W
e've had mixed
fortunes in the
garden. Our large
box bush, which
we must have had for 10 years, has
finally succumbed to box moth. Some great dahlias were
Aeoniums are exhibited at the Belfast
It literally went brown over just a one of my firm Autumn Flower Show
couple of days with caterpillars and favourites
their webs all over it. As we don't
use chemicals in the garden, we’ve
decided to take it out. It’s left a large Aeoniums, unlike
gap, but I'm going to take it as an most of our garden Dahlias
plants, grow in adding

I’m keeping
opportunity to try something new.
The warm start to September reverse – that is, they late-season
suited our collection of succulents don't grow during
colour
and cacti; they were able to
enjoy a little longer in the garden
the summer months
so don't need much vine weevil
before coming inside, along with
the lemon tree, in October.
My favourite out of all my
water. Their growing
season is winter and they
should be watered from
at bay
succulents has to be the aeoniums. October until April. Brent
The dahlias have been
We keep several hybrids. Probably
the best known and most looking great. We grow
Noon
impressive is a variety called most of them in pots and There’s always
‘Zwartkop’. It grows to around three leave them in all year round. a good show until the frosts. Our room for one
feet tall and has As long as we keep them dark sunflowers have also looked more pot
plant in this
dark purple leaves. fed and well watered, good. We were late getting them in Chesterfield container garden.
they’ll keep on giving us as the first lot we sowed were eaten

by slugs. I didn't think they’d do
as well this year, but they caught
up. Also looking good has been
salvia ‘Amistad’. Again it can be
Lovely borderline hardy, but in our garden
succulents! it comes back year after year.
My highlight
Seeing new growth on
My sunflower
stars! our lovely aeoniums.
Salvia ‘Amistad’ is
a reliable performer
in our garden
I
’ve finished applying vine
weevil nematodes. It’s
essential when growing in
pots because the grubs can soon
kill a plant by slowly eating the
roots. I do this a couple of times a
year, in April and September. In
addition, I’ve also finished checking
which plants I can repot now
and which ones need doing but
would be best left until spring.

24 Garden News / November 11 2023

 Blooms keep on
bravely doing battle
with the elements!
T
here’s been lots of rain
and high winds recently.
Occasional bright spells
occur but not enough to dry
the grass and allow the lawns
to be mowed. Dahlias are still
flowering bravely but any flowers
not cut promptly are battered
by the elements. My ‘Golden
Anniversary’ rose is still flowering
but again, any flowers not cut
were deadheaded by the wind.
In the tunnel, alstroemeria
is in flower and some auriculas
are producing out-of-season
flowers. A couple of valottas are
also in bloom, with up to
four showy red flowers per
stem. I’ve made a note to
repot them next spring.
The greenhouse tomatoes
were disappointing this year.
Some of the leaves were
scorched during the hot spell
in May and never completely
recovered. But a cherry
tomato plant grown in the
tunnel has produced a great
crop of bite-sized fruit.
Most of these are eaten
straight from the plant!
On with the
nematodes!
I heavily pruned my photinia
‘Red Robin’ and it has new growth
on part of it. I might just wait until
spring before pruning it any further
and see if it gets through winter.
An unexpected
auricula flower
Derrick
Turbitt
Grows a huge Lots of
variety of spring wallflowers
bulbs in the grown from seed
garden at his
Northern Ireland home.
diameter. There was also some
At the end of September I was stunning floral art using dahlias. Alstroemeria are
judging dahlias at the Belfast It was great to meet up with fellow such stunning plants
Autumn Flower Show. I was very gardeners whom I hadn’t seen
impressed with the standard for some time due to lockdown.
on display, especially the I’m growing violas of ivy-leafed geraniums are also
giants, with blooms that and other plants for a rooted and have been potted on.
were almost 30cm in charity sale at the end Now that my daffodil bulbs
of this month and are planted, I can bag up the
I’ve just discovered spares and add them to the
that timing is sales items. I’ll print some
important! The first photographs of these flowers
lot of violas I sowed as I find this is a great aid
Nerines are so are now in flower. towards a successful sale.
pretty in pink
Hopefully if I remove
the first flowers and
feed them, they’ll still be okay.
As a backup I have a later sowing,
My highlight
which should be in flower by late Lovely bright pink
November. I’ve also grown sweet nerines are in
Beautiful
rose ‘Golden William and wallflowers from seed. flower and are very
Anniversary’ The wallflowers have been stopped weatherproof.
to produce bushier plants. Cuttings
Sanguisorba
‘Pink Brushes’ when it should have bloomed,
but recently it had quite a
few flowers opening!
The stars of the show
this year are the castor
Coprosma ‘Pacific
oil plants. The flowers
Sunset’ at its best
and large leaves are just
stunning and the colour
so deep from the late-summer
sun. Hopefully I can harvest The general rule of thumb
seeds from them for next year. is to stop feeding plants after
Hanging baskets Some of the hardy geraniums August so they don’t put on new
and bedding plants have come to the end of their growth that would be savaged
in pots were looking season. The beauty about growing by the first frosts. However, as
really good well into in pots is I can place the geraniums everything is in pots they still
autumn. Sanguisorba out of sight and replace them with needed to be fed, albeit not as
‘Pink Brushes’ was something still looking lovely. often and with a weaker solution.
in full bloom, with My next job… I’ve just got a
lovely long tassel-like couple more plants to repot.
flowers. Aster ‘Little
Carlow’ and coprosma
‘Pacific Sunset’ were
at their best into October and gave
My highlight
a welcome blast of colour. I’m Castor oil plants
not sure what’s happening with displaying gorgeous
the callistemon – there was only A gorgeous leaves and flowers.
one flower early in the season caster oil plant
November 11 2023 / Garden News 25
 PLANT A
POT THAT
WILL SHINE
IN SPRING
And a clever hack will
help to protect the
planter and its contents
over the winter months!

A
Every week our
team of experts Ian Hodgson
s the days get
guide you through Kew-trained garden shorter and
what can be done designer Ian enjoys all winter closes in
aspects of gardening and
in the garden now. grows unusual plants. on the garden, it’s
joyous to plant
something for spring. Packing
a pot with plants for spring
colour is an activity full of
hope, and watching it develop
helps to make winter shorter.
If your pots were filled with
plants over summer, once
these have been removed you
should replace the compost
if it’s more than two years
old. If it’s comparatively new,

PHOTOS: GEOFF STEBBINGS

Karen Murphy Geoff Stebbings you can revitalise it by adding
An all-round gardener, Geoff trained at Kew and
Karen grows fruit, is a general horticulturist, controlled-release fertiliser.
veg and ornamentals author and former Winter frost usually damages
and loves wildlife. head gardener.
the pot more than the plants.
Terracotta absorbs moisture;
as that freezes, it causes the Lining a pot with bubble buffer to prevent breakage.
pot to flake and break. Glazed plastic is a cheap way to Don’t line the base of the pot
pots are less likely to absorb prevent this. It can be fiddly, or block the drainage holes.
moisture and be damaged, but before filling the pot, line The advantage to this is
but if the compost freezes it with plastic, holding it in that it’s a better and less
then even concrete pots can place as you add the compost. ugly way to wrap pots for
break. As compost freezes, the The bubble plastic helps to winter. You can also leave the
water in it expands and the insulate the roots from frost, plastic in place for summer,
compost pushes against the but also, if the compost does where it can help reduce
sides of the pot until it splits. freeze, it offers the pot a watering in terracotta pots.
Rob Smith Karen Gimson
Television and social Garden designer and home
media star Rob is also a cook Karen talks on BBC
seed guardian for the Radio Leicester about fruit,
Heritage Seed Library. veg and flowers.

1 2 3 4
Line the sides Add controlled- Add compost to Add more
of an empty release fertiliser just cover the compost, then
Martin Fish Debi Holland pot with one or if you wish and bulbs, then plant plant seasonal
TV and radio RHS-trained horticulturist more layers of bubble plant the lowest level a second layer of bulbs flowering plants
broadcaster Martin and professional gardener
is a former head gardener, Debi has a passion for plastic and gradually of bulbs. Tulips can be between the tips of above the bulbs, firm
author and RHS judge. plants, wildlife and nature. fill with compost to planted deeper, up to the tulips. Daffodils or gently and water the
keep it in position. 20cm deep if required. hyacinths are ideal. pot thoroughly.

November 11 2023 / Garden News 27

 POT UP
SELF-SOWN
PERENNIALS
Check around your garden and make
the most of any surprise seedlings

M
ost of us grow
annuals from
seed; they’re
quick to
germinate and
need no special treatment. But
perennial plants can be tricky.
Many need to be subjected to
cold after sowing (stratified)
and they’re slow to germinate
after being stored in packets.
But nature can be bountiful.
If you’re not too tidy with your
deadheading at the end of the
season and leave some seeds to

PHOTOS: GEOFF STEBBINGS, DEBI HOLLAND

be shed, you’ll often be surprised
at what appears in the garden.
The most prolific seeders, which
usually produce a healthy crop
of seedlings, are hellebores. I
deadhead most of the stems but
leave a few flowers to mature
into seed pods – and from now
until spring, seedlings usually pasqueflower (pulsatilla) had past it but the flowers were as Pot up seedlings now into
appear at the base of the plants. self-seeded in the gravel bed. good as the parent and a slightly small pots of compost, ideally
Falling fresh to the ground Elsewhere, I found a different colour, so I’ll dig it up containing loam. Keep them
and exposed to winter cold, Michaelmas daisy had seeded and divide it. The joy of self-sown in a cool greenhouse over
many perennial seeds germinate into a path this spring and I left it seedlings is that they’ll probably winter or in a cold frame, then
freely. I was delighted to see my to bloom. It was awkward to push not be identical to the parent. plant them out in spring.

TOP TIPS

Perennials don’t always breed true. This pulsatilla seeded around in the Hellebores seed around plants; My Leucanthemella serotina produced
This seedling of bidens ‘Hannay’s gravel. These seedlings need careful seedlings appear under old leaves, seedlings in an adjacent border.
Lemon Drop’ is like the plain transplanting to avoid damaging which can be cleared now. Pot them, Flowering in the first year, these can
species but still worth keeping. the taproot before potting. grow for a year and plant out. be dug up and replanted immediately.

28 Garden News / November 11 2023

 Remove
saucers
under pots
In summer, popping saucers under pots is an ideal way to capture
scarce water to keep your plants hydrated, but during the winter
months this can lead to waterlogging. It won’t take long for
a saucer to overflow once it starts raining. Soil may become
saturated, which can cause root rot and in a cold spell might
risk the compost freezing, so check your garden containers
and remove any saucers. Improve drainage by propping pots
up on container feet so excess water can flow freely away.

Fleece tree ferns

Tree ferns hold such wonder; these
precious plants are blasts from
the prehistoric past, so as winter
descends, protect them against
the harsh temperatures the UK

Tidy garden beds

climate may throw at them. After
months of gracing gardens with
luscious green fronds, it’s time to
wrap these carboniferous crowns If borders are dry enough to get onto without damaging the soil
safely away in a shroud of fleece. too much, this is the perfect time to have a tidy-up in the garden.
Cover the crown with straw to Weed and cut back herbaceous plants now to help to avoid damage
protect the croziers, then fold to spring bulbs, which often send up foliage surprisingly early.
fronds over themselves and tie When cutting back lilies and perennials, leave a short piece of
to the trunk. Although it’s not stem behind so you can see where they are and avoid causing
necessary to fleece the entire trunk, it’s sometimes damage later. Clearing up fallen leaves and dead plants can
easier just to envelop the whole plant so the fleece stays in place. reduce places where slugs and snails can hide over winter.

Put poinsettias Clean pots and trays

in the dark While the jobs in the garden
are less demanding than in
If you’ve kept your poinsettia summer, it’s the perfect time to
from last year, it’ll need clean and sort pots and trays
special treatment to get it in preparation for the spring
to bloom again. They are rush. Cleaning pots is really
sensitive to day length and if important if you intend to sow
they’re kept in a room where seeds in spring because it gets
you have lights on in the rid of slugs and snails hiding
evening, they’ll be reluctant under trays and washes away
to bloom. To stimulate weed seeds and diseases. Fill
flowering, the plant must a wheelbarrow with water and
have at least 12 hours of disinfectant and let the trays
darkness. So either keep it soak for a while. Brush them
in a room without night light to remove debris before letting
or put it in a cupboard each evening so it’s in the dark at least 12 them drain and then rinse
hours a day. But bring it out every morning. Once you see bracts them. It’s a wet and messy job
start to form, you can stop and leave the plant where it is. but the stack of clean trays
at the end is very satisfying!

November 11 2023 / Garden News 29

REPAIR AN
AUTUMN LAWN
Here are my quick and easy tips to give your
worn-out grass a hassle-free makeover!
N
ow is the best
time to repair any
damaged areas
of lawn that have
occurred over the
past few months. These may be
as simple as a trodden down
lawn edge, an area where a dog
has urinated, worn patches or
something a little larger, such as
humps and hollows that need
levelling out to create a flat lawn.
Once we get into November and
both the air and soil temperatures
cool down, it’s a little late in
the season to sow grass seed
to repair damaged and worn
areas. Turf, on the other hand,
1 2
For broken edges, cut a square
or rectangle around the damage
and rotate the turf 180 degrees
with the straight edge to the border.
Fill the hole with a patch of turf.
4 5
Cut a square of new turf to
fit the hole. You may need to
adjust the soil depth slightly
so it’s the same level. Fit the new
turf and gently tamp it down.
is ideal for laying now
and it will very quickly
root and establish to
create a thick covering
of grass. One of the
other advantages of
laying turf at this time
of year is it generally
doesn’t need watering
as there’s enough
New turf will
moisture in the soil. establish faster
If you need to carry now while the
out lots of repairs you soil is still moist
may have to buy a roll or
two of turf from a garden
centre or local turf supplier. For
smaller repairs, another option
is to widen a border slightly or
Patches of damaged
lawn caused by wear and
tear or dogs can spoil the
appearance of the lawn but are easy
to repair with a small patch of turf.
Where you have a large dip or
raised area of lawn, cut strips
of turf and fold them back.
With a hump, remove soil or with
a dip add new soil and rake level.
re-shape a bed and use the turf
you lift to fix other parts of the
lawn. The advantage of doing
3
To re-turf a damaged patch,
cut out a square a little
larger than the damage,
slice the damaged turf off, lightly
loosen the soil below and level.
6
When the ground is level
with the surrounding lawn,
firm and rake the soil before
folding back the turf. Tamp the turf
down with a rake for a level finish.
November 11 2023 / Garden News 31
this is the grass colour will match
perfectly, whereas bought-in
turf can look different, although
over time it will blend in.
When it comes to tools, you’ll
need a half-moon edging iron
to cut the turf, a flattish spade
to slice under and lift it and
a garden rake to prepare any
soil and to tamp it down after
re-laying. If you’re planning
to lift larger areas of a lawn,
it might be worth investing in
a turfing iron, which makes a
very neat and even job of lifting
turf. You can buy them new or
sometimes find one second-hand.
TOP TIPS
● Lawn repairs with turf can be
done through winter if the lawn
isn’t waterlogged or frozen, but
when done now the roots will
establish much faster while
there’s moisture in the soil.
● For an extra level finish, you
can brush in a little sieved soil
over the joints of the repair.
● Normally there’s no need
to water the turf at this time
PHOTOS: MARTIN FISH
of the year, but if the soil
feels on the dry side, water
once after laying the turf.
 PLANT
GRAPEVINES
In the right conditions,
they’re quite
straightforward to grow
– so give them a go!

M
any people
are put off
growing
grapes –
and it’s
no wonder, with so much
advice over complicating the
matter. But it’s actually quite
straightforward, particularly
at planting time, so if you’ve
always wanted your own vine,
why not give it a go this year?
You certainly don’t need a
Tuscan hillside to succeed!
If you’ve got a sheltered,
sunny garden and well-drained
soil you’re onto a winner, so
consider growing your vine
against a sunny exterior wall,
which can act as a warming
mechanism. Other than that,
a classic way to grow grapes
is to plant with the roots
outside a greenhouse and its
stems trained inside through a
hole; this cover provides good
shelter. You can also plant it
inside your greenhouse or in
a very large container on the
patio (in spring), just be aware
that these last two methods
require lots and lots of water.
One thing to note is to leave
the wax graft covering alone,
which will protect the join,
and in bad spells of wintry
weather, fleece this part.
Vines perform well in
most soil types but need
well prepared, well-draining
soil – see the panel on the
right for tips on successful
planting. It’s advisable to
seek out good quality plants;
chrisbowers.co.uk, for
example, has a large selection
with prices from £ 15.95.

32 Garden News / November 11 2023

PHOTOS: NEIL HEPWORTH, DEBI HOLLAND
TOP TIPS
Prepare the ground well. Dig
a large hole 90cm wide and
60cm deep. Enrich with lots of
compost, manure or leaf mould.
Set the plant in 30cm from the
trellis, wall or fence and back-fill
with soil, setting the rootball just
below the original ground level.
Water your plant in well and
keep it well watered for its first
full growing season. Install a
support system to tie stems into.
A weed-suppressing mulch
can hold in more moisture
and deter weeds to give your
plant more of a chance.
Give rhubarb a tidy
As rhubarb leaves naturally die back in November
they can look scrappy, and if temperatures drop,
leaves can turn into a slippery brown mush.
Give your plant a tidy now. Most leaves can be
removed without snipping and foliage can be
pulled away by hand and placed on the compost
heap. Protect crowns from potential frosts
and prolonged wet weather with homemade
well-rotted compost, leaf mould or wood chips.
Leave the crown exposed and apply a thick layer
of mulch around the base; acting as a warm
blanket to retain soil warmth and moisture but
still allowing air circulation and drainage.
Sow peas for
pea shoots
Sow and grow fresh pea shoots this winter
for a tasty, fresh addition to winter salads.
High in vitamin C, these nutritional tender
tips not only look good scattered over dishes
but are delicious, too. Pea shoots are easy
to grow and take up little space, so are an
ideal winter windowsill project. Simply sow
seeds in a tray, cover with compost, water
and wait. Shoots are ready to harvest in
three weeks. Snip off two thirds of each
shoot when 15cm tall, leaving the remaining
third to reshoot for another crop. ‘Oregon
Sugar Pod’ is a superb hardy variety.
Thin
invasive
mint
Mint is an exceptionally
generous herb to grow but many
varieties have a tendency to
spread and smother other plants.
Its roots spread via runners,
so over time it infiltrates the
surrounding border. Winter is
a great time to take control of
your plot and thin this invasive
perennial plant. Grab a spade
and dig out clumps of mint to
reduce the bulk of the main
plant. Transplant these divisions
into pots and share with friends;
potted herbs make great gifts.
Not all mint plants are vigorous
growers – for a more subdued
grower try chocolate, lime or
‘Variegata’, a pineapple mint.
November 11 2023 / Garden News 33
 Getting cosy
Tree ties must
be checked

in the garden
My current to-do list means providing
some plants with added protection
to guard against the winter weather

I
t may have slowed and frost. I use both
down in the Kitchen glass cloches and
Garden compared ones I make from
to the intensity of plastic sheeting,
spring and summer, but curved into longer
there’s still plenty to be tunnels – perfect
getting on with, especially KITCHEN to pop over a
if the weather’s fine. GARDENER row of plants.
Adding a little Rob Smith While it’s quieter
protection and warmth TV gardener I also start bringing
to plants can extend their and social manure up the
media star.
season and ensure you Also a seed
garden to add to
get the most from them, guardian for beds and borders
but I’m not talking about the Heritage over the next
anything that uses fuel; I Seed Library couple of months.
mean cloches. Regardless I get my manure
of whether you have glass or plastic delivered in bags, which My hefty wheelbarrow
ones, they’ll help protect plants from can be easily moved around helps move the
the worst of the weather, especially and stored on each sloping manure bags around
any winter lettuces or Oriental tier of the garden, ready to
leaves that are outside in the beds. use when needed. The first beds I
Opening the cloches or allowing air add manure to are always those that These spent crops
flow during the day stops mould or will house beans and squash next over winter. Once emptied, the will go in the fire pit
fungal problems taking hold, while year; these hungry vegetables will bags come in handy for making
closing them up at night protects benefit from the extra nutrients, leaf mould or disposing of
plants from dropping temperatures which will be worked into the soil diseased plant material that doesn’t go in the compost heap. They can
even be rolled down and used for
growing potatoes in next year.
Experimenting with pak choi In the greenhouse, I’m continuing
to remove the pots that housed
While tidying up my unheated how they fare. Even if they don't my tomatoes and aubergines,
greenhouse, I decided to try a little develop into full-sized pak choi clearing any dropped leaves or
gardening experiment to see if it’s heads, I can still harvest their plant material that could harbour
possible to grow a worthwhile crop tender leaves for salads and disease or pests. These will be
of pak choi by sowing seeds now. soups in the months ahead. added to the fire pit, while the
Admittedly, the greenhouse's Moreover, pushing the spent compost will be added as
light levels aren't particularly boundaries in your vegetable a mulch to the flower borders.
strong and the temperature is a garden can yield surprising Outside in the fruit area, I’m doing
bit on the cool side. Nevertheless, results, revealing new ways in Let’s see if these a quick check on trees to see how
I thought it was worth sowing which plants can thrive that late-sown seeds the supports and ties are looking.
a container full of seeds to see you might not have anticipated. give me good crops! I make sure ties aren’t cutting into
the bark, loosening them where

34 Garden News / November 11 2023

 Some plants are
being covered

PHOTOS: DARREN LAKIN

with cloches

Apple and
berry sponge
H ealthy windfall apples
have been gathered and
swiftly turned into cakes,
pies and preserves. Brown rot has
been a big problem this year due to
re-infect fruit next year. Sometimes
diseased fruit sticks to branches
and must be removed. Over winter,
branches in the centre of the tree
will be pruned out to improve air
the very wet weather. Any diseased circulation, and this should help
fruit has been put into green waste combat the problem. In this recipe I
bins rather than being composted, used autumn raspberries and frozen
because spores left in the area will blackberries alongside the apples.

Ingredients ● Place apples, ● Microwave for 4

SERVES 4 berries and sugar minutes. Rest for

● 560g eating apples in a saucepan with 1 minute and then
● 100g raspberries 25ml water. microwave for
● 50g blackberries ● Cook gently until another 1 minute.
● 25g golden soft. Apples should ● Check the sponge

caster sugar still be chunky, is cooked through.

needed and replacing ● 1 tbsp cornflour not a puree. Microwave for
any of the rope ties ● Tip into the base another 30 seconds
that have rotted and FOR THE SPONGE of a microwavable if needed.
split. By doing this, ● 60g butter, softened dish (22cm diameter ● Sprinkle over

the trees should be ● 100g caster sugar x 10cm deep). the almonds.
supported as well as ● 1 large egg, beaten ● Stir in the cornflour. ● Place under a hot

they can be, helping them A leaf showing ● 140g self- ● To make the sponge, grill until the almonds
pear rust
stand strong in winter gales. raising flour whisk butter and have turned golden.
I’m also raking up any fallen ● 1/2 tsp baking sugar together. ● Leave to stand

leaves from around the base of powder ● Whisk in the egg. for a few minutes
the pear trees and adding them either bin the leaves or burn ● 4 tbsp milk Fold in the flour and before serving.
to the fire pit as they have pear them. If you’re burning the leaves ● 1 tbsp flaked baking powder. ● Can also be

rust. This fungal infection is by adding them to a bonfire, almonds ● Stir in the milk cooked in the oven
more cosmetic than anything don’t forget to make sure no ● Custard or to make a smooth at 170C/Gas 5 for
and doesn’t really affect the crop, hedgehogs or other animals cream to serve consistency. about 40 minutes.
but it shouldn’t be composted have taken up residence inside ● Drop tablespoons ■ Read more at
as it can make the issue worse; the structure before you light it. Method of the mixture over bramblegarden.com.
● Peel, core and the fruit (it doesn’t all Instagram
chop apples. have to be covered). @karengimson1.
NEXT WEEK Garlic power to beat pests!
NEXT WEEK: Raspberry Bakewell tart

November 11 2023 / Garden News 35

 PHOTOS: MEDWYN WILLIAMS
A proud moment to present
my wife, Gwenda, with
the NVS Gold Medal

A busy summer of
judging and showing
But there’s no time for resting – I’ve got
lots of jobs to do for the next season!

I Medwyn Williams
certainly had an exceptionally busy
summer season with showing and
judging this year. From the middle
of August through to the middle of
October, I wasn’t home any weekend. It was
very tiring but very enjoyable as well.
The National Vegetable Society (NVS)
Championships took place at Newby Hall near
Ripon in September, and as President of the
NVS I was very proud to present the Society’s
Gold medal to my wife, Gwenda, for many years
of service. Another moving experience was
on my visit to Ireland to judge the Tullamore
Show back in August, when I presented my old
friend Harold Lawlor from Durrow with the
NVS Silver medal. Harold had just enjoyed his
100th birthday and will probably go down in
the annals of NVS history as the only person
ever to be awarded a medal as a centenarian.
I also had a very successful year of showing,
with my ‘Viking’ parsnips winning the Welsh
NVS Championship in Cardiff and coming
5th at the NVS Championships at Newby Hall.
‘Viking’ is a relatively new variety with a much
whiter colour than many of the older ones and
it’s done well for me over the past few years.
‘Countess’, ‘Victor’ and ‘Duchess’, too. A dish of
Medwyn is a 13-times Gold Medal
winner at the Chelsea Flower
Show, president of the National
Vegetable Society, regular GN
contributer and expert and
passionate grower of a vast range of vegetables.
I’ve been bringing
in bowls of ‘Maisey’
tomatoes all summer
There are many good varieties out there, with
‘Duchess’ was named the best dish in the
NVS Championships at Newby Hall. This
was grown by Paul Grimes from Craven
Arms, Shropshire, and was the best
dish of five I’ve seen for a long time.
I’m still harvesting quite a few
tomatoes from my greenhouse at
home from the variety ‘Maisey’
F1. This is a variety that was
specifically crossed for me three
years ago and is now proving to be
the one to grow for both flavour and
exhibition in the medium-size class.
I’ve never had such a heavy-cropping
variety, bringing large bowlfuls to the
house on a regular basis. They were
grown in the Autopot system using
Canna Coco as the growing medium and
My ‘Viking’ parsnips
that won at the NVS
Welsh Championship
Paul Grimes won
the parsnip class at
NVS Championship
automatically with ‘Duchess’
liquid fed
using
Canna A and B. My ‘Maisey’
entry managed to come second at the
Welsh Championships from a class of 22
entries, which I was very pleased about.
On my return from the shows it’s been a
case of clearing and cleaning out my large
glasshouse down on the land. I’ll pull up all
the capillary matting from the benches and
replace it with new material. After that I’ll check
my oil-fired heater to make sure it’s ready for
the winter months. I’ll also be cleaning the
lamps on the lighting system to remove any
dust and dirt that’s gathered on them over
summer to ensure I get the best from them.
■ Follow me on X (Twitter) as I grow
a range of different vegetables for
exhibition - @medwynsofangles.

My old friend Harold

Lawlor receiving the
NVS Silver Medal
NEXT WEEK Sara Rittershausen on repotting orchids

36 Garden News / November 11 2023


What pest is
attacking my chard
and leaf beet?
Max Rathmell,
Liversedge, West Yorkshire
Stefan says: You tell me that every
year, the leaves of your chard and
leaf beet are affected by a pest you
call flea beetle, although you don't
know if this is its true identity. This
year, you say, the pest has been
terrible, rendering the otherwise
strong plants useless for harvesting.
You remove the affected leaves
thinking this will get rid of the pest,
but two days later there’s another
flush of brown, withering leaves.
This is maddening, I’m
sure, but flea beetles are not to
blame. They certainly attack a
wide range of plants – they’re
FOUR MORE CHARD AND BEET PROBLEMS
Pigeons
Pigeons and other birds
have a taste for the delicious
leaves of chard and beet and
can destroy entire crops.
Netting is the best answer.
invariably a problem on turnips
– but they cause a tattering of the
leaves with many tiny holes.
Your pest is something quite
different: the beet leaf miner, also
sometimes called the beet fly or
mangold fly. It affects all plants
in the beet family, including
chard and spinach. It’s a true
fly, and its larvae are therefore
maggots, not caterpillars.
The pupae spend the winter in
the soil; the adult flies emerge in
late spring and lay their eggs under
the leaves. When they hatch, the
maggots tunnel between the leaf
Slugs and snails
Young plants are very
vulnerable to attack by
slugs and snails, so take
your usual precautions
when planting out.
surfaces, causing the blotch
affects you’ve seen. After about
two weeks, the maggots drop
to the soil to pupate and then a
fresh crop of adults emerges. There
may be two or three generations
each year. Effects on beetroot are
minimal but crops like spinach and
chard, being grown for their leaves,
are of course severely affected.
I suggest you cultivate the soil
thoroughly in winter, turning it over
regularly to bring the pupae to the
surface where birds will feed on
them, and then cover the crops with
fleece from early spring onwards.
Fungal diseases
In damp weather, fungal
diseases such as downy
mildew and grey mould
may take hold, so make
sure you space plants out.
PHOTOS: SHUTTERSTOCK, ALAMY
Beet leaves suffering
from an attack of
beet leaf miner
Maggots of the beet
leaf miner cause
all the damage
While we’re on the subject, I’d
like to take this opportunity to
recommend a beet family that’s
far too neglected, and which I find
doesn’t usually get leaf miner:
golden beetroot. It has a sweeter
flavour than red beetroot and
none of the staining juice. I grow
‘Burpee’s Golden’ every year; I
cut it into pieces and cook it in
a microwave oven to preserve
the wonderful golden colour.
Bolting
Bolting is usually a problem
in hot, dry weather, so
keep your plants well
watered and provide
them with some shade.
 There’s
something
wrong with
my cypress!
Kevin O’Malley, Weymouth, Dorset
Stefan says: You have trees of the Italian
cypress, Cupressus sempervirens, the slender
conifer so characteristic of the Mediterranean,
and sometimes called the pencil cypress. It’s
a striking looking tree and should do well on
the south coast where you live. However, the
downside to the mild coastal climate is that
you experience strong winds. In consequence,
your tree rocks in the ground and you
believe this is causing it to become spindly,
although another tree nearby is unaffected.
You’ve tried various kinds of staking but to
no avail, and wonder if taking off the weak top
growth would help. Sadly, I don’t think so. It
would spoil the natural shape of the tree, and
Strong coastal
in any event it would grow again with probably winds can stunt
the same result. My advice is to engage the growth of
an experienced tree surgeon who would some plants
suggest a more effective way of securing it.

Can you Should I remove new

name growth below the
this graft on my sorbus?
lovely Eileen Sloan, by email

plant?
Stefan says: You have a graft and you wonder if you
sorbus ‘Joseph Rock’. Recently should remove them.
new growths have appeared, Yes, you should. They’ll be
coming from just below the shoots from the rootstock onto
Lynne Todd, which the variety ‘Joseph Rock’
by email was grafted and they’ll not only
Stefan says: This become unsightly and spoil the
beautiful flowering shape of your tree, but they’ll
shrub has special also sap some of the energy
sentimental value for from your chosen variety. I
you and your family. suspect the rootstock is the
It was bought by your rowan tree, Sorbus aucuparia.
Abutilons are easy
mother who sadly to propagate from The reason a rootstock is used
died recently, and semi-ripe cuttings is the same as with all rootstock
you’d like to take grafts: the ornamental varieties
cuttings for the family don’t form their roots nearly
because you all love it. as readily as the wild species.
The plant is an abutilon, sometimes called the flowering maple, probably ‘Joseph Rock’ is a truly lovely
the hybrid variety ‘Canary Bird’. You don’t say where you live, but I assume tree with amber-yellow
it must be somewhere mild and sheltered because, like most abutilons, berries. It’s named after an
certainly most of the yellow-flowered kinds, the plant isn’t fully hardy and Austrian plant collector, Dr
requires winter protection in many areas or to be grown in a conservatory. Joseph Rock, who gathered
It should strike readily from cuttings. Take semi-ripe cuttings now and seeds in China in the
keep them in a sheltered place, ideally in a greenhouse, over winter. Use Take off shoots coming 1930s. It is thought to be a
rooting powder and strike them in pots or trays of multi-purpose, soilless from the rootstock chance natural hybrid.
on any grafted plant
compost with a protective cover and keep them somewhere warm.
Continues over the page
 I’d like to know more
about the clerodendrum
I’ve been given?
Why has Graham Yates, by email

our apple
Stefan says: I have long been puzzled why Clerodendrum trichotomum is
such an unknown quantity, for it really is one of the most interesting, striking
and unusual of all garden trees. First are the flowers: small, white and

tree got
nothing very special to look at, but endowed with a deep and rich fragrance
that will envelop the garden all around through the summer months.

bitter pit?
Secondly, and rather specially, are the fruits, which really are unique in my
experience. Each has the appearance of a deep blue pea, an odd enough
Bitter pit is caused thing in itself, but it sits on a five-lobed fleshy calyx of vivid red to produce
by a lack of calcium
something altogether rather wonderful.
Helen Willan, by email It’s an eastern plant which originates in China and Japan, and has been
Stefan says: Bitter pit isn’t a disease. grown in this country for over 100 years.
The dark lesions in the flesh are caused
by a deficiency of the element calcium, which is essential for the
The eye-catching
formation of cell walls. In its absence, the cell walls break down. fruits of clerodendrum
There’s seldom a real shortage of calcium in the soil.
The problem is the plant’s inability to take up the chemical
and transport it to the most distant tissues. This is almost
invariably caused by water shortage. Hence, calcium deficiency
symptoms are more common on dry soils or in dry seasons.
Because of the way that bitter pit arises, it’s difficult to treat, although
if the soil is highly acidic then adding lime in autumn may help. Try to
improve the moisture retentiveness of dry soils by mulching the trees
heavily in early spring while there’s still some water in the ground.

White bryony will swamp

plants if left unchecked

Most mature fruit

trees need only a light
pruning each year

I have a climbing intruder!
Patricia Groves, by email
Stefan says: This plant seems to
appear every spring and winds its
way through your shrubs. It has,
you say, a root like a parsnip and
bears bright red berries in autumn.
You dig it out before the berries
appear or it will grow everywhere.
This is white bryony, Bryonia
dioica, a native British plant and a
member of the cucumber family,
but highly poisonous. It’s strikingly
similar to another native plant called
black bryony, Tamus communis,
although the two are unrelated and
the leaves slightly different in shape.
You’re right to remove it before it
swamps your shrubs. If you could
isolate the new growth in spring and
spray repeatedly with a weedkiller
containing glyphosate, you should
eliminate it over a season, but do be
careful not to spray your shrubs.
Why are my
fruit trees not
cropping well?
Rachel Reeves, by email
Stefan says: You moved into your new house and garden three
years ago and found an apple tree and a pear tree. Both were beautiful
but severely overgrown, having been in a state of what you call
‘benign neglect’ for years. That autumn, you had a huge number
of very large, sweet pears and the apple tree fruited just as well.
Since then, a tree surgeon has pruned the trees every winter and
the fruit is getting worse: smaller in size and much lower in numbers.
This year, you’ve had almost no fruit at all.
It seems your tree surgeon has overdone it. With mature trees
fruiting well, you should do only the lightest of pruning, removing dead
and crossing branches but no more. I suggest you stop pruning
and ask a different tree surgeon – most importantly, one experienced
with fruit trees – to assess the trees for you.
Continues over the page

November 11 2023 / Garden News 41

 What’s this insect I
saw? It was 2.5cm
long with black
and yellow
markings, pincers
at the mouth end
and red, cushion- A burying beetle is
quite a sight to see,
like ends to the but will do you no harm
antennae.
Carole Gillers, by email
What an accurate description. It told me enough to be able to
identify your beast as a burying beetle. It wouldn't have done you
any harm. They’re called burying beetles because they perform
a most useful role in burying the carcasses of dead creatures
they find in the garden: mice, voles and small birds for example.

When should I prune spring, try lightly sprinkling

Magnolia soulangeana
Algae can also occur on
lawns as well as in ponds and can I take
cuttings from it?
Angie Thornley, by email
dry sulphate of ammonia
fertiliser on a small patch.
My experience has been that
it will kill out the weed and

There are strange,

Don’t prune magnolias then, although the grass is
unless absolutely necessary; scorched, later grow again
it prompts a mass of twiggy and be even more lush. But

jelly-like blobs on
shoots. Hardwood cuttings, do try it on a small area first.
taken within the next couple
of months and rooted in a cold I have a calathea plant.

our rather poor lawn frame, stand the best chance

Trev Keller, by Facebook
Stefan says: Although you
didn’t say it, I’d like to guess that
the jelly-like blobs on your lawn
were green in colour because that
would enable me to confirm they’re
caused by algae and not by slime
moulds, which can also sometimes
be jelly-like in appearance.
Everyone has heard of algae,
although apart from blanket
weed in the pond, perhaps not
strictly in a gardening context.
They’re among the simplest forms
of plant life and occur almost
everywhere in the environment.
Lawn algae cause no direct
harm and should be considered
a symptom rather than the cause
of your poor lawn. A lawn moss
treatment will go some way towards
eradicating them, but it’s even more
important to feed the turf and, if at
all possible, to improve the drainage
because being fragile, almost all
algae are dependent on moisture
for their continued success.
of success. The knobbly
thing you found on yours is a
seed pod, and you’ll find red
seeds inside. They’re fairly
common after warm summers
and you could try sowing
them in gritty compost.
How can I control
mind-your-own-
business in my lawn?
Mrs P. Windsor, Wigan,
Greater Manchester
I agree, this is a mightily
difficult weed to control. In
Why are its leaves
looking so poorly?
Margaret Kneale, by email
Calatheas, or prayer plants,
are beautiful houseplants
with intricately marked lush,
evergreen foliage. But they
aren’t easy to grow and they’re
among the houseplants
I’ve always found most
fickle and frustrating.
They originate in the
humid tropics and must
have soft, gentle light, a
high temperature and
plenty of humidity.

Can I grow wisteria in pots when

there’s little rooting space?
Campbell Wilson, by email
Stefan says: It’s perfectly possible to grow almost
anything in a pot provided you use a container of
appropriate size, but you must be prepared to feed the
plant regularly and, even more importantly, to water it.
Watering presents a difficulty with any climbing plants,
especially in the early stages of growth, because the base
of a wall is inherently dry. Of course, plants that grow
naturally in such situations have adapted to them to some
extent. But to do their best in gardens, extra care with
watering and extra attention to mulching are important.
I’ve managed successfully with clematis in pots and
even a less vigorous passionflower. I’d baulk, however,
You’ll need to keep at keeping up with the water demands of a large potted
on top of watering if wisteria. It would preferable to try and remove a small
growing wisteria in a pot area of concrete, tarmac or other offending obstruction
so the wisteria can be planted directly into real soil.

November 11 2023 / Garden News 43

 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

45
Once you have completed the
crossword, take the letters in the
shaded squares and rearrange them
to spell out the name of a genus in
the daisy family. This is your prize answer.
8 9
ACROSS
1 Garden building, - - - shed (7) 10
5 Part of a plant inserted into another (5)
8 Marriage, or workers’ organisation (5)
9 Grinding tooth (5) 11 12 13
10 Alternative name for the
white poplar tree (5)
14 American law officer (7) 14 15 16
16 Steeple (5)
17 Chasm (5)
18 Roman counterpart to Poseidon (7)
22 Wickerwork basket used by
anglers (5) 17 18 19
25 Proportion (5)
26 Garlic mayonnaise (5)
27 Heathland shrub, or besom (5)
28 Common name for plants in
the genus hemerocallis (3,4) 20 21 22 23 24
DOWN
1 Genus of drupes that includes
25 26
cherry and almond (6)
2 Cut back — hedges, eg (4)
3 Hebridean isle where Saint
Columba founded an abbey (4)
4 Good at gardening? (5-8) 27 28
5 Fun pastime (4)
6 Wheel shaft (4)
7 Mountain lake (4) 15 Shrub, or Greek goddess 21 - - - von Bismarck, German chancellor (4)
11 Hybrid (5) of youth and spring (4) 22 Underground storage structure
12 Flood (5) 19 Actors’ 8A, or fairness (6) of a gladiolus or crocus (4)
13 Woman’s name, or poetic 20 Fruit tree producing masses of 23 Butterfly, painted - - - (4)
term for Ireland (4) spring blossom, - - - apple (4) 24 Asian desert (4)

Hydrangea ‘Vanille
Fraise’ – worth £11.99
From trials totalling 10,000 plants, this
extra special hydrangea was selected
for its stunning appearance with a
garden performance to match!
Its blooms emerge pure white
then mature through the season
to a delicious raspberry pink.
Hydrangea paniculata ‘Vanille Fraise’
is easy to grow and perfect for those
problematic north-facing areas, due to
its extreme hardiness – it can cope with
temperatures down to -20C! H&S 1.8m.
For your chance to win, email the
hidden clue to gn.letters@bauermedia.
co.uk, writing Crossword No 45 in the
subject box. Please include your postal
address. The winner will be drawn on
November 20. Your contract for supply of
goods is with Thompson & Morgan, Poplar
Lane, Ipswich IP8 3BU. You can also buy
this hydrangea for £11.99! Visit thompson-
morgan.com/TM_GNC30 to order.

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No 42 – October 21

Across: 4 Gallon, 7 Daphne, 8 Viburnum, 9 Derv, 10 Ellen, 12 Heel, 18 Oberon,
19 Tender, 20 Esau, 23 Mufti, 27 Corm, 28 Veronica, 29 Ginkgo, 30 Pestle.
Down: 1 Wager, 2 Chive, 3 Bevel, 4 Gabon, 5 Larch, 6 Ovule, 11 Lion, 13 Eddy,
14 Lark, 15 Cove, 16 Lena, 17 Leat, 21 Swede, 22 U-boat,
23 Maine, 24 Flags, 25 Iceni, 26 Dregs. Prize answer: Waterlily
Winner of Crossword No 42 is Victoria Hunter from Poole, Dorset

November 11 2023 / Garden News 45

 STAR
PRIZE

A birthday
beauty
This rose ‘Mum In A Million’ was
a gift for my 60th birthday from
my daughter. It’s my favourite
colour and smells divine.
Tracey Couldridge,
Folkestone, Kent

Solo seed
surprise
How can such a beautiful ‘Sun
King’ sunflower grow from
one small seed? It’s five feet tall
with 19 flowers. I’ll be growing
lots more next year to give
to friends and neighbours so
they can enjoy them, too.
Christine Vaughan, by email
Blooming
basket!
A ll of these flowers, including asparagus fern, were
picked from my allotment and give a beautiful
flavour of autumn. They were transported in my
bike basket, so no air miles were used to get them home!
Lynn Ritson, Lincoln
Simon says: What a wonderful display it is, Lynn. It’s so
rewarding to admire a vase of flowers that you’ve grown yourself.
Lynn wins a £25 voucher from Mr Fothergill’s
for use in its mail-order catalogue. It’s
packed with a huge choice of quality seeds

Tuber triumph! and exciting flower, fruit and veg plants.

This is my beautiful begonia ‘Burning

Embers’. I bought it last year in the hope I
could save the tuber for another year and
it’s worked a treat and is even better. It puts a
smile on my face every time I look at it. Well
worth overwintering the tuber, I would say!
Helen Tapscott, Plymouth, Devon
Orchid encore
We’ve never grown an orchid before and are pleased
this is our plant’s second year. It has 25 flowers
and still counting, with a few buds still to open.
Roy Beale, by email

And the pick of your quick quips!

Love
watching
these lovely
squirrels
enjoying my
sunflowers.
Not seen
this before!
Carol Harris,
by email

I planted this beside

Petunias were still flowering
in the middle of September
thanks to the late hot spell.
Margaret Lowson, Sunderland
a north-facing ■ GN staff are continuing to work
wall. Very happy from home and unfortunately
with the result. cannot receive readers’ mail –
Neil McCallister, but if you are able to email your
by email letters and pictures, please do!

November 11 2023 / Garden News 47

GardeningDirectory

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Order online from Etsy Shop: 3SistersCreationsUK
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 Thompson & Morgan

Oriental poppy
collection from
only £12.99
T hese flamboyant Oriental poppies (Papaver
orientale) light up borders in late spring and early
summer. They thrive in full sun and are happy
in poor, dry soil. These clump-forming perennials
create neat rosettes of deeply-cut leaves covered with
coarse hairs, bringing fabulous texture to the garden
even before the blooms appear. Large, satin-like flowers
provide a splash of colour in summer, followed by ‘Beauty of Livermere’
attractive rounded seed heads. H: 90cm, S: 60cm.
The collection comprises:
'Beauty of Livermere’ Bright red blooms with ‘Queen Alexandra’
black centre markings create a boisterous display.
‘Royal Wedding’ Glistening white petals and a dark
centre to each bloom, followed by attractive seed heads.
'Victoria Louise’ Apricot pink, crepe paper petals
form sumptuous large flowers, with distinctive black
markings that surround the dark central eye. ‘Victoria Louise’
'Queen Alexandra’ Large, vibrant flowers of an intense
and vivid coral pink make an eye-catching display.
Pre-order for December despatch. Supplied as bareroots. ‘Royal Wedding’

You might also like..

Helleborus niger
The snow-white, saucer-shaped blooms of this
hellebore are flushed with green and pink, and slowly
deepen in colour as they age. Set against handsome,
glossy foliage, the delicate blooms are some of the
earliest to appear in the garden. A stunning addition
to shady borders and winter containers that will
delight you year after year. H: 30cm, S: 45cm. Pre-order
for December despatch. Supplied as bareroots.

THREE EASY WAYS TO ORDER TM_GN365/TM_GN366

ONLINE www.thompson-morgan.com/TM_GN365. Garden News subscribers go to
www.thompson-morgan.com/TM_GN366 to claim your 10% discount. CODE ITEM PRICE SUBS QTY TOTAL
BY PHONE 0844 573 1686 quoting TM_GN365 (quote TM_GN366 if a subscriber). Lines open Mon-
Sun (9am-6pm). Calls cost 7p per minute plus your telephone provider’s access charge. KA8201 Oriental poppy collection x 4 bareroot plants £21.99 £12.99 £11.69
BY POST Complete the order form, fill in your details and send it with payment to Garden News, KC2088 Oriental poppy collection x 8 bareroot plants £43.98 £19.99 £17.99
Thompson & Morgan, TM_GN365/TM_GN366, Poplar Lane, Ipswich IP8 3BU. Items dispatched from
December 2023 onwards. All other items will be acknowledged by letter or email to advise of dispatch 14192 Helleborus niger x 5 bareroot plants £14.99 £13.49
date. Offer closes 21/11/2023. If in the event of unprecedented demand this offer is oversubscribed,
we reserve the right to send suitable substitute varieties. Please note that your contract for supply of
KB6688 Helleborus niger x 10 bareroot plants £29.98 £21.99 £19.79
goods is with Thompson & Morgan, Poplar Lane, Ipswich, IP8 3BU. All offers are subject to availability.
Images are for illustration purposes only.
P&P £6.99
Regretfully we are unable to ship live plants to the following areas: HS, IV41-IV49, IV51, IV55-56, KW15-
KW17, PA34, PA41-48, PA60-PA78, PA80, PH40-PH44, TR21-TR25, ZE1-ZE3. We are also unable to ship Order Total
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* Due to Brexit restrictions free seeds are not available in Northern Ireland

50 Garden News / November 11 2023

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surcharge will apply to the following postcode areas: AB, DD8-11, GY, HS, Add P&P £6.99 your order, return it within 30 days to thrive thereafter, we will
IM, IV, JE, KA27-28, KW, PA20-80, PH19-50, TR21-25 & ZE. Offer subject and we’ll replace or refund in full. replace free of charge. You just
to availability and in the event that this offer is oversubscribed, we
reserve the right to send suitable substitutes. Images show mature plants.
TOTAL To Get These Peter McDermott,
pay the P&P.
ORDER
Following Brexit there are a number of changes that prevent us from
trading in N. Ireland. For further details please visit www.yougarden.com
VALUE Exclusive Prices! Head Gardener
Offer available while stocks last. © YouGarden 2023.