June 2013 Newsletter
I’ve just been looking back over the newsletters I wrote for June 2012 and June 2011, and one thing really stands out … weather conditions have been dramatically different for each of them. Last year we were suffering endless rain, the year before we were in the middle of a drought and my newsletter was full of ways to get enough water onto your beds and borders during a hosepipe ban, and which plants survived drought conditions best! This year, I hardly need tell you, the dominant factor has been the cold.
The weather has made it very hard to know what best to do in our gardens. We appreciate every single sunny blue-skied day, and at the garden centre we have noticed that there is an almost frenetic rush to buy plants and garden paraphernalia whenever a warm spell is forecast.
Essentially, our gardens and allotments are still about a month or 5 weeks behind where we would expect them to be. Whilst I would normally be extolling the virtues of the late summer flowering plants at this juncture, this year it seems we haven’t really even had spring properly yet.
However, the ground IS warm enough to plant, and the sooner you do so, the more likely you are to get a wonderful display at some point in the year!
The stalwarts in my garden (Erysimum Bowles Mauve, Alchemilla Mollis, Geranium Rosanne, and Buxus, to name but a few) are all looking lovely. The Cornus Kousa I added last year is quite heavenly right now, and I suspect I’m going to have a bumper harvest of apples again. I tried to get rid of my Golden Hop last year, as it’s a bit of a thug, but was unsuccessful. However, I’m rather glad I failed, as the acid lime green leaves on sinewy stems leaping up the fence are a bright delight in this rather gloomy weather. Any one of these plants would be a welcome addition to most gardens, so come and grab yours now!
I finally got round to doing my window boxes at the front of the house last week, and it gives me a ridiculous amount of pleasure each evening when I come home to see the cheery dark red geraniums, with the promise of an explosion of orange, yellow and red to follow as the nasturtiums flower. On impulse, I sprinkled a pack of California poppies into the boxes too, I decided to keep it very simple this year, using plants that need the minimum amount of care, as I’m due to be away a fair bit over the summer months (both work and pleasure), so they’re going to have to fend for themselves. It’s worth thinking about this sort of thing when you decide what to plant into your pots, window boxes and hanging baskets. Now that we have the full range of summer bedding plants available, you can pick and choose to suit both your taste and your lifestyle.
So …. what’s new in?
- ‘Scaredy Cat’ (Coleus Caninus) is available again. This brilliant little plant is a natural way to deter cats in your garden, and I know many of you have been waiting for it to appear again this year.
- As mentioned above, the summer bedding range increases each week. We now have geraniums in a wealth of varieties and colours, upright and trailing. The slightly more tender plants such as lobelia, carillon, fuchsia, antirrhinum, diascia and verbena are all now available.
- The range of herbaceous perennials is filling out, although we still can’t get all the plants you would expect to see by now. The Peonies are looking amazing, with their big fat buds, and the perennial geraniums are now showing bud and flower. Anchusa, Thalictrum, Hostas, Primula and Veronicas are all looking good, and the wonderful range of Nemesia (including Wisley Vanilla) are a joy to smell as you walk past them. There are Lilies, Chelsea Digitalis and Iceland Poppies and lavender all about to flower.
- The range of shrubs is looking great. Potentilla, Ceanothus, Convolvulus, Nandina, Berberis, Cytisus, Cistus and Pittosporums, to name but a few. Cornus kousa, mentioned above, are full of new flowers just turning from green to white and pink.
- The David Austin roses are growing so fast you can almost see it happening. We still have a good range in – shrubs, climbers and standards. We also have small Patio roses available at last.
- Once again, the Hairy Pot Herbs are proving very popular. Those of you who have planted them in the past need no persuasion to know that they are of exceptional quality. I’ve planted a window box full of them just outside the kitchen, and they have been added to soups and salads for a couple of weeks now.
- At last we can get the full range of young vegetable plants, including Purple Sprouting Broccoli, Mange Tout, Sweetcorn, Aubergine, Chillis and Chard. These come in strips with several plants in each strip, or in individual pots. There are plenty of different varieties of Tomatoes and Strawberries available too.
I’m heading off to our growers in Tuscany soon, on the hunt for large shrubs and trees. If there ‘s anything you want me to find for you while I’m there please let me know asap! You can email me at Karen@alleynpark.co.uk.
In the shop we have the full contingent of sundries, chemicals and fertilizers, so whether you need to napalm the greenfly, tie in your rampant roses, or feed your clematis, we have just the product you need.
Feeding your plants through the summer months is essential to prolong their display and to bulk them up so that they come back even bigger and better next year. We love the Maxicrop range of seaweed liquid fertilizers …. it’s what we use at the garden centre ourselves. We can always happily advise you on which fertiliser you need for your requirements.
We also have back in stock two excellent pest repellents:
Scoot is the best product we have found so far for getting rid of foxes. One of our customers was in despair when a fox family returned for the 4th year running and set up home by her shed earlier this year. The cubs were cute, but caused havoc in her lovingly cared-for garden. We recommended Scoot and she delightedly told us just a few days later that the foxes had gone. It’s several weeks on now, and they haven’t returned.
Silent Roar is a cat deterrent. It is pelleted, dehydrated lion dung. Sprinkled round your garden it releases a scent (that humans are unaware of) which firmly tells the neighbourhood cats that a MUCH bigger cat lives here, so back off! The added bonus is that as it disintegrates into the ground, it acts as a fertilizer.
Finally, a reminder that with summer finally making an appearance you will feel like dining al fresco. Nothing works better as both a barbeque and fire-pit than our wonderful Indian Kadais. Rob keeps threatening to fire one up and cook bizarre-sounding South African sausages for everyone one Saturday, so keep your nostrils flared for that one!
Whether you cook on a Kadai or an alternative barbeque, we have olive wood charcoal briquettes and lump wood in stock. This burns much more slowly than normal barbeque charcoal so is more economical.
Here’s hoping that by the time I do the next newsletter we’ll be basking in warm sunshine, with clear blue skies above. If not, I for one am going to pack up and move to the South of France!
Looking forward to seeing you soon.
Karen
Oh – PS – if you haven’t done so already, do remember to go and check out the fabulous garden installation in Vanguard Court, SE5. Designer Anna Rose Hughes has done an amazing job of transforming a dead, derelict space into something quite extraordinarily unexpected. It’s open for the next 2 weekends, is free to visit, and is truly an absolute delight. Here’s the link ….
Opening Hours
Monday to Saturday: 9:30am – 5:30pm
Sundays and Bank Holidays: 10am – 4pm
Except
Jan: 10am – 4pm (Fri, Sat and Sun only)
Feb, Aug, Nov: 10am – 4pm (every day)
Contact Us
Web: www.alleynpark.co.uk
Email: info@alleynpark.co.uk
Phone: 020 8670 7788
Rear of 77 Park Hall Road
(Entrance opposite Café Rouge)
West Dulwich, London SE21 8ES
Garden jobs for June
I'm a container gardener at home, on south facing balconies. I've planted a lovely range of herbs, tomatoes and sweet peas recently, and are all doing well. I waited much later than normal to put them in, and you'll probably agree that we seem to be a month behind where we would expect to be in June. I've thoroughly enjoyed the fabulous show of spring blossom though, and now look forward to summer months of sunshine!
Here are some things to get on with when you find time to be outside.
My top 2 jobs for June
1. The first is multiple advice - feed, weed, stake and water! The longer days give more daylight hours, bringing the growing season into full swing, with the hope of lush gardens and containers through the months to come. Regular attention to the basic jobs will help things to look their best for a long time ahead.
2. Now the soil is warm, sow and plant annual crops and flowers - there is such a fantastic choice of summer bedding plants, and lots of shrubs and herbaceous perennials are happy to be planted now.
Plant and garden maintenance
- Cut back early flowering perennials such as Geranium Phaem, Brunnera, Tellima, Pulmonaria and others hard to the ground once the flowers have gone over, and you will soon have fresh new leaves. Water well and it won't be long before new growth appears.
- It's not too late to stake tall herbaceous plants - do it now before delphiniums, lilies, and peonies lean too far with the weight of their blooms.
- Karen has already mentioned that we must FEED OUR PLANTS! We plant all sorts of lovely things and expect them to look after themselves with a bit of water every now and then. All new compost has sufficient nutrients to feed plants for up to 6 weeks, but thereafter the nutrients your plants require must be added to the soil. Wonder why you haven't got many flowers on your peony or camellia? Have you fed them? Very old bottles of fertiliser may not have the necessary oomph, so treat the garden to a good fertiliser and your plants will perform much better.
- Watering - be aware of the plants which need more water, including those recently planted, young vegetables and plants in containers. If we experience drought conditions, remember that it's much better to really soak plants a couple of times a week than to spray a little water everywhere each day. Small amounts of water encourage roots to come to the surface, which makes plants even more vulnerable in dry conditions. Make sure water soaks right down to the deeper roots.
- Trim topiary, including those smart box balls! Choose a cloudy day so that the leaves don't go brown with leaf scorch, and remember to feed and water afterwards.
- Keep on top of weeds. Pulling out or hoeing annual weeds while they are small is well worth it. On a hot day you can leave them and they will wither on top of the soil. Perennial weeds are another matter, and must be removed completely, with nothing left of the root.
Edibles
- Pinch out side shoots on tomatoes, so that you only have one main growing stem. A few varieties, such as 'Totem', don't need this treatment.
- Once the first truss of tomatoes has formed, start feeding with Tomorite or similar high potash feed.
- Avoid using insecticides on crops when they are in flower.
- Water potatoes well if the weather is dry. Early potatoes should be ready to harvest soon. Look out for the first flowers, and once they have opened, your spuds should be ready.
- Runner beans and climbing French beans can be sown outside, as well as squash, courgettes and sweet corn.
- Blueberries and cranberries growing in pots need to be kept moist at all times, preferably with collected rainwater.
- Tie in raspberry and blackberry canes.
- Watch out for the June drop which is the process of fruit trees naturally shedding surplus amounts of fruit. You should remove any damaged or misshapen fruit, and if there is a lot of fruit remaining after the natural fall, remove some more by hand. What's left will be better quality and the tree will have more energy.
Lawns
- It's best to mow the lawn at least once, preferably twice a week at this time of year. The less grass removed at each cut, the healthier the grass will be. If we hit a dry spell, reduce the frequency of cutting and raise the mowing height.
Pests and diseases
- Mildew - some plants are particularly susceptible to mildew such as Pulmonaria, roses and honeysuckle. Remove and dispose of all affected leaves and stems. Improve watering, feeding, and, if possible, air circulation around the plant. If necessary, treat with an appropriate fungicide.
- Protect vulnerable plants from slugs and snails. Dawn and dusk outings wearing gloves and carrying a bucket, and then dousing the collected molluscs with salt, can reduce the populations dramatically. Slug pellets or bait, should be used sparingly - follow the instructions on the pack.
- Keep an eye out for aphid infestations - it's much easier to control if caught early. Squish them, or use an insecticide. Always use sprays carefully, in the evening when fewer beneficial insects are active, and choose a time when there isn't a breeze.
- Bright red lily beetle and bronze/green striped rosemary beetle can do a lot of damage in a short space of time, so keep an eye out for them. Provado is the only pesticide recommended by the RHS as effective against these bugs. Read the instructions before using on edible crops.
Wildlife
- Birds need constant supplies of food and water as they raise their young, so keep feeders and bird baths topped up.
I hope that the month brings some warm days for everyone to relax with a glass or two in the shade.
Sally
Opening Hours
Monday to Saturday: 9:30am – 5:30pm
Sundays and Bank Holidays: 10am – 4pm
Except
Jan: 10am – 4pm (Fri, Sat and Sun only)
Feb, Aug, Nov: 10am – 4pm (every day)
Contact Us
Web: www.alleynpark.co.uk
Email: info@alleynpark.co.uk
Phone: 020 8670 7788
Rear of 77 Park Hall Road
(Entrance opposite Café Rouge)
West Dulwich, London SE21 8ES