Bare stems in herb garden a sure sign to replant
Q My herb bed looks absolutely terrible. The thymes and sages, rosemary and lavender are untidily sprawled out, with lots of bare, woody stems. The planting is in full sun, in a welldrained soil. I’ve noticed the plants slowly becoming less attractive over the years. How can I return the bed to its former neat, attractive state?
A
Long-established Mediterranean herbs inevitably become overgrown, woody and unattractive over time.
Once this happens, attempts at rehabilitation by trimming and mulching are never entirely satisfactory. My preference is to dig out old herbs like these subshrubs every five years or so, renovate the area with fresh compost or a soil amendment of your choice, and replant with small, young specimens.
This need not be an expensive project. Most plant outlets have herbs in different sizes. I always select the smallest. These are the ones that will settle in most easily, grow most pleasingly, thrive over the longest possible term, and cost far less than large transplants.
Q
I have two apple trees in a newly acquired garden. Both trees are loaded with fruit.
Should I thin them out? They are arranged in clusters along the branches. If thinning is recommended, when and how should I do it?
A
Wait until the tree sheds inferior and excess fruit naturally in what is called the “June drop”. Once the tree has done its own thinning, follow up by first removing all damaged and deformed apples.
Then, thin the clusters to leave just one or two apples in each one. Where there are several clusters along one branch, leave just one apple to a cluster. Thinning gives larger fruit, which means less work in picking and using the apples, and it prevents the tree from becoming so depleted that it will produce little in the following year.
After cleaning up all fallen and thinned apples, apply a fresh, nourishing mulch layer under and around the trees.