Prepping poppies for special days
clumps of both garlic and ordinary chives. Replant divisions in a fresh spot in full sun with good drainage. Add compost to the planting hole and keep evenly watered.
4. Mint: By the end of summer mint leaves can look rusty and plants often die down over winter. Chop down to ground level and add a layer of compost. It will come away again with clean fresh leaves. 5. Lemongrass: Move potted plants to a warm place under the eaves. Reduce watering but don’t let them dry out. Protect in-ground plants with a cloche or a frame with frost cloth. Harvest any plump stems – they freeze very well.
6. Sage: Remove stems which have flowered, and trim lightly. Don’t be too severe as it can die back. 7. Rosemary: Trim back but watch out for bees if it’s still flowering. Take cuttings. Remove the lower leaves and place cuttings around the edge of a pot of sand, vermiculite or potting mix. Keep moist. Pot on into individual containers when the cuttings produce roots. Trailing rosemary is easy to propagate by layering. Scratch away a section of bark on a long stem where it touches the ground. Keep the stem in contact with the ground with a wire staple or a stone. Alternatively, attach the stem across the top of a pot of potting mix. Roots will grow from the stem. Cut the stem away from the parent plant when the roots are well established.
8. Thyme: Cut out any dead bits and give the clump a light trim. Look around the edge of the clump for rooted pieces that can be detached from the parent and potted up as new plants.