Secrets of a Head Gardener
Watering is a timeconsuming task but it’s time well spent. Many perennials, such as agapanthus, are happy in drier conditions, but hydrangeas and astilbes are thirsty individuals. I water heavily once a week to encourage roots downwards towards moisture. When it rains, check how far the rain has penetrated – just because the surface is damp doesn’t mean itt has reached the roots.
Roses can require a great deal of attention so choose types to suit your lifestyle. Rugosa roses are generally pest and disease free, don’t need deadheading, flower continually all summer and are extremely fragrant. You’ll also have the bonus of red hips and golden-yellow
foliage in autumn.
Staking plants is probably my least favourite job – and it’s made even worse if the plant has already fallen over! At Bowood, we stretch very fine 10cm (4in) square green mesh between small, wooden stakes painted black. I put this over plants before they get too tall and, as they grow, plants come up through the mesh with each stem supported. The mesh soon becomes invisible and the stakes can hardly be seen.
Love them or hate them, marigolds are essential in the kitchen garden – never underestimate their value as companion plants. I plant them between and around carrots to fend off carrot fly with amazing success and interplant tomatoes with them in the greenhouse to defend against whitefly.
I’m often asked what we do with our old tulips. Here at Bowood, I lift them from the borders after they’ve flowered and dry them in the greenhouse. I sort through them in midsummer, and keep the largest. Then in autumn I plant a mixture of them under the apple trees. Come spring, about three out of five will flower, which is still enough to give a fantastic display.