Quick Qu estions
Will our pot-grown acidantheras flower again this year?
Sandy Morrison, Clackmannanshire Acidanthera is now known as Gladiolus
murielae. Unlike our familiar garden glads, this one has fla er, more open, white flowers with a purple centre. They often don’t survive in open ground over the winter. In pots under cover the corms should be fine if you fed them last summer, but it’s worth checking if the new corms are of flowering size, otherwise you’ll have masses of a ractive grassy leaves but no flowers.
Is it alright to add citrus fruit waste to our compost heap?
Jill Brookes, by email You will read that citrus waste makes heaps too acidic but any fresh vegetable ma er added will initially create very acid conditions as humic and other natural acids are released. Quite rapidly these materials break down, becoming alkaline as part of the natural composting process. The other argument is that fungicides, and other treatments, used on citrus skins are harmful to earthworms, but I’ve always added citrus and not found any shortage of worms.
Can I grow fritillaries in my lawn?
Alison Keen, Tewkesbury
Fritillaria meleagris, the snake’s head fritillary, grows in damp meadows, so will do well in lawn that’s occasionally waterlogged or over clay. Mail-order bulbs are often quite dehydrated and the percentage of failures is high. Pots in flower can be planted out. Let them self seed and mow after the stems turn brown. Don’t feed the lawn as this encourages vigorous grass growth. On drier lawns, try blue Chionodoxa forbesii.