Readers’ gardens
'Cosy blanket' gets a tidy-up
The winter garden has been far from dormant. Green shoots having been popping up throughout the borders and the promise of late-winter, earlyspring colour has been tantalising.
I left a lot of the old seed heads intact over winter for wildlife habitat and food so the garden has had a very natural look but I’ll now work through cutting down the spent material to reveal the emerging shoots. The old leaves and stems of Phlomis russeliana, sedum ‘Brilliant’ and asters have been great at providing an extra cosy blanket of protection against the cold. New foliage has been growing fast in the mild January weather, with Acanthus mollis erupting out the ground, turning decay to luscious green.
Our 'bug hotel' log pile appears to have attracted many local residents. Spiders, snails, woodlice and worms seem at home. Another welcomed evergreen habitat is the ivy that encases our silver birch, Betula pendula. As well as providing a shelter for mini beasts, it’s the permanent residence of two beautiful wood pigeons. These 'lovebirds' have made the ivy and birch branches their nesting spot for years.
My greenhouse is in need of a major spring clean but before that starts, I’ve been nurturing overwintered pelargonium cuttings. About five years ago I bought ‘Mrs Pollock’ from Tyntesfield National Trust garden, and the parent plant just goes from strength to strength each year but I always take cuttings as a precaution.
I’m seduced by the glorious tri-coloured foliage that's gold, red and green! Over time I’ve noticed that some leaves revert to green so
I’ve systematically removed these to try and maintain the quintessential colours.
Our apple tree is a prolific cropper. Each year I’ve been taking out a few oversized branches to reduce the height and thin it. If I reduced the height of the entire tree in one go I'd just end up with a lot of water shoots and few apples, so although this is a slow process, I can maintain a good crop of cookers while lowering the height year after year. Patience required!
My highlight
My indoor plants are thriving. I have an enormous pilea that's producing a lot of ‘babies’.