DIARMUID GAVIN Get a buzz out of your garden
This year my emphasis through these pages will be an exploration of how we can garden for the greater good. And there are a few headline topics which would be great to consider as we start out. Through the seasons we’ll
look at each topic in detail but for now these are my 2021 garden resolution headlines:
Bee numbers have been declining for years due to a combination of reasons, including our increased use of pesticides, climate change and parasites.
We need bees, moths and other pollinators to ensure that our ecosystem is healthy and that we can grow food. By planting species which produce plenty of pollen which is easily available to our pollinators we will ensure that our garden buzzes with life.
So consider planting wildflower mixes, bulbs such as alliums and crocuses, perennials such as asters, sedum and poppies, plus shrubs like lavender and rosemary.
A varied ecosystem in your garden will enhance your enjoyment of the space and will attract beneficial insects and pollinators.
Gardeners need to stop using peat
Rather than shipping out your garden waste to let someone else take care of it, turn it into rich soil-nourishing material by creating a compost heap.
Grass cuttings, blossoms which have been dead headed, leftover salad leaves and even eggshells will break down and in time form a nutrient-rich material which can be dug directly into the ground or used as a mulch around the base of plants.
This will feed the soil and help it to retain moisture, and reduce the need for chemical or other artificial feeds.
As gardeners in these islands we’ve become far too reliant on peat as a base for planting
and growing. It’s an excellent gardening aid but it’s a finite resource which comes from valuable bogs which deserve protection.
They are beautiful ecosystems in themselves which support a distinct group of flora and fauna, along with storing carbon.
So let’s look out for reduced peat or, even better, peat-free composts in the garden centre and do our bit to preserve our bogs while maintaining beautiful gardens.
Our default garden feature which seems to cover the country is the garden lawn. And it can be a wonderful resource – a great place for children to play games or a beautiful green velvety rug, the perfect foil for flowericious borders. However, lawns are high-maintenance features which demand way too much attention from lawnmowers, sprinklers and chemicals which make them look greener or kill off moss or flowering weeds.
What’s worse is the lawn is made up of hundreds of thousands of individual grass plants which would flower if given a chance, and those flowers produce beneficial pollen. But before they get a chance to blossom it’s ‘off with their heads’.
So this year we’ll look at some alternatives... lawns which are made from clover, thyme or camomile.
And we’ll be really radical and examine what it’s like to simply let a portion of your lawn grow and grow and grow – and not worry what the neighbours think.
If you do that you’ll unleash a beautiful world of flowering wonder – and it’s better gardening for you and our planet 2021 style!