Potting Shed

Welcome to my potting shed! This is the column where I’ll share all my gardening hints and tips – and I’ll try to answer any queries you may have.

I’ve had a phormium in a pot for several years, but in the last few weeks some of the leaves have started to turn brown. Do I need to repot it? – Jill Findlay, Gourock

Check the pot for waterlogging, the hole at the bottom may be blocked and phormiums don’t like sitting in wet compost. If it has outgrown its space, then tip it out, trim off some of the roots, and replace with fresh compost in the same container.

I’ve had to dig out some daffodils to enlarge a border, can I replant these? – K Muir, Banff

Yes, just firm them into the soil, give them some water and they will appear again next year.

Where have my crocuses gone? They were there one day and missing the next. – Fiona Smith, Edinburgh

Squirrels, mice, voles, birds – the list of possible culprits is lengthy. You may want to plant a few in pots and keep them under wire covers to prevent every last one from being eaten.

Why has my camellia never flowered while every other one in my street is covered in blooms? – Tracy Ebury, by email.

The only camellias which flower reliably in Scotland are those in the ‘williamsii’ group, but many ‘sasanqua’ species are sold here and, while these grow strongly, they seldom produce flowers.

Is it too early to start off potatoes on sacks? – D. Leitch, Bathgate

Plant them now if you have a greenhouse or conservatory to keep them in until there’s no danger of frost. Outdoors, wait a few weeks and then cover the sacks on cold nights.