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 planted up a large border, setting out plants at the recommended distances, but it looks bare and empty. How can I fill up the gaps? – Adam Reekie, Edinburgh.

Annuals will cover the ground between shrubs and perennials while you wait for these to fill out. Hoe the soil, sow nigella, cosmos, poppies and calendula in rows, cover with a thin layer of soil and water, thin out when they germinate.

I’ve discovered lots of small holes in my soil. – Linda Small, by email.

Sounds like the work of voles, which can nibble on bulbs and roots and gnaw on bark, but as they are part of a complex food chain, its best not to take any measures to get rid of them.

How much space do you need to grow a Great White Cherry? – Hilary Mutch, Falkirk.

The Great White Cherry, Prunus Tai-haku spreads out as it grows until the crown can stretch for as much as 8m across. Unless you want it to cover the whole garden I’d choose something like Prunus The Bride which has a shrubby habit and large, white flowers.

Why are we advised to add both compost and fertiliser to a veg plot? – Sean Harris, by email.

Compost adds weight and water-retention capabilities and improves the drainage of the soil, and it can add nutrients too, but for a full range of everything that a plant needs for healthy growth including nitrogen, phosphorus and potash, fertiliser may be needed.

Despite trying to sow sparsely, my carrots look overcrowded. – Joe Ritchie, Dumbarton.

Water the row, hold down the soil around the unwanted seedling with one hand and pull up with the other. Once you’ve done the whole row water again to settle in the remaining seedlings. You may have to do this more than once as the carrots grow.