Alexandra Campbell’s tips on how to keep your borders flourishing

Keep your perennials supported and your borders flourishing with Alexandra Campbell’s helpful tips.

WE are now into the season for staking and supporting perennials, as it’s important to do this before plants get too big and flop over.

I find this job so easy to forget, but it’s key to a successful summer border.

Plants like lupins, lilies, delphiniums, dahlias and peonies in particular almost always need support.

I’m not personally in favour of staking and supporting everything, as I have noticed that if your border is packed, some plants do a reasonable job of supporting each other.

Some people support salvias, cosmos, echinacea, cannas and crocosmia, but I haven’t had too many problems with these.

Sometimes they get blown over if they’re near a path, so I’ll put a “border restraint” (often called an arc support) in to prop them up.

Generally it’s harder to bring a plant back from flopping over than it is to stop it flopping in the first place.

You definitely need robust plant supports made of iron or steel.

I’ve had very poor results from those wire rings and the thinner interlocking link stakes.

Peony plant supports or trumpet plant supports, as Harrod Horticultural calls them, are good supports for many plants.

They sell them in two sizes and they’re endorsed by the RHS. They’re circular and wider at the top, so plants spill out naturally over them.

For the emergency support of tall, individual flowers such as iris, allium, agapanthus or lily, the Plant Crook single stem support from Plant Belles (www.plantbelles.co.uk) is perfect.

It’s a single stake with a curled top.

Wedge the stake in the ground and coax the plant stem into the curled part. Other crook plant supports

on the market don’t seem to work in the same way.

While other plant supports stay in place all summer, the Plant Crook is reusable.

When the flower dies, you can pull the crook out and use it to support another flower in the garden.

I also find arc supports (in iron or steel) useful as last-minute supports.

They can be wedged into the edges of borders to push back straying foliage.

There are a range of different arc supports at www.plantsupports.co.uk.

Plant supports are an expensive element in the garden, so if you want a cheaper alternative, Liz Zorab of Byther Farm makes her plant supports out of pig wire, which is like chicken wire, but has larger holes.

Cut it to the right size, circle it round the plant and tie it together.

It won’t have the extended feet of a purpose made plant support, so use pegs to secure it into the ground.

Another attractive DIY option is to use hazel pea sticks (or many other kinds of large, fairly flexible twig).

Wedge the twigs into the ground in a ring around the plant, then weave the upper parts together to create a circle or dome, like a loosely woven cage.

Aim to make a plant support that is about two-thirds the height of the fully grown plant.

It’s surprisingly easy and very natural-looking. Apparently this is a particularly British way of supporting plants.

When tying plants to supports, the RHS reminds us not to tie them tightly, as plants need to be able to move in the wind.

It’s also better to use soft twine rather than string, and definitely don’t use any kind of wire. ■