SUMMER Gardening IN Scotland
8-PAGE GUIDE TO ENJOYING YOUR GARDEN IN LOCKDOWN
ONE of my favourite quotes about gardening is by the actor Audrey Hepburn: ‘To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.’ Like every gardener, she understood that a garden requires patience, but given time the rewards will be great.
I was reminded of this quote as I considered how the events of this year have affected me.
I am Nicola Todd-Macnaughton, also known as The Bonnie Gardener. I believe everyone should have a beautiful outdoor space to call their own – not only for aesthetic reasons, but for your physical and mental health. And this strange, unsettling time has certainly taken a toll on many of us.
Plans have been put on hold and loved ones have gone unvisited. Our NHS heroes and care workers are working tirelessly for those in need. Gardening has helped me to cope. It reminds me that even in difficult times, there is always hope.
The seeds I planted at the start of lockdown are beginning to flower, beds that were bare are now lush, and some of the vegetables I sowed are ready to eat.
In my garden, I watch blackbirds fleeting around gathering materials for their nests, blue tits collecting food and swallows arriving for summer.
The natural world carries on, unaffected and unaware of our pandemic – and there is something deeply settling about that. I urge you to tune into this, too.
In this special supplement I’ll share ideas for your garden, whether it is big or small, or an indoor or outdoors space.
I hope these suggestions will bring joy to you, your friends and your family over the coming weeks and months.
AND I hope that through gardening and by getting more interested in the natural world you too will be reassured by it, and trust and believe in tomorrow. When I was growing up, I never had patience – I always wanted instant results. I went on to work in a fast-paced corporate environment and initially I thrived on adrenaline and deadlines.
I thought I would find happiness and contentment in climbing the career ladder but then I realised that the nine-to-five office life didn’t bring me real joy – being in the great outdoors did. So I made big changes.
I applied for an allotment and started an evening course in horticulture with the Royal Horticultural Society.
Like most allotments, mine was in terrible condition at first – it had waist-high grass, four rotten, raised beds and an old shopping trolley. Every spare moment was spent bringing the space to life and preparing it for a new planting season.
But the more time I spent in my plot, the more I learned. It was not an easy decision to leave a well-paid job to pursue a new career.
The thought of change terrified me, but my true vocation was matching plants to people and helping both to care for each other.
I set up my own business, The Bonnie Gardener, and I have never looked back.
Gardening has brought me an incredible amount of joy and happiness – it teaches me new things every day.
Today, I hope to inspire you to find similar joy and to make the most of your own green space – during the remainer of this lockdown and beyond.
USE YOUR GARDEN AS AN OUTDOOR ROOM
DURING the full lockdown, the only visitors to my garden were local wildlife and the postman. I felt terrible that he had to carry so many boxes of plants and gardening equipment to my door, but the only place to get anything was online.
Now that restrictions have been relaxed I can welcome friends and relatives to my garden – we can meet outside if we adhere to the appropriate social distancing measures. It means the garden is the new living room.
Thinking about your garden as an extension of your home can be a challenge if you have not spent much time there or if you have limited space, but you can soon have it in tip-top shape.
In the same way you would prepare your home for visitors by tidying, putting out flowers and plumping cushions, there are really simple ways to get your new outdoor ‘room’ ready for entertaining...
SPRUCE UP YOUR GARDEN FURNITURE
IF you are expecting guests, seating is key. With new items hard to get hold of, or with long waiting times, why not ‘make do and mend’? It is simple to give old garden furniture a new lease of life – metal items need only a good clean with soap and water.
Wooden benches can be sanded and then varnished or painted – buy supplies online or at a local hardware store. Last year I was fed up with my boring old bench which looked past its best, so I sanded it down and painted it bright pink. It brings me so much cheer, even in winter, and it goes beautifully with the colours in the garden over summer.
If you don’t have any garden furniture, bring kitchen chairs outdoors or simply use a rug from the house on the lawn. Beanbags or large soft cushions will make a fun and comfortable addition without breaking the bank.
MAKE SPACES PRETTY
IT is easy to feel overwhelmed by how much can need done in a garden, particularly at this time of year when growth is in full swing. If you do not know where to begin, focus your energy on high-amenity areas such as patios and decking.
Choose one spot and focus on it thoroughly before moving on to the next space. Tackle weeds, scrub away moss, get rid of old pots that are causing clutter and throw away any old, dead plants that are creating an eyesore.
If you have a powerhose, give your hard surfaces a blast – you will see a huge difference.
Once the tidying is done, reward yourself by adding some pretty finishing touches – cut some flowers from the garden and make a vase for the table, light some scented candles, or order some solar-powered fairy lights to make the space look special.
Your guests will be so impressed that they will not notice the other parts of the garden, which you can tend to later.
CLEAR UP BORDERS
PERENNIAL plants will be filling out nicely by now but garden weeds are booming, too.
Give your borders a blitz and focus your efforts on those perennial weeds that will get worse year after year, such as buttercups and ground elder.
Pick the tops off annual weeds such as dandelions and willow herb before they set seed and scatter all over your garden – making thousands of new weeds next year.
While working through borders, shape hedges and shrubs to stop them getting out of shape – ideally wait until after shrubs have flowered before you cut them back.
Once the borders are tidy, edge them with a half-moon tool – it is a quick job that packs a punch and stops the lawn and its weeds from growing into your flowerbeds. If you are not confident about edging in a straight line, tie string between two canes, pull it tight and follow the line along while you edge. Edging will make everything look sharp and neat.
ADD POTS
IF you have a patio garden or a balcony, make it a million times prettier by using pots to add instant colour. Now garden centres are open, get your hands on simple and cheap bedding plants that will flower all summer long.
I like using flowers that add scent as well as colour. Nicotiana (tobacco plant) has a gorgeous evening fragrance, while the soft, ice cream-coloured Nemesia smells like vanilla. If bedding seems like an annual extravagance, invest in perennial plants such as a patio rose or honeysuckle to clamber up a wall or fence.
Looking after pots is simple, and the larger the pot, the slower it will dry out, so there is less need to water. All pots require regular watering, especially if the weather is hot and dry, and a weekly addition of an allpurpose plant feed to ensure flowers remain healthy and vibrant. Place pots beside doors and seating areas for maximum impact.
CHILD’S PLAY
WHEN lockdown eased, friends brought over their two children, both under seven, and a few garden-related games kept them happy.
Challenge youngsters to find every colour of the rainbow in your garden, hunt for wildlife or create an area for hedgehogs to rest using sticks, feathers and leaves.
GARDENING FOR HEALTH
COPING with lockdown and the uncertainty that lies ahead has, and will continue to be, a roller coaster ride for most of us. Now more than ever it is important that we stay well – physically, mentally and emotionally.
Gardens and the great outdoors have enormous healing potential. It is why there are such incredible initiatives as Horatio’s Garden, which creates and nurtures beautiful outdoor spaces at NHS spinal injury centres, including at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.
When it feels like the end of the world, gardens can ground us and give us hope.
Whether you have a large garden or space for only a few planters, connecting to nature is a great way to boost your wellbeing.
Here are a few ways you can go about it over the coming weeks and months...
GET ACTIVE
EXERCISE makes us feel good. But you do not have to get out in the garden and do situps or dig every day to get a good workout.
To be honest, digging is not all that good for the soil structure either – read about the ‘no-dig’ method online.
Get active by scarifying moss out the lawn using a spring tine rake, by forking out longrooted weeds, turning your compost heap, or lugging a bag of compost for your window
boxes up the stairs. You’ll be amazed how many steps you rack up from a morning outside. So get your gardening gloves on and get outside. You’ll be fitter and have a stunning garden to show for your efforts.
EXERCISE MINDFULNESS
PEOPLE often ask me what I think about when I am gardening. My reply is: ‘Gardening.’ Practising mindfulness means focusing on one thing and giving it your full attention.
According to Buddhist philosophy, when we are truly focused on the present moment, that is when we find happiness and contentment.
Use your time gardening or caring for your indoor house plants as a time to practise mindfulness.
Get curious – explore how plants feel, smell and look, though only taste herbs and plants you know are edible.
The more you practise mindfulness, the easier it is for the brain to focus, and the more your sense of wellbeing grows.
GIVE, GIVE, GIVE
MOST people get greater satisfaction out of giving presents than receiving them. The beauty of having a garden or collection of indoor plants is that you have an endless supply of gifts.
Many herbaceous garden plants, such as alchemilla, geum, geranium, hosta and hemerocallis, will benefit from being divided every few years, to stop them becoming congested. Take cuttings of house plants such as Christmas cactus, or divide large peace lilies into segments, pot them up and give them to people who will appreciate them.
I’ve been swapping plants with friends and relatives, and giving away excess seedlings to people who can care for and nurture them. I’ve also received wonderful gifts, such as sweet peas and some clematis plants taken from cuttings last year. Giving is guaranteed to enhance your wellbeing. And doing this with plants will make other spaces shine.
CREATE SENSORY SPACES
WHEN I design planting schemes for clients with children, I often incorporate lots of sensory elements – frondy fennels, scented sages, rustling bamboos and soft grasses that call out to be touched.
There is no reason why adults should not enjoy these wonderful plants and sensory experiences, too. The more senses we can engage in our planting choices, garden ornaments and hard and soft landscaping – both indoors and outdoors – the better.
Why not create a sanctuary area with some clump-forming bamboo, a Buddha statue and a trickling water feature?
Or a wildlife pond with yellow flag iris and some goldfish?
Encourage wildlife into your garden through your plant choices – teasels for goldfinches, nectar-rich flowers for bees and evening-scented plants such as honeysuckle and stocks for moths. Watching wildlife in the garden offers a sense of peace.
REFLECT
ONE of the things I love about gardening is that it encourages me to slow down, enjoy the moment and not rush on to the next thing.
When lockdown began, my husband and I started a ‘lockdown diary’. Every evening we make a note of the events of the day – however profound or insignificant.
This inspired me to start a gardening diary – something I’ve dabbled with on and off for years – to record key dates and occurrences.
I now know exactly when I sowed specific seeds, when the late frosts came (May 13 in Glasgow, if you are interested) and what is flowering when. This invaluable information will serve me and my clients in future.
Keeping a diary will help you to remember all the things you have done and it is a nice way to reflect on your achievements over the course of a year.
WHEN lockdown was imposed, I was unsure whether I would be allowed to work. I took time off while I waited for the Government to announce what would be permitted, and I used that time to work in my own garden.
I really missed visiting gardens and seeing my clients, many of whom have become good friends. I realised how difficult it must be for those who could not see loved ones and people living on their own.
My husband, who works in IT, suggested I start my own virtual community and we set up a Bonnie Gardener YouTube channel.
We filmed the work I was doing in our garden and put it online in a bid to help or inspire people who wanted to use lockdown to learn more about the outdoors and how to garden. It made me feel like I was doing my little bit to help.
We did ten episodes and I am so pleased it has grown into a small community. Viewers are now sharing their tips and tricks, tours of their gardens and even offering plants to swap with other viewers. It’s been fun.
If you are at home and unable to get out then I recommend joining an online community.
Check if there is a local Facebook gardening group for your area. If there isn’t one, why not create one? It is a fantastic way to meet new people, get help and receive plants or seeds.
I’ve been so inspired by the stories I have come across on community pages – people going out of their way to cut lawns, trim hedges or even move a shed for those in their community who are unable to get out.
It was initially challenging to get certain garden items during lockdown – plants, compost and bark for paths were almost impossible. I waited six weeks for four bags of chipped bark, and I was so happy when it finally came. I found eBay a helpful place to source plants and seeds, and there are many excellent and renowned suppliers offering
products there. Smaller, family-run garden centres offering products online have been a godsend, and I always prefer to support small businesses when possible.
Ballyrobert Gardens (www.ballyrobert gardens.com) has a great online ordering system, while Binny plants (www.binnyplants. com) in Broxburn, West Lothian, has an excellent selection of herbaceous plants, including hundreds of peonies, as well as grasses and shrubs.
Many smaller suppliers have items you will not find in larger, more corporate nurseries, and are happy to deliver for a small charge. It is always worth supporting them.
If you have more time on your hands at the moment, get inspired. I love Instagram and Pinterest. Imagine endless photo albums and you can search for any topic.
Look for Scottish gardens and find out what other people are planting and what works for them – these are likely to work in your garden, too. I also follow celebrity gardeners such as Monty Don (@themontydon) – he’s my hero.
I also have some great apps on my phone to help me identify plants. PictureThis is the best one I’ve found and it claims to have 98 per cent accuracy. It’s great with wildflowers as well as garden plants.
I take a picture and seconds later the app gives me all the information I need. It is always worth checking it against a reference book though, just in case.
If that app learns how to design borders, cut grass or plant seeds, I’ll be out of a job.
GARDEN CENTRE DOS AND DON’TS
LOCKDOWN has taught me to slow down and appreciate the things around me – including my garden and its plants.
By watching my garden develop over the past ten weeks, I now know exactly what I want to do to enhance certain areas. I need more height in one of the borders to draw the eye upwards, and I desperately need more late spring interest in the form of alliums to carry the garden through from spring to summer. A swing seat would be a bonus, too.
Understandably, lots of people have been very frustrated about not being able to get to the garden centre during these peak gardening months. Now they are open again, we can buy lots of beautiful plants to make our gardens and indoor spaces shine.
But I urge you to plan your purchases carefully, or else your trip might end up in a panic buying session, where you spend a lot of money for relatively little reward.
The old adage of not going to the supermarket without a list is equally true for gardeners – do not visit a garden centre without one. Think about the following three things...
WHAT DO I REALLY NEED?
SOUNDS simple, right? But I’m a firm believer that failing to plan is planning to fail, and if you don’t know what you want to buy you will be lured into getting whatever looks beautiful.
That is often absolutely everything at this time of year, and it will often be things that will not last.
Do you need shrubs, the woody plants that stay above the ground all year, often offering some autumn or winter interest?
Would you prefer evergreen ones such as viburnum or rhododendron for winter structure, or a flowering shrub such as a philadelphus or hydrangea that will offer colourful flowers in summer?
Maybe you need herbaceous perennial plants – non-woody plants that come up and die back each year – to make your borders shine.
You might want ground cover plants to cover an empty patch, or a scented climber such as a honeysuckle or rose to go over a pergola.
It is not too late to grow vegetables, but rather than starting from seed at this time of year, plugs are probably best to ensure you get some produce this season. If all you have is a window box, you can easily grow smaller vegetables such as salad crops, radish, chard or beetroot.
If you want to fill pots with bright and fresh summer colour, annuals such as petunias and scented geraniums might be your best bet.
To give plants the best start, replenish pots with new compost – another thing to add to your list. When planting trees and shrubs, sprinkle some mycorrhizal fungi around the roots to help the plants adjust to their new garden environment.
Some plants, such as bedding, vegetables and roses, will benefit from an all purpose feed throughout the summer, too.
Add this to your shopping list or you are guaranteed to return home without them – it is as frustrating as getting home from the supermarket without your bread or milk.
DO YOUR RESEARCH
SCOTLAND is, on the whole, colder, damper and windier than other parts of the UK.
If you watch gardening shows, be aware that they have probably being filmed in southerly, warmer climates, with suitable plants. Make
sure the plants you want are hardy enough to survive a Scottish winter, or you are bound to be disappointed next year.
With house plants, ensure they are suitable for the place you intend to keep them. Devil’s ivy and most ferns are perfect for shady bathrooms, while aloe vera and hibiscus are sun-lovers and will adore a bright windowsill.
Consider the plant’s natural environment – the damp rainforests of the Amazon or the arid conditions of the Mediterranean – and try to recreate it as best you can.
My favourite reference book for outdoor plants is Garden Plants for Scotland by Kenneth Cox and Raoul Curtis-Machin. It is invaluable for giving a description of what does and does not work outdoors here, whether you are in Glasgow, Aberdeen or Orkney.
Other things worth researching are the final height and spread of the plant. Will it take over your house or garden in five years?
It is also likely that garden centres will not have their normal stock levels right now, so have a contingency plan.
THINK COLOUR
LESS is more when it comes to choosing plant colours. Think of the palette you would like to achieve and stick with it. A colour wheel can be incredibly useful for this. Choose a feature colour, such as red, then work with tones surrounding that, in this case fuschia, pink and orange. Alternatively, choose two opposing colours. For example, dark blue and yellow work beautifully together as they contrast and highlight one another. Think of daffodils with grape hyacinths and how striking they look.
Gardeners sometimes forget that green is a colour to have fun with, too – from the dark, leathery tones of ferns to the soft silver foliage of stachys and the yellow and white variegated forms of holly and euonymus.
And don’t be afraid of repetition. It creates cohesiveness and is pleasing on the eye. Some of my most striking designs consist of as few as five plants, on a mass scale.
MY FAVOURITE FLOWERS THAT PACK A PUNCH
HERE are some of my favourite easy to grow perennials for guaranteed summer colour...
SALVIA NEMOROSA ‘Caradonna’: This member of the sage family has gorgeous scented leaves and a tall indigo-coloured flowering spire which will bloom from May through to September.
RUDBECKIA ‘Goldsturm’:
Deep, golden flowers with a chocolate-brown centre, this is a fantastic late season addition which will flower from July until October, growing year after year.
LEUCANTHEMUM X SUPERBUM:
A simple white daisy growing to 2ft high, perfect for full sun or part-shade and great for cutting for a vase.
GERANIUM ‘Rozanne’:
Wonderful ground cover plant to help suppress weeds. Repeat blue flowers for months on end and so fussfree. This is my favourite hardy geranium by a million miles.
STACHYS BYZANTINA:
Commonly known as ‘lamb’s ears’ thanks to the soft, velvety texture. I grow this for its valuable, semi-evergreen foliage – the tall magenta flowers which appear in late summer are an added bonus. This plant is repeated through all my borders.
DO-GOOD SHRUBS
SHRUBS offer year-round interest. Consider how your garden will look in five years, rather than this summer alone. Here are my picks...
EUONYMUS FORTUNEI ‘Emerald Gaiety’:
White and green variegated foliage make this compact shrub ideal for a small hedge. It’s my go-to plant for lighting up a shady spot.
VIBURNUM DAVIDII ‘Angustifolium’:
Pinkywhite,
cap-shaped flowers contrast with evergreen dark green foliage in the first months of the year. Metallic blue berries follow. This is a fantastic and underrated plant.
HYDRANGEA PANICULATA ‘Limelight’:
Large and greenish-white, cone-shaped flowers in late summer fade to pink – just like big sticks of candyfloss. Ideal for full or part-shade.
CISTUS X PULVERULENTUS ‘Sunset’:
You will need a sunny and relatively sheltered spot for this semi-evergreen beauty, which has soft leaves and magenta flowers all summer long.
SORBARIA SORBIFOLIA ‘Sem’:
I simply adore this deciduous plant for its unique feathery foliage, which goes from pinky bronze to fresh lime, dark green to red, as the seasons change.
BEST PLANTS FOR SCENT
SUMMER is as much about scent as it is about colour. Surround your walkways and seating areas with gorgeous smells, which benefit wildlife as much as humans. Try these...
AZALEA LUTEUM:
Yellow flowers that carry the heady scent of early summer. These are well worth growing for the months of May and June alone.
NEPETA ‘SIX HILLS GIANT’:
This ground cover perennial has silver leaves and lavender flowers with a curious minty smell that cats and other animals adore.
Unlike other forms of mint, it behaves well and will not take over your border. Cut it to the ground at the end of June for a second flush.
ROSA ‘GERTRUDE JEKYLL’:
This old English rose is one of the first to flower. Perfect scrolled buds open to large, flowers which smell as good as they look. Deadhead to keep the display going.
LONICERA PERICLYMENUM ‘GRAHAM THOMAS’:
There are fragrant creamy-yellow flowers on this perfect climbing plant. If you are lucky and it is a good summer, you will see it flowering in June and again in September.
DAPHNE TANGUTICA:
Despite a common belief that daphnes are difficult to grow, this one will be very happy in part-sun and has a pinky-purple scented flower all summer. It is gorgeous and everyone will admire it.
SUMMER PLANT CARE: WATER, FOOD AND TLC
GETTING new plants for your garden is fun and rewarding, as well as making the space look beautiful. Care for and nurture your plants to make the most of them.
In many ways, plants are just like people – they benefit from water, food and a little TLC.
A beautiful garden is full of happy plants. Here are a few tips to help you... WATERING
THIS is the number one reason people do not succeed with new plants. It is vital to water on a regular basis if you want plants to thrive.
Even if it rains, which it does a lot in Scotland, your new plants will still need to be watered. This applies all the more to those in dry shade, such as under trees or beside the walls of the house, which will be sheltered and will receive little exposure to the rain.
Not all plants need the same amount of water, and if you live on a waterlogged or damp site, you do not have to water quite as often, although you must during dry spells.
Too much water can also be detrimental. If you are unsure if your plants need watered, it can be helpful to dig down into the soil a few inches and assess if it is wet or dry underneath, then take action accordingly.
Use your instincts and your intuition – you are likely to be right.
Newly planted trees and shrubs should be watered thoroughly at least three times per week for their first year, and again for at least the second spring/summer.
Sprinkler systems are not enough – it is far
better and more water efficient to use a hose or watering can. Newly planted perennials should be watered thoroughly every two or three days. Most annuals tend to dry out fast. In the summer, check them daily to assess if they need water.
FEEDING
PEOPLE often assume poor growth in garden plants is related to lack of nutrients, but, according to the Royal Horticultural Society, it is usually down to other environmental factors, such as drought, waterlogging and weather damage, as well as pests and diseases.
Rather than thinking about feeding plants in garden beds, the best way to keep your plants healthy is ensuring you have healthy soil.
Add organic matter to your soil regularly to improve it. Homemade garden compost is the best food you can offer your plants, but other excellent sources of organic matter include well-rotted farmyard manure and spent mushroom compost – available from local farmers or at a good garden centre.
That being said, there are a few types of plants that will require regular feeding...
CONTAINERISED PLANTS:
All compost runs out of nutrients eventually. An all-purpose food – with a roughly equal balance of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus – such as Growmore is ideal. Apply a top feed of compost twice a year for an added boost.
FRUIT TREES/BUSHES AND VEGETABLES:
These will benefit from regular feeding during the growing season. A natural feed such as blood, fish and bone is excellent. To encourage fruits, give plants a potassiumrich food such as a tomato feed.
BEDDING PLANTS:
Growmore or a potassium-rich feed is perfect for these, too. Boost your bedding plants with a weekly feed.
ROSES:
Use a specific rose feed or a balanced fertiliser once in spring and again later in summer to prolong the display through until the autumn.
TLC
WATERING and feeding are very important, but a little TLC goes a long way, too. Have you ever heard stories about a certain member of the Royal Family playing classical music to his plants?
The best way to show your plants love is by spending time with them, getting to know their habits and observing how they grow.
By getting to know your plants, you will quickly notice any sudden changes, such as attacks from pests and diseases, wilting or slug damage.
More often than not, the quicker you spot these problems the better, and you will be able to remedy them before it is too late.
If you see signs of pests and diseases, the Royal Horticultural Society has fantastic online advice on how best to tackle them.
UPCYCLING
WE all need to be wise with our pennies right now, and with more time on our hands and the prospect of big queues at the recycling centre, it is the perfect time to get creative.
Having an allotment for years and watching seasoned plot holders at work taught me that everything can be reused and recycled – from toilet roll tubes to old planks of wood, picture frames, old tyres and leftover pallets.
If you cannot find a use for something in your garden, try offering what you have on a local Facebook group or community platform – one person’s trash is another’s treasure, and the more we can avoid sending things to landfill, the better.
Here are some of my favourite upcycling tips to inspire you:
GET CREATIVE WITH SEED SOWING
I AM a hoarder when it comes to keeping old plant pots, and they have served me well this year. I have grown lots of cut flowers, vegetables and herbs from seed.
To grow seeds – perhaps biennials such as foxgloves, wallflowers and honesty for next year – avoid buying new plastic containers which are destined for landfill.
Toilet roll tubes, tin cans and yoghurt pots are perfect for growing plants from seed. Simply pierce holes in the bottom for drainage. Toilet roll tubes can be folded inwards at the bottom to stop the soil escaping.
Plant your seeds, keep them well watered and you will see young seedlings in no time.
WHO NEEDS POTS TO CREATE FUN DISPLAYS?
YOU can create awe-inspiring planting displays without breaking the bank on new ceramic or clay pots. Old welly boots, recycled car tyres, saucepans and leaky watering cans all offer quirky alternatives for your summer displays.
Fill them with bedding, herbs for cooking and even trailing plants such as ivy and you will be the talk of the town.
HANG YOUR ARTWORK, OUTDOORS
A BEAUTIFUL old picture frame without any glass can get a new lease of life outdoors.
Fill the back with floristry moss and pack your picture full of delicate little alpines such as sempervivum (house leeks) for an upright display. Drill a few masonry nails into the wall or fence and you have made a pretty outdoor picture.
Water carefully once a month to keep it looking its best.
PALLET POWER
IF you have an old wooden pallet, take it apart and create a compost bin for your garden waste, grass clippings, dead leaves and raw vegetable peelings.
After a year or so you will have crumbly compost to spread over your beds to feed your plants.
Another option is to sand the pallet down, paint it, and then sit it on top of a few stumps of wood to create a unique outdoor table.
You could also line the insides of the pallet with plastic sheeting, then add some compost and use it to grow herbs such as rosemary, sage, thyme and parsley.
This is a perfect herb bed for beside the back door, or it can be mounted on to a wall.
TURN TREE STUMPS INTO FEATURES
OLD tree stumps in the garden do not have to be an eyesore.
Create a seating area by adding a table and some solar-powered lights, then surround it with homemade plant pots. Or introduce some low-level planting such as vinca minor or attractive ferns to enhance the space.
SUMMER SPLENDOUR
MANY gardeners complain that they have a ‘spring garden’, or that there is very little colour to be seen past June.
We often invest a lot of energy in our gardens at the start of the growing season, and that is reflected in our planting choices – rhododendrons, primulas, hostas and early flowering perennials – but it is important to think about the second half of the year, too.
By choosing plants that will flower after June, you will have a vibrant garden that will see you through until the first frosts and beyond.
Here is what to do and when to keep your garden looking its best...
CUT BACK
AT the start of July, cut back herbaceous plants that have become long and straggly and look past their best.
Early flowering plants such as alchemillla, geum and geranium can take over a border, so reduce them back to the ground and create space for new plants.
Many of these plants will put on new growth and even produce a second flush of flowers later in the summer. Be brave to reap the rewards later in the year.
MAKE THE MOST OF NEW SPACE
REDUCING plants back to ground-level may seem severe, but it creates new space to inject later-season colour.
Lots of late flowering plants come from the Southern Hemisphere and are gloriously vibrant and exciting – think bright orange dahlias, blue agapanthus, fuchsia, hesperantha, golden rudbeckia and the glowing red of crocosmia ‘Lucifer’.
If you do not want herbaceous plants, repeat flowering floribunda roses are a great option – they will often flower through until October and are excellent value. Take your pick and extend the season of interest in your garden. PLANT FOR IMPACT...
IT is so tempting to buy one of each plant that you like, but if you want your planting to pack a punch go for groups of three, five or seven.
Your borders will look fuller, more cohesive and bold – it is the rule all garden designers use. Consider using grasses such as miscanthus or molinia varieties to create movement, or taller plants such as cornus alba to add height and structure.
... AND FOR EVERY SEASON
SUMMER has only just begun but it pays to think ahead when planning your planting.
Autumn is a glorious season and lots of plants boast incredible rustic tones – rodgersia turns a wonderful bronze, blueberry leaves turn red, rowans and hawthorns boast berries and acers are the star of the show.
How will your space look in winter, when all the herbaceous growth has died back?
This is where evergreen shrubs, grasses and even decorative perennials such as phlomis russeliana, which you can leave above ground all winter to catch the frosts, can really come into their own.
CUTTING PATCH
I LOVE having flower displays in the house and on tables in the garden – they bring a space to life and make me happy.
Making your own arrangements from the garden is much more rewarding, and cost-effective, than spending huge sums of money at the supermarket.
In the past I have dabbled with a cut flower patch, but this year I decided to bring it to life and allocated a spot in the garden for that sole purpose. I have been growing lots of flowers from seed that will look great in any arrangement.
You do not need a big area to create a cutting garden – all you want is a few pots, a window box or a small section of the garden and you are off to a perfect start. It is never too late to start.
Perfect plants for a cutting patch include...
DAHLIAS
WHEN I asked a friend to recommend what I should grow in my cutting garden, she replied: ‘Dahlias, dahlias and more dahlias.’
These vibrant plants come in every colour of the rainbow from July on, in the shapes of cactus, pom poms and even peonies.
Dahlias make tremendous cut flowers – the more you cut them, the more they bloom. They love the sun but be careful – slugs love them. Avoid using chemical pellets if you can and sink beer traps into the earth to capture them instead.
AMMI VISNAGA
I GREW this gorgeous umbellifer from seed this year but if you want to plant it now, for blooms this year, buy plugs from a reliable supplier such as Sarah Raven (www.sarah raven.com).
This hardy annual produces delicate white and green flowers in late summer and is a great complement to any flowering vase.
LEUCANTHEMUM
A FLOWER arrangement would not be complete without a daisy or two.
These come in hundreds of varieties, including whites and yellows, single flowers and double flowers.
They are easy to grow and will come back year after year, so it is well worth investing in as potted plants now.
COSMOS
I LOVE cosmos and grow it as much for its delicate frondy foliage as I do for its shocking pink or white flowers.
You will find these plants at a reasonable price at any good garden centre – they are as happy grown in containers as in the ground.
You do not need a dedicated patch to create beautiful flower arrangements. As long as you are conscientious about clipping, you can take small cuttings from garden shrubs such as smoke bush (cotinus), fir trees and euonymus to form the backdrop of your display.
For something pleasing on the eye, use different colours, textures and foliage.
I would not plant eucalyptus in my garden as they get far too big, but I do keep one in a pot at the back door, and trim
it to size. One of the top things on my to-do list for when life becomes a little more normal is to learn more about flower arranging from an expert.
Short courses will hopefully become available again through organisations such as the Green Pea Studio and Garden in Stirling (www.greenpeastudio.com), Flower School Glasgow (www.flowerschoolglasgow.com) and Edinburgh-based Narcissus flowers (www.narcissusflowers.co.uk).
In the meantime, look out for combinations that work well together and seek inspiration from videos and photographs posted online.
A WALK WITH A PURPOSE
IF you do not have a garden of your own, there are plenty of other ways to enjoy the great outdoors.
Visit a local park, botanic garden or woodland and walk for at least 20 minutes, ideally without your phone.
When I first started learning about plants I lived in a flat without a garden.
I would go for a walk every day to find a new tree or shrub and learn its common name (Latin names came much later).
Take a pocket-sized identification book with you – one of my favourites is Scottish Wild Flowers, by Michael Scott – or take photographs of plants that pique your interest, so that you can refer back to them when you get home.
The key to identifying plants is to look for at least two distinguishing features to ensure you have the correct plant.
In the case of a rowan (sorbus aucuparia), you might notice that it has symmetrical pinnate leaves, grey smooth silvery bark and, at this time of year, frondy white flowers.
It would be easy to mistake the white flowers of a rowan for the white flowers of a hawthorn (crataegus monogyna).
But if you look for another feature, such as the bark or the leaf shape, and notice that the hawthorn has thorns all over the branches and is not smooth like the rowan, you cannot go wrong.
Making a commitment to learn more about the plants around you can turn a walk into a daily adventure, especially as the seasons change and new varieties emerge.
It never fails to amaze me what I find when I am out on my daily dog walk – I always notice new things.
This is where apps such as the PictureThis plant identifier can come in handy, although always double check using a book or other source.
Once you get familiar with identifying plants, you could perhaps look into their medicinal properties, too.
Last year I started a diploma in herbology with the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh. This fascinating subject explores the healing properties of many of our wild and native plants.
Nettles, for example, are a well-known blood cleanser, rich in vitamins A and C and a fantastic addition to a fresh mint tea.
Comfrey, better known as ‘knit-bone’, is a vulnerary herb which can be used externally to assist the body with mending open wounds and broken bones.
And with so many plants at their best right now, I wanted to share a couple of my go-to seasonal recipes, for a delicious elderflower cordial and a cleansing cold infusion (see panel above).
Both are taken from one of my favourite herbal books, The Handmade Apothecary, by Vicky Chown and Kim Walker.
Please note, while many plants can be incredibly healing, some are very dangerous and even poisonous to humans and animals.
Consult a medical herbalist before using any herbs you find outdoors.
THE NORMAL
THIS year has been full of strange and unpredictable events. It has affected all of us, and finding ways to cope as we move forward with the ‘new normal’ is paramount to ensure we remain fit and healthy in mind and in body.
Gardening has certainly been an invaluable tool for me – plants and wildlife are incredible healers and show us that despite human adversity, the natural world will carry on. We can all learn something from that.
So while the weather is fair and summer is here, I urge you all to make the most of the coming weeks and months to learn a little bit more about nature – let her be your teacher.
Whether you take a mindful walk in your local park or woodland, plant up a window box with salad leaves, divide a house plant for a neighbour or create a whole new outdoor sanctuary, the options are endless.
I wish you all my luck and well wishes. Stay safe and happy gardening!