Violas and Pansies

Viola tricolor, also known as heartsease, is an easy to grow little plant for containers or planting under shrubs in the border. It is only a few inches high but spreads to about 12 inches. Pretty little flowers, varying in colour from cream and yellow through to dark blue and red/purple, are produced in profusion from May to September.
The larger garden pansy is a hybrid derived from Viola tricolor and is basically similar but with larger flowers and more robust growth. These plants are a valuable addition to any garden as in addition to the summer flowering varieties, there are winter flowering types which start flowering in autumn and will continue to flower in mild weather throughout the winter season. They come in a wide variety of attractive colours and are perfect for filling in gaps in the border and in containers once the summer bedding plants have finished.
I planted some lovely purple/blue pansies in pots last autumn which flowered well during the winter months. I then moved them into the border in spring where they continued to flower well into summer. I have just planted some more winter flowering pansies in pots and hope they will perform as well as last year's plants.
Violas and pansies can be planted in September and October or in March and April. They like fertile, moist but well drained soil in sun or partial shade. Seeds of Viola tricolor can be sown in their flowing site in March or April, thinning out the seedlings as required. Or propagate existing plants by taking 1-2 inch long cuttings of non flowerings basal shoots in July and insert them in equal parts of peat and sand in a cold frame. Pot them on into 3 inch pots when well rooted. They can then be planted out into the garden between September and March.

Getting Rid of Slugs and Snails

It's official - we've just had the wettest summer for one hundred years and the slugs in my garden are loving it. Both flowering plants and vegetables have suffered this year so I am looking at ways of dealing with the slimy menace.
I don't like using slug pellets, even those which are supposed to be harmless to wildlife, so I am trying other methods. Slugs hide during the day and emerge at night to munch on my favourite plants. The first line of defence is to keep the garden tidy and limit their hiding places. Putting copper bands round pots deter slugs and snails as crawling over copper gives molluscs an electric shock. Copper rings are also available to protect plants in the borders.
I have had some success with garlic wash. Just steep some garlic cloves in water for a few hours and then spray on plants - this method also deters aphids and vampires! Slug traps filled with beer also work well and at least the slugs die happy.
A surefire method is to go out at night armed with a torch, rubber gloves and a bucket of salt water to drown the little blighters in. This doesn't really appeal to me so I have decided to try biological control with nematodes. Packs of powder can be purchased which contain millions of microscopic nematodes (parasites) that kill slugs both above and below ground. The powder is mixed with water and applied to the soil with a watering can. If done correctly the nematodes should remain active for about 6 weeks, even during really wet weather when the slugs are at their most rampant. The only drawback is that they don't kill snails.
Hopefully by using some of the above tactics and encouraging natural predators such as birds and hedgehogs I can control the slug and snail population and limit the plant damage next year. 

Growing Peas for the First Time

This year has been a poor year for vegetable growing. The prolonged cold wet weather resulted in a very poor salad potato crop and the runner beans and dwarf beans have struggled to grow. Even the tomatoes in the greenhouse have been slow to grow and set fruit. Thankfully the weather has now warmed up, the sun has finally put in an appearance and the vegetable plants are growing strongly.
The one crop which has been a success despite the cold wet weather is the pea crop. This is the first time I have tried my hand at growing peas and I am pleased with the results. I planted 'Early Onward', a second early variety, in two rows about eighteen inches apart. The seeds were sown in v-shaped drills about 2-3 inches deep.
There were a lot of hard prunings from trees and shrubs at the bottom of the garden and some of these branches were used to support the peas. The branches were pushed into the soil at an angle creating a pleasing rustic effect, much nicer (and cheaper) than using the usual bamboo canes.
The pea seeds were sown directly into the ground in May. Usually second early varieties would be sown in April but due to the unusually cold weather it was mid May before they went into the ground. However, the pods are starting to fill out nicely now and I expect to be harvesting a decent crop over the next few weeks.

Attract Butterflies to Your Garden

There have been quite a few articles in the media this year detailing the decline in butterfly numbers. The adverse weather conditions we have experienced this year can only have made life more difficult for these beautiful insects, so perhaps it's time to think about planting with butterflies in mind.
Butterflies are a lovely sight in the garden, evocative of lazy summer days, plus they help to pollinate flowers for fruit and seed so it is in the gardener's interest to encourage them. Adult butterflies require nectar, so suitable nectar rich plants chosen for their flowering season will provide food from early spring to late autumn.
Good plants for attracting butterflies include Aubrieta, Arabis, Primroses, Sweet William and Wallflowers which are spring flowering; Phlox, Lavender, Buddleia, Red Valerian and Salvia which are summer flowering; Sedum spectabile, Asters, Helenium, Hebe and Verbena bonariensis which flower in autumn. Butterflies, like most insects, love warmth, shelter and sunshine so try and plant your nectar rich flowers in a sheltered suntrap.
Butterfly larvae need different food sources such as stinging nettles, thistles and grasses - not so popular with the average gardener. But if you can find a corner to let some of these grow without invading the rest of the garden it could be beneficial to the local butterfly population. Even better would be an area of wild flower meadow but most people just don't have the space to do this.
Two good books for anyone wanting to create a butterfly garden are 'Garden Plants for Butterflies' by Matthew Oates and 'The Butterfly Gardener' by M. Rothschild and C. Farrell.

Bacterial Canker on Ornamental Cherry Tree

My weeping cherry tree has suffered a bacterial canker infection and was looking a sorry sight with shrivelled brown leaves and a horrible jelly like substance oozing from the affected branches. This is a very serious disease which can affect plums, peaches and cherries, including the ornamental varieties. If left untreated it can kill the tree. The only treatment is to cut out all infected wood right back to clean wood and burn all infected material. The cut ends of the branches should then be painted with a proprietary tree wound sealant to prevent re-infection.

I have done all this but I now need to make sure the tree does not become infected again. My reference books recommend spraying the foliage thoroughly with a copper based fungicide in mid-August, mid-September and mid-October. Hopefully once this is done the tree should be free of infection but I will be checking it regularly from now on.

We have had unusually cold and wet weather since April this year and late frosts in May which resulted in some frost damage to the tree. It is possible that these conditions have made the tree more susceptible to disease.

Welsh Poppies (Meconopsis cambrica)

Today I spotted the first flowers of the Welsh Poppy in my garden. This is a self seeding, short lived perennial which will grow in practically any type of soil and any position, unlike other Menocopsis species which require moist soil and light shade. It grows to approximately 12 inches in height and spread, having deeply dissected mid green leaves and producing yellow or orange flowers between June and September.
I planted the Welsh poppy in my garden a couple of years ago but the original plant did not survive for long due to a particularly cold winter. However, it has self seeded and I now have a healthy looking clump of deep amber flowers in the border. While dead heading will prolong the flowering season, it is worth leaving one or two seed heads in place in order to collect the seed and sow it as soon as it ripens in August or September. Sow the seeds under glass and overwinter the seedlings in a well ventilated greenhouse or cold frame ready to plant out in spring. Seeds can be sown in spring but germination is slower. These vibrantly coloured flowers look stunning when planted alongside bluebells.

Saxifraga urbium (London Pride)

Saxifraga urbium (commonly called London Pride) is a rock plant originating from the Pyrenees. It was a popular plant a few years ago, being found in many town gardens. In recent years it seems to have fallen from favour but I think it is a useful and attractive plant.
Rosettes of evergreen leaves make excellent ground cover, the variegated form having leaves with attractive splashes of yellow. In late spring stems up to 12 inches tall carry clouds of delicate pink and white flowers. This is a plant which likes shade and will tolerate poor soil provided it is not too dry. Damp shade is its preferred habitat. Plant it near paths so you can see the rosettes. These rosettes of evergreen leaves can spread quite rapidly once established forming an evergreen carpet.
New rosettes can be gently pulled off and replanted in late summer, preferably in wet weather. I have planted the variegated form, with its beautiful green and gold leaves, at the front of the border next to the seating area.