Gardening in June – Latest newsletter from Jane Folis
SARDINIA has been, and gone. What a beautiful island with its white sandy beaches and turquoise sea. Our house was more than we had hoped for with stunning views across mountains and sea. The only noise we heard was the ocean and the birds, not even a human voice. It was heaven.
Sadly, I managed to catch a virus on the way out which has rendered me completely doo lally and two weeks later there is little or no improvement! It has affected the inner ear and I am finding it very disorientating to head off in one direction only to find myself involuntarily six paces closer to any point of the compass. It is even worse when lying down, reading or watching television. Not being one for sitting still at the best of times, it is frustrating to know the ?safest? place to be is sitting upright in a chair doing nothing?
Despite these problems I still headed off to Chelsea to do my stint for the Society. I am sure the 5.00am start did nothing to improve my well-being! It was a good day with only a few odd showers which I managed to avoid. Not as inspiring as usual, but there were one or two gardens that really stood out. Not least Auf Nordfjell?s garden for The Daily Telegraph. His use of materials and planting made it for me ? so tranquil, yet elegant with his very clever melding of architecture and nature. Luciano?s step into using colour also paid off and his combination of plants left me wondering whether or not I liked it? It was very clever, but almost impossible to reproduce to look as it did for Cheslea week.
I could write reams on the subject, but as always one of the highlights for me is to meet up with fellow designers, suppliers and old friends ? not to mention bumping in to one or two clients. Our stand had pole position opposite Thomas Hoblyn?s garden and we were privy to many a filming session of the said garden, watching Andy Stugeon and Nikki Chapman getting soaked. Andy came and joined us later on the stand and it was good to catch up as we both use the same contractor ? recommended to Andy by myself.
I found lots of goodies, including some much sought after seed for one of my clients. All I have to do now is to successfully germinate it and nurture the plants ready for planting next spring. Inspired by Italy I now have even more seeds for the vegetable patch! I found new (and old) suppliers of wonderful furniture and a superb blacksmith/iron worker who can make almost anything. All in all an excellent day out.
I love June in the garden ? the vegetables are continually giving pleasure and if organised the crop rotation almost takes care of itself. The main garden is looking a picture with constant promises of new blooms and surprises. There is very little earth showing which reduces the weeding and I find I can sit back and enjoy the sunshine and lazy weekends with friends. Let?s hope we really do get a summer this year?
RECIPE
ARTICHOKE AND WARM POTATO SALAD
500g New Potatoes
4tbs Olive Oil
Juice of a lemon
Grated Parmesan
350g Preserved Artichokes
Bunch of parsley
Handful of mint
Steam or boil the potatoes until just soft. Drain and set aside. Put the lemon juice, olive oil and parmesan in a bowl and add a little coarse ground black pepper. Mix well.
Slice each artichoke into four and each potato in half. Add to the dressing whilst the potatoes are still warm. Add the Parsley and Mint, toss well and serve. Delicious with almost anything.
SEASONAL TIPS
Cut back perennial flowers as this will help to produce a second flush.
Remove poppy heads, unless you want them to seed naturally.
Divide bearded Irises after flowering. The tulips will have died back by now. If you are going to leave them in situ, cut back the flowering stem,
but leave the foliage as this will help feed the bulbs for next spring.
Alternatively, they can be lifted and stored in a cool dry place ready to re-plant in the Autumn.
Fast growing hedges, such as privet can be cut back in June, but do be aware the birds might still be nesting. Box is traditionally (Old Wives
Tale) cut back on Derby Day ? which I believe is in early June?
Prune back spring flowering shrubs, straight after flowering. Remove some of the older wood to encourage new growth.
The lawn can be regularly mowed once a week. To remove excess weeds such as clover and yarrow, go over the lawn with a spring rake before
you mow.
If you have hanging baskets and grow annuals it should now be safe to plant them outside.
Water and feed regularly anything you have recently planted as this will help them to establish. Don?t rely on the rain ? it will not be enough.
Phostrogen is a good all purpose plant food.
VEGETABLE & FRUIT GARDEN
Plant out any vegetables you have sown indoors or in the greenhouse.
As usual, there are just too many to mention here. I am still sticking to growing in blocks fairly close together. This means the range and variety I can grow has almost doubled and I am spoilt for choice. However, it does mean I am not going to get a glut of any one crop and it suits my diet perfectly. I hope to be pretty much self-sufficient this year.
Pigeons, Cabbage White caterpillars and carrot flies are a perennial problem, so do protect your crops with netting ? Wondermesh and Enviromesh are both excellent insect-proof netting.
Remember to nip out the side shoots of tomatoes. I do have an idiot proof guide to growing tomatoes if any of you are interested.
Continue to sow salad crops and herbs, such as Basil and Coriander every
two weeks or so to give a constant supply. The Greek Basil,
recommended by my son, is growing brilliantly ? I must have about
thirty plants ? if anyone wants one, just let me know.
Weed the vegetable patch regularly. After only a week away I found mine
had got slightly out of hand. I did a hands and knees job, but now I will
probably keep it under control by gently hoeing on a regular basis.
Protect ripening fruit from birds by covering with netting.
Prune blackcurrants at the same time as picking the fruit. Cut out some of the oldest, fruited wood to encourage new growth.
It is time to thin out fruit. Fruit trees produce too many young fruits and if you allow them all to develop, the fruit would end up small and misshapen because the tree simply can?t provide enough nutrients.
There is a natural ?June Drop?, but you still need to thin them further.
Reduce the number of fruits so that the distance between fruit is as follows:_
Desert Apples 10-25cm
Cooking Apples 15-20cm
Pears 10-15cm
Plums 8-19cm
Peaches 15-20cm
Put straw or matting around strawberries to keep the berries clean.
For more information, visit LINK TO RHS.ORG
GREENHOUSE
Stop the greenhouse from overheating by keeping the windows and doors open. Shade if necessary by using Coolglass ? a temporary white paint. Soak the floor regularly with water to cool it down and raise
the humidity.
I have potted on Cucumber, Peppers, Chilli and Gherkin and will keep them in the greenhouse. It is only 1200 x 1200 ? so I have to be very selective on what stays inside. My Tomatoes and Aubergines
seem to thrive outside.
POINTS OF INTEREST
?We will if you will?
A Government-backed initiative to encourage healthier lifestyles.
The first is to encourage people to eat more home-grown, seasonal and UK produced food.
Visit LINK
for more information.
PLACES TO VISIT
Gardens free to RHS Members
RHS Wisley; Blenheim Palace Park and Gardens; Nymans; Waddesdon Manor; Waterperry Gardens; West Dean Gardens.
For a full list visit www.rhs.org.uk.
FIVE BEE FRIENDLY GARDENS
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond
The National Wildflower Centre, Liverpool
Garden Organic Ryton, Warwickshire
RHS Wisley, Woking
Highgrove, Gloucestershire
2009 National Gardens Scheme
There are too many gardens open in this area for me to mention here, but do visit www.ngs.org.uk for more details. Free leaflets are available in libraries and garden centres.
EVENTS
RHS SHOWS FOR 2009
HAMPTON COURT ? 7TH ? 12TH July
TATTON PARK ? 22ND ? 26TH July
Tickets: 0844 209 1681
BBC GARDENERS WORLD ? 10TH ? 14TH June
www.rhs.org.uk
HARTWELL HOUSE
10th June ? Garden Talk and Tour
RHS Members :
