Friday 4th April 2014

We talked about division and taking basal cuttings- dividing herbaceous perennials serves to rejuvenate the plant and also makes more plants. Dividing plants is very straightforward and new plants are made instantly and should grow and flower in the same year if divided in spring or the following year if divided in autumn. You have to wait until there is a reasonable clump - so don't attempt to divide new plants too soon. Plants can be divided every 3-5 years. Basal cuttings can be taken from plants like achillea, geraniums or phlox although not every plant is suitable as some won't cope with being pulled apart. Sever a shoot near the base, strip the lower leaves and pinch out the growing tip to help root growth- put in compost in pots and pot on when there is good root growth.

Achillea

Plant identification:

• Brunnera - part of borage family, this perennial does well in shade

  

  Brunnera 

• Erythronium or dog's tooth violet. They flower in spring and are summer dormant and need partial shade as they are edge of woodland plants.

  

  Erythronium Pagoda
  
  

  Activities in the garden this week:
• Time to bring out the pelagoniums from the greenhouse 
• Building a bug hotel
• Putting herbs in strawberry pots for top garden
• Planting out sweet peas, ajuga, verbena bonariensis, erythronium, brunnera etc





Broad beans

• Seed sowing including -tom thumb peas, robin hood dwarf broad beans, red kale, cosmos click cranberries and coreopsis

Coreopsis x hybrid 'Incredible' 

• More path work