Surrey Homes | SH27 | January 2017 | Health & Beauty supplement inside

Garden
Gardening Resolutions
Jo Arnell advises us on taking positive steps in the garden for the year ahead.
Here we go again – out with
the old and in with the new
and all the happy resolutions
are sitting there looking shiny and
achievable. Hopes are high and all
is ‘plans and perusing’. I’ve been
looking out of the window and have
to confess that my own resolutions
are a bit tedious: 1. finish projects
before starting others, 2. label seeds
and cuttings, and 3. don’t make piles
of things. I’m hoping that you don’t
have my bad habits, so I’ve chosen a
few more that might help to make a
difference, not just to the look of the
garden itself, but also to the experience
of being in the garden. Here goes:
1. Plant a tree
Anyone with a garden will have room
for a tree. Not a giant Redwood,
or anything too close to the house
that will clog the drains and lift the
foundations, but something that will
give height and interest all through
the year. There are plenty of beautiful
small trees for smaller gardens, or even
for within borders. I’m a bit mean
when it comes to choosing trees and
shrubs, especially if they’re going to
be focal points. After all, if they’ve
been invited to be the star attraction,
they ought to provide at least two
seasons of interest. So look out for trees
that will have good foliage, blossom,
fruit and a handsome overall shape.
Too much to ask? I don’t think so.
2. Add more structure
to your borders
This is a great time of the year for
focusing critically on the borders,
without the distraction of the flowers
and foliage. If it’s all looking dismal
and bare, think about adding some
plants for winter interest. These can
be evergreen, or have interesting bark,
an elegant form, or an anchoring
feature of some kind. Try to make sure
that plants that come into their own
during the winter either fade into the
background once they’ve done their
thing, become a foil for other plants,
or, best of all, will bring another point
of seasonal interest later in the year.
3. Learn how to prune
If you’re adding structure, you will
find that no matter how well behaved
the plant is, unless it dies or is made
of plastic, it will need pruning at some
point. Knowing when to prune each
plant and by how much is a subject
that fills many books (containing
impenetrable diagrams that bear no
resemblance to your plants). So, in a
couple of sentences: prune evergreens
during the spring and summer when
all danger of frost is past. Prune earlyflowering
deciduous shrubs after they’ve
flowered and late-flowering shrubs
(Buddleia etc), in the early spring. For
the health of the plant, cut out dead,
damaged and diseased wood first and
then aim for a pleasing goblet shape.
Branches shouldn’t cross or grow
inwards, as a more open structure allows
air to circulate. Stand back often and
look at the overall shape, as if you’re
a hairdresser, but try not to ‘hedge’
about trimming little pieces off, as this
can make the situation worse. Got all
that? Fortunately GBH to plants does
not carry a prison sentence – yet.
4. Catch problems early
If you make a habit of going into the
garden on a daily basis you stand a
better chance of catching the first
greenfly as it alights and the first slug
that dares to slide into view. If possible,
incorporate it into your daily routine
and take a companion – or, better, a
cup of tea or a glass of something as you
walk round. You’ll soon start spotting
a few weeds and the odd pesky. Pull
them up or pick them off as you go and
you might just stay on top of them…
5. Grow more edibles
Some crops might not work, your
vegetables might not look as perfect as
they do in the shops, but they will taste
better and you’ll have the satisfaction
of having grown them yourself. That
first year will be a great adventure –
and it will take about that long for
all the pests to find you – after that,
growing your own can become more
of a battle. If you have been growing
vegetables for a while and have been
beset by pests/diseases/soil problems,
work out which crops have suffered and
then just grow a few of the easy-going
ones that won’t need too much TLC:
salads, beans, tomatoes and courgettes
should provide bumper harvests of
summer crops. Add in a few leeks and
spinach or kale and the winter will
be covered without much fuss, too.
For information on next year’s
gardening courses contact
Jo on 01233 861149
hornbrookmanor.co.uk
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