Island Life Magazine Ltd June/July 2010 | Page 122

gardening Island Life - June/July 2010 Tina trained as a professional gardener after leaving school and spent a summer working in Tuscany as an English Gardener. She has a National Diploma in Horticulture. Keeping up appearances Tina Hughes If you have a question for Tina need some advice or even a suggestion for an article then please email: [email protected] The luscious exuberance of early summer is display of fresh leaves and, sometimes, reaching its peak now. Trees are in full leaf, flowers by September. colourful annuals are bursting out of their Regular feeding and watering is important containers, and classic perennials such as too. Baskets, pots, fruit and vegetables delphiniums and roses are at their best. naturally take priority. It is also worth This is the time of year that fills gardening keeping an eye on any trees or shrubs that books and magazines on coffee tables you planted in the autumn as they may start around the world with quintessentially to suffer in dry weather. A good soaking British images of glorious herbaceous once a week in the early morning or evening borders, crisply clipped hedges and velvety reduces evaporation and is much more dew spangled lawns. But it’s important to effective than a brief hosing every day. If remember that gardens are not static and you’ve laid or sown a lawn this year, it’s plants have their own agenda. important to keep it well watered too. The hedges have doubled in size. Climbing plants, intent on reaching for the sun , Delphiniums are growing several centimetres each day. Industrious bees are pollinating flowers. Once plants begin to set seed they divert all their energy into doing so, and stop producing new flowers. To maintain good displays, dead-head regularly, so plants are encouraged to continue flowering. Many early perennial plants begin to look tatty after a few weeks and some respond well to a good trim in late July, Nepetia (catmint), hardy geraniums and Alchemilla molllis (lady’s mantle) amongst others can be cut back really hard. This produces a good new 122 Visit our new website - www.visitislandlife.com