Not having a side gate to the garden would mean taking soil through the house and up the two flights of steps to the back garden, although much of the grass has died anyway as the dog uses the front garden as his toilet area. One narrow strip of flower bed I'm keeping, as I don't want to dig up my rose 'hedge' near the picket fence. I've scattered foxglove seeds in the other one and don't want to dig up an established shrub which seems to be growing fine under the shade of my neighbours hedge. It is my neighbours hedge which blocks the afternoon sun from my front garden, and which inspired me to create a low maintenance garden with plants in containers.
I never got around to planting any sweet peas by the fence this year. Last year I grew some from seed and they did better in the front than in the back garden, so I'm hoping some of the seeds falling from last years plants will germinate. The roses (Wild Edric) look more established in their second year so they may manage to form a hedge this year. It was the rose bushes that provided the only support for the sweet peas.
I bought a free-standing trellis panel to hide the bin area, up which I will grow clematis.
Eventually I'll post photos of each plant once it is in bloom.
The good thing about container gardening is that you can move the pots to a less conspicuous part of the garden once they have finished flowering. Plus the drainage is better, you can change the soil conditions easily, and the plants are more visible when not at ground level. I can also take them with me if I move house. Below is a list of what I have so far in pots, starting with the largest pot:
1. Corkscrew Hazel (Corylus avellana 'Contorta') underplanted with Lemon Balm, Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis), Parsley, and Saxifraga Mossy Mixed.
2. Tree Fern (Discksonia Antartica)
3. Acer palmatum 'Osakazuki'
4. Herb Container with Lavender, Chamomile, St. John's Wort, Artemisia absinthium and a low pinky mauve Hebe (that wasn't named when I bought it).
5. Clematis 'Princess Diana' (to grow up trellis hiding the bins), with Viburnum purpurea.
6. Two pots, one on either side of the window, with Honeysuckle (two varieties as they flower at different times). There is also a clematis in one and a white passionflower in the other, but the tags seem to have gone missing already. That's one good reason why I need this blog. I plan to train the honeysuckle around the window so they meet in the middle, and hopefully this will give some character to a boring house facade, as well as linking the house and garden visually. I had bought some decorative metal trellis at a bargain price from Lidl, and I may just attach wires to that to form an square-ish arch around the window.
7. Smaller individual pots each contain one plant of Rosemary, Hebe 'Emerald Green', Camelia (a white one), and a pot of very fragrant narcissus bulbs which have now died off.
Below are my notes to remind me of anything I need to 'do' to any of them later on in the year, and also the flowering months or season of interest for each. None of the photos are mine yet, I'll have to wait until the plants mature, these are just for identification purposes as names on their own don't always mean anything. I'll do separate post for the hard landscaping once I'm at that stage.
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CARE NOTES
PLANTS IN POTS AND CONTAINERS
Acer palmatum 'Osakazuki'
Soil - moist but well-drained. It is suitable for growing in a large container, using John Innes No 3 compost, but must be kept well-watered. Position - partial shade, away from cold winds.
This Japanese maple is fantastic for autumn colour. It has large, seven-lobed, mid-green leaves, 10cm to 12cm (4in to 5in) long, which turn bright red in autumn.
Protect young trees from winter frost with a 10cm mulch of organic matter, taking care to leave space around the trunk of the tree. No routine pruning is required, just remove any dead, damaged or crossing branches in late autumn or winter when they are fully dormant. The autumn colour will be a stronger red on more acidic soils. On neutral soils the autumn colour is more orange / bronze.
Soil - well drained neutral fertile, Position - full sun to partial shade
'Princess Diana' is a Group 3 clematis and should be pruned back hard each year in late winter or early spring, removing previous year's stems to a pair of strong buds about 6 to 8 inches above ground level. Apply slow release fertiliser and a mulch of well rotted compost.
Soil - (fertile, well-drained, preferably chalky soil), Position - full sun or partial shade
The twisted stems, much-valued by flower-arrangers, also provide a curious and unusual focal point
Cut out dead, diseased and damaged wood in March and apply a 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of well-rotted organic matter around the base of the plant.
forms a tight dome of minute, green foliage. It reaches about 12 in (30 cm) high, and the same across. It does not flower.
Soil - Plant in moist, free-draining soil that is poor or moderately fertile. Position - a sheltered position in full sun or light shade.
(July to October - fragrant white/dark red flowers).
Soil - fertile, humus-rich, moist, well-drained soil, Position - Prefers light shade.
Cut back established plants after flowering, removing a third of the flowering shoots. Apply a generous 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of well-rotted compost or manure around the base of the plant in early spring.
(May and June - fragrant white flowers that turn deep yellow, and are streaked red outside)
Soil - fertile, humus-rich, moist, well-drained soil, Position - Prefers sun or part shade.
Cut back established plants after flowering, removing a third of the flowering shoots. Apply a generous 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of well-rotted compost or manure around the base of the plant in early spring.
Soil - humus-rich, moist, well-drained acid soil or ericaceous compost, Position - Full sun or partial shade.
(April and May flowers)
Apply a generous 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of composted pine needles or peat each year around the base of the plant in early spring. Remove the faded flower heads in late spring along with any frost-damaged foliage.
Soil - any moist well drained soil. Position - Full sun. Height 20 inches (50 cms)
Prune to shape after flowering.
This plant is good for attracting butterflies and moths to your garden. Slow-growing, deciduous, mound forming hedge or specimen shrub. Height 2ft.
Summer-blooming spireas generally bloom on new growth. Prune them in late winter or early spring before the leaves emerge. Deadheading of spent flowers during the summer not only prevents the formation of seed, but also encourages repeat bloom later in the season.
Soil - humus-rich, neutral to acid soil, Position - partial to full shade
These impressive tree ferns are one of the oldest plants in the world. They will happily grow in any soil as long as the trunk is kept moist.
As these plants absorb their nutrients through the trunk, water and feed by spraying the whole stem and crown. They are not fully hardy so will need protection in winter. In milder areas you can do this by gently stuffing a few handfuls of fallen leaves into the crown. In colder parts of the country pack the crown with straw before wrapping it with strips of frost fleece, or over-winter it in an unheated greenhouse. As the new growth starts to emerge in spring, the protection should be removed.
WHITE PASSIONFLOWER ('Constance Elliott') July to Sept flowering
Soil - Passion flowers grow and bloom best when the soil is kept moist. They don’t handle drought well. Soil pH can be in the neutral range. Position - need at least 4 full hours of sunlight a day.
The genus Passiflora contains over 400 species, so the common name Passion Flower can be a bit confusing. What they all share are exotic flowers that only remain open for about 1 day. Some vines will not need any pruning, but pruning will result in a fuller plant. Pruning can be done in late winter or early spring. In cooler climates, the vines may die back to the ground anyway.
Stop feeding in late summer. Mulch the area around the roots, once the soil temperature drops.
Choose three to five of the strongest shoots, tying them in to horizontal wires. Once the plant is established, cut back the flowered shoots immediately after flowering to within two or three buds of the permanent framework of the plant. In spring remove dead, misplaced or overcrowded stems.
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PLANTS IN THE GROUND
EVERLASTING SWEET PEA (Lathyrus latifolius) (flowers July to Oct?)
Variety unknown (typical of Morrison's). Full sun or partial shade. Height to 8ft.
FORSYTHIA 'WEEKEND' (flowers Mar to Apr)
Soil - moist but well drained, Position - full sun or light shade
Weekend Forsythia has the same abundant large flowers as other Forsythias but without the wild branches as it is more compact. Right after flowering, cut out all of the stems that have flowered - back to a good healthy pair of buds. Depending upon how vigorous your forsythia variety is, the pruning cuts may be from between 12 in (30cm) to 2ft (60cm) in length. At the same time - with an established shrub, it is a good idea to cut a few stems back down to within a few inches (cms) of the ground - say one out of every three stems pruned this way. This will encourage basal shoots to grow, which will keep the Forsythia well provided with strong stems to flower in later years. Forsythia flowers on stems and buds made in the previous year. If you prune Forsythia too late in the year, then you will be cutting off the next spring's flower buds and flowering stems!
Newly planted forsythias need plenty of water while they are getting established. After that, if they are planted in good soil that is rich in organic matter so it holds moisture and drains well forsythias can manage fine with normal rainfall, especially if they are mulched. Do not overdo fertilizer as forsythias do not need much encouragement to grow.
Position - Plant in a location with at least a few hours of sun each day and where the roots of the rose will not be in competition with the roots of plants - especially trees and hedges.
Wild Edric is a tough, reliable and healthy rose which can be used to create a very attractive, scented boundary hedge. 4ft x 4ft.
Roses are hungry plants that respond well to generous feeding.
Sprinkle general-purpose or rose fertiliser around roses in spring at 70g per sq m (2oz per sq yd)
Mulch with rotted organic matter, ideally rotted manure, immediately after adding fertiliser. Roses have roots that come up near the soil surface, so hoeing is best avoided or at least kept very shallow. Mulching and planting groundcover plants will help to keep roses weed-free.
Weedkillers based on glyphosate and other systemic chemicals might be taken up by rose suckers and can cause severe damage to roses.
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