Usually by now I have decided on some of the things I would like to happen in my garden during the coming season.  But this year, I think because of the seemingly non-stop rain, I just haven’t made any real plans.  It’s not too late for any of us to sit back and mull over the successes and failures of last year.  Have you read about any planting combinations in a gardening magazine that you would like to try for yourself?  Or, possibly even more difficult to decide, is there anything you need to get rid of.  This really isn’t the time for sentimentality.  If something isn’t right for your garden or is in a really poor state, grit your teeth and dispose of it.  I always feel it isn’t wasted if you put it in the green waste bin ready for the council to collect or chop it up for your own compost heap.  Countless times I have struggled trying to revive ailing and old plants and generally it simply isn’t worth it.  A couple of years ago I spent months trying to will a treasured black bamboo to show signs of life, I went on fooling myself for months that I could see small signs of regrowth, sadly all a waste of time and it had to go.

On a happier note the five fruit trees that I planted in large ceramic pots have thrived. My mini-orchard has one each apple, pear, cherry, plum and fig.  The prize winner last year was the plum which bore a really good crop of the most delicious fruit, the Morella took the prize for beauty, the blossom was lovely and this was followed by a quantity of glorious red cherries, much enjoyed by the birds.  The pear only produced one fruit and the apple nothing at all.  As their main purpose is to act as a ‘green’ wall any fruit is a bonus but this year I will give them each a good handful of bone meal and a sprinkling of chicken pellets and wait and see. There is a real buzz picking fruit from your own garden.

Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here

Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here