13-Nov-2021

Amateur Gardening

For everyone who loves gardening

Amateur Gardening1 min read
Editor’s
“There was a time when buying garden products was simple. If you wanted multi-purpose compost you just went to the garden centre and either bought the cheapest or a brand you trusted – same with plant food and pest deterrents. However, in future, if
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Benefits Of Bare Root Planting
Kind cuts: Most deciduous trees have lost their leaves and are dormant, so they are ready for their annual trim. Next week I show you how, why and what to prune now EIGHT years ago we hired professional tree surgeons to take out a monstrous, half-dea
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Storing Whips Before Planting
THERE may be reasons why you can’t plant your bare root whips when you get them home. Maybe the soil is frozen or waterlogged, or you still have space to clear before you can get them in. Although bare root plants can remain out of the soil for a few
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Last Call For Spring Bulbs
AS the weather closes in and soil loses the last of its summer heat while becoming increasingly rain-saturated, this is your last call for planting spring-flowering bulbs. (Also, most of them will have sold out or been replaced by Christmas lights an
Amateur Gardening2 min read
Make Time For A Tidy
AS the weather closes in there are worse things you can do on a damp and dreary November day than get your shed and its contents in order. Keeping the shed tidy is a good habit to get into (and one I have yet to acquire…) as it saves you money once y
Amateur Gardening2 min read
It’s Been A Successful Year
WE had some hits and misses in the veg patch this year as I suspect most of you did, but one of the massive hits was our bean crop. We grew broad beans and runners, as usual, and for the first time a very tasty dwarf purple French bean called ‘Purple
Amateur Gardening2 min read
Seed-order Sense
IF you’ve not done so already, it’s crucial to send your seed orders in as soon as possible. Alternatively, if you shop at garden centres or stores, take the time to get your seeds now. Shopping at garden centres or stores is often more economical fo
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Grass Will Be Greener
Listen to Peter’s free podcast every Thursday. Search for ‘This Week In The Garden with Peter Seabrook’ on iTunes THE quantities of lawn grass seed sold over the past four years has doubled, and this is thought to be due to the demand for seed to top
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Potting Up Summer’s Cuttings
OUR tender perennials have been brought into the greenhouse for the winter, apart from one large pelargonium that survived last winter tucked against the house wall in a sunny, sheltered border. I’m hoping it will fare as well this year too. One of m
Amateur Gardening3 min read
A Welcome Guest
MY neighbours already think I’m odd. After all, I have an unmown wildlife verge in front of my cottage and everyone else has theirs mowed by a team. They will think I’ve finally flipped for good now, because I keep opening my front door to talk to my
Amateur Gardening5 min read
Focus on… Greenhouses
Next week: Rhubarb, check maincrop potato stores and order tubers, harvest chicory and endives, repot congested containers, protect bay trees, try tomatillo. OPINIONS are changing about how we should protect our plants during winter. Gardeners are be
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Versatile viburnums
THE funny thing about viburnums is that they’re undoubtedly among the best of all garden shrubs, but they never come out top of anyone’s list. Perhaps it’s because they have too many different ways of being special, rather than just a couple. For som
Amateur Gardening1 min read
Top 4 viburnums
White May and June flowers are blushed with pink as they mature, then red fruits ripen to black alongside the red-purple autumn colour. More upright than others. 2015 Chelsea Plant of the Year. Deciduous. H: 10ft (3m). Showy, creamy-white, sterile fl
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6 Viburnum Specialities
Flowering from October into late winter, the surprisingly frost-resistant blushed-white flowers have a strong scent. The less often seen ‘Deben’ is also pretty, with white flowers opening from pink buds. Deciduous. H: 6ft (1.8m). From January to May,
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4 Planting Partners
Aster Mildew-free blue-flowered types like ‘Mönch’, or pinks like ‘Ochtendgloren’ (pictured), look well with viburnums’ autumn foliage. Brunnera The large, bold silvery, heart-shaped foliage of ‘Alexanders Great’ makes great cover under deciduous vib
Amateur Gardening2 min read
Rubies Of Paradise
NOVEMBER is the perfect month for planting tulip bulbs, because cold weather helps prevent fungal diseases. While digging their planting holes, imagine next spring when their satiny petals open wide in the sun and close at night. We should also look
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9 Tulips With An Old-fashioned Look
This fragrant sport of well-known ‘Prinses Irene’ bears large cup-shaped blooms of warm vermilion-orange with dramatic purplish flames seeping up from the base. Flowers open in April and May and are great for cutting. H: 18in (45cm). White cup-shaped
Amateur Gardening1 min read
3 Favourites For Cutting
All tulips are great for cutting but some lend themselves especially well to vases. This tall, fragrant, single, late tulip has a truly festive air, with warm tongues of flame licking white petals. H: 20in (50cm). This double, fragrant peony-flowered
Amateur Gardening1 min read
3 Parrot Tulips
Among the most characterful and sumptuous of tulips, the parrots bear large flowers of waved and crested petals. This old cultivar flowering mid to late May resembles glossy purple and black silk. H: 20in (50cm). Crimped and pleated petals in warm, c
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4 Good Companions
The feathery young foliage of perennial bronze fennel creates a good foil for tulips. Later, heads of tiny aniseed-flavoured flowers make good snacks while weeding. Deadhead unless you want seedlings everywhere. HxS: 5ftx18in (1.5mx45cm). Dwarf lilac
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Trees For Small Gardens
THIS is the month to celebrate trees. At the end of the month, from 27 November – 5 December, it’s National Tree week and the perfect time to plant a tree in your own garden. From this month until April it’s also the dormant season, and this gives tr
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Roses Golore!
This super new rose has been named after the late Captain Sir Tom Moore, who raised almost £40m for the NHS, before he sadly passed away, aged 100, on February 2. Sir Tom understandably captured the nations heart, and this rose is deservedly named in
Amateur Gardening1 min read
6 Trees For Small Gardens
This tree has something for all seasons: spring blossom, then bright berries, followed by autumn colour. It’s a striking tree for a small garden. Flowers March-April. HxS: 20x15ft (6x4.5m). Make space for a beautiful cherry tree that has rosy-pink fl
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3 Shrubs To Plant Now
Grow this spectacular shrub for its vibrant winter stems that will bring your garden to life on a cold winter’s day. Plant in full sun to get the best stem colour. Flowers May-June. H&S: 8ft (2.5m). Varieties such as ‘Rubra’ (pictured) make a fantast
Amateur Gardening1 min read
3 Trees For Autumn Colour
The leaves of this native spindle turn a wonderful russet colour in the autumn, accompanied by striking pink and orange fruits that will attract wildlife. Flowers May-June. H&S: 13ft (4m). Maples are famous for their autumn colour, but this tree is a
Amateur Gardening4 min read
Ask John Negus John Has Been Answering Reader Queries For 50 Years John Will Reply Personally To All Your Gardening Questions Every Week
While John sometimes advocates using chemicals against pests and diseases as the most effective means of control, organic options are sometimes available and we advise readers to go with their preferences Contact John Negus by email address below Ema
Amateur Gardening4 min read
Winter Care Of Dahlias
This extract from AG 25 October 1970 looks at how to look after your dahlia tubers during cold weather THE first sharp frost of autumn is usually severe enough to completely blacken and kill the foliage and stems of dahlia plants. This is the time to
Amateur Gardening2 min read
Heaven Scent
SOME of the most interesting plants belonging to the geranium family are the scented-leaved ‘geraniums’ or, more correctly, pelargoniums. Like their relations the zonals and regals, they are not hardy and must be grown in a greenhouse or indoors, but
Amateur Gardening2 min read
Crossword …just For Fun!
1 Tool with a row of pointed teeth fixed to a long handle (4) 3 and 11 across The subject of this week’s Miscellany: ______ for __________ (6,11) 6 Great crested amphibian (4) 7 The capital of Ukraine is also a cultivar of Clematis viticella! (4) 8 O
Amateur Gardening5 min read
Plants For Remembrance
This week it’s: THIS Thursday, 11 November, is Armistice Day, marking the point World War I ended in 1918, at 11am on the 11th day of the 11th month. Then we have Remembrance Sunday, too, which falls on the second Sunday in November, making it invari
Amateur Gardening1 min read
Word Search
WIN £30 This word search comprises words associated with plants for remembrance. They are listed below, and in the grid they may be read across, backwards, up, down or diagonally. Letters may be shared between words. Erroneous or duplicate words may
Amateur Gardening1 min read
Trees
Please send us your gardening-themed poems. This week, reader Ada Phillips appreciates trees through the changing seasons In spring, when trees are wet with melted snow, The leaves in bud begin to grow. In summer, blossoms pink and white, Appear on t
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Home Composters
You can listen to Steve on alternate Sundays 10am-2pm on BBC Radio Kent’s Sunday Gardening (BBC Local) THERE is nothing like home-made compost for improving your garden soil. It adds bulk and fibre, along with some nutrients (depending what went into
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Winter Hardwood Cuttings
Q I would like to try taking hardwood cuttings this winter. How do I take them and what plants are suitable? Louisa Reid, Loughton, Essex A Since ancient times, gardeners have used cuttings to reproduce their plants. Sections of stem, leaf or root ar
Amateur Gardening3 min read
Bring On The Colour
Write to us: Letters, Amateur Gardening magazine, Future Publishing Limited, Unit 415, Winnersh Triangle, Eskdale Road, Winnersh, RG41 5TP (please include your address). Email us: amateurgardening@futurenet.com SHARE YOUR STORIES TIPS AND PHOTOS and
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Amateur Gardening
Future Publishing Ltd Unit 415, Winnersh Triangle, Eskdale Road, Winnersh, RG41 5TP Editorial: Editor: Garry Coward-Williams Email: garry.coward-williams@futurenet.com 0330 390 3732 (Mon-Fri 9.00am-6.00pm) Gardening Editor: Ruth Hayes Assistant Edito
Amateur Gardening2 min read
Going For A Song
IN life there are talkers and there are listeners, and my friend Gary Moore is a listener. In fact, listening is how he makes a living, recording sound for wildlife programmes including Spring Watch and David Attenborough shows. I know Gaz because he

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