Tomatoes and Olives
Question:
How do I nurture a tumbling tomatoe plant that we have hanging in a basket? How do I ensure a good crop? There are very small green baby tomatoes at present. Does it need repotting as it looks a bit big now for the basket
I bought the most gorgeous olive tree a couple of months ago. Its about 2.5 feet tall. I repotted it in John Innes No 3 mixed with grit. Is it right to keep it very moist initially? What feed, if any, should I use? How do I know its healthy?
Answer:
Your tumbling tomato plant will need lots of watering to stop the fruits splitting and it will need feeding every week with a tomato feed to ensure a good healthy crop. They really need to be in a very sunny spot for the fruit to ripen successfully. I have never been able to grow tomatoes outside as my garden is north facing and doesn’t get much sun. I wouldn’t re-pot it; it should be fine if you keep feeding and watering.
Olives are not entirely hardy in the UK so will need some protection during cold and frosty periods. You were right to plant in a well-drained mix of compost and grit. Although they can cope with dry periods, olives in containers need regular watering and feeding to produce fruit. During the growing season keep the compost moist and feed every month. In winter, you can reduce watering, but don’t let the compost dry out completely. As long as the leaves are undamaged and there is sign of new growth you can assume the plant is healthy. If the plant is kept in a very sunny location you may even get fruit after a couple of years.
Questions for September 2007
Question:
Could you let me know how to prune Iceland Poppies?
Answer:
Iceland Poppies are Biennials which means that they flower the year after they are sown and then die. Therefore, they do not require pruning. Once they are past their best pull them up. They often seed themselves so you may get flowers year after year.
Question:
I have a strawberry barrel. Can I pot on the runners which appear to have small roots and do I leave them attached to the main plant until established?
Answer:
Yes you can pot on the strawberry runners as long as they have rooted. Just detach from the mother plant and put in small pots with a good quality potting compost. Give them a good watering to get them going. They should be OK outside in a sheltered spot but if you have a cold greenhouse that would be good too.
Question:
I know this is probably a stupid question but I am a beginner gardener I was wondering whether I could plant a Christmas tree in the garden that I have bought from a garden shop and will it still grow many thanks sorry for the silly question
Answer:
Good afternoon, thank you for your email. It is not a silly question really as it does depend on what type of Xmas tree you have. Although the majority of Christmas trees are sold with a cut trunk but some are sold in pots with their roots intact. Although they tend to be more expensive, they do last a lot longer and have the added advantage of being able to be planted out in the garden. Follow these guidelines for the best chance of success:
- If it has been kept indoors it will need to get used to the cold weather before planting it out
- When you are ready to plant it out stand it in a bucket of water, still in its pot, until it’s thoroughly wet It will grow very big so choose its final position carefully
- Dig a hole twice the diameter of the pot and the same depth as the pot
- Add some organic matter into the bottom of the hole e.g. well rotted manure or good quality compost If you’re planting in the spring sprinkle in some general fertilizer too
- Remove the plant from its pot
- If it is pot-bound (the roots are tightly packed in the pot) tease out a few of the biggest roots
- Stand the plant in the hole with its best side facing the direction from which you’ll normally view it
- Check that the top of the rootball is level with the surrounding soil, and that the plant is standing upright
- Mix more organic matter with the excavated soil and fill in around the rootball
- Firm gently with your foot
- Water thoroughly
- Spread an layer of mulch
- Keep well watered for the first few weeks regardless as to whether it rains or not
Questions for August 2007
Question:
I bought a lavender tree lavandula dentata I planted about 6weeks ago it does say its hare had only the odd night of frost but don t expose to prolonged frost we have had only the odd night of frost since I bought it I have noticed today there are one or two brown spikes on it and the rest seem to be drooping I have given it a feed of miracle grow rose and shrub food I am been unduly concerned will it perk up when the weather gets warmer and is there any thing I can specifically do to help it.
Answer:
Unfortunately Lavandula dentate (French Lavender) is not hardy in the UK so should be kept indoors during the winter. You could try bringing it in now, keeping it warm for the next few weeks to see if it perks up. Don’t cut off the brown spikes just yet. If you still have some green growth by the end of April then prune it back before placing outdoors for the summer. Be careful not to prune into any old or brown woody parts of the plant as it will never re-grow from these areas.
Question:
I would like to know if I could put my magnolia in a container as I am moving house and the garden is all slabs, it is around 2 to 3 years old and around 4 foot.
Answer:
My mum has successfully grown her magnolia in a pot for years and it always looks good. I assume it is in the ground at the moment so you will have to carefully lift it ensuring you don’t damage the roots. Make sure it doesn’t dry out before placing it in as large a pot as possible. Put lots of crocks in the bottom to help drainage and add a slow release fertilizer to the soil around the plant. Each year top off the plant with new compost and / or manure to keep the soil well fed. You may find it goes into shock this year but it should be OK by next year’s flowering season. You will find that the plant won’t grow as big as it would if it was in the ground and it may not live as long either.
Question:
I currently live in West Sussex and do hope that you can give me some advice on the Meyers lemon tree that I purchased last year. You see I am new to the way of gardening here in England, as I spent most of my gardening life in the tropical area of South Africa where it never gets really cold. As I have already mentioned I purchased a lemon tree, which I put into a huge pot on my patio, but now I see that during the course of winter it has lost all its leaves and a lot of the tips of the branches have gone brown. I did not place it indoors, as I do not have the strength to be lugging it around – nor did I cover it with anything. My question is do I throw the tree away or do you think it will pick up again in spring.
Answer:
Unfortunately citrus plants will not survive outside during an English winter. However, having said that, if you have not had a hard frost and it’s in a sheltered position then you may get away with it. I wouldn’t give up on it just yet. Buy some horticultural fleece (available from garden centres or the larger DIY stores, cover it for the rest of the winter and make sure it doesn’t get too wet. If it’s survived you should see new leaves appearing when the weather warms up during April/May.
Question:
Can you please tell me any plants besides Aubrietia that you can plant in the top of a walled raised bed to hang over or to plant vertically in the wall?
Answer:
Please find below some suggestions. Most of these are alpines and do require a well drained soil. Cerastium (Snow-in-summer) – colour: white Iberis (Candytuft) – colour: white Linaria (Toadflax) – colour: various – there is an upright version of this too Saponaria (Soapwort) – colour: pink. You could also consider planting a nice coloured, small leaved ivy to trail down and plant some low growing alpines, such as Thrift to add some height. If you don’t mind a bit of work you could consider planting trailing geraniums or other colourful annuals each year.
Question:
Our neighbours have just built an extension, the side wall of which overlooks our back garden. Unfortunately, a variety of bricks have been used and they haven’t been spaced out very well with the result that the wall overlooking our back garden is unsightly and also oppressive. We would like a fast growing plant which would hide the wall. The wall goes up to 310 cm in height. Please could you advise us as to what would be the best plant to hide this wall and which would grow quickly?
Answer:
My ideal would be ivy. There are lots of different varieties giving you a wide selection of leaf sizes and colours which are evergreen. Once established it is extremely fast growing and also has the benefit of being able to climb without support and will grow in any situation. The other is the Montana range of Clematis which again is very fast growing and has the extra benefit of fragrant flowers in the spring. However you will need to erect some sort of support structure such as trellis or wires before planting. A sunny site will give the best results. Which ever plant you choose make sure you don’t plant it too close to the wall as it won’t be able to get as much water as it needs. If you go to my Plant your Garden page http://gardeningregister.co.uk/NonProductPages/Articles/planting.htm. You will see an advert from Crocus. If you click the Climbers box you will be able to enter some information about the location and features required and receive a number of suggestions back.
Question:
I’ve got a question about holly trees that you might be able to answer for me…! As you know – you need male and female holly for the female plant to produce berries, but do the male and female plant need to be the same variety?? I have a silver queen (male) and a golden king (female) – will I get berries from this??
Answer:
I have double checked and you only need to have one male holly, of any variety, to pollinate several female plants of any variety. Therefore the two you have will do fine; the female plant will produce the berries, not the male. If you’d like more berries you could buy another female variety.
Question:
I am the General Manager of a psychiatric unit in London. We have recently built a secure steel balcony to provide additional outdoor space to one of our first floor wards. The construction is a ‘metal cage’ with a very raw look to it and I would appreciate it if you could give me some ideas on the types of plants we would use to brighten up the area. The balcony is south facing and I would preferably like ones that are easy to manage and stay evergreen so there is colour all year round. Have you any suggestions. The main problem is that for safety reasons we can not use climbing plants as patients could use these to climb up and fall, we can not use plants that have poisonous leaves or berries as patients could eat these and we are unable to use plants that have sharp edges as patients may use these to self harm or ones that attract bees in case of allergic reaction to possible bee stings. In addition, we would require the plants to be in pots that are too heavy for a patient to lift in case they throw them. As you can see from a non-gardeners point of view I am struggling to find the appropriate plants and your assistance and advice would be very welcome.
Answer:
I’ve come up with some ideas and attach an outline of a plan which may be of interest. My first thought was to fit a bench across the left-hand 2.4m section. This could be attached to the balcony and would allow seating for a few people. I have also left room for quite a large table and six chairs. Your idea of galvanized containers screwed into the patio seems a good idea and I’ve found a couple of sites which may be able to provide them. and http://shop.theurbangarden.co.uk/product_select.asp?prtID=49&d=planters. The alternative is to have a raised bed built into the corner which is also attached to the balcony as per my plan. You could have it built as one big “box” or if you had six separate boxes they could be tiered so that the outermost ones are lower than the top ones. This would provide more interest and allow for plants to cascade the corners of each “box”. As for plants. My initial thought is to use Herbs. These are usually soft and are, of course, edible. For added interest I thought a few grasses. I have found a few examples of my thoughts on Crocus.co.uk and have attached a link to their page so you can find out a little more about them. Fennel (especially Bronze which is a lovely colour) these grow to about 1.8m but not very wide so you could fit in quite a few. They are light and move with the wind giving a feeling of movement. I find it best to snip off the flowers to avoid them going to seed and ruining the look. Also, they will die down for the winter but this also means it doesn’t take over. To compliment the colour and movement of the Fennel I thought a few soft grasses would be nice. They tend to give great autumn colour and if left over the winter they provide structure and look nice when frosted. They will have to be cut back to allow the new growth through but it’s not a hard job. Here are a couple of examples. For an evergreen look I think Rosemary would be good. They can grown quite big so may need keeping in check but they are very hardy and don’t require much maintenance. They are usually a rich dark green with lavender/blue flowers during the summer. To compliment the rosemary how about Lavender. There are lots of varieties around but you need to have a good hardy one to see you through the winters. To break-up the front of the containers/bed I suggest planting a few “lesser” periwinkles. These come in white, lilac or purple in lots of different shades. The leaf colours also differ so you could find one you like. The “greater” periwinkles have bigger flowers and grow too big and fast for containers. Just tuck them into the corners of each “box” and let them hang down. They do spread so you may need to pull them up to avoid them taking over the whole container. Finally, I thought the little space near the entrance could do with something. Mint is a great herb but extremely invasive so it is ideal in its own container. There are lots available, such as pineapple mint and apple mint so again you should find some you like. They will die down for the winter but will come back each spring. Regardless of the containers you use you will have to ensure that there is adequate drainage in the bottom. Punch some holes in the base of the containers and lift them slightly off the floor. To help the drainage and keep the weight down fill the bottom of the containers with a good layer of polystyrene which you get in packaging. Use good quality compost and add some vermiculite which will also help keep the weight down but will also aid drainage. I would also add a slow release fertilizer and some water-retaining granules. You won’t be able to use hard mulch so I would top off the planting with a good layer of well-rotted manure. This will help retain moisture, keep weeds down and add goodness to the soil. Each autumn you should add another layer.
