Welcome to “Gardening Tips and Advice” on Boyletoday.com, the official Ardcarne Garden Centre gardening column. Every Wednesday, the experts in your local Ardcarne Garden Centre will provide relevant and topical items of interest here on Boyletoday.com to help you get the best from your garden.
Great To Do Now….
Get Sowing:
This is prime time to sow vegetables as the soil is moist and warm and the seeds will get off to a flying start. You can also sow in modular seed trays and keep the seedlings under cover until they are big enough for planting out. Always use a good quality compost for sowing such as Westland Seed & Cutting Compost, and clean trays or pots.
Flowers:
Tie in new shoots of climbing plants like clematis, roses and wisteria
Prune early-flowering shrubs like Japanese quince and forsythias once they have finished flowering.
Stake taller-growing delphiniums and other perennials to prevent wind rock.
Fruit & veg:
Cut twiggy sticks from hazel to support emerging pea seedlings or use chicken wire supported on stakes.
Thin carrot seedlings in the evenings, when fewer carrot flies are around.
Harvest purple sprouting broccoli as the spears become large enough. Cook immediately for the most delicious flavour.
Greenhouse:
Move tomato seedlings into larger containers when roots reach the outside of the pot
Pinch out the tips of chilli plants to encourage bushy growth
Beef up soil in greenhouse borders with fresh compost such as Envirogrind, ready for planting out
Around the garden:
Tip out potted plants such as Heucheras and check for vine weevil grubs among the roots. This is a great time to re-pot shrubs in pots.
Keep weeding, hand-pulling annual weeds but digging out perennials by the roots
Focus on…… Strawberries
Piles of luscious, gleaming sweet berries, piled up on your plate night after night, perhaps with a splash of double cream… luxurious living like this is the reason why we go to all the trouble of growing our own. Eaten within minutes of picking, still warm from the sun, home-grown strawberries are a taste of heaven.
Anyone can grow strawberries. Dedicate a whole bed to them or tuck them into the tiniest corner; they’re perfectly happy in pots or hanging baskets, too. We have some great varieties for you to choose, including the new ‘Malling Centenary’, which is tipped to be one of the all time great strawberries. Plant now and enjoy your own strawberries this summer.
For more information contact:
Ardcarne Garden Centre
Boyle, Tel: 07196 67091
Roscommon Town: Tel: 09066 27700
Email: [email protected]
OPEN 7 DAYS
