“You might think we are nurturing our garden, but of course it is our garden that is nurturing us” Jenny Uglow

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Hello fellow gardeners

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I hope this newsletter finds you all fit and well although as it happens I am nursing an injury to my leg which has occurred after a run in with a compost bin lid. It won’t put me off going out into the place that I love the most – the garden! Accidents happen from time to time but in the great scheme of things the benefits of being outside far outweigh the disadvantages.  As committed gardeners we are fully aware of the impact gardening has on our well-being (most of the time!). With the publicity recently given over to preserving our native plants and creatures we also know how important it is to take care of these too.

 

Have you been watching David Attenborough’s programmes on BBC about wildlife in our gardens? They have been most engaging and I am sure that, although we don’t all possess gardens as big as those featured in the programmes, we get our fair share of ‘wildlife’ in our plots. I know I have, although the otters have eluded me! However…. I have been reliably informed that they have been seen swimming in the River Mersey close to where I live. The ponds I have made in the garden are not substantial enough to accommodate otters but fish, frogs, toads, newts, dragonflies, damsel flies, diving beetles, pond skaters, butterflies, moths and many birds (I have even seen a kingfisher) like and must have water. These creatures all help keep a healthy balance in the garden, some consuming the ‘pests’ that eat our crops, others pollinating our flowers.

 

Our speaker on July 21st George Pilkington, will be enlightening us further about “Encouraging wildlife in your garden” and I am sure it will be very interesting to hear what he has to say. As I have advocated in past newsletters, we don’t have to turn our gardens into wildernesses in order to attract other creatures to it (I am gratified to notice that the RHS has put this idea to bed now) – we just need to include a diverse range of plants. Always included in mine for summer are bulbs. These add impact to the pot displays and borders.

In her talk “Bulbs for the garden throughout the year” on June 16th, Sarah Millington from Hillview Hardy Plants will no doubt mention many that can be grown in summer as well as those for the rest of the year but you might  like to be reminded of a few here! One of my favourites is Eucomis. Eucomis, is often referred to by it's common name, the pineapple flower, because of it's distinctive structure. I have grown these for many years because they add drama to the garden. I have had losses - mainly due to very cold conditions in winter months, but this hasn’t put me off growing them.  Many of the bigger flowered types come from huge bulbs and need very large pots in which to grow them. All need full sun, a good soil based compost, regular feeding and watering to flower well in late summer.  The green flowered Eucomis pole evansii is the largest of the varieties available reaching a metre high but most of the others grow from 40cm to 60cms high. Eucomis ‘Sparkling Burgundy’ has very dark foliage and is stunning when in flower, its’ fleshy basal leaves complementing the dense spikes of starry flowers that look just as good when they go to seed. Eucomis ‘Joy’s Purple’ is similar but doesn’t have dark foliage. Eucomis comosa flowers later in the season. It has white flowers and stands 30cms high. Eucomis ‘Nani’ is fairly new on the market and has a height of 25cms but is not as popular as the larger varieties. None are hardy so bulbs need to dry out before winter sets in to prevent them rotting off. I take my pots into the greenhouse in late autumn and raise them up off the ground using pot feet. I let the foliage die down naturally and only tidy them up when I know they have dried completely. Pulling the stems out of the pots damages the bulbs. These bulbs aren’t cheap but are well worth growing because they give months of pleasurable colour and form.