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[Help] Gardeners Question Time.



Stat Brother

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 11, 2003
73,870
West west west Sussex
You'll probably find that if you do try to lift a turf up, you won't be able to because it's rooted in! Keep up WLB!

So you're saying I'll need to use a shovel to check?
 






razer

Well-known member
Mar 10, 2019
764
Ormskirk, Lancashire
Can anybody identify this pod or seed? The question has been asked on another forum but nobody has come with an answer yet.

Pod.jpeg
 
Last edited:








vegster

Sanity Clause
May 5, 2008
27,908




vegster

Sanity Clause
May 5, 2008
27,908






Moshe Gariani

Well-known member
Mar 10, 2005
12,101
Help please.... what should we plant in this new bed for the best all round effect? Very sunny (BN21). Soil is top soil and sand mix.
8dff2eba572ccb437b4d1cfc7ee478fd.jpg



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Weststander

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Aug 25, 2011
64,332
Withdean area
Help please.... what should we plant in this new bed for the best all round effect? Very sunny (BN21). Soil is top soil and sand mix.
8dff2eba572ccb437b4d1cfc7ee478fd.jpg



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Drifts of perennials and bulbs.

Agastache Blue Fortune
Echinacea purpurea
Echinacea purpurea White Swan
Persicaria bistorta Superba
Trifolium rubens
Verbena bonariensis
Monarda
Alliums

Giving loads of colour and brilliant for pollinators.

If you want a couple of shrubs, Cornus alba sibirica will give height and stunning red stems in winter.
 




Moshe Gariani

Well-known member
Mar 10, 2005
12,101
Drifts of perennials and bulbs.

Agastache Blue Fortune
Echinacea purpurea
Echinacea purpurea White Swan
Persicaria bistorta Superba
Trifolium rubens
Verbena bonariensis
Monarda
Alliums

Giving loads of colour and brilliant for pollinators.

If you want a couple of shrubs, Cornus alba sibirica will give height and stunning red stems in winter.

This looks like well informed advice. Thank you. How do we do “drifts”? Can all these things be easily sourced and planted now?
 


Weststander

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Aug 25, 2011
64,332
Withdean area
This looks like well informed advice. Thank you. How do we do “drifts”? Can all these things be easily sourced and planted now?

I’m just a punter. The real experts [MENTION=259]Jack Straw[/MENTION], [MENTION=2019]jevs[/MENTION] and [MENTION=27150]Coldeanseagull[/MENTION] will no doubt appear tomorrow. They’ll probably have a different view and not be wildlife focused.

Plants, I find these suppliers are reasonably priced:
https://www.claireaustin-hardyplants.co.uk/
http://www.rosybee.com

Your soil and sunny site gives you loads of options, many plants will thrive in that. Just need to make sure that in the first summer (at least) that plants aren’t allowed to dry out. Mulch to say 3” in February/March with eg well rotted manure bought from any garden centre in bags. Some watering will be required in future summers with the droughts we’ve been having.

The RHS website will give you the plant spacing info for each plant.

Design - plant the same plant species in contrived clumps and seemingly random drifts, trial them in their pots before planting. Don’t be tempted to plant too closely, follow the RHS distances, then after two or three years the gaps will disappear.
 


jevs

Well-known member
Mar 24, 2004
4,348
Preston Rock Garden
This looks like well informed advice. Thank you. How do we do “drifts”? Can all these things be easily sourced and planted now?

Yeah all pretty easy to get hold of and now or spring is a good time to plant.

Drifts are basically groups of different plants....i use between 12 and 15 of each type as i have lots of room... arranged so they're not too formal.
I'm a big believer of red next to blues next to whites next to orange etc etc ie all colours contrasting with each other.

Other plants that are long flowering perennials that are loved by pollinators are

Rudbeckia
Echinops
Achillea
Phlox
Helenium
Eryngium
Sedum
Most herbs but especially Thyme, Mint and Rosemary
Lavender
Echium

Crocus and Mahonia are a valuable source of early bee food too.
 




Moshe Gariani

Well-known member
Mar 10, 2005
12,101
Thanks for help. Can I put spring bulbs in the same bed?
 




Cheshire Cat

The most curious thing..






Jack Straw

I look nothing like him!
Jul 7, 2003
6,895
Brighton. NOT KEMPTOWN!
Weststander and Jevs' schemes and ideas are very nice.
Another option would be to go with low growing evergreen shrubs. This would be virtually maintenance free and look good all year round.
The first job is to transplant elsewhere or just get rid of the few existing plants. Leaving them in would detract from the new planting. A blank canvass in this case will give a better end result.
Going by the photo, it looks like the area is about 6 x 1 meter? On that basis, my suggested plant list is;
3 Phormium "Jester". Plant one right in the middle of the bed and one either end 2 m from the ends.
Then groups of 3 of the following, planted randomly, i.e. informally, not like a chessboard.
Berberis × stenophylla 'Corallina Compacta'
Convulvulus x cneorum
Bergenia cordifolia
Euonymous fortunei "Emerald 'n Gold"
Sarcococca hookeriana "Humilis"
Lavandula angustifolia "Munstead"
Nandina domestica "Seika"
This collection will give you ground cover, hence very little maintenance once established, with different leaf forms and colour all year round.
After you've planted your preferred choice of plants, water them in and cover the bed with a 50mm layer of bark mulch - NOT woodchips.
I have bought from here before. Not cheap, not dear, but good quality. https://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/
When you get round to buying whatever plants you need, you may not get all the varieties you want. It is very important that if you need a different variety of a plant, you check its growing height. Eg, some Phormiums grow to 1 m like the one I have listed, but other varieties will grow at least double that, which in your case would be too big for the area and scheme.
On the Crocus website above, they have a diagram for each plant with the eventual height and spread measurements which are invaluable.
Please update progress reports on here with this project (we like photos), and we're all here to answer any more questions.
 


WATFORD zero

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 10, 2003
25,949
Weststander and Jevs' schemes and ideas are very nice.
Another option would be to go with low growing evergreen shrubs. This would be virtually maintenance free and look good all year round.
The first job is to transplant elsewhere or just get rid of the few existing plants. Leaving them in would detract from the new planting. A blank canvass in this case will give a better end result.
Going by the photo, it looks like the area is about 6 x 1 meter? On that basis, my suggested plant list is;
3 Phormium "Jester". Plant one right in the middle of the bed and one either end 2 m from the ends.
Then groups of 3 of the following, planted randomly, i.e. informally, not like a chessboard.
Berberis × stenophylla 'Corallina Compacta'
Convulvulus x cneorum
Bergenia cordifolia
Euonymous fortunei "Emerald 'n Gold"
Sarcococca hookeriana "Humilis"
Lavandula angustifolia "Munstead"
Nandina domestica "Seika"
This collection will give you ground cover, hence very little maintenance once established, with different leaf forms and colour all year round.
I have bought from here before. Not cheap, not dear, but good quality. https://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/
When you get round to buying whatever plants you need, you may not get all the varieties you want. It is very important that if you need a different variety of a plant, you check its growing height. Eg, some Phormiums grow to 1 m like the one I have listed, but other varieties will grow at least double that, which in your case would be too big for the area and scheme.
On the Crocus website above, they have a diagram for each plant with the eventual height and spread measurements which are invaluable.
Please update progress reports on here with this project (we like photos), and we're all here to answer any more questions.

I wonder how much you would have to pay for that quality of advice elsewhere :thumbsup:
 


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