Gardening is a favourite pastime in many parts of the world, especially in the more developed, richer parts of the world, where people have some free time from the daily drudgery of finding food for the family. It is also a great way to keep yourself fit and your home looking good, which will make it easier to sell if you wanted to and add value to it.
Growing Wild: I usually allow special wild flowers grow and spread in my garden. One that I am proud of at the moment is a six-foot wild marjoram tree. It looks great in the herbaceous border. There is also a large clump of sheep's bit which is twice the normal height for these plants and is covered with bright blue flowers. Wild flowers are not weeds; after all, a weed is only something that is growing where it is not wanted. Wild flowers can look really nice in a wilder part of the garden and they should be watered and fed just like garden flowers.
More Of The Same, Please: it is worth remembering how many plants in your garden can be propagated from cuttings or seeds. This is a great way of swapping your plants for those of others. Here is a short list of a few very popular plants:
Lavender: lavender eventually becomes old and woody and should be replaced. Take cuttings in the first or second week of August. Line them out in a cold frame and they will have good root systems by Spring.
Hellebore: hellebore seeds should be sown as soon as they become ripe in May and June. Some will germinate soon others will come up next Spring.
Hardy Cyclamen: seedlings germinate near their parent plants in the Spring. Pick them out into frames until they are strong enough to be put into their final beds.
Planting Snowdrops: if this is your first year, beg a clump from a friend. Replant both half clumps and give him back his clump next year. He will be so happy that you will get anything he has, if you ask again.
Protecting Daffodils: drifts of daffodils naturalized in the grass are really beautiful, but when they first start growing, their shoots are almost indistinguishable from grass and it is easy to trample on them. A good thing to do is mark the areas with snowdrops. The snowdrops come up earlier, marking the daffodils' territory. It also brings your garden into flower that much earlier.
Leave The Leaves On: sticking with daffodils, one the flowers have died back, the bare greenery of the leaves looks quite bare. If you plant hostas among the daffodils, their leaves will hide the daffodils' leaves, which you cannot cut off or they will not grow again next year. This tactic lengthens your growing season again.
Butterflies In The Garden: I am sure that you enjoy seeing butterflies in your garden throughout the summer. You can attract a lot more to by planting nectar-rich flowers like: winter-flowering heathers; aubretia; valerian; hebes; marigolds; purple buddleias; sedum spectabile and Michaelmas daisies.
Owen Jones, the author of this article, writes on many subjects, but is currently involved with the remote controlled trucks. If you have an interest in model or toy rc vehicles, please go over to our website now at 1/5 Scale RC Cars
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