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Garden Myths: Number 14
It’s a dwarf conifer! Gardens are littered with 6 metre high conifers with a small group of rocks around its base. Invariably this is the last resting place of a garden rockery with a dwarf conifer planted in it. For some reason people have no problem with seeing an oak seeding will grow into a…
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Garden Myths: Number 13
Lawns are less work than borders. No, but they take less thought on the part of the reluctant garden. Just think about the time you spend following the lawn mower up and down the garden every year. Now compare this to how much time you spend looking after an established border of similar area. Initially…
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Garden Myths: Number 12
Clematis need lime. It is an old belief that clematis need plenty of lime, and it was often recommended that mortar rubble should be buried under a clematis when planting one. I have also heard people claim a clematis growing in clay soil was only succeeding because it was against brick wall, no doubt ignoring…
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Garden Myths: Number 11
Peonies will not flower for years after you move them. I have moved peonies at all times of the year and they have continued flowering without interruption; and I am not alone in this observation. They do object to being planted too deeply, and this will stop their flowering; so care should be taken to…
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Garden Myths: Number 10
Plants will go to a particular size and stop. People often ask for plants to do things that are not realistic and the commonest one is for a plant that will grow to a particular size and stop. That is understandable but sadly some people in the horticultural industry will actually tell them a particular…
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Garden Myths: Number 9
Evergreens don’t lose their leaves. It is an old misconception, older enough for me to be for warned by my amenity horticulture lecturer, that people think by choosing evergreen you will not have to clean up fallen leaves. The logic is easy to see; if the plant is evergreen it has leaves all the time…
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Garden Myths: Number 8
Waterfalls and streams need a mains water supply. The first time, on discussing creating a garden pond, the customer carefully explained where the mains water supply was “as I would need it” I was taken aback; but it has happened now a number of times. The logic I presume is that as there is water…
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Garden Myths: Number 7
Cacti don’t need water. Every plant needs water. The amount they need varies greatly with a pond plant at one extreme and a cactus at the other; but they all still need some water. The plants grouped together as cacti have evolved to survive with very little water and very infrequent rainfall but like all…
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Garden Myths: Number 6
It’s a simple environmental choice. The road to hell is paved with good intentions The problem with the environment is its complicated; I mean REALLY complicated! Not just fiendish Sudoku complicated, more theoretical physics complicated. In the environment everything interacts with everything else, so the simplest change can have completely unforeseen results. Take a simple…
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Garden Myths: Number 5
Slugs and snails can be kept off Hostas by raising them high up or setting them in gravel. Hostas are a versatile and attractive genus of garden plants; used and loved by gardeners. Unfortunately the large succulent leaves that make them so attractive are also irresistible to slugs and snails. This has led to an…
