What a scorcher July was! I really hope that your gardens are surviving the heat, using my watering tips from last month’s article. As we head into August, the last official month of summer, our gardens continue to need watering. In our changing climate and with some areas facing hosepipe restrictions, good water management is critical, so do try to use a water butt if you can. If you are lucky enough to be heading off on holiday this month, you could ask a friend or neighbour to look after your garden for you, or you could move containers into the shade to help reduce the likelihood of them drying out. If you have a pond or water features, be sure to keep these topped up. It is very important to add bowls of water for wildlife such as hedgehogs and birds. Be sure to add a few pebbles or marbles, to allow precious insects to escape.
While milder temperatures mean we can now grow species that would previously be unable to endure the cold, the longer growing seasons and extreme weather events are also having negative effects on the British garden, with many plants flowering earlier than ever before. The RHS published a report called “Gardening in a Changing Climate” which provides in depth recommendations on how gardeners can adapt to climate change through plant choice and garden design. I highly recommend reading this helpful advice.
If you have a vegetable patch or allotment, this is one of the most bountiful times of the year. Keep on top of weeding, as weeds compete with your crops for nutrients and water. Water sweet corn plants regularly and feed with tomato food to get the best harvest. Check cobs for ripeness once the tassels at the end of a cob have turned chocolate brown. Peel back a little of the husk and pierce a kernel with your fingernail. If the liquid is creamy, the cob is ready. There is something wonderful about preparing a summer evening meal using vegetables that you have grown yourself. Maybe you could BBQ some corn to share with your family or friends.
Hydrangeas at Furzey Gardens
The Hydrangeas are looking glorious at the moment. They have striking flowers heads which come in a range of shapes, from large balls to cones. There is a Hydrangea for every garden as they come in compact varieties as well as larger shrubs. They do best in moist, well-drained soil and have a tendency to wilt in hot weather, so keep well watered during the hot spells this month. I recommend mulching Hydrangeas every year in spring with leaf mould, well rotted manure or compost. It is interesting to note that the pH of the soil will change the colour of the flowers in some varieties.
If you visit Furzey Gardens this month, look out for the Oxydendrum arboreum (Sorrel tree) which is a large shrub with finely toothed, glossy leaves which turn a brilliant red in autumn. It has fragrant racemes of small, white, bell-like flowers. They resemble those of lily-of-the-valley and are very attractive to bees. These are perfect as a specimen plant for cottage gardens and are generally pest and disease free. Another shrub to consider is the Itea ilicifolia (Holly-leaved sweet spire). This is a medium sized evergreen shrub with glossy, holly-like leaves up to 10cm in length. They have striking flowers which are small and greenish-white on drooping, catkin-like racemes up to 30cm in length. They are strongly honey scented and bloom in profusion in August. They suit many planting locations and garden types, making this a great all rounder.
Clethra alnifolia, also known as the Sweet pepperbush, will be flowering this month. We have several specimens at Furzey Gardens, which have near-white, gloriously fragrant flowers which are abundantly produced in erect terminal racemes. They are very attractive to bees and butterflies. This shrub flowers on new wood, so pruning for shape is best done in the spring. You can, however, prune summer-flowering shrubs such as lavender and climbing hydrangeas this month, once the blooms are finished. I recommend trimming to maintain a compact, bushy shape, but avoid cutting into old wood. If you have evergreen shrubs such as camellias and rhododendrons, water them thoroughly and use an ericaceous feed this month, to make sure that next year’s buds develop well.
Itea ilicifolia
August is the month for late summer perennials to shine. Helenium ‘Sahin’s Early Flowerer’ is a favourite of mine, with daisy-like flower-heads in orange, yellow and red. It dazzles in a border and blooms through to autumn. Heleniums are versatile plants that love plenty of sunshine and moist soil. To encourage the plant to repeat flower, deadhead back to side shoots that have flower buds emerging. I also love Asters and I highly recommend Aster novae-angliae ‘Andenken an Alma Pӧtschke’. They feature masses of large, daisy-like, bright rose-pink flowers, up to 2 inches wide, with sunny yellow centre disks. This eye-catching beauty is easy to grow, long lived and is a great source of nectar for butterflies.
Our Cottage garden is providing another wonderful source of nectar. We have grown poppies, cosmos, sweet peas, cornflowers, dahlias, hollyhocks, nasturtiums and sunflowers to name a few! Sunflowers are particularly fascinating as they exhibit floral heliotropic movement – where the flower head follows the sun. A fluid-filled structure in the plant called the pulvinus alters fluid pressure in the surrounding plant tissue, allowing the flower to follow the sunlight from East to West throughout the day. Interestingly, the Italian for sunflower is girasole, from the Latin gyrare, meaning “to spin” and sol, meaning “sun”. This also gives us the origin of Jerusalem (girasole) artichokes – another member of the sunflower family, Helianthus.
Sunflower and poppy in cottage garden at Furzey Gardens
Saving seed is a great economical way to prepare for next year. The best time to collect the seed is on a dry day, after a spell of dry weather. Dry seed heads such as sweet peas or poppies should rattle. Place the dry seeds into a paper bag or envelope. Most seeds will store for a year or two as long as they are completely dry when you collect them. We have been busy collecting seed from our many plants at Furzey, which the people we support with learning disabilities will germinate in our nursery.
Another money saving method is to take cuttings of your favourite tender perennials such as pelargoniums and fuchsias. Cut the mother plant just above a leaf joint on the main stem and trim the cutting to just below the joint. Strip off most of the leaves on the short cutting, and insert into warm, damp, sterilised compost. Keep them in a light, dry atmosphere and don’t let the compost dry out. In a few short weeks, your cuttings should have rooted and you will have new plants. Do let me know if you are successful in propagating plants. I would love to hear about your success stories.
I look forward to seeing many of you at Furzey Gardens this August, if you are planning a visit you must pre-book your garden entrance online to help our car parking availability. We are also excited to be welcoming London Touring Players back for their outdoor production of Shakespeare’s ‘Comedy of Errors, tickets are still available. Visit www.furzey-gardens.org for more information.