9:56am Saturday 23rd January 2010
By Gina Parkinson
The garden can be seen again now the snow and ice have receded. It is messy: browning leaves, twigs and other debris litter the soil and visible plants have lost any perkiness, instead lying prone on the earth.
Still it is nothing that cannot be tidied and brought back to life with a few hours work. Swept paths, lightly dug soil, careful trimming of tattered leaves can soon bring a garden into order.
Snowdrops are delayed in our garden; they have usually sent up a few tiny green spears by mid January, but so far there are no signs in the damp, black soil. We have these lovely winter bulbs scattered about the garden in cool spots and warmer ones, but even in the most sheltered places they have yet to appear.
In the small vegetable patch, however, a few crocus are beginning to come through. These are easily identifiable with a bunch of very thin leaves growing through a papery ring of brown that sits just above the soil.
In time, a blob of colour will push up through the leaves, expanding and finally developing into a stamen-filled flower that opens in the sun. A warm day will see numerous insects interested in these small flowers a welcome source of food at a thin time of year.
While the cold seems to have delayed some plants, others have continued their growth while hidden below the snow. The plump flower buds of Helleborus orientalis or Lenten rose are already appearing at the base of these plants.
There are many hybrids of this plant in a range of colours from palest creamy white through to almost black. Some of the lighter coloured ones are attractively spotted and freckled, with darker hues contrasting beautifully with the velvet petals of the rich plums and purples of deeper coloured relatives.
Once a Lenten rose is established, it is possible to start to expand a collection by gathering seedlings that appear at the feet of the mother plant in autumn. It can take a few years for this to happen, but once it does it is a great way to increase the stock.
Lenten roses are quite expensive to buy, they need a few seasons growth to get to flowering size and the darkest hybrids seem to be the dearest of all. This may be because of fewer being produced from collected seedlings or because they are more desirable.
We have two dark hybrids in the cool, semi-shaded front garden, which produced a crop of seedlings last October. Some of these were potted up in September. Sadly, only three of the nine have survived, but they are looking strong and one has started to produce new leaves.
Fortunately, some of the seedlings left in the garden last year are still growing and so will be used as back up for those that were lost. They will need to be moved away from the parent plants before they get too large and begin to struggle for space. I will put them straight into their flowering position to see if this is more successful than potting them up.
Weekend catch-up IT IS a good idea to mend or replace broken fences at this time of year before climbers and shrubs start to emerge from their winter dormancy.
Garden boundaries are easier to get to and there is less chance of damaging delicate new shoots.
Plenty of time should be allowed, maintenance jobs always take longer than expected and replacing existing fencing can be tricky if plants need to be unhooked from their damaged support then put back on to the new panel or trellis.
Painting or treating existing fencing may have to wait until later in the year as the wood is likely to be too damp for the moment but new panels can be done, if necessary, either before putting into place or as soon as they are fixed.
Gardening TV and Radio Tomorrow
8am, Radio BBC Humberside, The Great Outdoors. Presented by Blair Jacobs and Doug Stewart.
9am, BBC Radio Leeds, Tim Crowther with Joe Maiden.
2pm, BBC Radio 4, Gardeners’ Question Time. A postbag edition with Matthew Biggs, Bob Flowerdew, Bunny Guinness and chairman Eric Robson answering questions sent in by letter and email. The gardening weather forecast is at 2.40pm. (Repeated from Friday).
Gardening TV and Radio
Tomorrow Friday.
3pm, BBC Radio 4, Gardeners’ Question Time. The team are in Newcastle this week where Matthew Biggs, Pippa Greenwood and Bunny Guinness help members of the North East Hardy Plant Society with their horticultural queries. Chairman Eric Robson look at a long-lost garden design by Capability Brown, and Chris Beardshaw advises on basic garden design. The gardening weather forecast is at 3.40pm.
Saturday, January 30
7am, BBC Radio York, Julia Booth. Julia and plant expert Nigel Harrison hold their weekly plant surgery.
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