Geraniums - the hardy flower that adds colour for months

GERANIUMS are a great family of plants that will grace the beds of any garden. We are talking here about the hardy species rather than the bright tender plants used for summer bedding, which are really pelargoniums.

Some geraniums can be a bit invasive, but others are better behaved, forming neat clumps of pretty foliage topped with blooms over a long period of time.

One such is Geranium ‘Blue Sunrise’ which has been around for a while, it won an RHS award of garden merit in 2005, but is a new addition to our garden. This really is a great plant and I wonder if it might look good growing with another favourite of this family – Bob’s Blunder – which I wrote about a couple of weeks ago. The contrast of the small dark leaves of one plant with the larger brighter foliage of the other could be startling. An idea for the memory file.

In the few months since it was planted here, Blue Sunrise has settled in and produced a good deal of new growth, forming a slowly spreading mound of bright chartreuse. It was flowering when we got it in early summer and has continued to do so for months, with still more buds to open.

The deep violet blue flowers, which look lovely held above the complimentary hued leaves, are lighter in the centre with delicate veining on the petals.

Blue Sunrise will grow in sun or partial shade and prefers well-drained soil, although it will tolerate clay soils if sand or grit is incorporated at planting time to improve the drainage. It will grow 30cm-40cm tall, with a spread of around 60cm, and is probably best towards the front of a bed where its sprawling habit will act as ground cover for many months and the colour can be admired.

Ours has not been in the garden long enough to see new spring growth, but this should be amber coloured – a colour reflected in autumn when cooler temperatures redden the leaves. Little maintenance is needed for this plant other than trimming off spent flower stems to encourage new blooms.

In the vegetable garden

COURGETTE plants come to the end of their productive life this month and need to be pulled up and put on to the compost heap.

We have grown only yellow-fruiting plants this year. These have provided a decent amount of fruit, although there have been no ‘marrows’.

I never thought I’d say this, but I have missed these monsters suddenly appearing in the veg patch and will be growing a couple of the more traditional green varieties next year to make sure we have some.

One of the things I made this summer with the yellow courgettes is courgette jam. Despite just seeming wrong, this actually tastes quite nice. It is flavoured with lemon, cardamom and ginger and, as yellow fruit was used, is a beautiful colour.

It’s a bit sweet, missing the sharp fruity tang from the more usual blackberry or plum jams, and has a slightly odd texture, so doesn’t get a yes from everyone in the house but I already have a plan to incorporate greengages and limes into the recipe next year.

Garden events

FLOWER Power Fairs will hold its final plant fair of the year at Sutton Park, Sutton-on-the-Forest tomorrow.

Twelve specialist nurseries will be there with a wide range of shrubs and climbers, roses and herbs, perennials and winter and spring flowering bulbs for sale. The nursery owners, many of whom had stands at this year’s Harrogate Autumn Flower Show, will also be on hand to offer advice.

Autumn is an ideal time for planting as the usually mild, damp conditions allow the plants to settle in before the cold weather arrives.

As they are gradually going into dormancy, they are not having to use energy for producing much in the way of foliage and flowers, although autumn-flowering plants will still be able give a splash of rich colour as we come to the end of the gardening year.

The plant fair has a lovely setting outside the Hhouse on the lawns and gravel under the two Cedar of Lebenham trees, from where visitors can go into the gardens.

The fair is open from 11am to 4pm and tickets to the fair and Sutton Park Gardens are £3.50. Parking is free with disabled parking beside the plant fair. The café will be open throughout the day and also a stand from Guide Dogs for the Blind with one of their dogs.

Gardening talk

CHRIS PEARSON head gardener at Shandy Hall, Coxwold will give an illustrated talk entitled Shandy Hall and Gardens on Tuesday. Organised by Askham Bryan College Gardening Club, the talk will be held in the Conference Hall at Askham Bryan College and will begin at 7.30pm.

There has been a dwelling on the site of Shandy Hall since 1430 and in the 18th century it was the home of author Laurence Sterne. The present garden was established in the 1960s and is divided into four main areas, including a large wild area in a disused quarry which has been planted to attract wildlife including numerous moths.

Tickets to the talk are free to Askham Bryan College Gardening Club members and £5 on the door for non-members. Complimentray teas and coffees will be served at the end of the evening. Further information from David Whiteman, Publicity Officer, 01904 707208.

Gardening TV and Radio

Tomorrow

7am, BBC2, Monty Don’s Italian Gardens.

8am, BBC2, Gardeners’ World. An investigation into bee keeping.

8am, BBC Radio Humberside, The Great Outdoors. With Blair Jacobs and Doug Stewart.

8.30am, The Beechgrove Garden. How to create a special community garden.

9am, BBC Radio York, Julia Lewis. News and features from the gardens and countryside of North Yorkshire.

9am, BBC Radio Leeds, Jake Katborg and Joe Maiden.

2pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. Chairman Eric Robson and his team of gardening experts help gardeners in Harrogate.

Friday 3pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. Panellists Chris Beardshaw, Anne Swithinbank, Christine Walkden and Matthew Wilson answer questions from the audience in Winchester. Eric Robson is in the chair.

8pm, BBC2, Gardeners’ World. Monty Don meets garden designer Piet Oudolf and Carol Klein finds out how important trees are for urban wildlife.