Mzz B's Garden

Small growing Japanese Cherry

Late flowering narcissus- Pippit

Viburnum burkwoodii

The April GardenHalfway through April, and it has felt like summer with cold nights, now we are back to April weather with a touch of winter. But thankful for a bit of rain.

The garden however seems to have flourished, although some things seem to have gone over quickly due to the heat, and everything including the weeds are growing. It's been great for daffodils, there are a lot of daffs you can get now which are not just bright yellow, lemon and white and different flower shapes give interest to the garden over quite a long season. The early ones start in February and there are still daffodils flowering now. The only problem with early bulbs is the foliage after the flowers have gone. It is quite good to grow them alongside strong growing perennials to help hide the dying foliage, or grow them in grass where they are not so noticeable.
Bulbs and flowering shrubs and trees are both great to give the spring garden lots of colour, and scent. Have a look around the village to see and smell them

Lots of things to do in April:

• Sow hardy annuals, such as love-in-a-mist and pot marigolds, as well as native wildflowers, into gaps in borders
• Protect the new shoots of delphiniums, hostas and other vulnerable plants like new seedlings from slugs and snails. Try using slug pellets marked suitable for organic gardening then it will not harm useful insects in the garden. But use sparingly as only a few slugs do the harm, lots are beneficial to the garden.
• Continue deadheading spring bulbs and bedding, so they don't waste energy setting seed. Dig up and divide snowdrops to spread, but do not let the bulbs dry out.
• Transplant sweet peas sown in pots into their final positions when the weather warms a little
• Prune hydrangeas, cutting back the old stems to a healthy shoot lower down, but check what sort of hydrangea you are growing – the mop heads and lacecaps- cut back to a healthy bud and just take out weak or diseased shoots down to the base. These flower on old wood stems. Paniculata hydrangeas, can be cut down to 6 inches or so to a bud and will flower on the new growth of wood.
• Check for aphids on roses and rub them off before they develop into major infestations
• Add aquatic plants, such as waterlilies and irises, to garden ponds
• if you haven't already done so, get those second early and maincrop potatoes planted.
• Sow outdoor varieties of tomatoes, chillies and courgettes in pots, in a warm indoor place.so they're ready to plant out in late May or June
• Divide clumps of hardy herbs, such as lemon balm and chives, then replant in pots, or borders.
• Sow small batches of rocket/other easy salads to ensure a succession through the summer.
• Sow flowering companions in the veg plot, such as pot marigolds and borage These are meant to keep the bugs away from your veg.
• Sow herbs such as parsley, coriander, dill and chamomile in a sunny bed or container
• Sow fast-growing crops, such as radishes, to make the most of any temporary gaps

The Tattenhall Garden Society Annual plant is on May 17th this year- perhaps somewhere to stock up on plants for your garden.

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