Hampton Court
Eric Robson hosts the show from the Hampton Court Flower Show. Chris Beardshaw, Pippa Greenwood, and Matthew Wilson make up the panel.
Produced by Howard Shannon
Assistant Producer: Hannah Newton
A Somethin' Else production for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 4.
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Questions and Answers
Q – Should I give up trying to get rid of Trefoil in my lawn, as my neighbours seem to like it in theirs?
Chris – Trefoil has three leaves.Ìý Hugs the ground closely and spreads out like fingers.Ìý It is difficult to control.Ìý In a lawn you could lower the cutting height significantly or conversely raise it.Ìý If you raise it you’d need to go above 15cm (6 inches) and the density of the grass would outcompete the Trefoil.Ìý Personally, I would cut low and scalp it out, give the lawn some feed to give the grass a boost, best done in the early part of spring.
Q – My friends in the Green Fingered Girlies are envious of my accidental tree Echiums.Ìý Would the self-seeded one-year-old plant withstand transplanting, so that my friends can have their own giant flowering Triffids next year?
Matthew – There’s no reason why not.Ìý They are biennials so you have to factor that in – they will form a rosette in the first year, in the second year they will shoot up.Ìý They should grow to a minimum of 2m (6.5 feet).Ìý I would expect the vigour at which yours has grown is more to do with conditions in your garden than with the seed.
Chris – Just be careful with the roots when you transplant – they do tend to be fragile.Ìý They are fibrous and go quite deep.
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Q – We have a forest of rampant bamboo, courtesy of neighbours on both sides, which also runs under the lawn.Ìý Drastic action is required; tips please.
Pippa – The only real answer is to get the whole thing dug out simultaneously and then sink in underground barriers.Ìý But it’ll be tough.Ìý Look at how deep the bamboo has gone and then go a good chunk under that – but you’re talking several feet (several metres).Ìý
Chris – We’re talking about Phyllostachys here – the most invasive of the bamboos. You’ve got to dig down deep – if you can’t do it with a mattock then hire yourself a mini digger.
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Q – I have a rather large fishpond – about 5m x 4m (16.5ft x 13ft) – decoratively shaped. Unfortunately the local Blue Heron has decided to use it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.Ìý I have got rid of all the fish but what can I plant in it to keep it decorative and keep the heron away?
Chris – If you’re going to exclude fish then it really opens things up for plant life.Ìý The heron has done you a favour here!Ìý I would start with something like Caltha palustris or go for the double-form, so the Kingcup, or the Water Marigold (bright yellow blooms).Ìý Certainly include something like Mentha aquatic, the aquatic mint, put them on the edge and they’ll spill in.Ìý If you’ve got different levels then at about 15cm (6 inches) depth put loads of Iris sibiciras. Lobelia victoria (crimson coloured flowers) also, which stands tall at about 45cm (17.5 inches) high.Ìý Try a few things and see what happens.
Matthew – Remember though that you probably haven’t seen the end of the Heron because they like frogs too.Ìý But get the planting balance right and the wildlife will have chance to hide.
Chris – Also, deter the Heron by disrupting their approach to the water (they like to stride in from the banks) either using vegetation or perhaps string some fishing wire around the edge to act as a deterrent.
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Q – When should you water your garden? Evening or morning?
Pippa – Either late in the evening or very early in the morning.
Chris – Because of the processes a plant goes through it concentrates more energy on increasing the turgidity of the cells at night than it does in the day and so it does make sense to water it at night.Ìý But, slugs and snails will benefit if you dribble it all over the path!
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Q – I’ve grown tomatoes successfully in grow bags in the greenhouse for some years, but last year, and so far this year, there is a lack of fruit on the lower trusses; what can I do to encourage the fruit?
Chris – I would suggest that maybe it was too cold when they were flowering.Ìý Or perhaps they were lacking in water, you need to consistent with watering habits.Ìý Don’t over shade or overcrowd, as this will cause them to race up.Ìý If they are producing fruit up top then your chances of encouraging fruit further down is basically nil.Ìý Trim them, let them go a bit more leggy, and then maybe grow something like basil underneath or one of the more Mediterranean herbs.
Pippa – It’s quite likely to have been cold nights that caused it – make sure that you keep them well fed with a high-potash feed.Ìý If they’re in a growing bag then things do run out quickly and the quality of compost isn’t the best.Ìý Extra feeding (once a week+) would be good.
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Q – I have a long, narrow garden – approx. 100ft x 15ft Ìý(30.5m x 4.5m) – roughly half of that is wild, mainly with brambles, and I had been digging them out by hand but now I’m looking for other suggestions on how to tame that area, still with a natural effect.Ìý
Matthew – Try and cover them to kill off their ability to grow.Ìý Cut the brambles back right to the ground and then layer them over with piles of cardboard boxes.Ìý Over a period of 12-months or this will kill everything.Ìý Then plant directly into the cardboard boxes – relatively small plants are best.Ìý
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Q – We have an excellent compost bin - at least our local rat seems to think so - what can I do to discourage it/others?
Pippa – Try and empty the compost bin completely to disrupt them first.Ìý Main things to avoid are putting really tasty stuff in there like meat, bacon rinds, bones, chunks of cheese.Ìý Keep it to vegetation.Ìý
Try and put something underneath the compost to help prevent them tunnelling.
Chris – The reason they are going in is because it’s sheltered, warm, and relatively dry.Ìý Think about adjusting the composition of the compost heap eg douse the entire compost in nettle tea not only does it increase the moisture content (rats aren’t going to breed in completely sodden surroundings) it will also increase the composting speed.Ìý Or increase the temperature of it so it’s too hot for them to stand – so stacking 5cm (2 inches) layers of green and brown material makes very fast, very hot compost.ÌýÌý
Broadcasts
- Fri 3 Jul 2015 15:00´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 4
- Sun 5 Jul 2015 14:00´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 4
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Gardeners' Question Time
Horticultural programme featuring a group of gardening experts