Grow Bag Gardening

As a child I remember my dad using grow-bags on the patio for growing his tomatoes and my mum complaining about the sight of them. But, they have come a long way since those early days and now have dedicated websites, blogs, flicker sites and even their own houses.

So what is the phenomenon?

Traditionally the bags were used in the greenhouse because of their space saving efficiency and also plants or vegetables would not become infected by any diseases lurking in the existing soil. Although, they are still widely used in the greenhouse they make ideal plantings areas for small gardens where space is at a premium.

How to prepare and plant

• Loosen the compost in the bag by shaking and kneading it like a pillow.
• Shape the bag into a low hummock, making sure compost is evenly spread.
• Pierce the base of bag for drainage and cut out the pre-marked planting areas of a trough if you are planting salad crops.
• Scoop out compost from each planting area leaving a big enough hole for the root ball of your plant. Put a plant in each hole and refill around it with compost. The top of each root ball should be just below the top of the bag.
• Improve the effectiveness of your watering by burying a small flower pot in the compost alongside each tomato plant. Filling the pot when you water means water is directed to the roots of the plant and doesn't run off the surface of the compost.

What to grow

Growing bags are ideal for plants that don't have deep roots, such as tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers, chilli peppers, aubergines and courgettes. However, with so many additional accessories available such as bottomless plant pots you could try a whole range of plants for instant colour in difficult planting areas.

Aftercare

If you are growing taller or top-heavy or top-heavy crops push a cane into the bag next to each plant. Tie the plant to the cane and attach the cane to a frame. This will prevent the plants from toppling over in the wind or if they become top heavy.

Keep the compost moist and feed plants such as aubergine, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers with a high potash fertiliser when flowers appear - this will ensure you get the plumpest fruit. When crops have finished, split the bag open and recycle the compost as a soil conditioner in the garden.

Gardening Tips for March

March is a guessing game in the garden. Will it warm up soon? Will it stay warm? Will the rains start/stop? About the only thing we can count on is that March will soon turn to April when hopefully we can all get out and about in the garden.

Planting

This month roses will begin that first bloom.

Azaleas and camellias are best planted while blooming. They began their blooming in February, so March is right in the middle of their blooming season. Please don’t feed your camellias until they have completed their blooming. If you do, they will drop all remaining buds. Fertilise to reward the plant after the blooming ends.

Spring colour plants are arriving! Brighten up your gardens with perennials and annuals. Look for perennials such as campanula, columbine, coral bells, delphinium, foxglove (digitalis), diascia, penstemon, salvia, yarrow and so much more. Great annuals to pick from include celosia, coleus, dianthus, linaria, lobelia, marigolds, nicotiana, petunias, salvias, and verbena.

There is still time for planting bulbs!

And, don’t forget to start your vegetable gardens! Veggies as the cabbage family (cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli), squash, lettuce, spinach, peppers, and cool season tomatoes will be in this month. This is also a good time not only to prune back herbs from last year, but also add in new plants such as chives, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, and thyme.

Maintenance Duties

Fertilise your lawns and roses.

Snails will coming be out to munch on the tender new growth. So stay alert.

Now is also the time to divide perennials such as agapanthus, callas, daylilies, rudbeckia, and daisies. Those with fuchsias can cut them back two-thirds toward the main branches. Remember to leave 2-5 leaf bud/scars for new growth.

You can begin pruning your ornamental shrubs (pittosporum, boxwood, etc.) for hedges. Wait to prune spring-flowering shrubs and trees until their blooming is over.

And if anyone has any specific gardening questions they would like answering, please feel free to email us; info@davidcheethamgardens.co.uk

Happy Gardening!!

Regards
David Cheetham MSGD

Bedding Plants

Bedding plants can provide colour in your garden all the year round by replacing Summer flowering plants with selections for Autumn and Winter. They are ideal for planting on their own or with most other plants in a whole range of situations such as hanging baskets, tubs and pots, window boxes, troughs and of course in borders in the garden.

Preparation

For a colourful display thorough preparation is essential. Ensure you have good drainage in containers and good potting compost for plants to grow in. Prepare borders in the garden, first by well forking over to a depth of about 30cm (12in), adding a general fertiliser and some form of planting compost before planting starts.

Selecting your plants

Plants are grown in all sorts of trays and pots from small starter plants to larger plants which offer instant colour. Whatever you choose select sturdy plants which are green and healthy. Check that the leaves have not been eaten and are free from pests and diseases. Never buy plants that are dry or have been allowed to dry out.

Planting

1. Water plants well before planting.
2. Taller plants will give height and trailing or bushy plants will give depth and width.
3. Take care when removing your plants from their tray or pots so as not to damage the roots or shoots. Watering them before removal will help prevent this.
4. Never plant too firmly as roots need to breathe and expand the area they are covering.
5. Plant to just below the depth they were grown in their original container.
6. Plant so that they will just touch each other when fully grown - refer to the plant label but as a general rule plant shorter growing types 10-15cm (4-6ins) apart and taller varieties 23-30cm (9-12ins) apart.

Borders

In borders place tall plants to the rear reducing heights gradually using compact edging plants at the front - do not over crowd - all plants need room to grow.

Colours

It is important to blend colours together - try planting drifts of colour in borders. Use 'hot' colours - reds, yellows, oranges, or 'cool' colours - blues, lavender, silver and white for different effects. The garden is an extension of your home - use colour schemes as you would indoors

.

Feeding

Plants are like people and need feeding to give the best results. Use a dry controlled release fertiliser at planting time which should feed for most of the growing and flowering season. Use a liquid feed towards the end of the Summer as a pick-me-up but water well first to ensure good take up.

Watering

Hanging baskets may require watering more than once a day, especially during hot weather. If the compost does dry out, water thoroughly and repeat. Create good drainage to prevent water logging in containers. After planting new plants, water thoroughly.

Garden Lighting

There is an enormous range of low voltage lighting now available for the garden but creating that desired 'lighting' affect is a question of beam angle and brightness.

Beam Angle

Beam angle affects the coverage of a light. Sometimes you will want a small pool of light from a narrow beam to accent a feature without lighting the surroundings; other areas of your garden may require the widest coverage available.

There are typically four main beam angles 12, 24, 36 and 60 degrees.

12 degrees will produce a narrow spot beam and depending on the wattage of your bulbs is ideal for up-lighting and down-lighting columns and spotlighting
small, light coloured features.

24 degrees will produce a standard beam and again depending on the wattage of your bulbs is ideal for up-lighting pergola posts & climbers; and providing accent lighting.

36 degrees will produce a flood beam and is ideal for plant lighting in small gardens;, accent lighting on close features and cross-lighting steps.

60 degrees will produce a very wide flood beam and depending on the wattage of your bulbs is ideal for plant lighting in small gardens, down-lighting onto tables and providing ambient moon-lighting from small trees.

Brightness

Brightness isn't just about the wattage of the lamp. The brightness of a 20 watt lamp squeezed into a narrow spot beam can produce a brighter pool of light than that of a 50 watt lamp projected in a wide flood beam. So, first "fit" the beam angle to your subject then think about brightness. But remember, 'brightness' will vary for a number of reasons;

Individual perception of brightness varies and this may be affected partly by ambient light from nearby streetlights or "cityglow". Using exterior lights with a range of lamp wattage choices will allow for changes in the overall scheme.

Darker, textured objects reflect less light back to the eye than smooth, light coloured ones and will therefore require brighter lamps to make them stand out. Use higher wattage bulbs for lighting dark features. Make sure your transformers have the are flexibility and spare capacity, to allow for upgrading from say, a 50 watt lamp to a 75 watt one.

When light hits an object or surface at an angle, the light is 'stretched' which means the light is spread over a large area and therefore seems less bright. Again having flexibility and capacity on your transformer will allow you to change bulb wattage.