My First Lesson
Many years ago as young sixteen year old I cycled my way up the duel carriageway of Cribbs Causeway in Bristol, it was a long barren ride with very few buildings on route, but it took me to my first gardening job @ Hollywood Towers Estate owned by Bristol Zoological Gardens for breeding, growing crops and flowers for use in the Zoo grounds at Clifton, Bristol.
I had been gardening since I was two with my Grandad, been to night school, had an allotment at school and grew plants at home, I thought I knew a few things.
It was in the June when I started just in time for the weather to start warming up, the planting of crops rows of cabbages, sprouts, broccoli not just a few but rows with 150 plants in each, and once planted spending hours weeding through by hand in the open fields. We also planted Pansies, Forget Me Nots, Polyanthus, Bellis Daisies again in long rows to grow on for the Spring bedding to be planted in September and in my mind I was thinking how big these would be when lifted for re-planting in the borders of the zoo and surely they would look awful being so big.
September came along and I got to lift and plant as well. John Parkes the Deputy Head Gardener picked up the Pansies and Violas and just cut them in half, flowers leaves just discarded, he could see the look on my face and explained. These will not flower through the Winter, its too cold the days are to short, but come late February they will shoot from the base and by the end of March be in full flower until we lift them in early June for the Summer display he said. The Polyanthus were planted with spades, all dead leaves and flowers removed to give them a good start as were the Bellis Daisies, Forget Me Nots were trowel planted as they were brought on a little later. Sure enough in the Spring the display was amazing, and I put it down to my first lesson in learning from someones experience.
Present Time
How many of us have gone to a garden centre and bought plants to create a border that a month after we are disappointed with, the plants have not grown well, the flowers are fewer than anticipated so we go and buy a few more to fill in ? The lesson I learned in those early years is to give your plants the best start, think of what you want them to do, are they happy. When planting always remove all dead or yellow leaves ( They serve no purpose ) remove any flowers, when you dig the hole ( even if using a trowel ) water around the roots before you fill it in then water again. For larger plants add a mulch around the base to keep it moist while they settle in. They will give good growth and an amazing display because you have taken the pressure off, they need to root into the soil and trying to do that and flower at the same time is hard work, its multi-tasking.
So, when buying plants look for a good root system ( tap them out of there pots before you buy ), make sure there are few dead leaves, and no yellowing, and if they are in small pots 3 inch to 5 inch, when you get them home let them settle in the garden for a few days to acclimatise and then plant. Lastly, make sure the soil is loose enough for the roots, if its to difficult for you to plant think how they will feel.
Its all about keeping your plants looking good and healthy all year round, taking into account the soil, nutrients they may need and plant selection. Also looking into growth patterns and the environmental factors that affect a plants growth, combined with some scientific research in cultivating and managing, but most of all its anticipating what could happen and how to prevent or avoid it, and just as I use mine now, the experience I learnt from others still stays with me now.
Client interaction and consultation from the very first moment
Trees and plants were here before us, its why we breathe
Lets not spoil it
Creating borders and planting areas will lift any garden so Inspire can -
Plan and design garden borders all to scale
Position all plants in there positions with all necessary information to keep looking good and healthy
Create the border and plant if required
Supply good quality plants direct from wholesaler
Always be around if any advice, guidance required after
( Tutoring within the garden is also available, one to one, both practical and theory, e-mail or call for more information)
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Plants and the garden are like a song, they need to harmonise with each other, create a rhythm that allows the colours to flow through the seasons
Mark on 07575 107807
‘In practice it is to place every plant or group of plants with such thoughtful care and definite intention that they shall form part of a harmonious whole ‘Gertrude Jekyll
Environmental factors that effect plant health and productivity
Using science in the garden
Nutrients and fertilisers in the soil
Research and education
Sensitive to surrounding landscape
Reasons to regularly trim and prune
The purpose of Photoperiodism
