September in the Garden - Lilybud Gardens by Design: Brighton Garden Designer

Welcome to the September edition of Fiveways Gardens.

I've got a couple of clients that are going to be growing apples and pears for the first time so I thought I'd share some thoughts on this. More of us are interested in growing at least some of our food, and I think trained fruit on a south or west-facing wall is a superb way of doing it because 1) it looks great 2) it's easy 3) it doesn't take up much room and 4) it's good for the soul. There's the traditional espalier method, where branches are trained at right angles to the main stem, for that classic walled garden look. Alternatively, a good way of getting several different varieties on the go in a small space is to go for cordons. The key to success, as is so often the case, is planning and preparation. I know it sounds boring, but choosing the right varieties and getting the wires in place to train them, means it's pretty plain sailing thereafter. Lots of clients over the years have either inherited a fruit tree or bought one on a whim without tasting the fruit and then been disappointed. There will be apple and pear tasting events going on in October at Brogdale in Kent, Ken Muir's near Clacton, West Dean garden near Chichester and probably Middle Farm. So get out there, eat some fruit and get inspired to grow your own. Of course, you could try something a little more exotic like nectarines or peaches that can also be grown successfully on a warm wall. Planting this autumn means you should be eating your first crop next summer. There are different ways of supporting the plants against the wall, ranging from cool stainless steel through to the more "sea-sidey" looking sisal, manila or hempex ropes and twines. Growing fruit against a wall will give you beautiful blossom in the spring, fruit in late summer or autumn and structure in the winter garden.

Lots of herbaceous perennials (plants that emerge in Spring, do their thing and die back again in winter) are way past their best and many can be cut down to a few inches above ground. It's worth thinking about doing this even with plants that don't necessarily look scrappy, but have flowered and are now in the way of plants just coming into their own. For example, I recently cut down a large iris, that was growing infront of some sedum and Miscanthus (zebra grass). Now the Iris is out of the way, you can really appreciate the contrasting forms of the flat heads of the sedum associating really well with the tall stripy grass.

Finally, for those of you that can't resist a bargain, it's worth nosing around garden centres and nurseries for the herbaceous plants that are now way past their best. Garden centres will want them out of the way to make room for the autumn stock coming in. Although they look rubbish now, get them planted in the autumn and you'll have some fab, strong plants to delight you next year that will have been a bargain.

Happy gardening til next time,

Lisa

For an initial consultation call Lisa on 01273 500407 or 07957 751218 or email her at info@lilybud.co.uk