Charlotte and Desiree potato identification

Charlotte and Desiree potato identification.

Our first crop of early potatoes have been harvested and taste delicious.

Charlotte potato. Second early variety

 Carlotte (Second Early)

Charlotte potato, Excellent with salads hot or cold

 A very popular salad variety producing yellow skinned, waxy tubers and creamy yellow flesh. Lovely  flavour and excellent either hot or cold.

They can be baked or boiled

Prone to slugs and foliage blight.

Desiree potato. Early maincrop variety

 Desiree (Early maincrop)

Desiree potato. Versalite for cooking

 A very popular red potato. Pale yellow, firm waxy flesh. Versatile for cooking.

Good drought resistance

Good for roasting, baked, boiled, mashed, with salads hot or cold or as chips.

Potato Slug damage

 Not that prone to slugs but some had a bite out of mine, Disease Powdery scab.

Good for growing in poor heavy soils

Tomato splitting and tomato blight identification

Tomato splitting due to irregular watering

Growing healthy tomatoes

It’s important to keep your tomatoes continuously watered otherwise when the soil dries up, the tomato skins harden.

When the plant is watered again the tomato fruits can no longer swell properly due to the hardened skin and so the fruit splits. Fungal spores can then enter the wound and ruin the fruit.

Tomato blight

 Tomato blight identification on tomato fruit

The tomatoes ripen in sunlight so it’s a good tip to cut away some of the leaves to allow the sunlight to reach the fruit. Removing some of the leaves will allow air to circulate and reduce the risk of fungal attack.

Tomato care. Picking off side shoots

 Remove any shoots as they will be taking nutrients away from the ripening fuits.

Mulch around the base of the plant to help reduce water loss.

It’s the end of July and the first few of my tomatoes in the greenhouse have ripened.

For plant care advice see the Complete Garden software for PC & MAC

Saving Britain’s magical butterflies

Find the right plants for British butterflies

I was delighted to see an article in The Mail on Sunday July 27th ’My battle to rescue Britain’s magical butterflies’ by Emilia Fox, who is very concerned about decline in British butterflies. The number of butterfly species on the priority endangered list has more than doubled in 12 years, rising from 11 butterflies and 53 moths in 2005 to 24 butterflies and more than 150 moths in 2007.

By chance Emilia met lepidopterist Clive Farrell who also happens to be a good friend of mine and is an inspirational man dedicated to helping our British butterflies, moths and wild meadows.

Emilia, like many of us is concerned about the decline of butterflies but didn’t know  what to do to help.  Clive suggested:-

Buddleja are nectar plants for butterflies

 Buddleja,

Michaelmus Daisy are nectar plants for butterflies

 Michaelmus daisies plus

 lavender

Holly is a food plant for caterpillars and birds

 and keep existing holly,

Ivy are food plants for butterflies

 and ivy

Stinging nettles are food plants for Peacock butterfly larvae

 and to grow stinging nettles because butterflies love all of these as a food resource and some lay their eggs in the hairs of the stinging-nettle leaves.

Clive’s latest project is a 300ft-diameter glass biodome in St Albans which will be home for 10,000 tropical butterflies covering 250 different species, where visitors will be able to walk through reproduction Mayan ruins and  waterfalls to experience the sights and atmosphere of a tropical-rainforest.

On completion in 2011 the Mayan Butterfly dome is expecting to receive one million visitors a year. The biodome will be a fantastic experience as well as inspirational and educational.

We need more people like Clive to encourage and inform us how we can help our British wildlife. Planting the right plants is easy if you know which plant to use.

Clive’s advice is simple, inexpensive and attractive.  We all benefit so why not help the British Butterflies before it’s too late as well as brighten up your garden.

Photographs Neil Bromhall – www.complete-gardens.co.uk The interactive Plant advice CD-ROM has hundreds of plant suggestions to help gardening for butterflies.

RHS Wisley stock the latest Complete Gardens multi list Plant Finder & Pruning guide CD-ROM.

Multi list, plant Finder and pruning guide Encuclopaedia 3,500 plants, 9,000 images CD-ROM. PC & MAC compatible

The latest Complete Gardens multi lists 3,500 plant 9,000 photographs garden software CD-ROM is aimed more for the professional gardener, Garden Designer, Garden Design Student or Landscaper who require the ability to produce multiple plant lists plus add individual notes which can be printed out with images and given out to staff or Clients.
 
The Plant Finder search function allows the user to select plants for every aspect of a garden and season need effortlessly.
Simply choose any combination of colour, height, soil type, aspect, month / season or name and the UK Plant Databse will select and display the plants to suit the search requirements within seconds.
Each plant is accompanied with in-depth plant care and illustraed pruning advice plus 9,000 high quality photographs to help plant identification and seasonal changes.
The Calendar Plant Lists shows which plants the Client / garden has, plus when and how to prune those individual plants.
The Multi plant finder and pruning guide is designed as a simple UK garden maintenance plant database and aid garden planning as well as Garden Design by finding the right plants for the right place and know how to look after the plants.
PC & MAC compatible.

Complete Gardens Plant Selector & Pruning Guide 2,700 plants, 7,200 photographs

Plant Finder and pruning guide CD-ROM 2,700 UK plant database. PC & MAC compatible

Chris Beardshaw 2,700 UK garden plant selection.
7,200 photographs to help plant identification and seasonal changes
x2 plant lists. Plants I have and Plants I want
Add notes and print with images
See which plants you have in any month.
Reminder when and how to prune your plants
Intended for Home Use and a useful gift

Chris Beardshaw quotes “This CD-ROM is the next best thing to having your own private gardener”
Bar Code number 5060110080014.

Complete Gardens Plant Selector & Pruning guide Encyclopaedia 3,500 plants with 9,000 images CD-ROM. PC & MAC compatible

Plant Finder and pruning guide encyclopaedia 3,500 UK garden plant CD-ROM. PC & MAC compatible

Plant Selector & Pruning guide encyclopaedia 3,500 plants with 9,000 images CD-ROM. PC & MAC compatible
3,500 UK garden plant selection
9,000 photographs to help plant identification and seasonal changes
x2 plant lists. Plants I have and Plants I want
Add notes and print with images
See which plants you have in any month.
Reminder when and how to prune your plants
Intended for Home Use where the user wants maximum number of plants
Bar code 5060110080021

Complete Garden Multi list Plant Finder & Pruning Guide Encyclopaedia 3,500 plants 9,000 photographs CD-ROM

Complete Garden Multi list Plant Finder and pruning guide encyclopaedia CD-ROM. PC & MAC compatible

Multi list Plant Finder & Pruning Guide Encyclopaedia 3,500 plants 9,000 photographs CD-ROM.

PC & MAC compatible
3,500 UK garden plant selection
9,000 photographs to help plant identification and seasonal changes
Multi plant lists. Make multiple plant lists. Print lists with images and notes
Add individual notes to lists and print with images
Record Client’s individal plant list.
Reminder which plant to prune, when and advice.
Intended for Garden Designers, garden Design Students and Lanscapers wanting to make and print lists and notes for their staff and Clients.

All three Complete Gardens CD-ROm Titles are available in the RHS Wisley Shop or on the RHS website.

Produced by Complete Gardens CD-ROM Ltd.
Based in Oxford

01865 512561
www.complete-gardens.co.uk

Miniature Rose Pruning

Pruning miniature rose

 

Miniature roses need minimal pruning other than maintenance pruning.

Flowers are produced mainly on the current season’s growth, so our aim is to get a rose with healthy well-balanced new growth.

 

February – March. Cut out any weak and diseased wood.
Cut back strong stems to about 10 to 15 cm.

Any very vigorous shoots growing from the base can be removed completely.

 

June  and July, dead-head to encourage flower production.

 

 

Renewal / rejuvenation pruning.
February – March. Cut back 1/3 of old shoots almost to the base.

Repeat for rest of old shoots over next 2 or 3 years.

This method of removing old wood and encouraging new growth should gradually rejuvenate your rose and replace old unproductive wood with new healthy growth.

Extract taken from Complete garden plant advice and pruning guide CD-ROM