Gardening: Jobs for the bank holiday weekend | Brian Kidd
A long weekend ahead, the last bank holiday of the summer. Why not make the most of it and get out in your garden.
• The next two weeks provide the best opportunity for sowing a lawn from seed. Keep an eye out for the weather because it will be good if it rains as soon as the grass seed is sown. Look at the various mixes available and don’t buy the cheapest. Modern rye grasses in good quality seed grows well, keeps green and doesn’t need so much mowing.
• Plant Dutch iris in pots, five around the edge of a 5in diameter pot, and keep them in the greenhouse.
Keep Autumn Bliss and other autumn-fruiting raspberries moist. If given a liquid feed now, they will continue to fruit for many weeks.
• Pick blackberries regularly to prevent berries from dropping on the soil otherwise lots of unwanted blackberry plants will appear. Tie in those great long fast-growing stems which will provide next year’s fruit. Make some bramble jelly, it tastes wonderful on top of vanilla ice cream.
• Remove yellowing leaves on the lower stems of the Brussels’ sprouts. These make good compost.
• If there is a gap in a border, have a look at the large pots of pom and spray chrysanthemums at garden centres. Choose the colour and type you favour BUT choose a plant which has only a few flowers but with masses of buds. If you choose wisely, those plants will still be in flower in six weeks.
• Make sure Michaelmas daisies are well supported and spray the foliage with a fungicide to prevent powdery mildew. Michaelmas daisies are making a comeback. It is difficult trying to find them at garden centres.