The Beechgrove Garden episode 22 2018 looks ahead to spring, with Carole planting a bedding scheme based on the spokes of a colour wheel. Jim and George start the process of battening down the hatches for winter and prepare plants against the weather to come, while Carole visits Attadale Gardens in Lochcarron, Rosshire.
Although the garden dates back to Victorian times, Attadale owners Nicky and Ewen Macpherson have recently added contemporary features of particular interest to fern fanatic Carole – a sunken fern garden in a geodesic dome.
The Beechgrove Garden episode 22 2018
Summer Bedding Out, Spring Bedding In
It is time to start to think about next spring’s display. The summer bedding scheme which was inspired by a cut ruby gemstone had been removed. Mairi, our Head Gardener, had been inspired by the colour wheel for the design of this spring bedding display. The bed is designed to be planted with a mixture of spring flowering bulbs and bedding in different colour themes in each section of a plant ‘colour wheel’.
Carole was planting orange-red polyanthus with the Tulip ‘Juan’ which was the orange going to yellow section of the wheel. Primula, ivy, myosotis and pansies had been chosen as the bedding plants. Mairi had given up on using violas as they don’t do very well at Beechgrove but the pansies do. The spring flowering bulbs of Narcissus and Tulips will hopefully better complement the bedding as those chosen are not as tall as in previous years.
Preparing for winter
Jim and George were at Beechgrove tackling some seasonal projects. A couple of weeks ago Jim planted some overwintering vegetables in the poly tunnel to keep the fresh produce going over winter. There were some plants left, so Jim planted them in grow bags in a cold frame to use up the space. His point was to use cold frames, and compost, or soil in the base of a cold frame to grow something rather than leaving them barren.
Ventilation is the key of course as on sunny days the temperature can rise quite dramatically. Old bits of blanket/matting for insulation can be used at night in times of low temperatures/frost.
Splitting Hostas
There is an area at Beechgrove at the bottom of the Calendar Border which looks very dull in the summer after its colourful spring display of yellows and blues of daffodils and Anemone blanda. After these plants die down the area remains bare over the summer. George has decided to create some layered planting so that there is a succession of colour throughout the year.
