This edition of the programme is bursting with colour and packed with information. At Longmeadow, Monty Don celebrates the arrival of summer by making a start on his new scented border and offers a few suggestions for what to be getting on with for the weekend ahead.
In Gardeners World episode 15 2015:
Cut back hardy geraniums
If you want a second flush of flowers from your hardy geraniums, then June is a good time to chop them back. The foliage of some species, like Geranium phaeum, can look tatty by midsummer, but if you give them a quick haircut now, this will stimulate fresh growth giving you new blooms in about a month’s time.
Sow kale & winter cabbage
Plan ahead for winter by sowing brassicas such as kale and cabbage. You can sow them in pots, modules or trays and leave them outside to germinate. As the seedlings start to grow, keep a look out for the tiny yellow eggs of cabbage white butterflies which are often laid on the underside of the leaves.
Pull out biennial wallflowers
Your biennial wallflowers are probably looking a bit tired by now. That’s because they’re coming to the end of their two-year life cycle. Pull them up, and if you’re planning on adding them to your compost bin, consider shredding the plants as some of the growth can get quite woody.
Lawns from turf
A lawn made from turf costs more than one from seed, but produces a near instant effect which can be used sooner.
Lawns from seed
A little care in the preparation of the ground when growing a lawn from seed can give superb results, more cheaply and easily than from turf.
How to make a gravel garden
A gravel garden is a great option for a low maintenance garden. It also lends itself to Mediterranean-style drought-tolerant planting so things like lavender, euphorbias, Cistus, Santolina and Phlomis are ideal and provide plenty of nectar and pollen for visiting insects.