We have had a mixed batch of weather since the last gardening blog instalment. With breaks from the hot sun and few days of wet weather comes the opportunity for not only your plants to thrive but unfortunately also weeds. Weeds are whatever plant that you do not want to be growing in your garden. In my case it is dandelion, mallow, cleavers, storksbill, ivy and the occasional bramble. You could dedicate a block of time to weeding or if you struggle to find time you could weed whenever one catches your eye. I find the latter more fitting with life. If you have lots of dandelions popping up and you have not used fertilisers heavy in chemicals or weed killers, then why not see if your neighbours or friends’ rabbits want them? Rabbits absolutely love dandelions.

Keep on feeding your plants during the summer. Once a week should be enough and will ensure fuller flowers, larger vegetables and plenty of juicy fruits. More flowers can also be achieved buy dead heading so continue to do this throughout the summer months. Deadheading can also be a great opportunity for you to check for any insects who seem to be taking over your plants. If you see this happening, see if you can figure out what they are. Something like black or greenfly can usually be gotten rid of using a spray with dish soap and water mix. Other inhabitants that you may not want in your garden are snails and slugs. These can destroy whole crops of fruit and vegetables. If you have children and they are particularly fond of these slithery suckers, then collecting them first thing on a morning or late at evening time can be a fun thing to do with them.

One of this year’s gardening ambitions is to grow new plants without spending lots of money at the garden centre. I have seen great results so far with perennial seeds namely foxgloves, sweet williams and campanula. They were planted in the greenhouse in spring and with a bit of tender loving care should be good, strong plants ready to go into the garden by next spring or early summer. The great thing about planting from seed is that I have plenty of plants to go around and can share these with friends and family.

Dividing clump forming plants and taking cuttings are good ways of creating more plants and preserving and sharing plants that belonged to relatives and hold sentimental value. I have seen successful results when dividing clump forming plants, such as perennial geraniums. Other plants that multiply into dividable clumps include hostas, peonies, anemone, sea holly, iris and primula, to name a few. The plant clumps are dug up and then split by either teasing with your hands or simply chopping with a spade. The rule is to divide summer-flowering plants in spring or autumn and spring flowering plants in summer. Dividing plants means you can reduce their size if they are spreading too much or create further plants for around your or someone else’s garden.

Another way to grow from what you already have is to take cuttings. I have a hydrangea that is well established and rather than buy more hydrangea plants I thought I would have a go at taking cuttings. Other plants that you could take cuttings from include buddleja, fuchsia, penstemon, verbina and many more. Cuttings are usually taken from softwood shoots as these have the highest rooting potential. Early summer in the morning is the perfect time to do this. You will be looking for a shoot that is new and is 5-10 cm, cutting just below the leaf node and removing any leaves from the lower stem. Lower this into a pot with free draining soil, water well with a fertiliser and cover with a polyethene bag to retain the moisture. The cuttings should be kept in an area with light but not direct sun and should be checked every few days for moisture and to give an airing. These cuttings will be kept in the greenhouse along with the perennial seeds I planted until next year.