Things to do in the garden this week

• There’s still time to OSMO your lawn, it’s an awful year for moss

• Keep an eye out for late frosts you may have to fleece at night

• Sow potatoes if soil conditions are favourable

• Shrubs that flower after mid-June will benefit from a trim now

• All trees/shrubs and fruit trees will respond to feeding now

 

The most sought after solution to a frequently asked question is ‘how do I get colour at my front door and patio all year round without having to do a lot of work and not spend a fortune?’.

There is no such single plant, but with a number of clever combinations your front door and patio containers can always look good.

The first thing to do is choose the plant and then choose the container that suits the plant: most people tend to do it the other way round.

The size and type of plant you choose will determine the size of pot and will also influence the colour of the pot.

When choosing your plants take the location into consideration, there are plants for sun and shade, ones that prefer a sheltered position and ones that will tolerate a more open position.

There’s a huge selection to choose from, as long as you know the right questions to ask.

Just because you like something (although it’s an important criteria) should not be your main consideration.

Front door and patio plants come in all shapes and sizes.

You can choose plants with spikey foliage like Cordylines or New Zealand flax.

They will add a tropical looking centrepiece to a pot – you’re not putting them in for their flower, you’re putting them in for their structure and colour.

Add some seasonal colour around the base of the centrepiece. The type of colour you will use will depend on the season.

In winter/ spring containers use bulbs, pansies, polyanthas, ivies and heathers are among the most reliable and popular.

In summer containers the choice is endless: remember some love sun, some love shade.

Combine your colours. Use something like Cordyline Pink Passion as a centrepiece, underplant with Diascia Apple Blossom and add in a few Verbena Peaches and Cream for a summer sizzler.

Use a good compost which contains a wetting agent this will reduce watering by 50%.

Add some slow release fertiliser which will feed your plants for the whole season.

Make it as simple as that.