A couple of weeks ago on Gardener’s World, Monty Don suggested that the most important thing to do in June is to take time to sit in the garden and enjoy the moment.
I have to admit that I find this very hard to do for more than a couple of minutes before I see something that needs attention. Now that moment has almost passed as we are at the end of the month already and the garden is changing subtly from spring to summer.
June has been a fabulous time for gardens and they are bursting with life and vigour. A plant that has done very well for us this year is a honeysuckle that climbs among shrubs growing against a west-facing fence near the house.
The shrubs in this area had grown too large and needed to be cut back last year. This affected the honeysuckle, which was so tangled among everything else it, too, was given a chop which affected the amount of flowers it produced.
However, this year it has more than made up for it by producing a large crop of fragrant pink and cream blooms. These grow alongside yellow variegated euonymus, pink Vlematis montana, Viburnum bodnantense and Viburnum tinus, which will give us a long season of flowers and foliage once I get to grips with the pruning.
Earlier in the month, when the clematis was in its full glory, the honeysuckle played a lesser part, although its emerging dark pink buds gave a good contrast to the paler clematis flowers.
Now the clematis has faded, the honeysuckle has its moment of glory, especially when the afternoon sun hits the red and yellow, pink and green of the plants that grow there.
Weekend catch up
There is still time to plant those gladioli corms that may be waiting in a drawer to be attended to or that are being sold off cheaply in the garden centre.
Usually the corms are put in the ground between March and May, but at that time the soil can be too cold in our area for them to grow, especially if winter weather continues as long as it did this year.
The gladioli that went into our garden at the end of May have come through and are getting to be a good size. A second row went in three weeks later and the final batch will be put on this weekend. They should be ready to cut at the end of the summer.
Gladioli like a sunny spot and may need to be staked, especially in a windy site. Grown in the vegetable garden as a cutting crop, they can simply be put in a row where it is easy to get to them for tying then harvesting. The corms should be planted four to six inches deep in good soil and in a sunny site.
Those planted deeper may be less likely to need staking. Water well and just leave them to grow. Once they are through, keep an eye on them and stake if necessary. Watering may be needed during dry weather once the flower spikes appear.
The corms can be lifted in October, dried off and stored for planting the following year.
In the vegetable garden It’s not too late to tuck a layer of straw under later varieties of strawberries.
They will be starting to ripen now and this covering will stop them from getting splashed by mud as well as acting as a mulch to keep the soil moist and supress the weeds. If the patch has got a bit neglected, it is a good idea to hoe out any weeds and give the area a good soaking before spreading out the straw.
Village Garden Trail
Poppleton Garden Trail, Poppleton, York. Poppleton is holding a village event this weekend with 17 gardens open along with Poppleton Community Railway Nursery, for the first time since 2008. The three-mile circular route will take visitors into varied private gardens around this pretty village.
If this isn’t enough, there will also be a children’s bug hunt and reptile roadshow, competitive pitch and putt, stalls and Poppleton Gardens Guild shop. Admission is by the programme and map guide which is £4 from Poppleton Centre.
The event runs from 11am to 5pm each day. More details at poppletoncentre.org.uk
Great Yorkshire Show Garden Show
Over recent years the Garden Show at the Great Yorkshire Show has increased in size and this year will be publishing its own catalogue for the first time.
Another first is the attendance of BBC Radio York’s Gardeners’ Question Time, with its daily question and answer sessions taking place at noon.
Garden expert Christine Walkden will be at the Garden Show on Wednesday and Thursday while other regional horticulturists will be sharing their advice and skills at regular times throughout the three days. These include Mark Jackson, head gardener at Newby Hall and Gardens, Sarah-Jane Mason from RHS Harlow Carr and Tamara Hall, of Molescroft Grange Farm.
Younger gardeners will be represented by the finalists of the children’s vegetable garden competitio. Meanwhile, exhibitors at the Flower Show will be competing for a number of prizes and trophies, including the prestigious Doncaster Cup.
The Great Yorkshire Show takes place at the Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate from Tuesday, July 9 to Thursday, July 11.
Open gardens
Tomorrow
In aid of the National Gardens Scheme. Neakins House, North Leys Road, Hollym, HU19 2QN, two miles south of Withernsea. New NGS garden. Country garden with shrubs, herbaceous plants, specimen evergreens, formal box hedging and topiary, hosta walk, bee and butterfly border and large wildlife pond. Open 11am-5pm, admission £3.
The Priory, Nun Monkton, YO26 8ES, nine miles west of York. Large garden with a formal rose garden, long mixed borders with a backdrop of climber covered old walls, kitchen garden, species trees and clipped yew walk leading to informal parkland with a beck. Open 11am-5pm, admission £5.
Wytherstone Gardens, Pockley, YO62 7TE, two miles north east of Helmsley. Beech hedges create interlinked feature gardens in this eight-acre country garden where plants not usually hardy in northern England enjoy the free draining soil. The areas include ericaceous, terraced, fern, paeonia and bamboo gardens and a small arboretum. Open 10am-4pm, admission £4.
Hillbark, Church Lane, Bardsey, LS17 9DH, four miles south west of Wetherby. One-acre garden on different levels with formal topiary, perennials, specimen yew, gravel, rock and stream gardens, marginal planting, woodland area and unusual ceramics. Open 11am-5pm, admission £4.
Millgate House, Millgate, Richmond, DL10 4JN. Award winning walled town garden overlooking the River Swale with ferns and hostas, old roses, clematis, small trees and shrubs. Open 8am-8pm, admission £3.50.
Millview Cottage, Church Street, North Cave, HU15 2LJ, 15 miles west of Hull. Long and narrow cottage garden divided into different areas, including a terrace, raised beds, wooden walkway, water feature and family garden with vegetables and a greenhouse. Open 12pm-4pm, admission £2.50.
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