Bulbs being forced into flower early usually require a period of darkness and cold, before being brought into higher temperatures; darkness is not too difficult to arrange, but low temperatures are not always so easy. Commercial growers may have refrigerated stores, but most of us have to make do with choosing the coldest spot in the garden. If, in order to keep them in the dark, you put the bulbs into a bag of some sort, such as a bin-liner, remember that polythene bags do not “breathe” and excessive condensation can damage the bulb foliage or even encourage botrytis*(grey mould), so something such as a paper potato sack, or one of those sometimes provided for green waste, may be better.

Hopefully, it is unlikely that we shall have frost for several weeks yet and herbaceous borders may well go on flowering well into November, albeit no longer looking their best. Be careful with frost tender subjects such as dahlias, which are currently enjoying a return to popularity; remember that unless they are planted deeply, the tubers will be damaged by low temperatures (some, really deep down, even survived last winter’s very low ones). It is best to lift them and dry them off, making sure their hollow stems do not contain water, as soon as they finish flowering and keep them in a frost free, cool, dry  place for the winter, perhaps in some dry compost.

Lawns and hedges are the backbone of many gardens; The regular trimming of hedges can be completed now and new hedging  planted from the end of the month. Lawns should not be cut so short late in the season, so raise the mower blade a notch or two; they can also be scarified or raked to remove “thatch” and runners of creeping weeds and treated with a slow release autumn fertilizer.

If you are a rose grower you can still be troubled by black-spot at this time of year; not only is it unsightly and debilitating for the plants, but the disease carries over to next season on fallen leaves. As well as continuing a spraying programme, unless you are opposed to that, remember to pick up as much dead leaf material as possible and ideally burn it. If you put it on the compost heap, it must be one that gets hot enough to destroy fungal spores; or as I have said before, put them in the green bin and send them off to be composted at high temperatures. It is worth removing long shoots from shrub roses in the autumn so that the bushes do not get rocked about too badly in autumn gales, which we often have about the time of the equinox.

As with hedging, new shrubs and trees can be planted from containers at this time, to take advantage of warm soils, but bare-rooted stock is unlikely to be available from producers until after the leaves have fallen. If you choose to add compost or composted bark to the planting hole, mix it with the soil you have dug out and then put it in; if you dig a hole in heavy soil and fill it with peat or compost and plant into that, the tree or shrub roots may stay in the compost and not go into the surrounding soil; this will make the plant much less stable and likely to be blown over.

If you have strawberry plants that have produced lots of young plants on “runners”, warm soils also make this a good time to plant them where you want them.

At the end of last month, I mentioned that this is the season of flower shows and fruit, flowers and vegetables should be harvested as and when ready. If you are dissatisfied with the results from your garden, see if you can talk to the people that win prizes at local shows and get some useful tips from them as these will be based on experience in local conditions (some, of course may not want to share their secrets with potential competitors). You should be planting over-wintered vegetables, such as cabbages, shallots and onion sets from now on and even considering digging and incorporating composted bark or mushroom compost before the ground gets too wet, to give you a good seed bed for the spring.

* Botrytis is also responsible for a disease known as “Tulip Fire” which causes severe spotting of tulip foliage and usually, death of infected plants, but it is relatively unusual for amateur gardeners to try forcing tulips.

The Garden in September is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• The Garden in September
• The Garden In November
• The Garden in April

Gold Medal Winner - Chelsea 2011

Woodland Horticulture Ltd once again supplied products to assist in the set-up of this award winning garden through Stone Barn Landscapes who built the garden.

Java-Lava – a volcanic rock was used to look like the spill from the Blacksmiths shed. Decorative Aggregates are used in many applications and we were able to supply a product to suit yet another task.

Java Lava & many other decorative pebbles, cobbles, slates, gravels & chippings are available in 20kg bags or in bulk bags.

Chelsea 2011 is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• Winning Garden
• Exhibitions in 2011
• Woodland Horticulture Ltd Open Day 2010

However, to some extent that is probably a fantasy entertained by many of us; it is true to say, though that a good gardener should have time to look at and enjoy the garden and not simply create a monster that takes up all of your time and becomes a constant chore.

At this late stage in the season it is not a bad idea to give some consideration to how things might be done differently to allow a little more leisure time. I have already mentioned mulching; this can be done with bark or compost or even grass cuttings, as long as they are not put on too thickly so that they heat up . Freshly cut grass can also use up nitrogen during the rooting process and rob your plants of this nutrient.

On a previous occasion, discussing plants that give a good show late in summer, I mentioned Hydrangeas; this year many of the traditional varieties are not doing so because the wood on which they would have flowered was killed off by the very low winter temperatures we experienced at the back end of last year; many varieties are simply growing back from ground level, but at least, as long as we don’t have a similar winter again, they should flower on this new growth next year.

There are certain new varieties  or groups of varieties that flower on new wood (one is the “All Summer Long” series) and these are worth seeking out; also the Hydrangea paniculata varieties such as “Vanille Fraise” can be pruned back at the end of winter and will flower on new growth.

Hydrangea arborescens (the commonest variety is “Annabelle”, not named after a lady, but a place in Texas I believe) can also be pruned in this way but may then produce such large flowerheads that they flop down under their own weight.

If you want to grow Hydrangeas in containers, bear in mind that if you want to change the flower colour to blue (not all pink varieties do this) you will need to grow them in Ericaceous compost and add blueing powder (Aluminium sulphate).

I frequently see shrubs which have relatively few flowers when they should have a lot and this is often caused by late pruning in the previous season; most shrubs that flower in early summer make the new growth on which they will flower in the next season, after the end of flowering; if you prune them or worse, cut them with a hedge trimmer, in August, you will cut off this new wood and they will produce only a few flowers on the bits you missed. They should be pruned immediately after flowering and only the branches on which they have just flowered should be cut out, even if this does not give them the neat, rounded appearance that some people wish to impose on them!

Many summer flowering bulbs are still in flower in August, e.g. Gladioli. including the beautifully scented Gladiolus callianthus, (formerly known as Acidanthera murielae) and many lilies; Nerines, which like a warm sunny spot, should be coming into flower now. Their foliage which grows earlier in the year, looks untidy when they flower and they should ideally grow through a low growing plant that disguises this, without preventing the bulbs which grow on the surface and like to be warm, from getting plenty of sun.

You can get started on planting daffodils and other narcissi now, they should be in garden centres or a wider selection is available from catalogues. They will start developing new roots now although their foliage may not appear until after Christmas. You can also plant those pot-flowering varieties such as “Paper-White” now for flowering indoors in mid-winter.

In the vegetable garden, you can plant spring cabbage and over-wintered onion seeds in mid-August, or the latter can be left and grown from “sets” put out in October. Perpetual Spinach can also be sown  for winter use.

On fruit trees, wasps are often a problem at this time of year and can be caught in (bottle) traps hung in the trees and baited with beer or syrup if necessary.

Soon will be the season of local flower shows. If you have more than one near you and they do not clash you can maybe hawk your prize marrows and onions from one to the other and round off your gardening year with two or more prizes!

The Garden In August is a post from: Woodland HP

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• The Garden in October
• The Garden In April
• The Garden in September

Award Winning Garden by WB Design & Construction

William’s Garden was called “Vintage Rock T” and was based on the bed’s being T shaped as well as having various guitars around to give it that rocky edge.

Woodland Horticulture Ltd was pleased once again to be able to supply soft landscaping materials to William for his award-winning garden.

Winning Garden is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• Chelsea 2011
• BBC Gardeners World Live
• Woodland Horticulture Ltd Open Day 2010

At the moment we are discovering the real toll of the extremely low temperatures we endured last winter and many plants that should have recovered by now have not done so. Although it is usually best to start again, occasionally, woody subjects that have apparently been killed can recover up to twelve months later, so if you have some particularly prized rare plants it may be worth judiciously pruning it and giving it longer to recover.

June is traditionally the month of the Rose and there is probably no flower about which so many books and poems have been written. If you want to choose roses for your garden, make sure you select those that suit the soils and climate in the area in which you live. Roses like firm moisture-retentive soils so those of you who have the heavier soils have a distinct advantage over those on lighter ones; both soils, for different reasons, can benefit from the incorporation of composted bark or mushroom compost. Both materials will improve soil structure and on light soils, improve the retention of moisture. If asked which to use on which soil, I would suggest composted bark on heavier soils and mushroom compost on the lighter ones. If you have a soil that is inclined to dry out easily, heavy surface mulches of either material, or of horse-manure compost, over the beds and around the bushes can be very beneficial; do this as early as possible, to avoid damaging new shoots and don’t dig it in. Feed the roses regularly and try to keep them clear of pests and diseases. Black spot and aphids are already becoming prevalent.

If you grow softy fruit in the garden, gooseberries and currants will be cropping soon. Look out for saw-fly larvae on gooseberry bushes (my grandmother always told me that I was found under a gooseberry bush, so be careful what you may discover there) these are small black caterpillar-like creatures that can strip the foliage off the bushes in a very short time; many contact insecticides will kill them, but the only organic method I know of, is to pick them off manually and squash them.

We have a big old, Blenheim Orange apple tree in the garden and this year it was laden with blossom and the weather was warm at the time so there could be a very heavy fruit set on it and apples in general this year. You will notice if you have apple trees, that many of the small fruits that have set will fall off in June; this is quite natural and known as June-drop; if you plan to thin the fruit anyway, it is best to wait until this natural thinning is over.

Asparagus should not be cut after the end of June; allow the fronds to develop and put some goodness back into the plants for next year. Look out for asparagus beetle larvae as these can devastate the foliage.

Outdoor tomatoes should be quite safe outside now; if the weather is humid and warm, look out for potato-blight, to which they are susceptible,; it manifests itself as brown patches on the foliage and fruits and cannot be controlled by anything other than chemical means (or isolation). Even organic growers are permitted to use chemicals for control of blight.

Lawns need cutting regularly now and will benefit from summer fertilizer; this will of course make them grow more vigorously, but the intention is to produce a tight-knit turf that will resist the ingress of moss and weeds. In the area i9n which I live, it is noticeable that many of our lawns are infested with weeds of agricultural grassland, particularly those that have wind-borne seeds, such as dandelions and ragwort; the latter is a scheduled weed and you are obliged to remove it if you have it on your land (whether anyone enforces this law these days is questionable); if you handle any quantity of ragwort, it is best to wear gloves, as the toxins it contains can be absorbed through the skin.

Life in the garden is much as it is everywhere else, a balance of one thing against another. A few pests are inevitable but if you are really concerned about what is creeping about on your plants, make sure you can tell friend from foe; if you are uncertain leave them alone. If you are certain they are not beneficial but do not like insecticides, a blast of water will often knock them off and hopefully a lot of them will not bother to climb back up again. Don’t make the mistake of bumping off some innocent creature just because of mistaken identity.

The Garden In June is a post from: Woodland HP

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• The Garden in September
• The Garden in October
• The Garden In November

We have had the driest March and April for a long time, it remains to be seen what effect that may have on subsequent events in the garden. Apart from being dry it has been pretty warm and some of the spring flowers have come and gone fairly quickly because of that. March is the main daffodil month but many varieties survive through April and some such as “Actaea” and “Pheasant’s Eye” can last into May. Tulips should be at their best by now, and many summer bulbs, such as lilies and gladioli, are still to come.

Despite recent mild weather, it does not pay to assume that we cannot have night frosts in May, so beware of planting out tender flowers and vegetables too early unless you can protect them if the temperature suddenly drops. Horticultural fleece is adequate for some things, or even newspaper, but some plants, such as tomatoes take a long time to recover if they get too cold.

If you have a greenhouse there can be huge differences between day and night temperatures at this time of year, so be prepared to open doors and windows during the day and keep everything closed at night and even use a thermostatically controlled heater if you have one. Electric ones are the most controllable, but propane gas units are available and do increase the level of carbon dioxide in the greenhouse atmosphere, which is beneficial to the plants.

The cold winter we have just had has meant that lawns were later coming into growth this year than they have been for several seasons. However, in May they should be growing well and will need cutting frequently. I do not claim to be a very “organic” gardener, but one thing I do try to avoid doing, is putting fertilizer on lawn-grass, it makes it grow too fast and can encourage some of the coarser grass species. I think these days we should all learn to live with a few broad-leafed weeds in the lawn. Unless you have a bowling green or tennis court, many wild flowers that grow in lawns can be quite attractive and you can often physically remove those, e.g. dandelions, that aren’t.

If you do choose to use a weed-killer, be sure to read instructions carefully; particularly to avoid “drift” of the chemical onto other susceptible plants, tomatoes in particular can “sniff” herbicides from a long way off and may be easily damaged by them.

Also avoid spraying when bees are working, because although the weed-killer in itself might not harm the bee (it will have been tested for this during development), bees that smell of chemicals may be expelled from the hive by other bees.

Shrubs that flower early in the year can be pruned now, as soon as flowering is over, this will give them the maximum amount of growing time to develop the new wood on which they will flower next year. If the shrub in question is also grown for it’s berries, e.g. Pyracantha, pruning will of course remove the fruiting heads. One way of getting around this is to prune out half of the flowered wood, leaving a crop of berries to develop and new wood to grow elsewhere, the other half can then be pruned in the next season. Pruning shrubs of this kind is always something of a compromise.

Early vegetables, such as autumn-sown broad beans will start to crop soon and black bean aphids may become a problem; they have a complex life cycle and are difficult to avoid completely.

Nip out the growing tips of plants after they have set a reasonable number of pods, this will restrict the aphid activity and a spray with soapy water will also help. Contact insecticides can be used, but not too close to harvest. When the bean plants have been cleared away, try to leave their roots in the ground, as they will be rich in nitrogen, “fixed” from the atmosphere by bacteria that live on the roots of legumes. This nitrogen will be a good fertiliser for transplanted cabbages that can come next in your crop rotation.

Runner and French beans, sown under protection in April, can be planted out now and more sown directly into the soil as there should be a minimal risk of night frost by now.

Slugs and snails will become more active as temperatures rise, particularly if it is damp, they are most active at night and you can, if you wish, go out and collect them. What you then do with them I will leave you to choose. If you use slug pellets, spread them very thinly; they are coloured blue to deter birds from eating them, as the birds do not see well at that end of the colour spectrum, but pets may eat them if they are in a heap. If the plants to be protected are not too big, you can put an upside-down hanging basket over them and that will keep pets off the slug pellets.

The Garden in May is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• The Garden in May
• The Garden In April
• The Garden in July

For many people, Easter is when they start gardening in earnest, but of course, it is quite late this year and there will be lots to get on with before then.

Most of you will have already cut your grass for the first time  by now, if not more than once. If you have clumps of coarse, undesirable grasses in your lawn, they will frequently escape being removed by mowing, by lying down flat; go over them after mowing with a lawn rake and rake them so that they stand up, then go over the patches again with the mower. If you do this to them frequently, they will be gradually removed. Now is the time to apply a lawn fertilizer; slow-release ones are available that can last for the whole season.

They work a little like old fashioned “gobstoppers”; layers of nutrient alternate with layers of resin; as each layer of the resin breaks down it releases a dose of nutrient(s) and these are taken up by the grass before they can leach out of the soil. Ordinary chemical fertilizers are immediately soluble and can be washed away by heavy rain; not only are they then no longer available to the grass, but can pollute drainage water. These slow-release products are available for a wide range of crops and are the little “balls” seen in many potting composts and sometimes mistaken for slugs eggs (which look like small pearls and are usually in a cluster).

For an interested gardener, life is full of lessons and we can learn something new almost every day; the weather, the soil and the plants themselves all do something out of the ordinary now and again. If you have the sort of mind that files things away for future reference, all well and good, but if you don’t, keeping some sort of garden diary is a good way to  remember causes and effects. However you do it, remembering how certain plants are likely to behave in particular conditions is what marks out the real gardener. This particularly applies to choosing sowing dates for vegetables. If however, you have not been doing it for long enough to learn lessons from experience, don’t be afraid to ask those who have, or simply to try a variety of sowing times and see what happens. ( Many seed catalogues have sowing calendars).

If you go to one of the classic landscaped gardens , you will see flowering trees and shrubs, such as Rhododendrons (botanically this also includes Azaleas) ; these of course, require acid soil and you should plant in “Ericaceous” compost if using a container, or incorporate plenty of it in your soil if planting in the open ground.

Many Magnolias are at their best around now and several species and varieties will remain so until late in May. In their native habitats many of these are woodland plants and require a little protection from our fluctuating spring  weather . I have a magnificent Magnolia (called Magnolia x loebneri “Merrill”) in my garden.

This always seems to flower in that little cold snap we frequently get at the end of March or beginning of April, coinciding with the flowering of Blackthorn in the hedges and therefore sometimes known as the “Blackthorn winter”; some shelter at this time will prevent the flowers of such plants being too seriously damaged (although my tree is about 6metres high and has to take it’s chances). At the time of writing , many Camellias (which also require acid soil although possibly not to the same extent as Rhododendrons) are full of buds and when they come into flower, remember to protect the flowers from early morning sunshine after frost, by covering with horticultural fleece, or even newspaper.

By mid-April, many of the earliest flowering shrubs will have done their thing and can be pruned; Ribes, Forsythia and Viburnum fragrans for example, flower on year old wood so prune immediately after flowering to get the maximum amount of new wood to grow for flowering next year.You can dead-head daffodils and tulips as they finish flowering to prevent them from putting their energies into setting seed, but don’t remove the leaves until absolutely necessary, ideally allow them to die off naturally.

Carry on sowing vegetable seeds in out in the open from mid-April onwards, but bear in mind that nights can still be cold. Under glass you can sow sweet corn, marrows and cucumbers as long as you keep them warm enough at night.

If you have planted new summer fruiting raspberry canes, be hard hearted and cut them back to 20cms.-no fruit this year, but plenty from better established canes in future; autumn fruiting varieties can be allowed to fruit on newly planted canes. Taking early flowers off newly planted strawberries will similarly give you a later but heavier crop in the first season.

If you have got early sown broad-beans look out for the “black-army” on them; these black bean aphids can be controlled with soapy water spray, or a proprietary insecticide, or by nipping the tops out of the plants if they have already set enough pods.

The Garden In April is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• The Garden in April
• The Garden In August
• The Garden in May

And what better place to plan all that needs to be done than the allotment itself!

Here in Birmingham, where I have my allotment, we have a wonderful ‘social’ area where we can sit after a hard days work, chat with our allotment neighbours and exchange ‘words of wisdom’ and tips. Also, in the summer months, we will leave any extra produce we have grown here and so use it as a ‘produce swap’ area.

Today, I have potatoes on my mind!!!!

In the next few weeks there are plenty of Potato Days around the country.  This week’s Saturday Telegraph mentioned several in their gardening section.  These days are well worth going to.  They are organised by local groups and Garden Centres and some can be quite big affairs.  There is one in Coventry next week which I will be going to.

There are experts on hand to advise on growing and all the different varieties which are available.  You will also find a diverse range of seed potatoes available for purchase.

Seed potatoes need to be ‘chitted’.  This means leaving them in the light – I put mine in egg boxes.  This encourages the new shoots to grow. You will need to knock off some of the shoots – you will only need 3 per potato.

Start chitting from late January in warmer parts of the country or February in the cooler parts.  Six weeks after the start of chitting you should be able to plant then out.

Frost damage is the main concern when planting potatoes. If frost is forecast, then draw some soil over them, or better still, plant them with a cover of polythene over them until the danger of frost has passed.

Try not to plant them in frost prone sites.

The Garden In January / February is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• Allotments
• The Garden in April
• The Garden in September

• Bark Mulches

Pine Ornamental, Redwood Bark Chips, Pine Mini Mulch, Bark Nuggets, Sprice Ornamental, Amenity Bark, Contract Bark & Woodland Amenity Mulch

• Soil Conditioners

Tree & Shrub Compost, PAS100 Green Compost, Shredded Horse Manure, Mushroom Compost, Composted Bark Fines & Lightweight Growing Media.

• Play Surfaces

Playbark, Hardwood & Softwood Playchips

• Decorative Aggregates

Cobbles, Pebbles, Slates & Gravels

As well as our BS3882 Topsoils & Amsterdam Tree Soil.

See us at:

GAN 2011

Golden Acres Nursery, Ferndown, Nr Bournemouth BH22 8SJ

Wednesday 9 February 2011 on Stand 127

&

The Landscape Show

The National Hall, Olympia, London W14 8UX

Wednesday 13 & Thursday 14 April 2011 on Stand D13

See you there, see us there!!!

Exhibitions in 2011 is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• Chelsea 2011
• The Garden in April
• The Garden in September

My wife, Sarah, has practised stringing the onions and has made an excellent job of this!

Pruning
Pruning can now be done – getting currant and gooseberry bushes into shape. Cuttings of these can also be taken at the same time. Raspberries will also need pruning, but certainly in parts of the south of England, they are still fruiting fairly well.
Rhubarb can be lifted and divided, if they have become too large. Rhubarb benefits from not developing into too large a clump. The easiest way to divide them is to lift them from the ground and cut through with a sharp spade.

Ground Preparation for Next Spring

Clear the ground from as many perennial weeds as possible and rake up any fallen leaves. The leaves can be composted, but make sure that you do not compost any that may be diseased.

Compost needs to be incorporated into the ground and double digging is the favourite method but can be quite energetic and time consuming.
There are 3 options for ground preparation

1. Double digging – 2 spits (2 spade depths) down adding the compost at the bottom of the trench.
2. Turning the soil adding the compost as you go along.
3. Spreading the compost on the top of the ground and letting the worms do the job for you!!

The best compost to use is well rotted Horse or Farmyard Manure or Spent Mushroom Compost.  A 75-litre bag is sufficient for an area of 1.5m². Many allotment holder will often share a pallet of 36 bags or a bulk load so that they get the full value for their money.

Gardening Fun is a post from: Woodland HP

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• The Garden In November
• The Garden in September
• The Garden in October

New hedges, fruit trees and for that matter any other bare-rooted trees or shrubs should be planted now while the soil is reasonably warm, however they may not be available from the grower until they have shed their leaves, except for evergreens such as conifers.

Roses should be cut back in the autumn to prevent the wind from rocking them about too much, but leave detailed, hard pruning until the spring.

As the leaves fall off  pick them up and burn them or put them in your green wheelie-bin. This will reduce the likelihood of black-spot spores from them infecting next year’s new growth.

Avoid planting in wet sticky soils if possible and don’t cram the roots into too small a hole. Spread them out as much as possible. If you are adding mushroom or potting compost or composted bark to the planting hole, mix it with the soil you have dug out, rather than planting the tree or shrub in pure compost.

In the greenhouse you may get the opportunity to remove all plants and fumigate the house to kill off spider-mites and whitefly. If you do, don’t then re-introduce them by immediately returning infected plants to the house. These may need to be sprayed before putting them in again. Many insecticides only kill the adults, leaving un-hatched eggs to cause a new build-up of the pest, so spray again in a couple of weeks time when the eggs have hatched. If you are an organic gardener and have these particular pests you should consider introducing predators when temperatures rise again. These are widely advertised in the gardening press and in good garden centres.

Lawns and rock gardens do not like being swamped by falling leaves, so remove leaf litter whenever possible and compost the leaves. Tree leaves are inclined to rot less quickly than other garden waste, so do not add too many to an ordinary compost heap at any one time.  Make a separate pile or put them into plastic bags with a few air holes and allow them to rot into leaf-mould at their own speed. There are inoculants that can be added to both leaves and compost heaps to speed up the rotting process, which can be obtained from garden-centres.

The birds are having a wonderful at the moment with all the red berries in abundance.  Traditionally, an autumn with so many berries heralds a very cold winter.

Keep an eye on the weather if you have tender or half-hardy patio plants and protect them if necessary should we have a series of low temperatures.

The Garden In November is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• The Garden in September
• The Garden in October
• The Garden In August

I said in September that you should plant bulbs but now is the time to dig up half-hardy summer flowering bulbs such as Gladioli; cut off their yellowing foliage and lift, clean and store the corms; Dahlias can be similarly treated, but make sure their hollow stems are not left containing water, as this may cause them to rot. Tulips should be planted from now onwards.

If you have herbaceous borders that seem in need of renovation, as the plants die back, label them with their name (height and colour also, if you feel that you are not sufficiently familiar with name alone) and dig them up, dividing clumps if necessary; this can be done using two forks, back to back. Dig over and manure the ground, carefully remove any perennial weeds such as Couch grass and Bindweed and replace the plants; the soil temperature should be still high enough to get some new root formation before winter.

New hedges planted last spring, should be cut back fairly hard in their first autumn to encourage them to thicken up at the base when re-growth starts next spring. Resist the temptation to leave them alone because they look taller. With a good mulch and some fertilizer, they will soon make up the reduction in height.

In the vegetable garden, lifting and storing root crops is a practice that used to be commonplace but prior to last year, with milder winters, many of us simply left things where they were until required but last winter may have suggested that it is not always advisable to do so. One drawback with leaving them in situ can be, that if you are on heavier soils where the little black Keeled- slug is a problem, it can do untold damage to a lot of the underground parts of plants. If you are plagued with this particular pest, a biological control is available for them; you buy a culture of a parasitic nematode and add it to the infected soil area and the little worms hatch out and eat the slugs from the inside outwards. This is probably dependant on soil temperature, so check with the supplier what temperature is the optimum for nematode activity.

October is an excellent time for planting trees, shrubs and climbers from containers; if of course, you are planting bare-rooted stock then these are unlikely to be available until November, by which time, their leaves should have fallen and they can be lifted from the nursery beds.

Tender plants that have spent the summer in pots on the patio, need to go into the greenhouse soon, as we occasionally have a damaging frost after a sunny autumn day. Agapanthus are deservedly popular these days; they are derived from a few species that occur naturally in Southern Africa; from the Western Cape in the south to the mountainous regions south of the grey greasy Limpopo River in the north-east. They occur from sea level up to two thousand metres above it. They may be deciduous or evergreen; the deciduous species grow in areas that have dry winters and rain in summer; the evergreens come from areas where it rains during the winter or throughout the year. In both cases, the main flowering season is in mid-summer, with us, usually July, August and into September.

In our climate, the evergreen plants need temperatures above freezing, but below 8° C and light in the winter to perform well and therefore are suited to containers which can be put into a cold glasshouse when winter arrives. Deciduous plants need no light in the winter of course but still need to get no warmer than 8°C if at all possible.

Deciduous plants are therefore a better bet for open ground than are evergreens. If you have recently bought a plant and are not sure if it is deciduous, look at it in October and see if it’s foliage is dying off, if it isn’t it’s probably evergreen. Agapanthus are not fussy about soil pH but do need good drainage. People sometimes have mistaken ideas about them (often the fault of the gardening press; according to Dick Fulcher of Pine Cottage Plants, who holds the National Collection, this also includes most of the BBC Gardener’s World presenters). They often suggest that when in containers, plants need to be pot-bound to flower well but ideally they should be re-potted into the next size up pot immediately after flowering, the plant will then form new roots before winter and perform well next year.

Lawn cutting, which has not been a major priority in this dry summer, although they have grown recently, should not be too short from now on.

Roses can be lightly pruned to stop winds from rocking them and spraying for black-spot may still be necessary.

The Garden in October is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• The Garden In August
• The Garden in April
• The Garden In November

Pete, Simon, Tony, Barry, Neil, Andy & Neil

Almost without exception, our visitors encountered a product which they were unaware we supplied.

Andy Chalmers, Melcourt Sales and Marketing Director was present throughout the day, and was able to advice on the use of their products.

The bacon Butty was possibly the most popular item in the yard!!!

Woodland Horticulture Ltd Open Day 2010 is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• Chelsea 2011
• Winning Garden
• FOUR OAKS TRADE SHOW – The UK’s Premier Show for Ornamental Horticulture

Our thanks go to all those who visited our stand.

FOUR OAKS TRADE SHOW – The UK’s Premier Show for Ornamental Horticulture is a post from: Woodland HP

Related posts:

• Woodland Horticulture Ltd Open Day 2010
• Exhibitions in 2011

Stone possesses sculptural characteristics which make it pleasing on the eye, but these traits can also be used as a tool. Stone is the most durable of garden materials, it can be used to direct rainwater where it’s needed most; indicate a change in land elevation or to support a hillside. Stone is perfect for water gardens; it can provide a definite edge to a garden pool and be used in the construction of a waterfall. For water gardens and rock gardens boulders can act as the ideal focal point. However, these larger stones should be set in the ground to provide stability.

There is a wide of range of garden stones to choose from. The ideal choice are those found in the local landscape which will blend in well with the natural aspects of your garden, the neutral colours of these will add to, rather than take away, the qualities that your garden already has.  If you are unsure what type of stone to use, Fieldstone is the safest of choices. It has a number of uses, garden walls, patios and stepping stones. Bluestone’s colour varies and is perfect for that rustic appearance. It can be cut to various shapes and sizes making it perfect for patios and paths. Cobblestones are perfect for edging gardens or for small, informal patios and paths. They’re not, however, suitable for large patios since cobbles have an uneven surface and setting a table level is difficult.

The Advantages of Using Garden Stones In Your Garden is a post from: Woodland HP

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Strawberry plants for fruiting next summer should be planted by the end of this month to, like bulbs, take advantage of warm soil conditions to encourage new root growth.

If recent years are anything to go by it is unlikely that we shall have much frost before the end of October and herbaceous borders may well go on flowering well into November, albeit no longer looking their best. Be careful with frost tender subjects such as dahlias, which are enjoying a return to popularity; remember that unless they are planted deeply, low temperatures will damage the tubers. It is as well to lift them and dry them off as soon as they finish flowering and keep them in a frost free, cool, dry place for the winter; make sure the hollow stems do not hold water (turn them upside down if necessary), as this can be the starting point for fungal or bacterial rots.

Lawns and hedges are the backbone of many gardens; the regular trimming of hedges can be completed now and new hedging planted from the end of the month. Lawns should not be cut so short in the autumn (assuming they have recovered from the drought), so raise the mower blade a notch or two; they can also be scarified or raked to remove “thatch” and runners of creeping weeds and treated with a slow release autumn fertilizer.

If you have a rock garden, bear in mind that most alpine plants grow above the tree line in their natural habitats and therefore don’t like to be covered by falling leaves from trees, in fact they don’t like to be covered by anything other than possibly snow; this may be difficult to arrange some areas, unless of course we have a winter like last year.

Roses can still be troubled by black-spot at this time of year as humidity increases; not only is it unsightly and debilitating for the plants, but the disease carries over to next season on fallen leaves. As well as continuing a spraying programme, unless you are opposed to that, remember to pick up as much dead leaf material as possible and ideally burn it. If you put it on the compost heap, it must be one that gets hot enough to destroy fungal spores. It is worth pruning long shoots from shrub roses now so that they do not get rocked about too badly in autumn gales.

New shrubs and trees from containers should be planted now, but bare-rooted stock will not be available until after the leaves have fallen.

This is the season of flower shows; fruit, flowers and vegetables should be harvested as and when ready. If you are dissatisfied with the results from your garden, see if you can talk to the people that win prizes at local shows and get some useful tips from them, as these will be based on experience in local conditions. You should be planting over-wintered vegetables, such as cabbages, shallots and onion sets from now on and even considering winter digging to give you a good seedbed for the spring.

If you have ponds and water gardens, remember to cover them with netting if possible to prevent falling leaves from entering the water; these use up oxygen in the decaying process and deprive fish and other pond life of this essential.

The Garden in September is a post from: Woodland HP

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Bulbs – Other than lilies and gladioli, most bulbous plants will have finished flowering by the middle of July; if you wish you can lift and dry off tulip bulbs. I prefer to leave them in situ, but as I have said before, look out for them when digging around after the foliage is gone, or mark where they are. It is a good time to think about looking at bulb catalogues and ordering new bulbs for autumn planting.

The Greenhouse – In the greenhouse, if you are growing cucumbers remember, to shade from the hot sun and if you have melons, support the fruits, as they will bulk-up rapidly from now on. Tomatoes will need regular side shoot removal; it is best to avoid “skinning” the sides of the main stems when doing this and to remove the cut off shoots from the greenhouse, as both things can act as a focus for botrytis ( grey mould) in dull warm weather. Rapid growth of glass-house plants means they need feeding regularly and keep an eye open for pests. White-fly, often imported on bought in plants, can be a particular nuisance; in addition to the damage they do by sucking the plant sap, they also, like aphids,  excrete honeydew upon which black sooty mould will grow. White-fly can be caught on yellow sticky traps, rather like the old-fashioned fly-paper, or you can use a predator. These are very specific to white-fly (provided you have the right one, of course). They are available from garden-centres and specialist horticultural suppliers. Other such predators are available to deal with spider-mites, which thrive in very large numbers on the undersides of leaves in hot dry conditions, giving the upper surface a yellow speckled appearance; they are barely visible without a magnifying glass, but do produce a certain amount of web and this, in addition to the damage, can be a clue to their presence. Neither predator can spread outside the greenhouse, so don’t worry as one customer with a conservatory did, that they might get into the house!

Hedging - If you have a newly planted hedge, it is best not to trim it this year except possibly for nipping the top out to make it thicken up lower down. Mulch it well if conditions are dry. Established hedges are best clipped  to a wedge shape, wider at the bottom than at the top.

Annuals and Perennials – Later flowering perennials and annuals will need regular watering and feeding according to instructions on the fertiliser of your choice.

New lawns sown or laid in the spring are old enough now to take a dose of weed-killer if required, but be careful with the dose and don’t apply it in windy conditions when you can get whet the American military refer to as “collateral damage”, i.e. killing things you didn’t intend to kill.

Flowering shrubs – that have completed their show for this season can be pruned now; they will flower next year on what grows from now onwards, so don’t leave it too late and definitely don’t cut them with a hedge-trimmer in the autumn or winter as you will cut off the shoots on which they will flower next year.! Lilacs have performed particularly well this year, filling the garden with scent during the recent warm weather. If you wish to get the best display next season, be particularly careful with pruning them; two shoots will grow from the stem, just behind this year’s dead flower, these carry next year’s flower buds and cutting them off will prevent the plant from giving a good display then. Sometimes, of course, if you wish to reduce the size of the bush drastic action may be necessary which may mean you have to forego many flowers for twelve months. I have often been asked why many lilacs seem to carry two kinds of flowers. This is usually because they have been grafted on to a rootstock of common lilac, which has then been allowed to sucker profusely, as lilacs can and the common lilac mingles with the original named variety. The only way to deal with this is to be vigilant and cut out any growth carrying common lilac flowers, right back to the ground. Some varieties, e.g. “Sensation”, which has highly scented dark purple flowers with a white edge, occasionally produce pale flowered reverted branches; these can be cut out where they join the main stem.

Roses - If you fancy your chance as a rose propagator, now is the month for “budding” roses; cut a T-shaped slit in the bark of the stock and carefully insert a bud, i.e. a sliver of bark with a new bud, from the rose you wish to propagate; bind up the bark with raffia or similar. That is very simplistic and perhaps if you are really serious about it, consult a specialist book or probably the internet.

Once again  I have used up my allotted space without saying a few things that I intended to, but was it not ever thus!

The Garden in July is a post from: Woodland HP

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• The Garden in September
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Standard plot sizes are 10 rods, an ancient measurement, which is equal to 302 square yards, or 253 square metres.

There has been a recent upsurge in the numbers of allotments, mainly due to the recession, but also through concerns about genetic modification of foodstuffs, chemical pollution and contamination of our food.

Most areas of the country will have a local Allotment Association, which is contactable for information and availability.

Woodland Horticulture is following the progress of new allotment holder, Robert Marlow.  You will see from the photographs that he has made a very successful start.

Up to date he has harvested new potatoes, courgettes, peas and raspberries, which with 2 young children, is helping with the family bills.

‘More about Robert next week’

At Woodland Horticulture we supply allotments with various composts, including Mushroom Compost and Horse Manure. Many allotment associations often share a bulk load or bagged pallets.

A customer has recently written to us:

“This is the fifth delivery of the compost to our allotment site ever since an article in Gardening Which, that recommended your product.  It is always well received by my fellow allotment holders.

Yours Faithfully”

Allotments is a post from: Woodland HP

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Woodland Horticulture was approached by young garden designers William Brett and  Daniel Bere of  WB Design and Construction earlier this year . They wanted to design and construct a garden at the BBC Gardeners World Live exhibition at the NEC and were seeking sponsorship to help them achieve this goal. Woodland  Horticulture was pleased to be able to help. We were delighted to hear that their “Urban Sanctuary” show garden was awarded a silver medal in the small gardens category. This is a fantastic achievement for the first attempt at such a prestigious event.

Our congratulations go to William and Daniel.

BBC Gardeners World Live is a post from: Woodland HP

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• Winning Garden
• FOUR OAKS TRADE SHOW – The UK’s Premier Show for Ornamental Horticulture
• Chelsea 2011

Now is the time of year that play areas should be topped up so that the children can go out and enjoy the better weather without the risk of injury from falling.  We specialise in Playbark & Playchips and can supply products in either 75-litre bags, bulk “dumpy” bags or in loose tipped loads.

Critical fall height can be viewed as an approximation of the playground fall height, which is below the level that would be expected to cause a life threatening head injury.

Some customers have asked what the critical fall heights are for play surfaces; so we thought we’d post them here for your information.

Pine Play Bark 10-50mm

Independently tested in accordance with the requirements of BS EN 1176 at depths of 300mm, 200mm & 100mm giving critical fall heights of 7.29m, 4.22m & 2.42m respectively.

Pine Play Bark 8-25mm

Independently tested in accordance with the requirements of BS EN 1176 at depths of 300mm, 200mm & 100mm giving critical fall heights of 6.01m, 3.82m & 1.33m respectively.

Hardwood Playchips

Independently tested in accordance with the requirements of BS EN 1176 at depths of 300mm, 200mm, 150mm & 100mm giving critical fall heights of 3.5m, 3.2m, 2.5m & 1.7 respectively.

Softwood Playchips

Independently tested in accordance with the requirements of BS EN 1176 at depths of 300mm, 200mm, 150mm & 100mm giving critical fall heights of 3.5m, 3.2m, 2.5m & 1.7m respectively.

Play Ground Surfaces is a post from: Woodland HP

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• Exhibitions in 2011

March is usually  Daffodil month, but this year they were late beginning to open because of the low temperatures and now (at the time of writing) they are still in the midst of their season, however, most of them will be largely past their best by the time you read this, except for some “Pheasant’s Eye” Narcissi, such as “Actaea”. Tulips will of course still be in flower and summer bulbs such as lilies and gladioli still to come.

Lily Beetles and Lilies

Bright orange Lily Beetles may appear on the plants as soon as they emerge from the ground. The adults have over wintered and will produce a new generation of larvae, which are noticeable as being dark green or black and slimy, as they are covered with their own excrement. They can rapidly strip the lilies of their foliage and ruin them. Adults and larvae can be controlled with contact insecticides or chemicals in the “Provado” group of products; check the labels for recommendations. Research is continuing into controlling them by use of predators and possibly odours which attract them.

Beware Frost Damage

It is still quite possible to have some night frosts in early May, so beware of planting tender bedding, tomatoes, marrows etc. outside too early, unless you are prepared to rush out and cover them up with fleece or newspaper if the temperature suddenly falls.

If you have a greenhouse there can be huge differences between day and night temperatures at this time of year, so be prepared to open doors and windows during the day and keep everything closed at night. A thermostatically controlled heater can be useful if you have one. Electric ones are the most controllable, but propane gas units are available, with a thermostat. The gas heaters have the advantage of increasing the level of carbon dioxide in the greenhouse atmosphere, which is beneficial to the plants.

Lawn Care in May

Lawns were later coming into growth this year than they have been for several seasons; as I write, ours have only been cut once as was the case last year, whereas in years prior to that, we have started cutting in early February.

In May they should be growing well and will need cutting frequently; I do not claim to be a very “organic” gardener, but one thing I do try to avoid doing, is putting fertilizer on lawn-grass. It makes it grow too fast and can encourage some of the coarser grass species. I think these days we should also learn to live with a few broadleaf weeds in the lawn. Unless you have a bowling green or tennis court, many wild flowers that grow in lawns can be quite attractive and you can often physically remove those, e.g. dandelions, that  aren’t, However, there can be justification for using a weed killer on occasions but if you do, be sure to follow the instructions carefully, particularly avoiding drift onto other plants. Tomatoes can”smell” weed killers a mile away and curl up!!  Importantly, avoid spraying when bees are working, as even though the herbicide itself may not harm them, it may mean that because they smell of it, other bees will eject them from the hive.

Early Flowering Shrubs

Early-flowering shrubs can be pruned as soon as the flowers have faded, to give them the maximum growing time for the new wood on which they will flower next year. Those which produce showy berries however, such as Pyracantha, should not have all of the dead flowers cut off.One possibility is to cut off half of the flowered shoots each year, so that you have a good show of berries and still get new growth that will flower in the next season.

Vegetables

Early vegetables, such as broad-beans (autumn sown) will be starting to crop before too long. If the black bean aphid is a problem, nip out the plant growing tips as soon as they have set a reasonable amount of pods. When broad beans have been picked, they can be cleared away and followed with transplanted cabbages. Try to leave the bean roots in the ground as they will have “fixed” nitrogen from the atmosphere in the root nodules and this will benefit subsequent crops.

Runner and dwarf (French) beans, sown under protection in April can be planted out now and seed can also be sown directly into the row for successional cropping.

Wire Worms and other Garden Pests

If you have dug up lawn to plant vegetables, something we are being exhorted to do these days, and grown potatoes or other root crops, you may find that holes have been bored in them by wire-worms. These are about 1.5cms in length and are light creamy colour to shades of yellow and orange. They have a tough skin. They feed predominately on potato plants but other garden vegetables may be at risk. Damage appears as a dark brown-black hole punched into it. A suitable insecticide should be used.

The adult form is known as a click beetle, which do little harm. They are interesting bugs about the size of an elongated ladybird and brown in colour. A click beetle can be recognised by turning it over on its back, whereupon, with an audible click, it will flick itself back onto its legs again. (I didn’t write that on April1st.)

Slugs and snails will be very active at night now and it may be worth going out in the dark with a torch and collecting them as they go about their feasting. What you do with them after gathering them up, I will leave you to choose!!

Well I’m out of space again, so that’s it until June. Enjoy the early summer in your garden.

The Garden in May is a post from: Woodland HP

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There are many classic landscaped gardens where you can see flowering trees and shrubs, such as Rhododendrons, Azaleas and Magnolias at their best.  Many species and varieties will remain so until late in May.

Lawns

No doubt, most of you will have cut your lawns for the first time by now. If you have clumps of coarse, undesirable grasses in your lawn, they will frequently escape being removed by mowing by lying down flat. Go over them after mowing with a lawn rake, so that they stand up, and then mow the patches again. If you do this frequently, they will be gradually removed.

Now is a good time to apply a lawn fertilizer. Slow-release ones are available, if a little expensive. However, these cannot be washed away by rain (leached) as soon as you apply them and can last for the whole season. Preventing leaching in this way also avoids ground water from being polluted by plant nutrients, which can in turn lead to an increase of algae in watercourses and consequent ill effects on fish and other aquatic creatures and other creatures that prey on them.

New lawns can be planted from seed or turf now. Should you wish to improve your soil before sowing lawn-seed or turfing, consider using mushroom compost to do this.

Spread the mushroom compost on the new lawn area and rotovate this in. The mushroom compost has several benefits. It can improve the soil structure, reduce surface “capping” and compaction and promote drainage. It also increases soil microbial activity and provides nutrients to lawn grasses. These improvements promote faster turf establishment, better turf density and colour and increase the rooting of the seed and consequently reducing the need for fertilisers and watering.

Mushroom compost is best used as fresh as possible. The Mushroom Compost we sell has been steam sterilised and so does not contain weed seeds or pathogens and is supplied loose bulk loads, in bulk bags or in 75 litre bags.

Vegetables

My father always liked to start his vegetable gardening in earnest at Easter and this seemed to work for him (I suspect it had something to do with Easter being the first long weekend of the year); despite the fact that the date of Easter changes by more than a month. It is at the beginning of April this year, so if you do get out and sow your seeds, be wary of subsequent frosts causing plants to bolt (run up to seed). This happens because most vegetables are biennials and the cold can lead them to believe that they have undergone a winter and that the season to set seed has arrived. The secret is not to sow all of one thing at the same time, but stagger the planting which will not only mean that the later ones miss the frost, but that you have a succession of the crops to harvest.

Plants

Rose pruning should have been completed by the end of March and mulching with manure should now be done before the new shoots get too large and brittle. The ideal mulch is Horse Manure. The Shredded Horse Manure is much easier to spread and gives an even covering. It should be applied to a depth of 50-75mm.

This is an ideal time to plant shrubs and climbers, as soil temperatures are beginning to rise, leading to more root activity. Mix composted bark with the soil that has been removed prior to planting. This should be a ratio of 1 part bark to 4 parts soil. Dig a hole slightly larger than the root ball and back-fill with the prepared mixture. Heel in.

Evergreen trees and shrubs can be planted later than deciduous ones, but both will require adequate watering after planting.

The Garden in April is a post from: Woodland HP

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Typically for paved areas, such as town squares, road-side planting, superstore car parks, municipal car parks etc., a trench should be excavated approximately 1 metre in depth and sufficiently wide and long to accommodate a minimum of 5m³ (5 cubic metres) of Woodland Tree Soil. If conditions do not allow then individual pits should be 2.8m x 2.8m x 1m deep.

The following installation procedure has been found to be most successful:

The trench or tree pit should be backfilled in compacted layers of no more than 300mm deep, (fill loose to 375mm), each layer should be compacted as follows:

1^st layer       1 pass with compactor or rammer

2^nd layer     1 pass with compactor or rammer

3^rd layer     2 passes with compactor or rammer

Please note: BS60Y Wacker Rammer or similar is preferred.

Final compaction can be checked using an Eijkelkamp Penetrograph fitted with a 1cm² cone. Penetration resistance should fall within 1.5-2.0 Mpa (Mega Pascals), approximately 1.3-2.2 CBR%.

It is important to understand that over compaction will stop root penetration.

Once a sufficient sized tree pit has been excavated correct installation and compaction can take place of the Woodland Tree Soil. Any site details e.g. drainage tubes or anchor systems should also be incorporated. The tree pit levels are then completed using Woodland Tree Soil.

The Woodland Tree Soil is then topped off with 150mm of compacted bedding sand with paving slabs, bricks or concrete blocks laid over the top to the required finished level.

As the type of surface detail influences the amount of air exchange between the Woodland Tree Soil and the atmosphere it is recommended to use a product that has a large amount of jointing such as brick pavers. This can be introduced into the pattern of surface detailing. For areas where there is extremely limited space a highly porous surface such as grasscrete or wide nibbed pavers are recommended.

Tree Soil Application is a post from: Woodland HP

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Have you ever wondered or wanted to know how mushroom compost is prepared? This post describes briefly the preparation of mushroom compost carried out on the mushroom farm prior to growing mushrooms. Considerable skill, experience and attention to detail are require to produce a consistent compost suitable for growing the volume and quality by the supermarkets however here is what you do.

The Ingredients

The basic ingredients of mushroom compost are wheat straw and poultry manure. The straw quality is most important. If it is too wet it may not decompose sufficiently during the composting process: if it is too dry and brittle then loo large a proportion simply disappears as composting takes place.

The Process

1. The poultry manure is delivered to the farm in bulk, mixed with sawdust which was used as bedding for the poultry. It is mixed with the wheat straw in a ratio of six hundred weights per ton of straw. The mixed ingredients are heaped about ten feet high to allow the temperature to build up to a level where composting takes place. The heap is turned daily to aerate the compost, water is added by spraying.

2. After seven days the compost is formed into long stacks, seven feet high and six feet wide. At this point more poultry manure is added to standardise the nitrogen content. The amount is determined by analysis carried out on the farm. Gypsum is also added to control pH and texture. The stack remains on the compost yard for seven days during which it is turned twice by machine. This maintains aerobic conditions which allow the ammonia from the poultry manure to either be chemically incorporated into the compost or to vent to atmosphere.

3. The next stage of the composting process involves putting the compost into a tunnel with a false floor. Air is re-circulated through the compost via holes in the false floor. The temperature rises to 65 degree due to heat created by the composting itself. This pasteurises the compost, eliminating all pathogens and microorganisms which would compete with the mushroom.

4. Fresh air is then drawn through the compost after filtration to one micron to prevent ingrees of any unwanted micro-organisms. This air is passed through the compost until the temperature drop to 26 degrees. This is the ideas temperature at which to introduce the selected strain of mushroom spawn. The compost has now lost its greasy texture and is free of any harmful micro organisms and other peats. All ammonia has been eliminated. Its presence would inhibit the growth of mushrooms, so its removal is essential.

5. After addition of the mushroom spawn, the compost is transferred to a growing house. Here a dense white mycelium grows through the compost under carefully controlled conditions of temperature and humidity. After two weeks a two inch layer if “casting” is put onto the compost. This creates the correct conditions for mushroom growth.

6. After the crop of mushrooms has grown and been picked, the entire contents of the growing house are “cooked out”. This involves heating by live stream to 75 degrees for a period of 12 hours. This process sterilises the compost. It is done to prevent the spread of any disease to new mushroom crops, however it has added advantage that subsequent user of the compost receive a pest, weed seed and disease free product, ideas for the landscaper and gardener.

How We Prepare Our Mushroom Compost is a post from: Woodland HP

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