Tips and Tricks

Dry garden planting is becoming of real interest today and combining long lived perennials with grasses is not only attractive but also beneficial to bees and birds. In our new perennial border, we are impressed with the buzz of bumblebees and honeybees and feel we have made some good choices with the perennials we have included. Many of these we have growing in our nursery because they are useful for long summer flowering, can be incorporated in a vegetable garden or just make worthwhile considerations for sunny dry areas that may be too well draining and difficult for shrubs. We battled with our carpark area for many years managing to grow this or that but never in an easy or successful manner. Here the ground has always been stony and poor. This year, with the right plants, we have had success and it will only improve. 

Repeating plants and mass planting one variety rather than many different plants also improves the show. Planting in drifts and selecting plants that require the same ground conditions is effective. Many people have asked how our garden has established so quickly but planting in 3’s or 5’s in drifts has certainly created a more impressive and dense display. 

There are a number of very noted Achilleas such as Achillea ’Beacon’ also known as ‘Fanal’, Achillea ‘Terracotta’, Achillea ‘Anthea’ and Achillea ‘Salmon Beauty’ which has received the Award of Garden Merit and really is beautiful. We have planted these in drifts of 3 or 5 to provide more impact and because they are so long and repeat flowering. Very worthy plants indeed. Again, loved by bees also ticks our box. 

Read our newsletter with our recommendations for more dry garden planting by clicking HERE

In May last year, we did a Facebook post on pruning Macrophylla Hydrangeas.  This can be located under our posts on our Facebook page if you haven’t seen it.

In late March and April we all start to look at tidying the garden and cutting things back.  The common Hydrangea - Macrophylla and Serrata’s (which comprise Mopheads and lacecaps) don’t really need a lot of pruning.  It is recommended that you leave the dead heading of the flowers until late winter/early spring when the threat of heavy frosts has past.  That is what we do here.  The dead flower heads give frost protection to the new flower buds which sit below.  It is recommended that you do thin out old branches if you need to.

When planting new hydrangeas, we use a good pelleted sheep/chicken/fish manure and mix it with the soil in the base of the hole.  With your hydrangeas in the garden, in Spring you can top dress the soil around the plant with a blood, bone and seafood fertiliser or a general fertiliser that isn’t too high in Nitrogen. 

The Paniculata Hydrangeas (Limelight, Kyushu, Bombshell) flower on new wood so they respond very well to a good cut back to encourage flowering.  Again, this is recommended to be done in late winter/early Spring when fear of heavy frosts has passed.  These Hydrangeas tolerate a lot more sun as does the Hydrangea quercifolia (Oak Leaf Hydrangea).  As with the Macrophylla Hydrangeas, in Spring top dress the soil around the plants with a lower Nitrogen fertiliser as mentioned above.

In speaking to a very knowledgeable gardening friend, we were told that he cuts down Hydrangea ‘Annabelle’ which is an Aborescens Hydrangea, in late winter/early Spring.  He said he cuts it almost to the ground to the lowest buds.  Their ‘Annabelle’ had strong thick stems which held the large flowers very erect.  We have researched this and this is definitely a recommended practice by experts in the Hydrangea growing field overseas.  We will be adopting this practice this spring when the chance of heavy frosts has passed.   Hydrangea ‘Annabelle’ is an award winning treasure and one that will take more sun which is great if you are wanting a white flowering hydrangea in a more sunny spot.

The traditional hydrangeas, Macrophylla and Serratas, all require some shade.  It is best to provide morning sun and afternoon shade.  All Hydrangeas benefit from good moisture during hot spells.  You will get a lot more from your plants if you keep them hydrated.  Mulching is helpful for this. 

We value Hydrangeas of all varieties in our garden.  They don’t have a lot of insect issues, they provide excellent summer colour, they can be grown as a hedge, in the front of the garden or in pots.  And yes, the soil pH does dictate the colour of the Macrophylla and Serrata varieties but we love the unique colours that can be attained.  The whites do flower white. 

We do grow some excellent red flowering hydrangeas including Hydrangea Paris and Hydrangea  Alpengluhen which seem to retain their colour well. 

Finally, we love the great ageing colours that you can get from some hydrangeas making them very good for drying.  H. Altona and H. Generale Vicomtesse de Vibraye are both AGM plants and make great antique shades which are gorgeous dried. 

Watch this space!!

Happy gardening!!!