The
BBC Radio 4 Gardeners’Question Time Team l-r – James Wong, Matthew Biggs and
Bob Flowerdew.
“When is the best time to take cuttings?” When no-one’s
looking. (Bob Flowerdew)
I’m at the annual Garden
Show Ireland at Antrim Castle this week. The event outgrew its old site at
Hillsborough and moved to this lovely site last year. I arrived early as the BBC radio 4 are doing
a Gardeners’ Question Time in the grand marquee and I didn’t want the curtain
closing without me being inside to hear James Wong, Matthew Biggs and Bob
Flowerdew give us the benefit of their wisdom when the public get answers to their
gardening issues.
Eric Robson was in the chair to move things along and the
gardeners with questions to ask are all sitting on the front row so the big
fluffy microphone on a stick can be put in their face to get the best sound
quality.
After a few light hearted jokes such as “why don’t hedgehogs
just share the hedge” and being prompted to clap, the questions begin.
Question Time
First with the ‘fluffy mike in face’ was Rachel. “Should I
put my potted lemon tree outside?”
Organic gardener Bob Flowerdew is the first to reply “Yes,
but you’ll have to buy another one next year if the frost gets it.”
Edible garden expert James Wong steps in and tells us that
you can eat the leaves from the tree and they are usually very expensive to buy.
Gardener Matthew Biggs then advises turning the pot to get
an even growth.
Jenny asks the second
question
“We have a lovely Hawthorne hedge but the farmer cuts it so
we never see the lovely flowers. What can we plant underneath that will give
colour?”
All three panellists have a long list of suggestions.
Honeysuckle or clematis is attractive. If you have a good relationship with the
farmer then blackberries will be colourful, give you fruit and a hiding place
for wildlife. The rambling rose is suggested, but they can get a bit unruly the
panellists agree.
Gerry from the
audience asks about potatoes.
“I get a poor yield every year he tells us. That’s because of a few factors. Bob
Flowerdew knows his spuds. They are 95% water. He says, so will need at least
an inch or two every few days. The soil needs to be warm for planting too, and
feed well. They suggest Sharp Express or HomeGuard for disease resistance and
the ability to grow in tubs.
Jane asks about curly
leaves on her tomato plants.
“Will they ever recover?”
The answers are favourable. Bob has great advice for growing
strong plants “Take the side shoots and growing tip from the plant and root
those. They produce stronger plants, better yields, flowering lower down their
stems and are hardier out of doors. The
main reason is that the plant cuttings think they are going to die so make the
most of things.
James starts to humorously fidget a bit in his seat when he
tells us that this is a great way to save money when buying F1 seeds as you can
increase the stock for no money. “Also feed the plants half an aspirin in half
a litre of water as they are growing. This will help them tolerate the extremes
of heat and cold, give the plants better disease resistance and we will see a
5% increase in yield” A top tip indeed.
Rosemary asks what
will grow well in tubs outside the front door.
James, who is all about edibles suggests Morello cherry trees
and even under planted with salad.
Matthew likes topiary and a more formal look to the doorways
so he suggests something formal like Box. He is also suggesting the post be
brightly coloured which doesn’t seem to go down well with most people. “The
main thing” adds Bob “is that the drainage is good and even put the post on
small blocks”. His planting suggestion is for holly bushes pruned to a
geometric shape.
As they are on the topic of Box plants, their next question
has fitted in nicely.
Annie asks how she can stop passing dogs from “relieving
themselves” on her hedge and killing the lower leaves.
“Box isn’t very tough” says Matthew, you would be better
with privet or hawthorne. There is usually a gap at the bottom of these hedges
so the dog wouldn’t cock its leg up high enough to reach the leaves. Bob
mentions pepper dust and reminds the listening radio audience that we are being
broadcast in Ireland so it will need to be redone a lot because of the amount
of rain we get.
