I pulled up the old broccoli plants this week. I was going
to give them to some deserving horses after the bees finished with the flowers.
Greenfly had other ideas. I first
noticed a small clump of the little green suckers about three weeks ago and
thought nothing of it. Over the following days their reproduction rate grew
exponentially, so much so that every stem was covered in the offspring. The
whole plants seemed to be moving as they sucked the sap out of the plants, you
could hear them dehydrating the stems.
I chopped the plants up on the lawn which in hindsight
appears to be a pretty silly idea. I think most of the greenfly jumped ship
before I stuffed the stumps and stalks into coal bag to take to the recycling
centre. I would normally compost most plants but these take a few years to rot
down because they are so ‘woody’.
The greenfly that didn’t make the car journey to the skip
have happily taken refuge on more young stems in the garden. They are mainly
going for the new broccoli and kale as well as any other juicy stem from the
bedding plants we have. I’ve never really had a problem with these sap suckers
but this year I have taken action. My bottle of neem oil which has been hiding
in a dark cupboard for three years has come out. It doesn’t seem to work but at least I
feel proactive and the greenfly are happy.
My fabulous Deutzia X hybrida 'Mont Rose’ shrub performed
well again. At the end of every year I consider pulling the whole shrub up as
it’s far too big for its spot, but every spring it rewards us with the most
beautiful flowers bursting with nectar for the bees and I let it stay for
another year. I was thinking that I might even take a few cuttings now the
flowers have gone to pass on the beauty to other people who probably have more
room for one.
After flowering is the optimum time to trim back these types
of shrubs so it’s an ideal time to keep a few of the stems from this year’s
growth to increase the stock by taking softwood cuttings.
Softwood cuttings.
This techniques ideal for a lot of shrubs from buddleia,
lavender, euonymus, pelargoniums and salvia to name just a few.
- Cut one of the softer stems and make it a bit longer than the finished cutting, just above a leaf on the parent plant.
- Use a sharp knife to cut just below a leaf joint and remove the leaves
- Aim to make a cutting not more than 10cm long. Use a sharp knife to cut just below a leaf joint and remove the leaves from the bottom half of the cutting.
- Reduce leaf area by half to minimise water loss from the cutting.
- Some people recommend a rooting hormone powder and you might want to dip the stems in that. Willow water works too helping to promote faster roots but personally I don’t bother and most cuttings are successful.
- Insert cuttings into 7cm pots of moist cuttings compost, keeping lower leaves just above compost level.
For the really tidy ones amongst us, push in thin canes
around the pot and cover with a clear polythene bag held in place with an
elastic band. Place cuttings in a warm position, out of direct sun, to root. I
sometimes edge my bets and push some of the cuttings into the ground as I tend
to forget to water pots in hot weather. Finding a shady spot outside or even a
large container where weeds are controlled seems to work fine for me.
Elderflower Cordial
My mother in law was knocking on the door this week looking
for someone tall to go and give her a On the menu this year will be
the cordial and also she will be making some fritters. Anything deep fried is
OK with me, I’ve even tried the deep fried chocolate bar. I did have to clean
out the fryer afterwards though so it was far too much bother.
hand collecting elderflowers from the
branches.
Elderflower cordial is a delicious summer tonic that you can
make yourself.
Her
recipe is best made with fresh flowers, which have been picked on a sunny day when
they are still creamy in colour and before they fade to white. At this time
they have the highest amount of pollen, which contains the yeast. The recipe is
water, sugar, lemons, citric acid and of course the elderflower. Like most
recipes it’s open to interpretation. Maybe some of us might add a touch of
vodka in there too.
