from a distance the sight may endure it.’ They are grown in vast quantities as a commercial crop, where sunshine is guaranteed as each mature sunflower yields 40 per cent of its weight in oil. The enormous flower heads provide a comfortable, efficient landing pad for insects – allowing easy access to pollen. Whilst closer to home we enjoy the blooms as individuals and during the summer holidays school children compete to see who can grow the tallest sunflower. Having large faces and being brilliant yellow in colour, they make ideal subjects to draw and paint. With school holidays well and truly upon us, its often
difficult to keep the children occupied, but it may well be that you need look no further than your own garden. Not only is gardening fun, but proven to have many positive effects. Studies have shown that children exposed to nature have improved concentration and that gardening can help to stimulate imagination and creativity. When children are given something to own like a section of the garden, they become more responsible and seeing their plants grow will give them a sense of pride and achievement, especially if it is something they like to eat! Something as simple as making ‘mud pies’ in their own little plot can be very satisfying – yes mother earth can have a very calming effect on young and old alike. ‘There is a garden in every childhood, an enchanted place, where colours are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever again’
Pots and hanging baskets I
f you have treated your hanging baskets and containers with tender loving care
– you should still have glorious displays, adding colour to all corners of your outdoor space. With so many plants in a small amount of compost they are prone to drying out and losing nutrients quickly so need constant watering and careful feeding in order to thrive. Remember to water frequently particularly in hot weather and
if your compost does not contain a soluble plant food, feed every week until flowering has finished. Make sure you apply foliar feeds and water in the evening or early morning to avoid scorching the leaves.
Midsummer cuttings I
f you didn’t manage it in July
- there is still time to take summer cuttings, including penstemon, rosemary, fuchsia, pelargoniums and petunias.
The midsummer
garden is full of plants that are
4
August 2011
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