GARDENING
Into the blue With Garden Designer, Sally Cunis
Sapphire-blue skies of September mark the end of a mainly dry summer. Traditionally, in addition to tall perennials, I have used blue flowering shrubs such as Ceratostigma willmottianum and Caryoteris x clandonensis to extend the flowering season but look out for other blue flowers to remind you of holidays by the sea!
For a seaside feel, search out spiky plants such as Eryngium (sea thistle) and Echinops mixing with Festuca glauca (blue grass). Agapanthus may still be available flowering in pots or perhaps ready in bulb form to pot up for next year. They like to be baked by the sun and are a delight massed together or grown along a sunny path enjoying a fertile, well-drained soil. Traditional cottage plants such as delphiniums, asters, Aconitum (Monkshood) and lupins give height and interest. In terms of climbers or wall shrubs, I love Solanum crispum, the Chilean potato tree which is
‘‘In the case of a predominantly blue border, a splash of yellow or orange will make the blues in the border come alive.’’
Crocosmia
smothered with purple-blue potato flowers with a yellow eye in late summer. Some of the deciduous forms of Ceanothus are late flowering, so too are some clematis. My pretty clematis alpina, which scrambles through a wall-grown Ceanothus, is having a second, less showy flush of flowers at the moment.
Gardens of all one colour can be hard to maintain and also a little dull. Look for flower colour on the opposite side of the colour wheel to lift the planting effect. In the case of a predominantly blue border, a splash of yellow or orange such
Echinops in front of a bed of Monarda
Ceratostigma willmottianum Nigella and Erigeron Delphinium Agapanthus
Rudbeckia (Black eyed Susan) Monarda
as late flowering lilies, Rudbeckia (Black eyed Susan), Crocosmia or a ribbon of Helenium will make the blues in the border come alive. I have been pleased with my sweet peas this year which tower over and fill a raised bed with colour and perfume, perfect for picking; purchase seed now for sowing in October together with that of other annuals. Nigella with pretty star-like flowers sprinkled through the border will pop up year after year. I have grown Nigella “Delft Blue” with a strong blue centre from seed this summer. Hopefully these and other annuals such as Cosmos will carry on flowering until the first frosts. Bulbs are appearing in the nurseries and at horticultural shows. They can be planted up in containers for Christmas, popped in pots once the annuals have been cleared away or used to fill gaps in the border. The choice is amazing! Now is also a good time to plant out evergreen shrubs and perennials; if existing clumps of perennials are too congested, lift, split and replant.
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aroundtownmagazine.co.uk Elsewhere in the garden there is,
as ever, much to do. Dig over bare areas of soil prior to planting, prune out and collect up any diseased material and burn; rake up fallen leaves and store in a purpose made bins or in black bags, which should be pierced once they have been filled and tied up, to produce leaf- mould in about eighteen months. In the kitchen garden continue cropping runner beans, Swiss chard and perpetual spinach. Lift main crop potatoes and onions storing them before the damp weather starts.
As the fruit ripens, pick apples and pears, storing carefully in a well-ventilated, frost free, dark place such as a garage or cellar, laying the fruit in a single layer in a slatted container if possible to allow air to circulate. Check regularly for rot. Fruit can also be kept in the fridge for a short period.
The swallows are preparing to leave for warmer climes and there is a distinct nip in the air. Autumn with its glorious colours beckons!
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