HIGH SUMMER

Well, we are almost into the middle of July - and it's High Summer at Crown Nursery. What an incredible change in the weather as well - from last week when the temperature in one of the tunnels topped 42c - to this week when the mercury is stuck on about 22c - it's a topsy-turvy summer.

One thing is for sure though - the plants appreciate the cooler weather (and so do the staff!!). The plants can slow down a bit (and so can the staff!!) and are not gasping for water every minute of the day. Nursery life moves on all the same - the girls are still ploughing on taking cuttings of shrubs for the autumn - the mist unit is really starting to fill up - and many of the earlier items have already been potted up. Tree care - pruning and feeding - occupies the rest of the time.

We have just completed a couple of our morning courses - 'The Magnificent Garden All Year Round' and 'Summer Pruning of Trained Fruit Trees'. The first course was held on a scorching hot day - sun hats and cold drinks all round. This course had a detailed look at plants - and how to extend the season of interest in your plot. Graeme demonstrated various techniques from the 'Chelsea Chop' on perennials or plunging pots of Dahlias and Lilies into the gaps in your borders to foliage colour and winter flowering plants - very useful and informative were the comments from those who attended.

Wednesday July 8th saw myself taking the Summer Pruning course - a much cooler day. We looked at the techniques involved with training and pruning fruit trees to maximise cropping potential - and the effects of pruning at different times of the year - again very favourable comments from the attendees.

We have a bit of a break on courses for the summer - but restart in September with 'The Best Tree For Your Garden' - if you have never been on a course before - why not give it a go?? They are only for a couple of hours - hugely informative and great fun - check out the listing on the website.

This is holiday time - and I am off to Scotland next week- but it can also often be a difficult time to maintain colour in the garden - though there is plenty on offer here at the nursery. The Russian Sage - PERVOSKIA 'BLUE SPIRE' is senstional at the moment - spikes of dark blue flowers above serrated silvery foliage. It is a wonderful plant particularly in combination with one of the dwarf POTENTILLAS. Several are looking good at the moment - particularly PRIMROSE BEAUTY and ELIZABETH - they rank as one of the longest-flowering dwarf shrubs about - flowering almost constantly from July-September. And of course mid-July is the start of the BUDDLEIA or BUTTERFLY BUSH season - a gorgeous set of plants - often dismissed as 'common' - but what else flowers at this time - and attracts so many butterflies??
Modern breeding has produced plants that flower over a longer period- and in a range of colours from white to red to purple - there are even dwarf forms that will not get too high - so no excuses - get one in the ground!!

Until next time,
RICHARD