ARE YOU PLANNING TO PLANT A HEDGE THIS AUTUMN??

Hello - are you planning a session of hedge planting this autumn??

It is now the time to begin to think autumn planting new hedges - or may be gapping up an older one. With the slightly cooler weather - there is definitely a hint of autumn in the air - it will only be a few months before our new season bare-root hedging becomes available again.

To help with this - we have often been asked about the planting and looking after of hedges - and due to that demand - we are putting on an extra morning workshop - on Saturday September 18th from 9.30 - 12.00 - entitled Hedges, living screens for your garden.

Hedges are so varied - they have so many different uses - from screening and privacy to shade, shelter and windbreaks - they provide flower and fruit for wildlife - and offer a huge benfit to the environment - how could any fence panel ever compete with that???!!!

Come and learn all you need to know from selection of different types to planting techniques to the protection they may need from those pesky bunnies - this course will leave you fully inspired to start planting. As a bonus - you will receive a 10 % discount off all hedging plants ordered and paid for on the day - what an enticing offer!!

To book on this course - please contact the office on 01394 460755 - numbers are limited.

UNTIL NEXT TIME.
RICHARD

A NEW APPLE SEASON BEGINS!

Hello,

One of the delights of my job is the fruit side of the nursery - and that means apples!! Here we are, just into August and the start of a brand new season of English apples!! Regular visitors to the nursery will know that we have an Apple Shed in the fruit sales area - and from now until the end of March (or when our customers have eaten them all!!) - we have apples available for you to come and taste!

We grow hundreds of different varieties - and the choice can be a bit over-whelming sometimes - but to actually come to the nursery and to be able to taste them will make your selection so much easier!!

At this early stage - there are only two varieties in - Vista Bella (see photo above) and Beauty of Bath - none of these earlies store very well - but what could be more pleasant than picking a bright red apple - still warm from the sun - and eating it straight off the tree!!!

Over the coming weeks and months - more and more fruit will be added as it ripens - and of course we have our big apple -tasting day at the end of October - Saturday October 23rd -a date for your diary - we will have apples to buy and taste - it is simply a fun day celebrating everything apple!! Do come if you can!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME,

RICHARD

SUMMER PRUNING DE-MYSTIFIED

Hello,

On Wednesday July 28th - 11 keen gardeners came to the nursery to spend a morning with myself for the latest of our short courses to learn about summer pruning of fruit trees. As with anything connected with the 'p' word - there is much mystery and confusion about the correct techniques. However - hopefully - by the end of the morning session, most people seemed to have got a grasp of the principles behind the practice.

The course began with our usual ' what are you hoping to learn' session - I always like to do this so I can make sure the course is tailored to suit exactly what is required - it is surprising sometimes how I can change the course slightly to bring in a subject that was not originally going to be covered!!

Summer pruning is of particular importance in the training and cultivation of trained fruit trees mostly -espaliers,fans and cordons. Without summer work - these trees would not retain their attractive shape and the potential cropping for next season would be reduced.

One of the biggest mistakes that people make is that they tend to treat their espaliers and fans e.t.c. like a hedge - as soon as it gets too much growth on it - they prune it back - regardless of the time of year!! The whole point of summer pruning is that it is carried out in late summer - usually late July or early August - because the tree growth is just about finished for the year - and the tree is busily making it's flower buds for next spring. It neither has the energy or the time to produce much new growth when pruned in late summer - but if you pruned any of this growth back in May and June - it would simply regrow - since the tree is more interested in growing at that time of the year.

There is much more to be said about the joys of pruning - but that would be more like spoilers for the next course!!!

If you feel that you would like to have a bit more of an idea then our next fruit courses are - Focus on Fruit - Thursday 28th October - 10-1.00 - course fee £25.00 - this is a very general course covering a whole range of topics - or if you are really into the pruning side of it - then Winter Pruning is on either Wednesday 10th November or Thursday 18th November - from 10.30-12.30 either day. This course is specifically aimed at pruning only - and is usually split into shrubs or fruit - depending upon the numbers involved.

To book any of these courses - please do get in early - we have a maximum number - ring the office on 01394 460755.

UNTIL NEXT TIME,
RICHARD

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A WEEK MAKES!

Hello - they say that a week is a long time in politics - but it also seems the same with our summer weather at the moment! From 32c last Friday - to 18C this week - it has been some change! However, I think most of us here at the nursery at least - have been quite glad that it has cooled down - and we actually had over an inch of rain on last Monday - which has changed the grass back to green - and plants have heaved a collective sigh of relief. However - Thursday and Friday saw horrid gale-force winds at the nursery - gusting to 35mph - which caused a lot of damage. Broken branches - flattened plants - broken support structures - a huge tree came down missing going through one of our polytunnels by inches!

We have just about finished clearing up now - and the nursery is returning to normal.

So away from this week's trials and tribulations - onto something nice!!

At this time of year - many of our gardens can start to look a bit drab - especially with the dry weather we have had recently - but here at the nursery - our shrub sales areas are packed with all sorts of lovely items that will take your garden very nicely on into the late summer/early autumn period.

Here are just a few highlights at the moment -

Hydrangeas - these have come a long way since the huge blowsy-headed sorts of years ago - we have a couple of very nice 'candelabra'-headed ones - that look very nice at the moment.

Caryopteris - these are still not widely seen for some strange reason - masses of blue flowers on a compact shrub that is just coming into bud - and will flower for most of August.

Fuchsia - not the basket types - but the bone hardy ones - from the gorgeous 'Lady Boothby' - a mix of red and black - to the dainty tiny pink/white flowers of magellanica 'Alba' - these are stars of any late summer flowers.

Abelia - I cannot understand why everyone has not got this in their garden!! It has the most beautiful semi-evergreen metallic green foliage - and from late July into September dainty clusters of the most wonderful slighty-scented white and pink flowers - relatively compact as well - it should be a must-have!!

Spiraea 'Shirobana' - most of the Spiraeas are spring-flowering - but there are also some stunning summer performers as well. This one has a mix of pink/red and white flowers all on the same plant - changing colour as they age/

Teucriums - these Wall Germanders are just lovely - they are very dwarf and ideal for the front of any borders - evergreen - now coming into bud - very much a Sage type of flower - but a nice carmine pink and flowers throughout August.

Potentillas - these are superb low-growing shrubs - flowering from July to September - in orange to yellow.

And as well we have some superb climbers and wall shrubs - such as the lovely honeysuckle 'Lonicera 'Mint Crisp' - and also the perenial pea - Lathyrus latifolius - very much like a sweet pea in flower - but it comes back every year.

There are many more on the sales areas - so why not come down and have a look - there is always plenty to see - no matter what the weather!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME,
RICHARD

COPING WITH THE DROUGHT

Hello - since my last blog - we have had a prolonged period of very hot and dry weather - often accompanied by strong winds - the absolute nurseryman's nightmare!

You may remember that in my previous posting - I suggested that this might actually be turning into an 'old-fashioned' English summer - well it does not look like it does it!!! With hosepipe bans being enacted up North - and the prospect of a weekend in the '30's - it is a typical Suffolk July!!

So - rather than bleat about it - you have to get smart - and go with the flow. We are well used to this weather in this part of Suffolk at least - and listening to customers this week at the nursery - it seems that many of them are either very worried or becoming increasingly desperate about the state of their gardens - I can but offer a few bits of advice - purely through experience.

Firstly - the usual quoted advice - forget the lawn!! Unless - of course you adore your stripes!! There are now 'drought-resistant' kinds of turf available - but generally watering the lawn is jst a waste of water - as soon as there is the slightest shower, it will green up again. It is not 'dead' when it is brown - it is simply 'resting'- and will come back.

Big old mature trees - unless they are showing signs of stress - don't bother watering those - it will more likely encourage surface rooting - their roots are down very deep - and they will find their own moisture. The same applies to mature shrubs - really anything that has been in for about 2 or 3 years should be able to fend for itself. The items to concentrate on are those items that have been newly-planted this year. These are only rooted down into the top foot or so of soil - and there really is no moisture there - so they will need water - how much - well that depends on your soil and situation - but clay soil will always hold onto moisture a lot longer than sand.

There is often conflicting advice about whether to water little and often - or only when things are really wilted - with a heavy water. Here, at the nursery - we do not do wilted plants!! Once a plant reaches the stage of wilting - it is in serious stress - and is likely to suffer long-term problems if not treated quickly - so our view - is that plants should NEVER reach the wilted stage - yes - I hear you saying - it's easy for you to say that - you have an automatic watering system - that is true - but in my own garden at home - which is very heavily-planted - I manage to keep stuff watered- all of the beds and borders have leaky pipe irrigation - which is easily worked on an alternate basis - giving something water every night - leaving the containers and baskets to be watered every day.

It is always better to water in the evening - watering in the morning in these sort of temperatures will lead to them quickly drying out - evening watering means that they have 10 hours of cool to absorb it before the heat returns next day.

Mulching - why do more people not mulch their plants?? Bare-soil will lead to mega evaporation - it gets hot and cracks - nature does not allow this to happen - bare-soil is always covered up with foliage - in our own gardens we can do the same - but in a more ornamental way - with bark - it keeps the sun off the roots - keeping them cool and holding moisture - that is how I have my leaky pipe - it keeps beautifully moist under there.

I have a big dustbin on my patio - and all of the washing-up water goes in there - and I can then use that water on my plants - why on earth pay for that water to go down the drain??!!

Fruit trees need a lot of water - but again if it is at a premium - only water those that have decent crops on - with a young tree - it will be hugely beneficial to the tree to leave only half a dozen fruits on it - that fruit is full of water - and that can be used elsewhere.

There has also been some advice about pruning back the 'softer' growth on shrubs and trees - the suggestion being that this takes most of the water - and the older growth is better able to withstand drought. This is new advice to me - but I see the logic in it - although it would need to be done with care - since the shape and potential flowering next year of some items could be compromised by incorrect pruning.

I think basically it is perfectly normal for plants to be short of water in high summer - it is how we deal with it that is important - we can still have beautiful gardens at this time of year - even if the GRASS is brown!!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME - STAY COOL!
RICHARD

AN OLD-FASHIONED ENGLISH SUMMER??

Hello - what lovely weather we are enjoying at the moment. This is more like 'Flaming June' - than a few weeks ago!!

This whole summer so far is actually turning out to be more of a 'traditional' English summer than of late in Suffolk. The last few years have seen very extreme weather - and dry springs which in turn have caused serious drought problems later on in the summer. This year - so far at least - we seem to have been heading more towards a few showers spread nicely throughout May and June keeping everything very happy - the old country saying ' A shower in June keeps everything in tune' is very much spot on this year.

To actually still have green grass on the lawns in late June is unheard of in Suffolk lately - and I think anyone who has shrubs or roses or fruit trees can see how well they look this year - all that winter moisture is still there deep down - and these 'top-up' showers are just what the doctor ordered!! Even if we now have six weeks of heat and dry - the plants are in a far better position than they were last year.

At the nursery, we are nicely into our summer routine. Once the Suffolk Show passes - we tend to drop down a gear and nursery life runs very smoothly between irrigation, propagation, pruning and training of young stock - and generally getting on top of all those jobs that got left over the really busy spring period.

That is not to say - we do not still welcome visitors to the nursery - we have more time to talk to you now than in the winter!!

Back to the Suffolk Show - several people have commented on our stand during their visit to the nursery - and we thank them again for their generous comments. Several of you have expressed interest in how the straw bales - the original gro-bag idea came together. The use of straw bales is certainly not a new idea - but it has in the past been used pretty much exclusively for melons and courgettes and the like - and less so for other veg, it seemed to Graeme in planning the Edible Garden that this was a resource that was very under-used. In terms of wheat against barley as the source of the bale - it does not really seem to make much difference - but it is necessary to have bales that are preferably a year old - and just starting to turn colour. These are much easier to wet than new bales - and keeping them wet was one of the problems we found. It took some time and much water to get them soft to allow planting into the tops of them, but of course this also led to another problem in that disintegration of the bale would happen faster when wet - coupled with an attempt to transport them to the showground - and it became obvious that they would have to be on raised pallets.

It also became obvious that the plants to go in them needed to be of a decent size to start with - otherwise an inevitable amount of seed growth from the excess grain within the bale overwhelmed them when they were young. Holes were cut out with a very sharp knife and saw - and chicken pelleted manure placed underneath - the plants were then put in - and a little compost used to firm them in. Fortnightly liquid-seaweed extract gave all the necessary nutrients and pushed the plants on nicely. And - most importantly - the bales were all stored under an overhead watering system keeping the moisture in. After six weeks - it became evident that they were rooting well down into the straw - and the changing colour of the bale suggested that it was providing nutrient breakdown as well.

The week before the show - the final prep took place - and they made their way up the A12 to the showground - everybody was concerned they may not survive the journey - but I am pleased to report other than a rogue courgette - they got there in one piece!! We had deliberately grown and taken extra plants to cope with this possibility - so yet again - forward planning is essential - hopefully most of you out there who may want to copy this idea - may not try to transport your efforts TO a county show!!

They are still here at the nursery for people to see - although a certain amount of harvesting is taking place - particularly on the lettuces - so the bales are not as full as they were - but after all - they are meant to be functional as well as beautiful!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME - ENOJY THE SUN!
RICHARD

SUFFOLK SHOW - WE HAVE WON IT AGAIN!

Hello - apologies for the delay in this blog - but the last fortnight has been absolutely crazy with the Suffolk Show.

Well - we have won it again! For the second year running, our large stand in the Flower Show Marquee was awarded a Large Gold Medal and The Perpetual Challenge Cup for the Best in Show. This is the second time we have won the Cup - we were over the moon last time - and we are absolutely delighted to win it again!!

I would like to say a huge Thank You to all of you who came and saw us over the two days of the show - and thank you so very much for all your kind comments. A big Thank You to the entire Crown Nursery team - without them none of this would have taken place. And also a big Thank You to Sue Hedger-Brown - for helping me to add that extra 'twist' to our design this year.

For those of you unable to make the show - I have posted a few photos of the stand to give you an idea.

In planning this one, there were always the obvious aims - to promote the plants we sell at the nursery, to publicise all that we do - and to make as big a 'wow-effect' as we could. Any stand that we feature has to have a large emphasis on trees - and we are of course fortunate to have some huge semi-mature versions that lend themselves beautifully to show-work. This year's focus was on the 45 year-old weeping Blue Cedars - Cedrus atlantica 'Glauca Pendula' that we have had at the nursery for many years.

However, being so incredibly wide and low - gave us difficulties getting them into the Flower Show Marquee - we did this by starting a week before the Show when nobody else was there - so we could take up the entire area with all our vehicles.

Then came the next problem of how to actually display them - Graeme came up with the clever idea of raising them up on pallets - and this is what we did - giving a cascade effect - and allowing underplanting beneath them. The central one was actually on seven pallets - and then the second tree on four pallets and so on - it certainly worked - and when the pallets were all hidden by a mixture of hessian netting and heavy planting - nobody could have guessed how it was done!!

Once these, and the Weeping Silver Birch, Upright Hornbeam and Copper Beech were in - the rest of the stand built very nicely. A heavy layer of shrubbery hid a multitude of sins - and then it was to the two main beds full of glorious colour from perennials. The path this year - was all within our theme of 'A modern twist on an old Design' - which meant that they were made from Spring Ring off-cuts - this is a material that we use to pot trees into. It actually worked very well.

But the main 'twist' this year was the use of the metal 'Pyramids' to punctuate the design - a rather brave idea of mine - I must admit I was unsure to start with - but it did work out in the end!!

They were 'softened' by the planting - which was a heady mix of perennials,herbs and shrubs. I used some of my favourite combinations for this - and it generally seemed to receive a good response. Alchemilla mollis with Chives - Fennel with Aquilegia studded through it - French Lavender with Purple Elder and Curry Plant - there now - I am not going to give everything away!!

Outside Graeme did his 'Edible Garden' stand - but again a twist this year was the use of straw bales - as the 'original Grow-bag'!! These generated much interest.

Along with the usual mix of vegetables fruit and herbs in the raised beds - hopefully it inspires everybody to 'get out there' and have a go yourself!

So - we have got everything back in it's place at the nursery - and we are just about recovered - it was an incredible fortnight - but so well worth it - to hear people's comments. We are only a small nursery - but for a couple of weeks - we felt like we were up there with the 'Chelsea Boys'!

UNTIL NEXT TIME,

RICHARD