Lindsay's Inbox

Hi, had the same problem this year, sounds like
Bay Suckers
For reference check

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0500/sucker.asp
and
http://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/problem-solving/garden-pests-bay-leaf-suckers/

Depends how large your tree is ( ours is 5 meters high so, not easy to treat ) you can either pick the affected leaves one by one or spray with Provado Ultimate Bug Killer Ready To Use ( you can use the concentrate if it is for a big plant ).

If you are to spray, don't forget to pick as many leaves as you might need to use up for 2-3 weeks and either freeze them or dry them.

Best of luck
Athina

Beautiful Pic :)

Great photo

Neat butterfly! Tis the season for butterflies & sedum... I just uploaded a similar picture. Seems the butterflies are all over the garden this time of year. : )

best of luck with the allotment.....our veg patch was an overgrown wilderness that hadn't been touched for years, brambles , nettles , old fallen tree , even half an old dingy and a roll of carpet!! which is why we went for the raised bed idea. just dig in plenty of manure etc and crop rotate, and remember .... excercise is good for you.......steve

well done on getting an allotment theres a 10 year waiting list around here. im sure you'll learn as you grow, good luck

how exciting to have an allotment, you are very lucky, they are like gold dust around were i live, maybe if my garden works out i'll try an allotment too, it will be interesting to hear how you get on with the caterpillars, i'll keep reading all your blogs for advice. good luck.

You poor people suffering all those caterpillars. Send them all to Diohio, she loves them! How can we attack those caterpillars? Perhaps they don't like garlic? Worth a try. Perhaps google for: controlling caterpillars in vegie gardens, who knows what you find. Good luck. At least they left your beans and courgettes alone.

Hi. I am a bit late with my potatoes too but I`m sure any time now is OK for earlies, I`m having a go with a variety called `Celine` I am going to plant 2 per pot and am using the florist buckets. I would leave them on a suuny windowsill untill the shoots are about an inch long. You need to fill the pot with compost about half way and cover the potatoes (including the shoots), then as the shoots come up through the compost keep adding a bit more each time, just leaving the tops of the shoots showing through, and keep doing this until the compost is to the top. The earlies should be ready in about 8 - 12 weeks, or when the plant starts yellowing. Dont forget to water regularly. Good Luck, I`m no expert but enjoy having a go!

I have a Miscanthus sinensis Purperesens and always cut it right down about now, just as the new growth is beginning to show through. Although I have not divided it yet (and it must be about due) I did dig it up and relocate it last year, again around March time. No harm done at all - except to my back I would say! As Bluespruce rightly points out, Those things weigh a ton.

if i am not mistaken i think they are a bog plants, so it is more important to have moisture at the roots and i would think mulching with gravel would help to keep moisture in.

Beautiful! - i love lots of colour and interest and you certainly have that Lindsay.

Rather wet at the mo Chris, but suprizingly quite mild after the snow we had at the weekend! and i know just how you feel Lindsay, i only have a smallish garden but i have invested in a polycarbonate greenhouse, it's only small but big enough to stand in, i have loads starting nicely in there. and it's a bit more stable than the plastic ones. its a bit like see through plastic corigated cardboard, so it turns the slightest little bit of sun into heat, quite clever me thinks! so i have had stuff in there for a quite a few week now. well worth the investment i would say, i think you can also get cold frames made form this stuff.

I know the feeling. It is jolly cold here at the moment with snow again today. There is a drastic change forecast at the weekend and by next week we may have temperatures in the upper teens. I get the feeling that all the plants are holding back ready to burst forth next week, and so are the weeds!!!
I'm not sure whet the UK forecast is but hopefully you are going tp see an improvement soon.

Lindsey - Good general advice from Chris and Sid. I have been growing ornamental grasses for the best part of 20 years and so I might be able to add a little more info that might also be useful. First step is to cut the grasses back hard, if you haven't already done so, this also goes for your Stipa, it will do no harm at all. February and March is the best time to do this task for all ornamental grasses. if your Miscanthus is indeed five to six years in the ground, it will be no easy job to lift and divide, plus depending on what cultivar it is regards to individual vigour. If you decide to lift it, it's my guess you will need help. The roots do not go deep, but they are fiberous, very compact and solid, making the detached rootball extremely heavy for lifting, again a two person job. Once you manage to get the plant out of its hole I would advise you use a saw to divide the plant, a spade is unlikely to be up to the job. Use the outer more vigorous pieces for replanting, discard the dead center. If it does prove difficult or inpractical to lift the whole plant, it is possible to severe the roots and undercut half the plant in its original position, again use a saw to divide in two (this is possible with the plant still in the ground) then remove the detached half, and backfill mixing in some additional compost/leafmould, etc, this will help rejuvinate the original old centre of the plant. Hope this helps.

Hi Lindsey - now is definately the time to split Miscanthus sp. They might sulk a bit this year, but they should do ok. If you've had disasters in the past doing this, I wonder whether you split your plants at the right time of year? If you do it in summer, there will be too much stress on the plant, having to grow, cope with low water levels etc without the benefit of a well established root system. Good luck!

Hi Lindsay.
I've got a type of Miscanthus sinensis. It's the type known as Zebra grass. It has horizontal stripes, grows tall (about 6') and has wonderful pink plumes in Autumn. I split mine last year into two. It was still relatively young, lass than 2 years. It survived the split and both plants grew well. I split it in the Spring. I think you should try splitting, but if it's huge it will be a hefty job. I recently split a pennisetum (fountain grass), about 3 years old and it was all I could do to dig it up. I nearly had to call for male assistance but finally I managed it. Hope yours does well. I think Miscanthus are pretty robust. I'm only speaking from personal experience not horticultural knowledge. One of our experts might advise you differently.
Chris

lovely mix

Very pretty space.

This is so Lovely Can it be grown happily in Full Sun Lindsay?

Your garden is truly beautiful Lindsay. It also looks very private.

FANTASTIC FLOWERS :)

Hi Lindsay ( my name is spelt this way too!) Lovely colours in this photo. Looking forward to seeing more.

And you succeeded Lindsay. This is fab