Volunteer's Outbox

They look like they need a larger pot soon... and do you feed them?

Make sure that you put in some stout posts and wires to train the shoots on. Raspberries fruit on the previous year's growth (unless they are of the Autumn fruiting sort) so don't prune the shoots until after they have fruited. Instead of a fruit cage you can drape netting over them at fruiting time to deter the birds. Add an extra high wire above the others just for the netting.

I think this is the longest list of replies on the website!!

If it looks lost on its own could you make a bed around it and give it some companions? I doubt if you could succeed with it in a pot as it gets big.

Could you re-route the path as the problem will probably only get worse? Having said that, at Sheffied Park the car park is under Med pine trees and they don't seem to mind the compaction made by cars driving near them. Or how about a raised boardwalk over the roots?

This is a lovely plant that comes into flower from Sept onwards. It likes sun and doesn't like to be over shadowed. I have a red variety planted next to a Deschampsia grass that turns golden in Autumn and the contrast is great (there's a photo on my homepage). It can be divided and increased easily in spring by digging out the clumps at the edge of the patch. Move some to other places around the garden, especially where you can see them from indoors.

Both locations sound wonderful! I'd just sit and admire the trees! Do you realise that we vacation in places like that!! Do you have local gardening clubs? The members might be able to suggest some suitable plants. Take a look in neighbours gardens for likely plants or go for native species for that type of site.

Why not get some chickens and let them scratch the nettles up! Lots of eggs too!

Do you know, if you Google Brachychiton acerifolius, your question comes up 3rd!! How cool is that! (Sorry, got carried away with technology for a moment) )

I find that new seed compost is always best as it avoids diseases from old compost. Do not cover the seeds with compost as they need light to germinate. Keep them at 18-25c and humid (put the pot in a plastic bag). Sow from December to February.

The bent stems will either look 'weird ' or rubbish! You could wire the seed heads onto florists' wire before displaying them in a vase. Pick the heads on a dry day and put them in a vase somewhere warm to dry. I think if you hang them upside down to dry they will not keep their 'hanging' appearance.

It depends how big it is and how well established it is. If it is quite small you could move it anytime now whilst it is dormant. Dig around it with as much of a rootball as you can manage to move. Have the receiving hole already dug so that it is out of the ground for as short a time as possible. Water it in well and continue to water occasionally throughout winter and during dry spells. Water regularly for the first summer. Good luck. This shrub likes clay soils.

Wyevale or any good shrub nursery sell plants of this. The correct spelling is Pileostegia

Don't forget to consider some of the larger shrubs too, such as Fatsia japonica or Hydrangea sargentiana, which are both great for shade.

For the best look, trim off to the base of the shoot you want to remove, don't just trim the tops as this looks messy and will only mean no flowers on that shoot. Then make a mental note to leave more room when you plant anything next to a path.

Only try to store unblemished fruit as any mark will start to rot and then you've got one bad apple etc. I find freezing as much as possible after lightly stewing them is good. Put small portions in freezer-roof basins and knock them out once frozen so you don't lse all your basins to the freezer. Also, harden your heart, we all have to throw some produce on the compost heap. Try putting some out for sale to neighbours.

Is it possible to make some holes in the bottom of the pond liner before you fill it in? This would help with drainage when you want to plant it up. Choose bog garden plants such as candelabra Primulas, Lobelia 'Queen Victoria' or Juncus spiralis (twisted rush).

This sounds like a flower spike, it must be a happy plant! Scefflera is in the Araliaceae family. For some great photos.. google Araliaceae and go to the Vascular plant image library. Isn't the Web great sometimes!

The powder is probably some kind of mildew. You may have planted them too deeply and the crown rotted.

Correct tilth is achieved with regular cultivation with a hoe or similar tool. It is important not to walk on the soil as this compacts it and removes the air spaces between the grains of soil. Use wooden boards to walk on or if it's the veg plot make beds that are wide enough to reach from the paths (these can be as simple as trodden soil or more elaborate). Don't try to work frozen or saturated ground. Adding organic matter (homemade compost is best) will help to open up the structure of the soil whatever type it is. Clay soils may benefit from grit being added too. If you add organic matter every year the fertility will build up and there will not be any need for fertilisers.
The pH is not easy to adjust, you need to go with the type of soil that you were given. Any pH-fussy plants should be kept in containers or raised beds, it never works trying to change their soil.

Yellow fly-trap papers are quite good in a greenhouse. Tap the plant and they fly out and onto the fly paper.

It is hardy in the South. Be careful when handling as the sap can be an irritant, wear gloves and long sleeves.

Willows are often pollarded, which means cutting off all banches to a certain height and then repeated at intervals. You could try a version of this and decide the height you would like to keep it to. Google 'willow pollarding' and look at the Rutland water nature reserve pictures. Be brave!

See if the local school would like it to grow in the grounds. You might start them off growing their own wood!

I grow plants on in pots for quite a while before planting them on the allotment or they just 'disappear' too. Make sure that you harden them off properly as the shock of moving from greenhouse or frame to soil will put them at risk of being eaten. Do you use slug pellets? Use them very sparingly and not too near the seedlings as they attract slugs in order to kill them so don't lead them too near. I also think that physical deterrents might help, like fleece or netting. Try beetroot or shallots which slugs don't like much, or potatoes or leeks. Keep trying though.

Why not pick some to enjoy indoors?

We were given 2 called Silver Wedding for our anniversary a couple of years ago, but they are not the best either. They have quite nice flowers but are not very garden worthy especially if space is at a premium. I think the breeders just give them the name to sell them for unimaginative relatives to give at anniversaries. I'm going to give mine another year or so before digging them up. It all depends if the donor visits your garden much!! Why not buy a different type of rose (possibly a David Austin bred type) in the same colour and plant that instead then you will have something to show the present-giver! They won't know the difference!!
Or you could train the spindly growth round a short obelisk, bending the shoots as low as possible to stimulate buds.

Why not just try them! They can decide for themselves! You would have to treat them like any other bean and keep them frost free then lots of sun and give the pods time to dry before harvesting. We grew Borlotti beans last year and managed to get beans from them but didn't succeed this year.

How about Ophiopogon planescapens nigrescens. A terrible name but a lovely plant. 6 to 8 inches high with grassy type leaves (it's actually in the lily family ) but they are almost black and shiny! Small pink flowers in summer followed by black berries. It will grow in sun or part shade.
.....I bet it's not pouring with rain in San Diego!! Oh for a trip to Ghiardelli's!! Go Chargers!

This plant responds well to hard pruning and regrows quickly. The leaves will fall off soon anyway and should come back cleanly next year. Have you fed it at all? Sprinkle some granular slow release fertiliser round it in spring.