The Garden of Eaden: May 2023

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Potting on Cacti

Re-potting cacti brings with it an element of risk so its not a job many people like to do too often. So to help get it right check out English horticulturist Simon as he goes through his five 5 mistakes to avoid when potting on cacti.

The first one is to wear gloves and that is not just because cacti have spines which can give you a nasty prick! Many cactus species such as the genus Opuntia have glochid spines which have microscopic barbs. These spines will embed themselves into your skin and will be the devils own job to remove. To find out the other mistakes to avoid click onto the video and watch English horticulturist Simon as he goes through the other four.

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5 Five Mistakes to Avoid When Potting On Exotic, Tropical Glory Lily 'Gl...

If you are looking for a truly exotic plant to add to your tropical effect garden then why not pot on an exotic Glory lily - Gloriosa superba, tubers or bulbs. they are surprisingly easy to look after, all you have to do is dry off and over winter the bulbs inside in a warm, dark and dry position.

To begin with, Glory lilies are not hardy and so there is no point in potting the tubers on until overnight temperatures are above 10 degrees Celsius. Then using an acidic compost plant then just a few centimetres below the surface making sure that the leaf bud is facing upwards. Water in thoroughly and then add climbing support.

Tropical Gardens UK: Get More Free Exotic Plants for Your Garden

Finding plants for tropical effect gardens can get expensive, so why not get more free exotic plants for your garden by using the power of propagation? In this video English horticulturist Simon shows you the plants he has propagated and which techniques he used.

Many tropical effect, cold hardy exotic plants are surprising easy to propagate and that means taking cuttings, sowing seed are dividing sections of root Of course certain plants will respond better to each ot these techniques so this is discussed in this video as well as showing you the results of these techniques.

Did I just Kill My Lemon Tree? Is my Lemon Dead? The answer may surprise...

My lemon tree has come through the winter looking like a stack of dead twigs so did I just kill my lemon tree? The answer may surprise you but rather than give the surprise away here you should check out the video instead.

Lemon trees are a fantastic addition to the summer garden and are surprisingly robust and easy to grow. What they don't like however is freezing conditions but there are an increasing number of cultivars that are capable of tolerating cold winters such as the meyers lemon. Last year winter was particularly cold with temperatures dropping to -7 degrees Celsius, far colder than even the hardiest lemons to cope with even with winter protection. So what happened to our lemon when the spring finally arrived? ell check out the above video to find out.

What is a Stumpery Garden

So, just what is a 'Stumpery' garden? Well, similar to a rockery it is a garden which used old tree stumps to create an artistic design within a garden setting. The first stumpery was built in 1856 at Biddulph Grange and they remained popular in Victorian Britain. We visit one of the best modern stumperys in the UK which was built with in the walls of Arundel castle, West Sussex.

So why not check out the video of our visit to Arundel castles stumpery, arguably one of the best examples in the country. Of course it is not just the tree stumps that give ornamental effect it is the planting scheme supporting it to show of these magnificent piece of nature architecture that really make this garden shine.

Tropical Gardens UK: 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Planting Exotic Sago Palm...

Sago Palms or Cycads - Cycas revoluta are a fantastic choice for the tropical effect, cold hardy, exotic garden. However there are a few mistakes you need to avoid when planting or potting them on. In this video English horticulturist Simon explains what you need to know to get the best performance out of this wonderful plant.

One of the first things to know is that the Sago palm requires a slightly acidic compost, and that the compost itself need to be well draining as cycads can be susceptible to soil borne fungal infections. Most cycads are sold as either houseplants or kept under cover outside which means the foliage is grown fairly soft which can put this plant at risk when placed directly into a position that receives full sun.

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When and How to Trim, Prune and Cut back Camellias

In general, when and how to trim, prune and cut back Camellias is all about making sure you do so in such a way that your prized specimen will bloom again the following spring. Get the timing wrong on this and you could delay flowering until the year after next!

The same goes for a hard pruning, do so after flowering but this can still shock the plant preventing it from flowering the following year.

If you want to have your camellias flower the following year then there is only one opportunity to trim, prune and cut back your camellias and that is immediately after flowering. If you wish to make hard cuts then theoretically this can be done any tie of year but over the summer is generally considered the best time s evergreen plants are generally dormant and also the dry whether reduces the risk of infections entering the wounds.

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Tropical Gardens UK: Lazy-Boy method to take Salvia Cuttings for Free Pl...

Salvias are a great addition for the cold hardy, tropical effect, exotic garden so check out this lazy-boy method to take Salvia Cuttings and get ready to find homes for some free plants.

The salvia genus is host to around 1000 shrubs, herbaceous perennials, and annuals with many of the woody shrubs being super-easy to propagate from cuttings. In this video English horticulturists shows arguably the simplest method to successfully propagate woody salvias from cuttings.

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Tropical Gardens UK: New Plants for Our Exotic Garden

We love the spring because it is a great time to asses our garden for the coming season and is a wonderful excuse for us to add new plants for our exotic garden. So we have pulled a selection of the plants we have chosen to solidify the our tropical effect garden which we hope you will enjoy. But don't worry as we probably adding new specimens throughout the year.

A number of the plants discussed here are those we have propagated ourselves or purchased online from specialist nursery's. This is because they are very difficult to find at you local garden centre but you can usually find what you need by googling it even though it may arrive much smaller than you would expect despite the generally high postage costs!

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Tropical Gardens UK: How to Repot a Cycad - Cycas revoluta

A Cycad is a gorgeous addition to a tropical effect, exotic garden but once they get to big for their pot how do you repot a Cycad - Cycas revoluta? Where there are couple of things you need to know to get the best out of your Cycad going forward and in this video as English Horticulturist Simon explains.

The first thing to know is they they do not like to have their roots disturbed so try to avoid potting regular repotting. Instead plant them directly into as large a container as you can tolerate. Secondly use ericaceous compost. Cycads are not from the Ericaceae family but they do require a slightly acidic compost around pH 5.5-6.0. Further advise is discussed in the accompanying video.

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How to Prune Fruit Trees: Current Best Practice by Leading Orchard Owner...

If you want to know how to prune fruit trees then you would struggle to find anyone better than leading orchard owner - Matthew Foster, to show you the current best practice. Owner and manager of Dingle farm in Worcestershire, Matthew has been running his orchard of stone fruits for over ten years and produces arguably the best cherry crop in the country.

So why not join us as we pick his brains on the best way to prune fruit trees. If you would like to see more content like this then check out the other videos on our YouTube channel 'Walking Talking Gardeners'. It is absolutely free to subscribe to and if you click onto the notification 'bell' icon then you can be notified whenever a new video is published.