The Garden of Eaden: June 2023

How to Propagate, Pot on and Root an Agave Cactus Pup Side Shoot

Producing free Agaves by propagating, potting on and rooting the pups or side shoots is a great way to increase you stock of cacti. It tidies up the look of the parent plants and gives you an opportunity to grow more agaves for free!

To start with, make sure you are wearing gloves and when handling cacti be as gentle as possible as spines are easily broken. When separating the pup from the parent plant try to leave as much of the pups root on as you can and try an cause the least amount of damage possible.

If you would like watch more content like this then check out our YouTube channel 'Walking Talking Gardeners'. It is absolutely free to subscribe to and you can unsubscribe instantly at any time. Click onto the notification 'bell' icon to informed as to whenever we publish a new video.

Five Must-Have Exotic Plants for Your Tropical Garden

If you are looking to create a cold-hardy, exotic, tropical-effect garden then these are my five must-have exotic plants for your. Now this doesn't mean that there aren't other plants that are equally well deserving of garden space (which is why there is a bit of cheating going on further into the video) but it's best to keep these things as simple as possible.

It's a bit like 'exotic plant bingo' as you will see these same plants copied again and again in most tropical effect gardens and the reason for this is that they look the part and will cope with the climate condition here in the UK.

Five Mistakes to Avoid Growing Roses

Roses are amongst the most beautiful flowering plants but they can suffer for common problems such as rust, black spot, powdery mildew, crown gall and aphids , so check out these five mistakes to avoid when growing roses in order to get so much more enjoyment out of them.

So once in the garden make sure you dig in plenty of rich compost to help the plant produce its vigorous growth and huge number of flowers. Also keep a good eye out for pest and diseases and act on them in a timely fashion. Any growth from the rootstock needs to be kept in check as this will divert energy from the main plant.

How to Get Rid of the Scarlet Lily Beetle Using Organic Control

The scarlet lily beetle is a voracious pest which can cause devastation on your ornamental lilies. However using insecticides can put beneficial insects, bees and other pollinators at risk so to avoid further collateral damage get rid of your scarlet lily beetles by using my two organic methods.

The first is very simple, just remove the adults when you see them and dispose. Although that can be easier said than done as scarlet lily beetle will drop to the ground and lie on their back exposing their dark underside when disturbed. This makes then virtually impossible to find!

The second is to spray the plant with a fine coating of sunflower oil. This works well on the larvae but not so much on the adults.

Tropical gardens UK: Beautiful English Exotic Garden Late Spring Tour a...

Despite still being June, so late spring, exotic gardens are only just starting to emerge from the soil. Yet there are many cold-hardy, tropical effect-gardens being featured on YouTube. Not wanting to be left out I have videoed my own exotic garden late spring tour and walkthrough, but give it another six weeks and I expect to have a garden exploding in both size and colour - hopefully!

So join me as I check out what is new in the garden, the new plants which have just been planted and those about to flower. Specimens which were planted shortly after we moved in to this property are establishing well however we are still creating borders with newly propagated stock.

Five Mistakes to Avoid Growing Giant Sunflowers from seed

Growing giant sunflowers from seed can be fraught with problems so to save disappointment check out my five mistakes to avoid when growing giant sunflowers from seed. That way even if things do go wrong you have back up plants ready and waiting.

The key thing with growing giant sunflowers is to purchase seed which are known giant cultivars. Then plant them 2 tow a pot or if you are planting to grow them outside station sow three seeds per position with the view to removing the weakest seedings two to three weeks after they have germinated. Always make sure you sow more seeds that you need plants for as there is alway the risk of black stem disease!

Once they have been hardened off and are in position just make sure that they receive as much sunlight as possible. Don't forget to water during periods of drought and apply fertiliser as necessary.

The Easiest Way to String a Strimmer with wire, cord or line - Stihl

Garden strimmers will regularly require the wire, line or cord to be replaced and this is the easiest way to re-string a strimmer. Admittedly this is a hateful and surprisingly frustrating job but by breaking it down into a set of simple steps anyone can replace the wire inside strimmer head.

Take your time over this as there is no rush, and as soon as you become more familiar with the technique you will find that you can quickly accomplish this job is just a few minutes.

How to Water Tree Ferns 'Dicksonia antarctica' The Right Way!

For most gardeners tree ferns are a headache as they tend to deteriorate year on year once planted in the garden, however their condition can be vastly improved by using my secrets to watering tree ferns that actually work! Don't miss this video and don't forget its absolutely free to share it with your friends.

Watering is absolutely crucial to maintaining top quality condition in your tree ferns. Don't water enough and your subsequent fronds will reduce in size and vigour and over time the crown itself will shrink in size! To prevent this from happening and to actually increase the size and quantity of your fronds English horticulturist Simon explains his watering secrets in detail.

When is the Best Time of year to Prune, Cut or Trim a Camellia Plant

Attempt to trim your Camellia plant at the wrong time of year and you are likely to lose its flowers for next seasons display, so when is the best time of year to prune, cut or trim a Camellia? Well in this video English horticulturist Simon explains in detail the exact time to get your cutting tools out and get to work.

Let's be honest, once Camellias can look messy once they have put out the new season growth so the temptation to prune them back into line can be very tempting however there is a big problem in doing so. By removing the new growth you will also take with it the plant material which produce the flowering buds and without these there will be no flowers on show the following spring!

So in this video English horticulturist Simon tells you every thing you need to know about the best time of year to cut back your Camellias.

How do you Revive and Rejuvenate a Declining or Dying Tree Fern - Dickso...

Suburban gardens are full of sickly and deteriorating tree ferns so just how do you revive and rejuvenate a dying tree fern? Well in this video English horticulturist Simon explains the techniques required to bring these fascinating plant back to full health.

The key to reviving tree ferns is to have an understanding of the environment from which they have evolved from and then try to mimic that as best as possible in the garden setting. In tis instance it is all about watering and fertiliser application.

5 Five Mistakes to Avoid when Planting Acers - Japanese maples

Acers can be problematical in the garden but this can easily change if you follow these five mistakes to avoid when planting Acers - Japanese Maples. English Horticulturist Simon explains the common mistakes when growing these gorgeous plants and how to fix them.

With such a graceful, slow growing and reasonably pricey plant there is nothing worse that to have it in a declining condition, especially for many instances where this could have been rectified at the point of purchase or planting.

Tropical Gardens UK: Welcome to our Newly Planted but not yet Finished ...

Welcome to our newly planted, but not yet finished, cold hardy exotic, tropical effect garden. We started planting last year but still have a way to go as we have added a couple more bed to plant recently. We are looking to pick up a few more specimens 'as and when' we find them plus we are looking for a larger and earlier bulb display for next spring. So why not stick around and check out our other videos as the garden progresses over the next couple of years.

We still have a load of plants hardening off before they can go into the borders to fill in the gaps so come the summer the place should be a veritable jungle!

What to Avoid When Buying or Choosing a Cherry Tree

Buying a cherry tree can be fraught with anxiety as garden centre staff are about as horticulturally qualified as a tooth pick so we asked fruit tree expert Matthew Foster for his advice on what to avoid when buying or choosing a cherry tree.

As usual Matthew explained in detail exactly what you should look for as well as sharing his veritable mine of fruity knowledge you help you grow the very best tree in your garden.