Landscape gardener Will Nash on common problems and simple insider tips.
Having worked in family homes, making over gardens and building new landscapes for kids to play in, adults to relax in and friends to socialise in, professional gardener Will Nash takes a down to earth view of the job in hand. He strongly believes it should never be complicated and that we can all give it a go if we have the confidence.
Here are a few of his quick tips for common problems.
Will’s gardening do’s and don’ts:
1. Slugs
I don’t like to use slug pellets. The slugs seem to avoid them and if they do eat them the birds who eat the slugs can be harmed by the pellets. Instead, try to encourage hedgehogs – they’re the perfect slug-clearer!
2. Lawns
Don’t presume that the lawn needs replanting just because it’s gone a bit pale under a few pots. Grass is really very resilient. However, you will have a problem where grass dies away because it’s in a shaded area. If this is the case, try to keep fallen leaves cleared when you can and in spring re-seed in those patches that died when shaded during the darker months.
3. Trellis
It’s nice to add a bit of colour to your walls by putting up trellis, but it’s a common mistake to drill the trellis too close to the wall. It needs a good couple of inches space behind the frame in order to let the plants wind around it from both sides.
4. Bedding
Don’t buy bedding plants when they’re too small, at the beginning of the season. By late-May or early-June, they might look a little more ragged in their pots, but their roots will be better developed and stand a better chance when you plant them in your garden. You might find they’re cheaper by then, too.
5. Mulching
Some mulch is fine, but don’t lay down too much or the base of your plants will no longer be protected by soil and they won’t be getting the good nourishment they really need from the ground itself.