February Garden Tips

Garden notes for February 2025

As the days start to draw out, and it does not seem so gloomy the urge to get plants started is almost irresistible. Any seedbeds that have been protected under cloches or garden fleece can be started to be sown with hardy vegetables such as parsnips. You can also start to consider sowing some early cabbage and brussel sprouts. Divide and replant chives towards the end of the month.

Soil is the foundation for all plants in the garden and spending time in its preparation will bring considerable rewards. Ground that is going to be used for root crops like carrots, turnips, potato and radish should have a pH of about 7 (neutral). General fertiliser such as Growmore, or an organic alternative, should be raked in a few weeks before sowing at a rate of about 3-4 ounces per square yard.

Dahlia tubers should be started in gentle heat towards the end of the month for most of us. The keen exhibitors who want to have blooms for the Summer Show (21st August this year) may want to spend the extra time and money starting them as early as possible.

Plants to prune this month include winter flowering jasmine, and towards the end of the month all the dogwoods.

Trim back winter flowering heathers as the blooms fade, with shears to prevent them from getting overgrown and straggly. Towards the end of the month, prune buddeleia. It pays to be quite severe, cutting back all last year’s growth to just 3 or 4 buds. The result will be vigorous new stems and fine flower spikes in the summer for the butterflies to enjoy as well as you.

Now is the time to bring the stools of outdoor chrysthantemums into the greenhouse and give them a little warmth and all the light possible so that they make sturdy cuttings. Towards the middle of the month start dahlia tubers off in gentle warmth.

Do not forget your garden machinery. Look over mowers, hedge trimmers and so on. Make sure that they are ready for the onslaught when the grass and the hedges start to burst into life again. If you are like me, and not very good with machinery it is best to get them serviced by a reliable supplier. As the saying goes, ‘Look after your tools, and they will look after you’.

Most of the garden centres will be selling fuchsia cuttings, and this is a good way to get the plants you want as they can be brought on in the greenhouse without much heat, although they must be kept frost free.

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Quiz Night & Supper – 8 March 2025

Quiz Night and Supper

Saturday 8 March 2025
6.30 for 7 pm
Capel Village Memorial Hall

Our ever-popular quiz night and delicious supper is set to return.  

Teams of 6 will be testing their general knowledge (don’t worry there will not be an abundance of horticultural questions!) against one another.  Every year we sell out so do please book early to avoid disappointment.  

Pies are the order of the night!  Make your menu choice below:

  • Highland Beef Pie or
  • Coq au Vin Pie or
  • Crumble Topped Veggie Pie
  • All served with new potatoes and petit pois

Followed by:

  • New York Cheesecake with Raspberry Coulis, or
  • Meringue Roulade, or
  • Cheeseboard

Finishing with:

  • Tea, coffee and mints

All this for just £17.00 per person.  Please remember there is no bar facility so you will need to bring your own beer/wine and glasses.

Bookings should be for tables of 6 people and once your menu choice has been made, to avoid disappointment, do please stick with it.  To make your booking call 01306 711259 or email here as soon as possible.

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January Garden Tips

Garden Notes for January 2025.

After the haze of all the Christmas and New Year jollifications, the good gardener starts to look ahead. Even though the garden is asleep, it is surprising just how soon it starts to burst with life. So, think about what was successful last year and what might be a good idea to experiment with this year. How about growing a blend of salad leaves, like the ones seen in every supermarket. They can be grown, with a little bit of heat to start them off, in the early spring, don’t take up much room and are very healthy.

This is the time of year when houseplants are most appreciated. Azaleas, cineraria and cyclamen will all help to cheer things up. Do not over water, and most of these plants like cool conditions.

When your seeds arrive from the supplier keep them in a cool dry place until required. Protect pea seeds in particular because mice love them, and they have already got into our garden shed where they have started on anything that they can reach. Remember paper is no barrier to sharp teeth, and makes lovely nesting material.

Rhubarb can be forced using an upturned bucket or tub. This should be covered with garden fleece to keep off any frost. Another tip is to slice off a bit of the main root, leave it exposed for 2 or 3 frosts and then pot it up and move it into a cool greenhouse. This will make it start to produce some tender sticks of rhubarb for you to enjoy in March.

When seed potatoes arrive, keep them in a frost-free place and stand the tubers, eye-end uppermost, in shallow boxes. If you can get large egg trays these are ideal for keeping the tubers upright and just separated to prevent any infection spreading.

Remember, even if we do get a few mild days towards the end of the month that any seeds that are sown need a constant temperature to start them off, at least 8 to 10 degrees Centigrade, so do not be tempted to sow outdoors, as temperatures drop well below these levels at night time, even when it is mild.

To get the best onions for the Summer Show (Saturday August 16 2025, this year – make a note!) apart from starting the first sowings this month, you should give a good dressing of wood ash on the site of the bed that you will use, since they really like potash. For the keen gardener, sow your onion seeds as early as possible in good compost on a propagator to get them started.

Towards the middle of the month, start to make preparations for taking chrysanthemum cuttings. If you have a cold frame make sure it is ready and make up the necessary soil. A good mixture is two parts loam, one part peat, and one part sand to ensure good drainage. Any pots or boxes should be cleaned and the chrysanthemum stools brought in to start them growing sturdy cuttings.

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December Garden Tips

Garden Notes for December 2024.

What a wonderful autumn display of colours by the trees in November! Better than any firework display, in my view. Of course it is all down to the weather we have had previously. Now the plants have their winter ‘sleep’, and it is probably best to let them lie in peace. However there are a number of things you can do, as ever – a Gardener’s work is never done.

Large flowered clematis, like Clematis jackmanii and the many hybrids from it, should be pruned towards the end of the month. They can be cut back quite severely. Prune back to good, well developed buds.

Seeds of helleborus, hosta and primula can be sown in December and January. Use John Innes No.1 compost (or similar) covering the seed with a thin layer of compost. After watering them in, place the seed container against a North wall or in a cold frame making sure that they are protected from mice. Leave them there until the spring. Then bring them into a greenhouse, on a well lit, but not sunny place, and germination should then take place.

If you are planning to sow hardy annuals in the spring, they will benefit from giving the soil in the place they will go to an early preparation. So long as the soil is in reasonably good heart it is best not to put any fertiliser, since annuals do best in a soil that is not too rich.

When picking Brussels sprouts keep the tops, and only use the best when all the sprouts have been harvested. Some of the winter broccoli may be starting to form their curds. Turn in the leaves to protect the curd from frost, and cut regularly as once they have reached their full development the curds soon begin to open and will spoil.

In order to have some early shoots of mint, now is the time to lift a few roots and put them in a fairly deep seed box and cover with potting soil. Put it in a frame or the greenhouse, and you will have nice shoots in a few weeks, when everything else is still asleep in the garden.

If you are lucky enough to have a greenhouse vine, they should be pruned towards the end of the month. All side-growths should be cut back to two buds. The spurs carrying these shortened growths should be well spaced apart, at least 40 to 50 cm apart on the main rod so that overcrowding in summer is minimised.

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November Garden Tips

Garden Notes for November 2024.

All apple and pear trees should be pruned this month. Try to form the tree into a ‘wine glass’ shape to allow maximum light into the centre. Remember to long prune tip bearing varieties. Generally cut back ‘leaders’ by about one-third and prune back side growth.

Now is the time to plant bare root roses. There are masses of roses to choose from, but you should find a suitable variety that has been bred by David Austin to suit most gardens. He is the worthy successor to Harry Wheatcroft.

It is not too late to be planting tulips in November, but do it earlier rather than later in the month. If you have a sheltered and well drained plot, now is the time to sow winter broad beans such as Aquadulce. Early broad beans often escape the blackfly attacks on the growth tips of the plant in spring.

If the weather continues to be mild, grass will still be growing, so mow it as necessary as long as the ground is not sodden or frozen. When you have finished, make sure that the mower is cleaned, drain the petrol and store it in a dry place. Ensure that it has an annual service so that it is ready for all the work in the Spring. Clean greenhouses and conservatories with a suitable cleaning agent such as Agralan Citrox.

If you are planning to have a show of hippeastrum (more commonly known as ‘amarylis’), now is the time to pot these large bulbs so that the neck is above the level of the compost (otherwise it will rot and die). The pot should not be more than 2.5cm wider than the bulb itself as they like to be fairly crowded. Remember to stop watering cacti and succulents, except the Christmas cacti, until March next year. Roots of outdoor chrysanthemums should labelled, lifted and put in a cold frame for the winter. If a cold frame is not available they can be kept under the shelter of a wall and protected with garden fleece.

Hardy peas like ‘Feltham First’, ‘Meteor’ and the mangetout ‘Oregon Sugar Pod’ can be sown in an unheated greenhouse in pots so that you can enjoy an early crop next June. Sow broad beans outside in a sunny, free-draining spot.

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October Garden Tips

Garden Notes for October 2024.

Seed catalogues for next year tend to turn up in September and October.  One of them was delivered to me and I was amazed to see that the price of seed potatoes has really shot up.  The cheapest was £8.95 per kilogramme, coming down a lot if you bought in 5 kg packs but that is far too many for my plot and still means forking out nearly £25.

Autumn means that the leaves on trees start to turn.  This does depend, in part, on how cold the evenings become since the tree system does not turn off the supply of nutrients to the leaves until there has been a frost.  So that also means that the good gardener should be on the look out for their tender plants and bring them into sheltered accommodation before being desiccated by a sharp frost.  Those of you growing parsnips will relish being able to dig them after the first frost when they are at their very best.

Most houseplants will be slowing down their growth.  Water and feed less frequently.  Cacti, in particular, should be kept dry and frost-free during the winter, that includes yucca.

Plant out wallflowers, polyanthus, sweet williams, foxgloves and other similar biennials for a good display in the spring.  Spring cabbage should be planted out while the ground is still workable, keep up a succession of winter lettuce like ‘Winter Density’.  Cut remaining marrows, squashes and pumpkins.  Put them away in a dry, frost-proof place.  Clear away all the pea and bean haulm, then dig over the vacated ground.

Once the ground has been cleared it is a good idea to break it up.  If you have heavy clay (as most of us do round here) the best way is to use a spade and to leave it with large clods that will break down over the winter with weathering.  If you break the soil down too much at this time of year, it will just become a ‘pudding’ and you will have to start all over again in the spring.  Alternatively save your back and just cover the soil with a good mulch of Farmyard Manure .  I still believe in turning the ground but there are those who argue against this practice.

After the first frosts have browned off the tops of dahlias, cut them down to within 12 cm (9”) of ground level.  Mark the variety with a label, and lift the tubers so that they can be dried under cover and then stored in a frost-free place for the winter.  I have tried this over the years and never have much success.  It might be worthwhile just leaving them in the ground and covering the spot with chipped bark or ash, remembering to mark the spot with the name of the variety.  Be warned though, if we do have a prolonged cold period in the winter you could lose the tubers in the ground as well, so you pays your money and takes your choice.

If you want early sweet peas, now is the time to start them off.  For best result sow one or two seeds in rooting pots as sweet peas have an exceptionally long tap-root.  Germinate the seeds in the greenhouse with gentle, consistent warmth.  Once they have emerged sweet peas can be kept outside in a cold frame, only needing protection from the worst frosts by having a cover over them and, if you are like me, protect the seedlings from ravenous slugs and snails in the best way that you can.

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September Garden Tips

Garden Notes for September 2024.

Watering plants is always a good topic of discussion.  It is either too dry or it’s too wet.  The essential thing is to try to get the right balance.  When it is dry the closable leaf pores on plants (technically called ‘stomata’) shut down and slow down the process of photosynthesis.  When there is enough water the stomata open, transpiration takes place, allowing the air containing carbon dioxide to go into the plant, which, together with sunlight, powers the reaction of water and carbon dioxide to make the sugars that are the plant’s energy source and building blocks.  Watering keeps the stomata open in dry spells.  As a rule of thumb one square metre of vegetation draws the equivalent of an inch of rainfall every day.  Growth of plants in the summer normally requires additional irrigation.  There are now numerous automatic systems that can be put in – especially for containers and hanging baskets.

The start of autumn means that many plants are producing seed heads, which we normally ‘dead head’ to keep the succession of flowers going.  At this time it might be worth keeping them.  With the cost of seed increasing year on year (the average cost is now around £3 per packet, and can be a lot more) it might be worthwhile considering saving some seed head for sowing.  Flowers like Sweet William, Love-in-Mist (Nigella), Cosmos, or vegetables like Runner Beans, can be harvested just before the seed pod has fully dried.  Use brown paper bags to hang the seed head upside down and store in a dry place.  Remember to label the variety, and then when it is all nice and brown shake out the seed and you have saved yourself pounds for a few minutes work.  Unfortunately the lovely hybrids that abound now will not breed true and you will have to rely on the expertise of the professional for that, but if you don’t mind a variety of colour in your Sweet William and so on it is fine.

Whilst the desirable seed heads should be kept, do watch out for all the weeds making sure that they survive.  Milk Thistle, Shepherd’s Purse, Plantain and Groundsel– the list is endless, all should be removed before the flower has had time to set seed.  I have been having a purge on Shepherd’s Purse that became rampant last year.  It seems that no sooner than I have collected another bunch than an equal amount appears on another part of the vegetable garden.  In a bit of land where I have a few fruiting trees there has been a crop of the weed called ‘henbane’ but recently I have made sure to strim the growing plants before they can go to seed.  But they still come back every year.

September is the best month to plant daffodils outside, so make sure you have ordered your new supplies.  New varieties are always being offered, like ‘Easter Bonnet’ which has a white perianth and large pink cup.  Then there is another one called ‘Petit Four’ which has an unusual cup that opens out into a ball of apricot.

Carrots should be lifted and stored before the roots start to split, which they will do very quickly once the heavy autumnal rains begin.  Tomatoes should be cleared from the greenhouse so that it can be prepared for autumn and winter flowers.  Onions should be dried and ripened off.  In our uncertain weather it is a good idea to put them into a greenhouse or bench where there is plenty of air circulating before tying them up into ropes.  Alternatively, use the mesh bags that are used in grocery stores.  They need to be kept in the light and to have plenty of air round them, unlike potatoes that need to be stored in thick paper sacks with the light excluded.

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August Garden Tips

Garden Notes for August 2024.

Plant Madonna lilies now, with not more than 2” of soil above each bulb.  Order lilies for autumn delivery.  Tiger lilies and some hybrids produce bulbils between the leaves and the stem.  Gather the bulbils when they fall at a touch and plant them in a deep seed box, about 2” apart.

Keep shrubs tidy by dead heading.  Especially roses, but do not apply rose fertiliser after the end of July, this avoids late soft growth which will not mature before winter.

Laurel is a very useful plant but it is very vigorous and August is the month to keep it neat by trimming your laurel hedge.  Some gardeners say that the laurel hedge should be trimmed using secaturs only.  This does give a much improved finish, if you have the time.  Using shears is much quicker and does not substantially make much difference.  If you can allow your compost more than 2 years to compost, then put your laurel trimmings on to it.  If, like me, you can only keep the compost heap for a matter of months, it is better to get rid of the laurel leaves since they take a long time to decompose due to their waxy surface.

Dahlias are supposed to be making a come back, having been rejected as being too gaudy.  I have always liked them, and wish that I could grow specimens to compete in the Summer Show (this year to be held on Saturday 17 August).  To even have a chance, now is the time to make sure that you disbud them, only one flower being kept on each stem.  Dahlias will also need to be tied in as their stems become very heavy with the foliage and bloom and are easily broken by gusts of wind.

Cut out old raspberry canes that have fruited this year.  Cut them down to ground level and retain only six or seven of the strongest new canes on each plant for fruiting next year.  Overcrowding of the canes can lead to a higher incidence of disease.

Cut gladioli for indoor use when the first floret has opened.  For exhibition plants the timing of cutting is dependent on the variety.  The idea is to have as many florets open as possible.  Remember to leave 4 –5 leaves when cutting a spike.

Keep cutting sweet pea blooms.  Never allow the blooms to fade or droop otherwise the flowering period will be shortened.

Early in the month sow spring cabbage.  Recommended varieties include ‘Early Market’, ‘Harbinger’, ‘Flower of Spring’ and ‘Wheeler’s Imperial’.

Provide you have a place where the seed can germinate at temperatures below 20 C sow some lettuce for cutting in the winter.  Try ‘Winter Density’ or ‘Artic King’.

Keep a careful watch for potato blight.  Cut off affected haulm and destroy it, don’t compost it.

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Housing Needs Survey

 
Housing Needs Survey for
Capel Parish Council
for inclusion in the Neighbourhood Plan
 
Survey runs from Monday 8 July
to Monday 5 August 2024
 
Do you want to downsize, are you currently living at home with parents and want your own home, or do you need alternative accommodation?
 
Do you know people who wish to return to the Parish?
 
Do you have friends currently working in the Parish, but they live elsewhere and would prefer to live closer to their employment?…