From a contributor
This is the second article I am writing for the online version of In Touch and already this is the June edition.
The garden has been thoroughly weeded, plants have been staked and gaps have been filled with one or two of the plants that I either took cuttings from or divided in readiness last autumn for a couple of plant sales that unfortunately never happened. I am still manfully watering them and re-potting where necessary. They are growing so well I shan’t be able lift them on to a sales table at this rate!
Last year I took pity on a large pot of delphiniums that were in a sale at the end of the season outside Asda in Stowmarket. I think it was £1.50 and when I got them home and took them out of the pot there were in fact five plants that had been crammed in together. No wonder they looked desperate! I potted them on individually and four of them rallied. I planted them in the garden in the autumn, three in one border and the other I grew on over the winter in a pot. Of the three planted together, two made it through the soggy winter but just as new shoots appeared they were munched by slugs or snails. The hot dry weather in April helped and they put on some more growth.
Tidying up the shed I found two bags of wool pellets I had bought last year which act as a slug and snail deterrent. I had used them around the vegetables and, apart from a smell of wet sheep when it rains, they seemed to be quite effective. I have put a little pile of them around each delphinium plant in hopes of keeping the slugs and snails away – my own little form of social distancing!
The situation at the moment means that the garden club is not having monthly meetings or visits but you can find out all about our programme for 2020/2021 by visiting: www.visithadleighsuffolk.co.uk.
Just go to the What’s On page where you will find month by month details of what’s happening. We usually meet at 7.30pm on the second Monday of the month at Hadleigh Town Hall and we are always happy to welcome visitors.