Gardening with George Irvine: Why you must check the weather

Gardens need care and attention just now

After all the rain and floods which closed many local roads and inevitably submerged our gardens the soil is still a bit wet.

It will take some time to dry out so we must exercise some degree of caution about what we do.

Over the past week temperatures have dropped quite considerably and frost is on the horizon.

While this will slow down the growth of grass, gardeners need to be prepared to cope with the change that has taken place in a short space of time.

I would advocate that all gardeners should check the weather forecast daily and look out for exceptional cold nights and beware of ice when this is forecast.

It is a good idea to stock up with some bags of rock salt so that you have supplies to hand for when you need them.

Small bags available at Cardwell Garden Centre are easily carried.

Spread rock salt over pathways steps and stairs, and patios but keep the rock salt off plants and grass or you will damage them.

Talk will feature Gardenfest entries

Members of Gourock Horticultural Society meet on Tuesday October 24 at Cardwell Garden Centre when the regular attendees will have the opportunity to view all the entries submitted in this year’s Gardenfest online garden competition.

The pictures will be accompanied with a short commentary on each entry and the afternoon promises to be provide some educational benefit to those attending the event.

The talk commences at 2pm and everyone is sure to enjoy themselves. As they move into November details will be given regarding the festive arrangements.

Dahlia matters are important this year

Frost usually blackens the stems of Dahlias and this is sign that the flowering time is well and truly over. When this takes place, some gardeners will lift the tubers and over-winter them. By doing this, the tubers can be cleaned and dried and kept in a frost-free location until spring.

However, over the last few years some growers have taken a chance by leaving their tubers in the ground and this was alright if the tubers did not get frosted.

This year with because the soil is so wet there is a danger that the tubers will rot. Although some growers have been lucky in the past by leaving the tubers in the soil and covering the dahlia bed with a thick layer of straw, there is no certain assurance that the recent changes in our climate will allow this to happen.

While on the subject of dahlias, there have been quite a number of expert dahlia growers in this area. The reason for this is that most of these expert growers were originally employed by a nursery by the name of Listers of Rothesay.

Although some of these former employees left and followed other occupations, they never seemed to forget their expertise.

I know a few of these people around these parts – Inverkip and Port Glasgow to name a few, one of whom is now currently a senior member of the Scottish Branch of the Dahlia Society.

It is interesting to note that dahlia tubers were first introduced to this country as an edible food just like a potato, but once the beautiful flowers were noted dahlias were thereafter grown as a flower.

Growing spring bulbs

Over the coming weeks many gardeners will be wanting to plant their spring bulbs and daffodils.

They're one of the favourite bulbs to plant and grow on to brighten up the garden after the dull dreich days of winter. This year one needs to incorporate plenty of grit into the planting hole simply because the soil is so wet and the bulb could rot. Plenty of grit and even incorporate Perlite in the soil.

There are so many different varieties to of daffodil to choose from and this week I am intending to some of the rockery-type bulbs such as Tete-a-Tete or Jetfire.

I have chosen to grow Jetfire and I will grow these in pots or small tubs and I will begin by making sure that I have drainage holes in the bottom of the pot or container.

I then add a few inches of crock or polystyrene to the bottom of the container. On top of this I will fill to near the top with peat-free compost and will add some grit or Perlite to the compost and then plant the bulbs into the compost.

After doing this I will give the compost a light watering and then place the containers outdoors. Early in the New Year you will see the new shoots starting to appear and by spring buds will be visible. The Jet-Fire flower sport a red centre and Tete-a-Tete flowers are yellow in colour and have no red centre-piece.

Growing in raised beds

There is a growing culture in cultivating both vegetables and flowers in raised beds and if you are intending to do this for the first time do make sure that you do not make them any more than three feet broad, otherwise you will find it just a tad difficult to reach the centre of the bed.

Another advantage of growing in raised beds is that you can adopt the No-Dig system as perfected by Charles Dowding, whose theories are great for organic growing. It is easy to do. More on this will be featured in future articles.

Celebrate Halloween and pumpkin display

A superb display of pumpkins is certainly worth taking the children – and yourself too – along to see at Cardwell Garden Centre.

Competitions are available for children with prizes for the lucky winners and you can even buy your own pumpkin for Halloween. Indeed, something not to be missed.

Job for the week

Keep brushing up all the fallen leaves, or you might slip and injure yourself.