Category: Member Articles

Hares and Slugs : A Reflection on these Gardening “Companions”

HARES ARE GREAT BUT IT SEEMS I MUST LEARN TO LOVE SLUGS!

I went to the Milton Annual Village meeting in June and found it very encouraging; it was all about improving sustainability and diversity in and around the Wychwoods – plus encouraging more localism in terms of ‘field to fork’ food production.

Now, as an allotmenter and producer of an unreliable supply of vegetables (of variable quality) this was music to my ears. Sadly, in contrast to all this positivity, and with fresh vegetables so much in demand, it is a shame that many of our allotment plots are being neglected and producing nothing.

I know some plots are becoming available – so why not have a go at growing your own?

Human activity and climate change are putting nature under pressure. We need to garden with wildlife in mind and balance the needs of diversity and production. I find that the wildlife is a lot less critical of what I produce than those at home.

Nature is not much into sharing and so increasingly the allotment plots need to be fenced and the crops covered to ward against the more enthusiastic predation by our wild friends.

Despite the losses I still have a soft spot for the hare(s). They do tend to nab the broad beans but as long as they don’t take too many, I can live with that. However, much as I like them, I don’t need them to be specially directed to my plot!

The notice has been there for a while. Thank goodness hares can’t read. They can’t, can they….?

While on the subject of wildlife, this year does seem to have produced a bumper crop of slugs and snails. Of course, they are part of nature and a food source for other creatures. I have been told that my negative opinion of them should be balanced with an acknowledgement of their role in the cycle of life.

I’ve always accepted a degree of slug damage but currently my attempts to grow salads and brassicas just seem to be sustaining their booming population numbers. I’ve pretty much given up on eradication (which was very ineffective anyway) but I am struggling to change my view of slugs.

Gardeners’ Joy, Close to Home

Imagine all those beautiful large gardens we can visit in the Cotswolds!

But then,  I realise that that I get just as much pleasure walking around our villages and seeing what is growing in gardens, along pathways and in the hedgerows. 

In fact, visiting those superb large gardens can make you feel rather inadequate although half an hour back in your own plot puts everything to rights.

Throughout the year there are so many sights to lift the spirits.  The daffs around Milton playing field, beautiful magnolias in peoples gardens, fresh green foliage and moss on stones and tree trunks.  Wild flowers in the summer and the glorious sight of a mass of ox eye daisies.  Even bare trees silhouetted against a lowering sky.

It’s not just plants that catch the eye when you’re out walking.  There’s the pleasing sight of old buildings, iron railings, (a particular favourite of mine), a carefully tended front garden and of course the pleasure of stopping to chat with friends.

I feel gardeners are especially aware of the wildlife that surrounds us just because we spend so much time outdoors.  The fieldfares on fallen apples, the arrival of the swifts and swallows, the song of the skylark and the bats on a summer’s evening. 

Also rather less appealing, evidence of badgers after they’ve eaten all your carrots and laid the tops out neatly in a row and the mysterious disappearance of pea seeds until you see a fat mouse scuttling away.

Taking children to the Wild Garden is fun.  Seeing their delight as they explore the wood and ponds with the added attraction of DUCKS, a surefire winner.

Ducks in the Wild Garden, Shipton under Wychwood

Further afield visits to plant shows like Malvern and Chelsea are an opportunity to see the best of the best and to share your garden passions with knowledgeable experts.  Not to mention the joy of acquiring a new plant, well plants, which you just know you’ll be able to squeeze in somewhere!

June and July are special months in the garden.  All the hard work has paid off, the veg is growing and the plants are flowering their hearts out.  It’s time to sit down with a cuppa or even better a glass of wine and enjoy.

Nicky Pratt

Green? What’s That?

As a bit of a Geek it seems fair to say that green is just how our brains interpret the specific wavelength of light entering our eyes, and it is possible you do not see exactly what I do.  

Nonetheless, it is the colour we associate with most growing things, and we all know that it is good ‘to eat up your greens’ even if we don’t all do it.   I would put it to you that it is even better to grow your own greens.   You know exactly how they have been grown and the food miles are minimal – another green bonus.   

I couldn’t resist using the picture, I may never grow another cauliflower like it!  

It is possible to harvest ‘greens’ all year round.  So, it is time to plan ahead, clear and mulch the areas you haven’t got round to and get sowing and planting.  Traditionally brassicas need rich ground and a fair bit of space.  That is no problem in a large garden or on an allotment but if you have neither don’t despair. They will all grow usefully in containers or small beds.  

Growing them closer together will produce smaller plants but the crop for the area is likely to be greater.  Also, you can more easily control their environment and keep pests such as pigeons and cabbage white butterflies at bay.

April is a good time to sow most things.   The winter-cropping greens such as cabbage, kale, sprouting broccoli, leeks and the dreaded sprouts can all be sown in modules or pots and planted out late May or June.   They are normally slow to mature but will give you winter veg when most other plants have given up.      Summer crops are not usually frost-hardy, so runner beans, French beans and peas should be sown now for planting out when the chance of frost has reduced.  

Some Broad Beans and peas are hardy and can even overwinter to give an early crop.  The results can be variable, but it is worth giving it a go.   To my mind the first broad beans are one of the great treats of spring. 

Plus, don’t forget the salad plants which can be sown little and often right through the summer – I love lettuce – and fresh herbs need very little room.

So, in short, get on with sowing those greens!

Barking up the Right Tree? We hope so!

Season follows season and, like the weather, we gardeners discuss ad infinitum what to do in our gardens. But really the gardening and allotment calendar stays pretty constant. Dream-Dig-Plant-Weed-Curse (along those lines). Of course, there are moments when we think ‘how lovely that looks’ or ‘how tasty that is’. We’re not completely mad.

This time of year is definitely Dream Time. We’re dreaming now about a pretty little tree we’ve planted in a smallish space in the garden. We wanted something native that wouldn’t grow too large or shade other plants and that would be “good for the environment” because we’ve all got to do our bit apparently. We looked at the Woodland Trust website and it suggested: “combat climate change at home: 6 UK native trees to plant in small gardens”. 

Their website claims that ‘each tree in your garden will filter the air around it, absorbing pollutants and locking up carbon in its trunk, roots, and the soil. It can slow the fall of heavy rain and help drink up water from intense storms. Species of wildlife depend on every tree for different reasons. As temperatures rise, water supplies suffer and natural cycles change. Planting more trees increases the chance for wildlife to secure food and shelter during increasing times of trial.’

That’s a lot of responsibility for a little tree.

The Wildlife Trust suggests we plant a Crab Apple, Juniper, Osier Willow, Hazel, Blackthorn or Silver Birch. They all thrive in specific conditions and are valuable for different types of wildlife. Looking at our conditions and wanting something new, we opted for a Silver Birch. 

Bought from Applegarth in Chipping Norton, with the 10% discount from MUWAGA membership, it looked a bit forlorn in its little pot. But we planted it. And if we don’t burden it with facts and figures about climate change and how we expect it to solve them all by itself, hopefully it will thrive with time and care. It will provide seeds, host insects, and give shelter for small birds such as long-tailed tit, siskin, greenfinch and redpoll for many years to come.

Think You Can Rest? Think Again!

I suspect your current focus is on Christmas and I do hope Santa and his troupe of busy elves meet your requests.  

But I want to look further ahead.   New Year cometh and it can be cold and gloomy indoors as well as out, especially  if like us you are trying to do your bit for the climate and keep the heating bills down. But all the same, there are many things you can do to prepare the garden for the coming year and avoid the unseemly rush to do things as the weather improves.   

So, here is a rallying call to get on and do what you can in the next couple of months to prepare for Spring – a time of expectation and hope for good things to come:

  • Take Stock    Look back at what succeeded or failed in the last year and adjust your approach.  The effects of climate warming are with us.  Now is an ideal time  to think about what has changed, and what plants can do better in the increasingly turbulent weather that seems to be our lot.
  • Act    Make the changes you think necessary.     In particular, prepare beds for planting and sowing when the weather allows.
  • Order What You Need   If you have not already done so, order seeds and any shrubs or trees you need.    It is usually cheaper to order shrubs and trees bare rooted so that they can establish well.  If they arrive before you are ready, or the weather is too bad, heel them in on a spare spot and plant them later.  It is important not to let the bare roots dry out.
  • Do Your Winter Clean    I know – who likes cleaning?    Pests and diseases can persist in greenhouses, pots and containers and on your tools.   Give them a good clean it will help to combat future problems.
  • Divide herbaceous perennials       Probably best to do this as the weather warms, or in a mild spell.   My view is that plants are pretty tough, so do it when you can.
  • Prune shrubs and fruit trees    I usually wait too long to do this, and it gets overtaken by spring tasks so, do it in any mild spell.    Cut down autumn fruiting raspberries.  Do a general tidy up.

Happy Gardening!

Busy Times in the Autumn Garden

Autumn is upon us, and we can but hope for some more of those dry sunny days to make up for some of those bleaker August moments.  Autumn for gardeners is as busy as it gets, I find. In the garden and on the allotment, there is still harvesting to do, saving seeds, pruning, tidying and soil maintenance including mulching borders.

So, looking forward – many people start their broad beans, peas, onions and garlic at his time of year to get a head start. I have been told that turnips grow well and will produce tasty small vegetables in as little as six weeks. I wish I’d had space to try a row this autumn. To that end I am planning to install some raised beds to fit in more crops in the garden next year. I was greatly inspired by the MUWAGA visit to Gerald Stratford’s garden in July this year. Not many houses have a large garden nowadays and people must prioritise.  Much can be learned from Gerald’s creative use of space.

Some Simple Ideas

It is time also to plant bare root trees, hedges and spring bulbs and do jobs like divide rhubarb. Perhaps also a gentle reminder to take up dahlias after the first frost, cut back, drain, label and wrap in newspaper and keep in a frost-free place. How about a colourful winter garden? Tips on plants to establish one were offered in last season’s November MUWAGA talk. ( see Winter into Spring planting )

To Light a Fire ….

And so also, it’s time to do all those other tidying-up jobs – especially those leaves! Traditionally of course, people would not hesitate to rake them up into a pile and set fire to the lot along with other garden detritus. These days, we are all encouraged to be more cautious, and so the leaf-mould composting route beckons.

But, about bonfires, I’m still with ol’ Thomas Hardy with this – probably my favourite autumn aphorism – “To light a fire is the instinctive and resistant act of man when, at the winter ingress, the curfew is sounded throughout Nature…. Black chaos comes, and the fettered gods of the earth say: ‘Let there be Light’.”

Batten Down the Hatches

It seems the weather is all or nothing these days.  First it was dry and now it is wet, who knows what’s coming next.   This year’s warm weather is lovely though.    So, I am not going to dwell on autumn and, you know, that season that follows that begins with a ‘W’.    We should be well into harvest time now, a time to celebrate our successes in garden and allotment.  Perhaps even the opportunity to step back, draw a breath after the rush that always seems to fill the early growing season, and relax and enjoy late summer’s warm embrace.   

But we gardeners are not the only ones celebrating and enjoying our crops and garden gems.    The wildlife likes them too!    I am the first to say that we need to do all that we can to support the wildlife.   After all, as we are regularly told, our ultimate survival is dependent on theirs.   

Increasingly, our furry and feathered friends, alongside those that crawl and creep, see our gardens and allotments as a place to dine.    I suppose to them gardens and allotments are the equivalent of supermarket shelves stacked with good things and what’s more, they’re free!  

Now, I accept some losses, but controlled sharing is not in nature’s vocabulary.  So, we need to balance things up.    However, if like us you do not want to cause harm or use pesticides, mechanical barriers are the answer, and if you go down to the allotments today (just like the Teddy Bears) you’ll see every kind of barrier: from solid wire netting clad fences, all sorts of nets to fleece and enviromesh which also keeps the bugs at bay.    It’s not pretty but it IS effective; no animals are hurt in the process, and we get our share of the produce and blooms that we work so hard to produce.     

Over the years it seems we have to protect ever more crops or losses would increase year by year.   I wonder, is it the additional stresses from climate change or just learned behaviour, perhaps it is both.  Does anybody know?

Springtime: Certain Uncertainties

Spring in Milton under Wychwood

I sat down in great anticipation to scribe a few MUWAGA words for the spring edition of The Wychwood, and I reflected, that spring felt early as I wrote. So, a good omen then, and an inspiration for their springtime edition. But in the throes of a Covid-induced haze, I could think only of

Spring has sprung

The grass has riz

I not know who I are

Nor what I iz

There are so many versions of this doggerel.  People say the original comes from Ogden Nash, but this may not be the case. It is sometimes called “The Brooklyn National Anthem” and it dates maybe from 1940.  Who can be certain of the original?  The most famous version highlights the literalist’s confusion over the expression “the birds are on the wing”. Indeed, literalists will point to the unassailable truth – for them – that in fact the wings are very much on the bird!

So, looking for certainties, it is pleasing to reflect that recently the Royal Horticultural Society predicted a glorious blossom season this spring. The combination of the dry, sunny summer last year – perfect for bud formation – and the cold snap at the start of February, which prevented early blossoming, is set to produce a visual feast to raise the spirits. The hope is that any new cold snap will already be too late to deter healthy blossom-buds in the trees.

One thing which is becoming clearer: we now know which plants and shrubs in the garden have succumbed to those spells of cold and sudden thaw of those few months ago.  For sure, we have lost a few plants including a dark red Phormium and one of our passion flowers. But others may yet revive. When the threat of frost has passed, we can cut back the damaged parts – on the Choisya for example. Simple, clean cuts with those duly sharpened secateurs – sharp if we have followed Tony’s advice around winter chores! Meantime, if there are any gaps in the borders, it is a good excuse to go shopping, to make use of those MUWAGA members’ discounts….

Some more certainties were in the air during a recent MUWAGA evening, with our local expert Gerald Stratford who regaled us with his stories of a new-found media career. He had an audience of 50+ members and guests fully engaged with his expert advice on making and sourcing compost, growing and storing a variety of staple vegetables, and answering questions to help us understand better the dos and don’ts of growing our vegetables. Certainties never felt more attainable!

Time to Get Ready – Slowly

Christmas and New Year are a distant memory.   If you’re like me you can barely remember the effort it took to smile, even laugh delightedly when another pack of socks or hankies arrived when Santa’s letter specifically asked for a pruning saw.    Put that behind you, it’s time to look forward not back.

Spring is just around the corner and, hopefully, you’re all fired up, but temper your enthusiasm.  Unless the procession of strange seasons continues the soil will still be wet, perhaps frozen (as it is as I write this) and doing anything to prepare the ground is likely to cause damage to the soil structure and make it harder to work later on.    If there are some weeds, I suggest you leave them.   Weeds can make the garden look untidy but they are protecting the soil structure and our small garden residents need hiding places if they are to be ready to do good work as the season warms up.

That does not mean there is nothing to do.    Now is the time when you can get the tools sorted out.  Check the handles, give them a clean and put sharp edges on hoes, shears, secateurs and so on; it will make for lighter work later.     Go on, spoil yourself and give the lawnmower and strimmer a service as well.    I find if I don’t do it now, it doesn’t get done.    

The other, rather more enjoyable task, for me at least, is to look through the packets of seeds and sort them into some sort of sowing order.   It helps me remember to sow them and avoid overlooking the odd one which I then ‘rediscover’ too late to use them.                                                                         

Spring officially starts in March (according to the Met Office).   Like the dates on seed packets just take it as guidance, particularly now with the seasons becoming more variable.   Seed wants to grow, it is the natural order, but in nature it waits until the conditions are favourable and we must do the same.   

Plants that need a long season like tomatoes you may need to sow indoors with some heat so they are ready by the time the weather is warm enough but for the rest my advice is to be patient, wait for the soil to warm up and sow little and often to hedge your bets and, with luck get a succession of crops.

Coming Up

All our talks are held in Milton Village Hall on the 4th Wednesday of the month and we open at 7 with the talk starting at 7:30pm.  A smorgasbord of talks is scheduled.

On February 22nd we have a Vegetable Growing Workshop and Q&A and on March 22nd it’s all about Planting in Containers.   All are welcome and if you are not a MUWAGA member we would love to see you and all we ask is the princely sum of £1.50.     Why not test the water?  I look forward to seeing you there.

Happy gardening!                                         

Harvest is nigh – and the future is upon us!

The harvest is nigh!

And so with late summer here, and the fruits of the season’s labours can be gathered in! But the heat! In spite of its relentless presence, I hear that  runner beans, tomatoes and onions, as well as root crops all seem to have been doing well this year. But maybe I am not alone  in finding some brassicas have been less successful due to a greater number of aphids earlier in the season. Maybe I was a bit late in taking the advice to spray them early with a soap solution . Something to be aware of next time, I think.

But mid- and late summer is also a time to look forward. Apart from repeat sowings of lettuce, radish, spinach, french beans and beetroot for this year’s cropping, it is time to plan ahead by sowing winter and cabbage, for example. You can also harvest herbs for future use. Mint, thyme, rosemary and sage can all be air-dried by hanging in loose bunches in a warm place. Other herbs such as basil, parsley, coriander and dill can be frozen in bags or in ice after blanching.

Similarly, seed-collection from the flower beds for next season’s use is part of the late summer routine, in tandem with dead-heading for continuity for the season. Meantime, in the fruit garden, after reports of bumper cops of strawberries this year, it is time to transplant those strawberry runners to ensure next years’ increase.

As for such advice and its merits: earlier this summer I heard an edition of Radio 4’s “Start the Week” on “A Revolution in Food and Farming”.  I was reminded as I regularly am, of how much there is to know about this whole gardening and horticultural caper and to be wary of conflicting certainties! George Monbiot (“Regenesis”) and Sarah Langford (“Rooted”) have both published extraordinarily far-reaching studies on the state of global farming and future solutions to feeding the world. In the radio discussion, Monbiot quoted from a particular peer-reviewed study, upon which he had based key elements of his argument. Langford countered that she had also studied this paper, and come to an exact opposite conclusion!

Best, therefore to enjoy the uncertainties! That’s what keeps us talking, we happy and humble gardeners and allotmenteers. MUWAGA evenings offer just such an opportunity, and we are looking forward to our new season of talks starting on September 28th. Details of this and our evolving programme are here. Do please also take a look at the reviews of recent talks to give a flavour of what to expect.

Members meantime are looking forward to meeting on August 20th in the Village Hall garden for a social afternoon to mark the harvest season and enjoy tales of mutual success – and indeed commiserate on mutual failures. Why not become a member and join us – it’s not too late for the coming season!

Fare Forward, Gardeners!