planted today - garden work

The garden is pretty full, but this month I've felled the birch and added an apple tree, and added semi evergreen honeysuckle Lonicera japonica (West facing bed near cabin), clematis Dorothy Walton (west facing bed near compost bin). I've pulled up loads of forget-me-nots, and resorted to some chemical (toxic) slug pellets.

clematis dorothy walton - planted today

clematis Dorothy Walton (group three, hard prune after first sign of growth

Initial pruning and training

If young clematis plants are left unpruned they often produce very long single stems with the flowers produced only at the very top.

Unless the plant already has three or four healthy stems growing from the base, all newly planted clematis should be pruned back hard the first spring after planting. Cut back to just above a strong pair of leaf buds about 30cm (12in) above soil level. This will encourage multiple stems which can be trained in to supports to give a good coverage.

During the spring and summer, tie in new growth, spacing stems evenly on the support.

Pruning established plants

• In February or March, cut back all the old stems to the lowest pair of healthy buds 15-30cm (6-12in) above soil level.
• Small-flowered clematis with attractive seed heads (such as C. ‘Bill MacKenzie’, C. ‘Helios’, C. orientalis, C. tangutica and C. tibetanasubsp. vernayi) can just be thinned out and trimmed back to the main framework of branches, leaving the seedheads to be enjoyed.

If left unpruned, this group will continue growing from where the growth ended the previous season, becoming top heavy, flowering well above eye level, and with a bare base. 

If desired, they can be left unpruned to scramble over pergolas where space is not limited.

cordon currants

I am trying to pack in a lot in my mini-allotment. I am working up to a semi-cordoned currant arrangement. Actually, what I'm looking for is a currant hedge. The bushes growing alongside the Greengage need to stay lower than the lowest branches of the fan. Well, it's going to be a fan, at the moment it is an upright with a branch each side at right angles and a couple of stubby attempts at a fan.

Back to the bushes. They are redcurrants, and are already fruiting. It won't be plentiful this year, but I'm working up to a bumper crop next year.