Garden Centre

Monday, November 3, 2008

November garden tasks: get those suckers!

Yes, it’s that time of year. Both fruit trees and ornamentals (those purchased for their blossom or beautiful autumn leaf colour) are prone to producing suckers from their roots and stem bases because the chosen variety was grafted on to the roots of another robust, disease-resistant variety that is now making a bid for dominance via the suckers. Wisteria are prone to base suckering too, which is great if your wisteria is a wall covering but less great if it’s climbing a pillar. In either case, November is the time to prune the suckers neatly back to the base of the main plant with secateurs or a sharp knife.

It’s also leaf-fall month.

I do get fed up with picking up leaves, although I tell myself it’s great aerobic exercise and anyway, the sound of a leaf vacuum is one of the least pleasant garden noises, so I would never have one, even if I could afford it. And I tell myself that lots of leaves mean lots of leaf-mould. To make leaf mould for yourself, make a few holes in the base and sides of a robust black bin liner and then rake or collect your leaves and pack them into the bag - it's best to do this on a dry, non-windy day or you simply double your work.

When the bag is full, sprinkle the leaves with rainwater (it’s softer than tap-water and therefore more likely to help the leaves break down) tie the top of the bag with string and shake well. Don’t, as I once did, shake the bag before tying it, as you will almost certainly let go of it and have to collect your leaves all over again! Put the bag a shady, wind-free spot (or tie the string to a hook in your shed, which is what we do) and in a year the leaves will have become a sort of chestnut brown oat-textured material which makes a superb mulch. Either use them like that or tip two bags into one (they will have shrunk a lot by now) to make room for that year’s fresh leaves and let them rot for another year, by which time they will be an almost black granular material which is a fantastic soil conditioner.


Autumn leaves courtesy of Dominic's pics

Labels: leaf mould, November garden tasks, suckering plants

The All Seasons Gardener at 12:52 PM

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