Tips for December

Clear leaves from paths, and where they lie thickly on grass.

Tie in whippy shoots of climbing roses before they are damaged.

Float a ball in the fish pond to reduce the pressure of ice on the structure, and to prevent total freezing.

Ensure the potting shed is clean and tidy, and all pots and trays are washed, ready for next season.

All dahlias and cannas should have been lifted by now, after the frost has blackened the top foliage.

Tie in whippy shoots of climbing roses before they are damaged.

Float a ball in the fish pond to reduce the pressure of ice on the structure, and to prevent total freezing.

Ensure the potting shed is clean and tidy, and all pots and trays are washed, ready for next season.

All dahlias and cannas should have been lifted by now, after the frost has blackened the top foliage.

Winter Wonderland

Odd patches of bright colour are all that's left in the gardens, from early bulbs and evergreens such as mahonia (see pic).

The leaves have gone through a rainbow of hues, and almost all have now fallen. This of course means that leaf collecting must now begin as we have start clearing leaves from paths, and areas where the trees have completely shed their leaves. We are also collecting leaves where they lie in thick layers, from lawns and borders as they can damage grass and other low growing plants. Using a lawnmower will chop the leaves into smaller pieces, and add grass clippings which speeds up decomposition when storing leaves for leafmold. It is important however, to burn leaves from plants that have suffered from leafspot etc as the spores will overwinter on the leaves and then reinfect anything they get near enough to touch.

In my July diary, I mentioned that the heat of the summer had caused a serious problem for the carp in the garden lake, after which a firm was called in to relocate some of the stock. They finally arrived last month, and used an electronic probe to stun the fish for a few seconds so that they were easier to net. Although the amount of silt in the lake caused a problem with the electronic pulse, they managed to collect a tank containing over 100lb of fish, mostly common carp, and all in very good condition, the heaviest single fish weighing in at 16lb. The fishermen were pleased with the number and condition of the carp, and intend to return when the weather is colder because apparently, the fish move about less in colder conditions, making them easier to find, and net.

After last month's discussions about the new Kitchen Garden, all the garden staff, including Dennis, the Kitchen Gardener, have been busy drawing up plans and putting forward suggestions. We hope that December will see the beginning of some of the basic groundwork, as we break the final design down into managable chunks.

And last, but not least, it is that time again. We are preparing to see you again at our second, even more spectacular Illuminated Trail. Have you seen the single tree on the hill by junction 7 of the M5, after sunset? Very pretty.

Tips for November

Ensure that all tender plants have been taken into the warm, or protected by fleece or straw as we are just starting to get those nippy nights

Check guttering/drains and keep them clear.

Lift and divide borders, so that perennials are regenerated for a better display.

Top dress borders with leafmold, well rotted manure, or compost from the local recycliing centre.

The Tree Climbing Dog

October has been a busy, yet interesting month: The trees have shown their colour both with leaves and with berries (see pic: callicarpa Profusion), and we have been open during October weekends so that people could enjoy it with us.

One very exciting thing that has occured is a decision to redesign the Kitchen Garden, to grow small quantities of a larger variety of vegetables, in a redesigned layout. If all goes to plan some of the work will be acheived over the winter and the improvements can be viewed when we open again next year.

We were repairing a section of staging in one of the greenhouses last week, and discovered something that caused a bit of interest. The old staging had been removed, and underneath was a long cast iron heating pipe which had a cast iron open-topped box constructed round part of it. We have yet to discover what it was for, but think that it may have been some sort of propagation box. We have left it intact, under some new staging.

This November we are digging up the eastern half of the South Border, dividing the perennials and giving a top dressing of well rotted manure. We are lucky to have a farm on the estate that provides all the manure we can use!

After all the excitement of being on TV with the Taxol article, a friend connected to the BBC came for a walk with us and our dogs, and saw one of them, Holly, climb up a tree. She thought it would make a good 'end of the news' story and again we had a cameraman in the gardens.
This one has certainly created a talking point as people have come to the gardens to see where the 'tree climbing dog' lives!

Topical Tips for October

Start sowings of hardy annuals and sweet peas under glass

Change the plantings in hanging baskets for winter interest

Lift and divide herbaceous perennials

Lift and store main crop potatoes.

Store undamaged apples and pears in a cool, dark well ventilated room such as a garage or garden shed.

Prepare the garden for winter: keep drains and ponds etc free from leaves and debris, clean and store garden tools, ensure that greenhouse glass is clean, and that any shading has been replaced by insulation.

Spetchley Open in October

Well, here we are again, almost at the end of the season. We are open weekends in October this year so any visitors coming to the gardens will, for the first time, be able to see the trees clothed in their autumn colours.

At the moment the autumn cyclamen, and asters are looking their best, and we also have a garden full of 'naked ladies'! Before you rush off to complain ( or get too excitied...), I must point out that it is one of the common names for the autumn crocus, or colchicum!

Regular diary readers will know that we save all our yew hedge clippings for conversion into the cancer fighting drug Taxol, and have done so for the last 6 years. This is a very interesting process, and was recently filmed by the BBC for Midlands Today. Richard did all the main hedgecutting shots (See pic); the gardens were shown in all their glory, and the phone did not stop ringing. I was then asked to do a live radio interview the next evening, and photographed for the local newspaper the following day.

We were expecting a fish company to come and remove all our larger carp from the garden lake this month, but there was a temporary clampdown on the movement of fish so we are still waiting for that exciting event.

And finally, Alex has left us to move on to pastures new. We all wish him the very best.

Tips for September

Now the rains have arrived start giving lawns a light trim.

Remove the spent flower spikes of earlier flowering perennials.

Take cuttings of tender plants such as salvia, lavender, cuphea and verbena.

Start saving seeds of favourite plants. They keep well in paper envelopes in the fridge.

Finish trimming hedges.