Facebook Questions and Answers for the 17th August 2012

Hello Facebook fans, thanks for your questions this week, here are Carly's replies:

Jane Reavey

I want to plant a hedgerow about 6 feet in length but would like fast growing but it will be kept at waist height. Can you recommend anything please?

Hi Jane, Box (Buxus sempervirens) would be an ideal choice for a low hedge but it can take a while to get settled in and grow. Once established though they put on plenty of new growth each year! For a faster-growing alternative you could try Lonicera nitida (Wilson's Honeysuckle) which is often used in place of box due to its small evergreen leaves and neat appearance. Cultivars of Euonymus fortunei will also establish quickly and come in an array of variegated leaf colours. Cotoneaster simonsii (Himalayan Cotoneaster) is excellent as a quick-growing but small hedge. It loses its leaves in the winter but has a late autumn display of red berries. Berberis x stenophylla (Barberry) is another good choice and bears yellow flowers in late spring. Make sure you trim Berberis x stenophylla just after flowering to ensure you get a good flower display next year. You could also try Choisya ternata (Mexican Orange Blossom) which are evergreen shrubs - there is an unusual cultivar called 'Sundance' which has golden leaves.

Some slower-growing but ideal varieties include Box, Photinia 'Little Red Robin' (bright red foliage), Berberis thunbergii and cultivars of Ilex crenata (Box-leaved Holly). Hopefully something here will inspire you! I hope this helps.

Kylie Fletcher

Hello. I have green fly all over my sweet pea flowers. How can I get rid of them please? Thank you. Kylie

Hi Kylie, I also have this problem at the moment which doesn't make for very attractive cut flowers! Added to which the aphids suck the sap from the plants which weakens them. I find the easiest (and most wildlife friendly) method to get rid of them is to use a strong jet of water to blast them off - you'll need to repeat this every so often. You can also wipe them off with kitchen paper if you have the patience! Alternatively you can buy sprays. Chemical sprays are widely available and will state on the bottle whether they're suitable for aphids. Organic sprays are based on natural plant oils or fatty acids and may need applying more often than chemical sprays to be effective. You should find these readily available at all good garden centres. I hope this helps Kylie, good luck.

Gaz RocknRolla

Over grown allotment weed problem. What would be better to kill off organic way either a Black plastic polythene sheet - 125mu 500guage or Heavy duty weed membrane 100 GSM or anything else please?

Hi Gaz, covering the weeds with a mulch such as plastic, weed membrane or cardboard is certainly the easiest way of controlling the weeds organically. Weed membrane can be left on for as long as needed whereas black polythene doesn't let air or water through so is best taken off after a few months to let the soil breathe. Once the situation is under control, regular hand-weeding or hoeing should help keep the plot clear. We hope this helps!

Liz Lowry

Any suggestions for rabbit proof plants?

Hi Liz, although no plant is completely rabbit proof there are plants which they don't like the taste of. Plants with aromatic foliage or which have a milky sap are always a good choice. Poisonous plants such as Aconitum, Hellebore, Foxgloves, Euphorbia, Lily of the Valley, Daphne and Rheum (Rhubarb) will normally be left alone by rabbits. Aromatic plants such as lavender, oregano, sage, chives, alliums and Monarda are likely to be left alone too. There's a fantastic list of rabbit-proof plants compiled by the RHS - click here to view it. I hope this helps!

Julie Goodwin

Hi, any advice on protecting a pumpkin from the ground? Mine are getting quite large and are being marked underneath. I also have two chilli plants I've grown in the greenhouse on the allotment, Jalapeno and Coscarella. They have both flowered and fruited well but I was wondering if they can be over-wintered or are they annual? If they can, what's the best way to care for them in the cold months? Many thanks.

Hi Julie, you can raise your pumpkins on to a piece of tile, slate or wood to prevent them getting damaged (mine are on a piece of tile!) You can also place a thick layer of straw underneath the pumpkins to protect them, as you do when growing strawberries.

With regards to your chilli plants they can be over-wintered! You'll need to keep them somewhere bright but frost-free from October onwards - if you have a heated greenhouse or frost-free windowsill this would be ideal. Unfortunately over-wintering plants can harbour pests so I would carefully inspect the plants before bringing them indoors, spraying at any sign of aphids or similar. The plants won't need as much water in the winter so water them sparingly, allowing the compost to dry a little between waterings. Finish feeding your chillies by September/October time; you can start to feed them again from March onwards as soon as growth picks up again. Hopefully this will help your chillies come through the winter and give you earlier fruits than growing from seed. Good luck Julie, we'd love to hear how you get on.

John Hutchinson

My Daughter gets married next April 1st 2013 and wants photos taken in our garden. Question: what would you recommend to plant in pots or baskets that would show plenty of colour at that time of year and when should I start to bring on my daffodils so that they bloom at the correct time? Thanks.

Hi John, what a lovely time of year to get married. The best flowers for baskets and containers in April are bulbous plants such as daffodils, tulips, Muscari, fritillary, Hyacinths, Anemone blanda, Anemone coronaria and bedding plants such as violas (pansies) and primroses (including polyanthus). As you need these flowers to look good at the very beginning of April I would choose early-flowering varieties of daffodils and early tulips. Of course we could have a warm spring next year which would bring flowering forward so you could always grow a few later flowering varieties as well if you have the space! Click here for some later flowering daffodils and here for later flowering tulips.

With regards to your daffodils it can be very hard to get the timing right. Daffodils do best if planted in the autumn as it gives them time to establish roots and produce their best flowers for next year. If you have an early variety of daffodil it should be in bloom by the end of March naturally (depending on where you live). However as mentioned above, the weather can play a part in this. A later variety of daffodil could be brought indoors in February to speed up flowering ready for the end of March. You can always visit a local garden centre in March for last minute container plants if things don't go to plan. Most garden centres have potted bulbs, pansies and Primulas in flower at this time. If you grow a mixture of plants then regardless of the weather next year there will hopefully be something in flower! I hope this helps John, best of luck.

Jessica Leschnikoff

Two questions actually! How can I prevent and stop the spread of rust on Hollyhocks and my nice varigated melissa, and also do you know of any common garden pest that likes to target young pseudo acacia (Robinia Frisea)? Mine has been munched quite badly, but I can never seem to find the culprits! Best regards!

Hi Jessica, hollyhocks are very prone to rust and even if treated the spores travel for long distances on the wind ready to re-infect plants again. If possible you can remove and dispose of any affected leaves but for more heavy infections you can try a fungicidal spray, which are available at all good garden centres and will state whether they're suitable for use on rust. You'll probably need to apply these frequently throughout the summer. To help the situation you can treat hollyhocks as biennials, disposing of them after two years. In late autumn cut them right down to soil level and dispose of all plant material in normal household waste (not the compost heap). Unfortunately rust comes with the territory when growing Hollyhocks but if you can provide some level of control they'll still give you a spectacular display each year!

Unfortunately I don't know of any common pest which will eat Robinia leaves! It's worth mentioning a fairly recent problem with Robinia pseudoacacia 'Frisia' (specifically this cultivar) which may cause foliage to drop, spots to appear on leaves and general dieback. There's more information about this from the RHS - click here to view it. If you'd like to post a photo to our Facebook page I can take a closer look for you! I hope this helps Jessica - let us know if you need any more help with this.