Beginner gardener questions!

[bondgirl77]

Hiya

I have quite a few novice style questions:

Rasps - planted 4 canes earlier this year, have had hardly any fruit from them, will they do better next year? Do I need to do anything with them before the winter?

Broccoli - planted in May, still no heads that look like broccoli to me - remove from bed? by the looks of them they've been attacked by pests

rhubarb - planted earlier this year but did not take any stems off as per instructions supplied with plant, now lost instructions. do I need to protect over winter or feed? or leave alone?

herbs - got a pot of thyme and oregano which look quite dead, only a little bit of green, should I ditch or will they revive?

Bleeding heart/dicentra (sp?) - looks like lots of dead sticks flopped over, do I cut back or leave? looked like this when we moved in last year then bloomed into an enormous plant in spring!

weeds - do I weed (large garden, weeding extreme nuisance) or wait for frost to kill off?

euphorbia - got two of these which need moving, ok to move now? Or wait until next spring when soil warms?

weed mesh - got a lot of this in our garden and it doesn't seem to work, should I pull up the lot or does it need replacing every once in a while?

soil - when is best time to dig in more compost to improve soil condition?

garden furniture - got wooden seats and table, person I bought them from said never cover wood just leave it exposed to weather, as moisture can get inside covers and rot wood. if this is true why are there so many covers on sale? can this be right?

thanks!

Rasps: depending on whether they are summer or Autumn fruiting, but the general rule is to cut down the canes which have fruited, leave any which haven't.

Broccoli - needs lots of time, pick off those caterpillars and leave it.

Rhubarb - take off dying leaves and mulch with manure/compost.

Herbs - do better in the ground if you have space?

Weeds: weed before the seeds drop.

Compost: I use it like a mulch once I have planted in the spring - traditionalists dig it in over winter.

Furniture - put under cover if you have space, or scrub down and treat with teak oil on a dry autumn day.

hth

Dicentra is perennial - cut back the dead stuff, it'll more or less disappear and then come back inthe spring.

Best time to move stuff is autumn or spring, so the euphorbia is fine to move now (soil is still warm) - be careful though as they have sap which can be irritating to skin, so wear gloves if possible.

Autumn is a good time for digging, as the frost will break up any lumps over the winter.

Broccoli probably won't be ready till midwinter.

Brilliant, thanks for your help!

Also, I have a butternut squash that has no fruits on it, apart from one small one. will that be it now? Should I remove or leave and plant some more flowers near it for next year? I have some bare ground nearby and thought I would put green manures in perhaps.

I do have space for herbs in the ground. Are they ok to plant now?

Oh, and strawberries in a planter - do you leave in there and they will fruit again next year? Or plant new ones each year?

Yes, I think that'll be your lot for the squashes. I'd remove the plant and compost the greenery. you could dig over and manure the ground ready for next year's crops. Green manures also great - I threw in some phaecelia seeds very late this year, after I'd lifted potatoes and they've grown fine - won't flower I expect this year, but at least covering the ground for now.

Not sure about the strawbs - it depends how long they've been in already (plants usually don't do well after about 3 years). I have some in a window box which I was planning to leave in over winter. I think they could probably do with new compost at least though, but I thought I'd maybe renew it in the spring - would be good to hear from others on this.

Herbs - depends what. Tender things like basil or coriander won't survive the winter, but you could put in hardier things like thyme, rosemary, chives now. Avoid putting mint into open ground as it goes a bit bonkers and takes over the world - either put it in a pot or put it in a pot in the ground to contian the roots. I have a pot of herbs by the front door - thyme, mint, tarragon, oregano and a rosemary bush and they all survive our cold Scottish winters.

strawbs in a planter will need repotting in the spring, or certainly feeding up. personally I would pop them in the ground too.