Phil McCann from the RHS answers your gardening questions

[RachelMumsnet]

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is the UK's leading gardening charity. As a charity the RHS helps to bring gardening into people's lives and support gardeners of all levels and abilities; whether they are expert horticulturists or children who are planting seeds for the very first time.

Phil McCann, PR Manager for RHS Gardens, with support from gardeners at the four RHS Gardens, will be answering questions from Mumsnetters throughout this week. Whatever your query - from carrot fly to container vegetable growing, wisteria pruning to water-free gardening - Phil and the RHS team are on hand to give you advice and information.

Phil, who was previously Assistant Producer on BBC's Gardeners' World, is a trained horticulturist, a keen and knowledgeable gardener and allotment holder, a member of the RHS Vegetable Trials Committee and garden writer. Phil will be checking this thread each day and answering your questions on this thread along with his colleagues at the RHS. Final day for questions is Monday 5th July.

In return for posting a gardening question we will automatically enter you into a prize draw to win a pair of tickets to the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show next week. Each ticket will allow an adult and two children under the age of 16 into the show free of charge. Tickets will be valid on any day from Thursday 8 July to Sunday 11 July. For more information about the show visit www.rhs.org.uk/hamptoncourt.

Thanks Phil - very excited about a whole new career now!

Dear TheFallenMadonna,
Why - have you nothing else to do?!
You can prune establised trees now by cutting back the sideshoots to five leaves from the main framework. In September, remove any fruits larger than a pea. The remaining, smaller, ones will ripen the following year. Keep it watered during summer - and that's about it for now.
There's a bit more to do next year but hopefully we can chat about that nearer the time.

Dear MarshaBrady,
Yes.
Any shoots that have been damaged by frost should be cut out. Cut the branches back to where a healthy bud is starting to grow (usually in May)
If your hebe is taking over it's best to spread the cutting back over a few months - start in May and do it in stages until August. Again reshape back to healthy buds further down the stems.
You can trim back hebes straight after flowering. On smaller leafed varieties take of an inch or so - this will encourage thick growth. On larger leafed varieties you can whip off 8 inches to encourage strong regrowth. You can use the cut bits as cutting material for new plants.
Have fun.

Thank you Phil

Looks like I'm not the only one with sick raspbos

Dear midnightexpress,
You're not kidding when you describe your conditions as ...well you did.

A mixed native hedge will look terrific, sounds in keeping with the surroundings and will thrive.
You could also go for Eleagnus, a real toughie,or even a row of buddleja. They might be trimmed by the wind but I bet they'll do well. And who can ignore laurel in your time of need. Try getting rid of that one!
But you are already partially answering your own question by going to Hampton Court - there's loads of advice down there plus inspirational gardens.
www.rhs.org.uk/Shows-Events/Hampton-Court-Palace-Flower-Show/2010
Have a good show.

Dear midnightexpress,
I have - haven't I?

Dear JaynieB,
You're not getting away with missing the GYOwn weekends at all our four gardens ( or at least at your nearest!) It's this weekend!
www.rhs.org.uk for all the info.
Now, back to you new lottie. It sounds like a challenge - but not unsurmountable.
Only try and sort out what you have time and energy for - a full sized plot is massive and best if you have all day, every day spare or a lot of like minded friends ( there's an idea)
If you use half, cover the other half with plastic. It will cook the weed seeds, block out the light and stop things getting out of control.
You are right to think about the soil first. ph 5 is really acidic - I'd get hold of spent organic mushroom compost and dig in tonnes of the stuff. But before that sieve through what you can to get rid of weeds. Don't rotavate the whole lot as the weeds will be chopped up into tiny pieces and your plot will look good for a week. And only a week.
So you've weeded, dug in mushroom compost and covered what you can't face up to with plastic.
Cheer yourself up ( after all that hard work) by buying in ready grown plants. They'll get away quickly and you will be cropping soon - runner beans are good. Sow carrots, beetroot, sping onions, radish - quick, easy and tasty. And net everything to stop the birds.
And go to one of the GYOwn weekends for loads more info.

Dear solo,
Weeds - plants in the wrong place at the wrong time!
Some say leave them as they provide a rich and diverse habitat for wildlife. And they do.
But not everyone wants a weedy garden or lawn or veg patch - so there are ways, and we are still allowed to talk about them , to get rid of unwanted plants.
I prefer the back breaking hand weeding - getting the whole root out wherever possible and not simply whipping off their heads. But on occasions lots of gardeners resort to weedkillers. There are general ones that persist in the soil- not a good idea if you want to plant into the soil afterwards, and ones based on a chemical that degrades the minute (or second) it falls on the soil. If you are going to use a weedkiller look out for one based on glyphosate - it's the one that degrades. But bear in mind it will kill anything that is green ( but not brown so is used to kill weeds around the base of trees)
But if you can, get them out by hand ( or fork, hoe or trowel)

Now, leylandii. A weed? A big one if it is!
Roots do both but I have to say the one I removed from my garden a few years ago had a wider than deeper rootball. Bit depends on your soil. A hard clay layer a foot or so below the surface will persuade the roots to go sideways. If you are worried get a building surveyor in for on the spot advice. Or just get rid of the thing!

Hello Phil,can you tell me what i should do with my huge clematis plant when it has finished flowering,many thanks

Dear Phil,

I need some advice on a climbing fuschia. Only having seen the fuschia in France and not in the UK, I am not familiar as to how this plant sticks to the wall

Do I have to provide something for it to cling onto, or is it a little like ivy that produces its own suckers? Any other advice regarding this variety fuschia would be greatly appreciated.

I bought them from the internet but there were no instructions with them.

Thankyou

tennalady,i have two of these plants and i simply put them in a pot with some canes to grow up,a bit like sweet peas

Thanks very much for answering my question Phil. My neighbour has several buddleias which seemt to do well in similar conditions to my garden. Now all I have to do is get rid of the bramble roots (ah yes, I didn't even mention those in my list of woes...).

Thanks Phil, will give it a go.

Dear PrettyCandles,
Overhanging or neighbouring trees are a common problem -are they ready for a pruning (if so talk with your neighbour before doing anything)
Otherwise, of course there are plants that will survive in your conditions. Bergenias ( big leathery leaves) hostas ( watch out for slugs) tiarella (once you have it you've got it all over the place!) will all love the shade. Many of the ferns will thrive and mahonias will not only supply evergreen leaves but the scented flowers you want in the winter and early spring. So all is not lost!
Pop along to one ( or all!) of our gardens and you'll see plants growing in every situation www.rhs.org.uk

Thanks Phil.
When I said 'weeds', I meant WEEDS!!! bramble, nettles, all sorts and it's everywhere! My gardens used to be beautiful, but were constantly vandalised over a 10 year period, so I gave up and it's totally out of hand now. My eldest is almost 12 and has never played outside in my garden

As for the Leylandii...I have around 12/14 of them and they concern me. I do want them out, but can't afford to get a man in to do it. They are a nuisance! The trees, not a man! well...no, I wont start!

Dear liath,
Refresh, repot or liberate - any one will sort your acer out. I'm assuming the acer isn't in a windy spot as the leaves are easily turned brown and crispy by wind.
After two years the compost will be getting tired so it won't do any harm if you re pot into a slightly larger pot. Or you can refresh the compost by scraping off the top couple of inches and topping up with fresh. I do like the idea of liberating the plant and planting in a mottled shade position , mulching with plenty of leafmould and keeping watered in dry conditions.
Hope that helps.

Dear Longtalljosie,
They look like pollen bettle and are, not surprisingly, after the pollen. There's millions around not that the farmers are out and about in the fields.
They don't do that much damage and can be knocked off if causing problems.
I wouldn't bother spraying as it would be time consuming, their friends and relations will only come straight back in and it costs!

Dear trice,
Sawfly - devasting if left alone for a night.
Be vigilant, pick them off as soon as you see them. There are sprays at garden centres that will kill sawflies and many other voracious predators of your plants - but use with caution and only according to instructions.
Check out one of our GYOwn weekends ( this weekend) for loads more info on pests and dieases:
www.rhs.org.uk

Dear MrsJohnDeere,
Lupins are great when in their prime - but horrid when they go over. Cut them hard back to around a couple of inches of the soil surface and keep well watered. You will get another strong flush of growth ( watch out for greenfly) and even more flowers in late summer / early autumn. And dont forget to compost the cuttings.

Dear Ineedmorechocolatenow,
Horsetail is a real beast - a born survivor. It's been around for millions of years and not in the mood to give up now. Think of the disasters it's seen and survived. It shouldn't therefore be a surprise to find out it is difficult to get rid of.
First, weedkillers - tricky as they have a problem penetrating the waxy outer surface of the plant - crush the stems if using glyphosate but be aware weedkillers will kill all green plants.
Removing with a fork is best but the roots do run for metres and go down deep. You can strim the plants off and eventually you will weaken the parents, but if amongst other plants this is difficult.
I guess carefully picking out the worst and learning to live with some. I know I sound miserable about this one but on the positive side, it is a tremendous plant from a botanical point of view. Dare I suggest learning to love your enemy? I thought not!

Dear Dumbledoresgirl,
Mangold fly; 7mm long, grey brown body, nibbled leaves that blister and go brown - yep - you've got the right one. The best thing is to gently loosen the soil around the plants as this exposes the pupae, snuggling in the soil, to birds. If you don't these crawl up and do the damage.
Don't spray - you'll damage the leaves and lace your beet with chemicals.
As for a combined killer spray for all the other bits and pieces you have - yep, most garden centres have them but use with care.
Sounds like a GYOwn weekend (this weekend) is a good idea: www.rhs.org.uk

Thanks Phil!

I like the tiarellas and mahonias for my (ex!) dead zone.

My neighbour has been lovely about my pruning back his trees to the boundary, but the roots run throughout our flowerbed, right across into our lawn. Can I feed the plants in that bed, without his trees taking the feed away from the plants?

I am really enjoying this thread - very very interesting stuff.

Dear LaserWidow,
Paeonies are so exquisite - I;ve got two in the garden and one is doing the same as yours. You do get a surprising amount of variation in the blooms within any one year -it is natural genetic variation within buds -sometimes the environment has an effect. Nothing to worry about.
Propagation: yep, divide plants - this is best down in September. Seed would take ages and may not come true ( ie may not produce flowers like the parent)
For all plant enquiries your best bet is the RHS Plant Finder =- it lists every named plant and where to buy it - www.rhs.org.uk and look for Plant Finder. Might be worth checking the seed racks for Dahlia Dandy - Im sure I saw some down my lcoa centre.

Dear LaserWidow,
that should be local garden centre by the way!

Dear buxomblonde,
Magnolias are lovely but in that sitation I'd go for a shrub. Philadelphus is a cracker - the blooms are highly perfumed and the foliage is out early in spring, followed by the flowers in June ( all of June) and then a strong coverage of leaves until autumn. I might go mad and suggest letting an evergreen clematis weave itself through the shrub so you have interest in winter and even more, scented, blooms from the clematis in January and February. Mine even flowers in December.
And if they don't tickle your fancy try Trachelospermum jasminoides - evergreen leaves, jasmine scented flowers and perfect for a sunny site. It's a stunner.
Hope you get planting soon.