BBC Essex gardening presenter Ken Crowther answers all your gardening questions and queries. This week he is joined by Mick Lavelle, senior lecturer in horticulture at Writtle University College.
An easy way to create instant summer colour is by using hanging baskets and troughs. Garden centres and nurseries have plenty on display but it’s easy to create your own. Phostrogen Slow Release Plant Food and Moisture Control is an ideal solution for busy gardeners as Tom Cole, Senior Horticultural Lecturer at Writtle University College told Ken Crowther.
If you got your first early seed potatoes planted in February they should be showing their heads come June. These early varieties produced a heavy yield of short, oval tubers with firm and waxy white flesh. Thompson and Morgan’s vegetable man Colin Randall spoke to Ken Crowther.
We are well into the bedding season with garden centres and nurseries offering a variety of plants to give a colourful display. To ensure they keep looking great all summer long feeding is essential as Dave Gillam, general manager at Abercorn Garden Centre in Essex explained to Ken Crowther.
Bonsai is an art form using horticultural material. Unlike a sculptor who can put his tools down when the piece is finished, bonsai is an ongoing art form which needs regular attention. The miniature trees are grown to look like full grown trees as Reg Bolton from the Federation of British Bonsai Societies explained to Ken Crowther.