We asked Barnsdale Gardens in Rutland to answer your questions on summer gardening:

Question: Should you feed roses in the summer months?

Answer: Yes, in July, once the first flush of repeat-flowering roses starts to fade, it’s time to give them their summer feed. Roses are hungry plants, so after feeding them in spring, it’s necessary to feed them again. There are specific rose feeds available on the market, but I prefer to give them a generous dose of pelleted chicken manure granules around the base of the roses.

Question: What should you do about cabbage white butterflies? I want to garden with as few chemicals as possible.

Answer: It seems like there are more cabbage white butterflies than usual this year, so make sure to spray all your brassicas with either Dipel or nematodes to prevent excessive caterpillar damage. In fact, when there are long sunny days, the pest population can quickly increase. So, it’s important to be vigilant and act promptly when you see the first signs of pests on both decorative and productive plants. At Barnsdale, we use a special natural washing up liquid for a lot of pests. We add a small amount to a hand-held spraying bottle and then fill it up with water. This solution can be used as a contact spray to effectively control a range of pests.

Question: Are there any edibles we can plant in the summer?

Answer: Yes, it’s time to plant the broccoli that was sown in April and transferred to 8cm (3 inch) pots. We will be aiming to harvest from November to February. The plants have been spaced 45cm (18 inches) apart in the row and will be protected with homemade cardboard collars to prevent cabbageroot fly.

Barnsdale Gardens have been enthralling garden fans since 1983, when Geoff Hamilton, the much-loved presenter of BBC Gardeners World, bought a Victorian farm house with over 5 acres of land. Barnsdale was Geoff’s ‘great experiment’ in peat-free and chemical-free growing, and so this continues today. Geoff’s legacy continues with his son, Nick, ensuring that the 38 gardens are kept to the stunning standard for which they are renowned, these include a Cottage Garden,Versailles Garden, Wildlife Garden, the Allotment and many more. www.barnsdalegardens.co.uk

This Q&A article extract was taken from the August 2024 edition of The Country Smallholder. To read the article in full, you can buy the issue here.

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