General Gardening Discussion

Just have to wear gardening gloves.

Difficult tell from your photo, really need a close up of the flower, if they are red it reminds me of Melica transsilvanica 'Red Spire'

If you opt for an Acer, just make sure it will be suitable in terms of the soil, as most need neutral to acidic to be at their best. They need plenty of moisture but good drainage, and as you're in London, you may find it better to collect rainwater for summer watering. If they're growing well...

You might not get enough heat for it to flower but the autumn colours are good, I find.Yeah the drainage is good, they seem to like dryer conditions mostly.

Grew a load of artemisia ludoviciana from seed this year and have just totally replanted our biggest perennial border with it in a few spots. However, am having an ongoing war getting rid of Bidens 'Lemon Drop' and a pink Japanese Anemone though and starting to get concerned this is of similar...

Sounds and looks like my Dublin Bay. It's stubborn too. I've been battling it for years. Stems shoot up 12ft + into the air

I tend to think Iris and crocosmia mostly have a flat fan shape. It could even be Yucca filamentosa.

Thank you I'll give it a go

I lift them, soil and all, and dump them into some old large plastic tubs behind the greenhouse. In the Autumn, I rummage through and any large, firm ones get planted into our wild area or occasionally an old pot. IMO it’s hit and miss how much of a show you’ll get from them the next year.I...

I agree with the above, all those rocks will also hold and radiate a lot of heat which isn't ideal. Japanese Acers are understorey plants, they thrive in sheltered semi shaded conditions in their natural setting. But a lot of watering can help with more sun exposure from experience of growing...

Geums do that late in the season.

I agree with the others. If you are going away and can't water plants then it is worth moving any pots into a shadier position because it reduces their need for watering. I would give the loquat a bigger pot, a nice water and think about adding some mulch around it to help reduce water loss. You...

Yes, I’m a bit obsessed with trimming shrubs, keeping them tidy etc, it’s always flowered whenever I’ve trimmed it, but was thinking if I could resist the temptation I might be rewarded with even more flowers next January.

There's gravel round it, so adding organic matter isn't really an option, but I could try some seaweed feed.

Thanks fairygirl, I will heed that advice.

Have you not got anywhere it could grow in the ground? One specimen will cover metres of fence (7+ here) so even if the spot is some way from your patio you could plant it and then train all the growth towards your patio area

Thanks, very interesting. I'll try the tongue test if I get any more like that this year. :-)

It does sound like there's something else going on @RDB85 , so that may be trickier as further investigation would be needed. That depends on how keen you are to improve it all, and it could be worth trying a different approach with the planting first. A simple soakaway might even do the job. My...