I was talking to a neighbour today. And in the midst of the conversation, she happened to state that if I wanted plants for my borders, I could do a lot worse that to look at what is available at a large local supermarket. She stated that the quality of the product is good and the price generally is only 1/2 ~ 2/3 of the prices I would expect to pay at garden centres. Initially, I was quite motivated to go and buy. Then I remembered that I know nothing about plants. Not even their names. I also have no idea what to plant, when. I believe that a perennial will re-emerge next year, if left to its own devices. And an annual has a sell-by date which no amount of TLC will induce to perform more than once. Other than that - I'm flummoxed. Is there a reputable reference book, [preferably smaller and more interesting to read that War & Peace] which will point a muppet in the right direction? Gardening for Dummies, for instance ? An Idiots Guide to Domestic Flora ? All suggestions will be immensely welcome. I am quite happy to acquire, upon money-well-spent publications and plants. But have little enthusiasm for squandering upon the very things that everyone who 'knows' leaves well alone. Thanks, Jack
Can't go too far wrong with Dave Hessayon's Expert series Jack http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Flower-Expert-best-selling-flowers/dp/0903505525 The whole series is very explanatory.
Thank you Zigs. I've followed your provided link, and all three in the series are available for less than £20 They should keep me occupied indoors, whilst it is raining outside. 'very explanatory' is exactly what I require. I've discovered the Beginners Gardening forum this evening too. So perhaps some of my questions would be more appropriately placed there. Thanks again.
I've just bought Hessayon's Expert : Pest & Weed Bedding Flower Flowering Shrub. Those should keep me busy for a while and hopefully will serve to stifle the paranoid urgency to ask mundane questions on here.
A good choice Jack Been veg gardening since I was 7, yet I still refer to the books, can't remember everything
Good book choices!!! The 'Expert' books are still the ones I pick up most of all.!! Happy gardening!! Val
You can also usually pick those books and some other good gardening books in great condition cheaply in Charity Shops, Jfo. I would also definitely recommend Geoff Hamilton's "Gardeners World" book, plus his "Cottage Gardens" and his "Paradise Gardens" books because of the wealth, but not overwhelming, of down to earth gardening wisdom and advice and his way of writing which just enthuses you with the desire to go out and get gardening.
I think supermarket plants are generally good value, and the species/cultivars they sell tend to be geared towards the masses, so low maintenance. Its good to learn stuff, but sometimes I think you learn more by just doing. Sometimes the books will put you off buying a particular plant by telling you it needs this very specific soil, or these very specific light and climate conditions, when in fact it might do perfectly fine either way. Then there's the fact that the books often show photos of flowers, taken by professional photographers who show the plant in the best possible way. So you think 'ooh that's stunning', by some, get half a dozen scratty little flowers that fall off after a day, and the rest of the plant gets devoured by slugs I'm going to break with my tradition for a moment and not mention nasturtium this time, because I mention nasturtium far too often I think, so I wont mention nasturtium which is my favourite all rounder for many reasons. Besides there's no point mentioning nasturtium if we're on about supermarket favourites because you rarely see nasturtium in the supermarkets anyway. So I'll mention marigolds, dianthus and petunias instead. All typically available cheap from supermarkets throughout spring, and all will do well in most gardens. The petunias will die in autumn and never return (they are technically perennial, but in the UK climate are considered an annual). The marigolds will also die at the end of the season, but by then they'll have shed enough seeds to ensure you get new ones next year, and the dianthus are perennial, so will keep coming back. All very pretty flowers and the dianthus, and some petunias, are very fragrant too. All that said, still get books. I enjoy reading, and learning from gardening books, but use them as a rough guide rather than a gospel is all I'm saying. Nasturtium, nasturtium, nasturtium
There's also the Gardeners Corner Book Of Knowledge....ask away no matter what the question there's every chance you'll get the answers you need plus a bit of fun on the way
Arr, started off with Beetroot that the neighbour gave me, cracked that one now Still learning every year though Bit past teenager years now, although i've still got a couple of my own
Agreed! The Hessayon books are two a penny in the charity shops, and I paid two quid for the RHS Encyclopedia of Garden Plants which is my fave reference book (all 1070 odd pages of it). As far as s/market plants go I'm not so keen. If you just after annuals then fine. But some of the perennials are not so good so pick carefully. I've done well with Passiflora from Sainsburys at a fraction of the cost of GCs, but they are typically a year behind. Took a punt on two more from Morrisons a few weeks ago at two quid each, and got some Tricyrtis rhizomes from Lidl for 99p a couple of weeks ago.
