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Hanging baskets are a sure-fire way of adding a mass of colour and texture to the outside of your home - but what if your patio is north-facing? How are you going to make a dull shady area sizzle with colour?
Many gardeners avoid placing hanging baskets in shade, but there are some plants that will do well without direct sun and still provide a splash of colour where it is needed.
The most obvious bedding plants which can withstand shade are Busy Lizzies, which you can plant successfully in wire hanging baskets, planted not just on the surface of the basket but also in slits in the liner around the sides.
Trailing varieties of Busy Lizzies including 'Spellbound' are now available, to provide your shady spot with a ball of colour all summer.
Alternatively, if you want an ideal specimen in the centre of your basket go for one of the New Guinea Busy Lizzies, which are larger and more leafy but produce fantastic blooms in a wealth of colours.
But while most bedding requires some direct sunlight, you can create wonderful hanging baskets from plants which provide contrasting foliage and texture.
Mix leafy plants including begonias and hostas with spiky grasses and flowing ferns for an eye-catching contrast.
There are some fuchsias which will do well in the shade, including F. 'Eva Boerg', whose trailing stems of deep rose-coloured flowers cascade beautifully over a large pot, or the popular 'Swingtime', which is ideal for a hanging basket, producing large red and white flowers.
Some heuchera are also perfect for adding dramatic leaf contrast to a basket. H. 'Color Dream', for instance, has scalloped leaves patterned with purple and in the summer the leaves develop a red edge. It likes some cool shade and its silvery sheen adds lustre to a dull scene.
One of my hanging baskets is in shade at the front of my house and I find that bacopa works well as a trailing filler, its white flowers contrasting well with the daisy-like lilac flowers of brachyscome.
Whatever you choose, remember that hanging baskets can dry out easily in shade, just as they do in sun.
Make sure when planting that you add water-retaining granules and slow-release fertiliser to the compost and choose a liner that's going to retain the moisture well, such as an old woolly jumper. While moss looks natural, it doesn't do much for retaining water.
There have been times when I've just used polythene, with holes cut around the sides for drainage but not at the bottom. It doesn't look pretty at first, but once the plants have taken hold, you can't see it anyway.
You will still find that in the height of summer you may have to water the basket on a daily basis, whether in sun or shade.
For the moment, plant up the baskets by balancing the basket on top of a bucket, so you can move the basket around and plant up the sides without it toppling and damaging the plants.
The planted baskets will need to be brought inside during cold snaps and at night until all danger of frost has passed.
BEST OF THE BUNCH - Tulip
There are now so many varieties of tulip that I could fill up a column with them every week of the year, from the majestic upright types to the frothy, frilly and flamboyant. Tulips also come in every colour except blue, so there's something for everyone.
My personal favourite is Tulipa 'Queen of Night', with its burgundy, almost black flowers, providing a striking contrast with acid green evergreens and sizzling wallflowers in oranges, yellows and burnt oranges.
I also have some fantastic dwarf varieties in my rockery, including T. 'Red Riding Hood', with bright flowers and crimson-striped leaves. Alas, the slugs like this variety almost as much as I do.
Bulbs should be planted in late autumn in well-drained soil that doesn't become waterlogged. Some varieties have to be lifted and stored after flowering, while others will bloom again if they remain in the ground.
GOOD ENOUGH TO EAT - Beetroot
It has become a trendy vegetable in recent years, served up in restaurants in goat's cheese salads and also in chilled soups and sauces. It can be sown now, but soak the seed overnight in warm water to help germination.
Beetroot should be grown in an open, sunny spot in well drained, fertile soil which has been enhanced with well-rotted organic matter. You can sow outdoors from mid-April, although it's best to warm the soil with cloches beforehand.
Seedlings should be thinned when they are around 3cm high, leaving a single plant every 10cm. Keep the area well weeded and water every couple of weeks during dry weather. Mulching helps retain moisture, but dryness leads to woodiness.
For a regular supply, beetroot can be sown every couple of weeks up to summer. Harvest when the roots reach tennis ball size, or else they become woody. Before lifting, loosen the soil below with a garden fork and try not to damage the roots. Roots can be lifted from summer to autumn, depending on the variety.
Recommended types include 'Pablo', a globe variety with smooth roots with good disease resistance, and 'Cylindra', a cylindrical variety with excellent keeping properties.
THREE WAYS TO... Make the most of your crops
1. Concentrate on growing fewer crops well.
2. Grow only the crops you know that you and your family want to eat.
3. Invest in fruit cages and crop covers to protect your produce.
WHAT TO DO THIS WEEK
:: Cut back hardy fuchsias to just above soil level as strong new basal growth appears.
:: Plant tomatoes to grow in a cool greenhouse, training them up tall canes or strings.
:: Sow melons and cucumbers under glass.
:: Start to sow hardy annuals directly into their flowering position.
:: Thin out hardy annuals sown during March, before they become overcrowded.
:: Cover the rows of strawberry crops with tunnel cloches, opening the sides each day to allow access for pollinating insects to reach the early flowers when they open.
:: Plant out maincrop potato varieties and draw earth up round the stems of newly emerging early varieties every week, covering them with fleece to protect from frost.
:: Divide large and congested clumps of pampas grass and replant.
:: Plant agapanthus bulbs in groups in large pots, or directly outside in warm and sheltered borders.
:: Remove insulation wrapped around patio tubs.
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Weather for Bedford
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 12 C to 26 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: North east
