Hello my dear gardening friends,

Another beautiful week, still no rain, but one of our horticultural society members had 5 trees fall on her cottage last week, 15 trees came down and have had to be either cut up or removed. Luckily the damage to the cottage seems to be confined to a hole in the roof and three rafters broken, although she was in the cottage at the time – she escaped being injured. I am so sorry and hope that all will be repaired soon. This all happened during the mini tornado that blew through the area. We were lucky that we were apart from a lot of the rain; for a brief moment nothing happened here on Clear Lake.

I spent the day in the arena helping to set up for our flower show which is of course this Wednesday and Thursday in Lakefield. We were dismayed to arrive and find nothing done, seemingly Geff Gray has resigned, we all pitched in and the ordeal was restored, tables erected (with the help of the ladies, dragging them down the stairs – thanks to all of you) tablecloths on, signs up etc. Mike Dean once again did a yeoman job, setting the electrics, appeasing dealers etc. - thank you Mike – all this in readiness for the flowers that will be arriving early Wednesday morning – at least there will be coffee available for those stalwart souls up at the crack of dawn!!!!

I have been reading a book called “Around the House and in the Garden” by Dominique Brown. The lady of the house and garden found a dead squirrel in her chimney, it actually fell on her maggots and all, when she tried to move it. I loved this quote: “Days later still whimpering at the death that fell into my fireplace, I told a friend skilled in the art of Feng Shui, how overwhelmed I had felt at not being able to handle yet another thing gone wrong in the house. It never ends! It seems like a constant breakdown. Isn’t that the amazing thing about houses? They are so alive!”

I heartily agree. Michael is busy fixing all the things that seem to break as I look at them! Bless him, he is so versatile and does not charge $100 an hour - plus he is a delight to have around – cousins are wonderful aren’t they?!!

I have been asked “Why have my raspberries started to get fewer and smaller, I used to be able to pick bowls full, not any more.

Answer: You need to work on your raspberry plants as soon as possible, for the right work done on those plants now, will determine the quantity and quality of the fruit that will be borne next summer. It is essential to understand the nature of the plant if you are going to be able to provide for its maintenance. Although the roots of the raspberries are perennial, the canes are biennial.

During the first season, the young shoots are green and soft and bear only leaves. The second year they become woody, brown and grow lateral shoots that carry the fruit. Because of this, all the old canes, that is those that have born raspberries, should be cut off at ground level now, for they have completed their function. This will also eliminate unproductive and diseased parts, leaving the plant to devote its strength to the development of the young canes that will bear next year’s flowers and fruit. At the same time you can get rid of any undesirable suckers that have appeared between the rows, unless you wish to use them for propagating.

A pair of good scissors or a sharp knife are the only tools that you will need for this job; oh and a pair of thick gloves will be very helpful. You will recognize the old canes, their colour and texture is quite different from the young shoots. All the cut and discarded material should be burned if at all possible. If not then bagged and out taken with the garbage.

Next spring, here we go again! This summer is still hot and wonderful and we are already talking about next spring??? Next spring, remember to prune back all the remaining canes by one third. Thus getting rid of winter-injured tips and at the same time stimulate the development of those fruiting laterals. The shortened stems will remain erect, which eliminates the need for staking and even makes the picking much easier.

Raspberry plants should be set out in April or early May. Make sure that the soil is pressed firmly about the roots. Because raspberry plants do not fruit the first year, you may wish to interplant with some veggies, such as: beans, lettuce, radishes etc. While the plants are mature it is a good idea to mulch between the rows using straw, hay, etc. not only to conserve moisture, but also keep down the weeds.

Another little story for you from my copy of “A Floral A.B.C.”:

“This flower belongs to the Rosaceae family (Rose-A-Say) and there is one cousin we all know very well: The Rose! In days of old there were men called Alchemists who studied medieval chemistry and this was their favourite flower. They thought that it was magical and held many secrets and as you can see from its Latin name, they called it after themselves, adding “ills” as an endearment and meaning “The little Magical one”

Alchemists were always searching for the “Philosopher’s Stone” (long before Harry Potter) which they thought would turn baser metals into gold, for which man always sought. So they collected the pearly drops from the leaves of the lady’s mantle, which they called “water from heaven” hoping that this would hold the secret – but alas in vain. Those pearly drops incidentally are not all rain and dewdrops, as the plant exudes some moisture all by its own little self!!!

This herb was claimed by Venus, and was known as the friend of women, and it was said by Culpepper, the herbalist, that ladies should drink distilled Lady’s Mantle water for 20 days to encourage conception. In fact all herbalists seemed keen on this flower. Gerard says that Alchamilla “keepeth down maidens paps and dugs, (what ever they are) when they become to great , and (I loved this) flaggie, it maketh them lesser and harder”. So girls now you know!!! I suspect that he meant you were overweight and flabby.

Question: How do I know what is eating my plants?
Answer: -Flea beetles make tiny round perforations
-Weevils produce angular openings
-Beetle grubs skeletanize leaves
-Red Spiders seen on yellowed leaves that are cobwebby or mealy underneath
-Sucking insects leave foliage yellowish, stippled white or grey, often the insect’s excrement is visible on the underside of the foliage
-Thrips leave whitish streaks
-Aphids cause leaves to curl up or down

This is a very simple explanation, but I am sure that it will put you in the right direction in tracking down the culprits. It really is like a murder mystery, you have clues galore, lots of information to help in the investigation, and you will bring the “criminals” to justice, although I am afraid that it is usually a capital offence.

I keep telling you that I am a book-aholic! I have found yet another fascinating book called “The Sex Life of Plants” by Alec Bristow :-

“In 1916 an article appeared in the Journal of the National Horticultural Society of France under the heading of “A Curious Case of Mimicry among the Orchids”. It described how a Frenchman in Algiers named Pouyanne had noticed a strange thing.

During working hours M. Pouyanne was a Conseilleur – a sort of judge advocate at the Court of Appeal; during his spare time he was a keen amateur naturalist. The article told how he was watching the flowers of a species of orchid called Ophrys speculum and wondering as many other people had wondered before, why the lip of each flower so closely resemble a certain kind of wasp which often could be seen visiting the orchids, and why it was only male wasps that visited them? He watched a wasp alight on one of the flowers, cling to it and perform some strenuous, jerky movements. The wasp had obviously become highly excited and so by now had the judge.

What was going on? What satisfaction was the wasp – and for that matter the flower – getting from the encounter? At first sight it might have appeared that the wasp was attacking the flower for some obscure reason, but the judge was a careful observer and soon realized that the driving force behind the wasp’s behaviour was not violence but sex, not hate but love!

(From Chapter One – “The Discovery of Sex”)
I loved this! “There is no form of sexual expression the most fevered human imagination can dream up that plants have not already developed and experienced. Yet it was only three centuries ago in 1676 that the English Physician Sir Thomas Millington, first shocked and thrilled the polite society of his day by suggesting “the very possibility that plants even possessed sexual organs let alone the capacity and appetite to use them”. Despite the attempts of the clergy and a prudish society to keep this “scandalous” information under wraps as they had done for centuries, once the idea of plant sexuality had been admitted by such an eminent man there was no holding back.

Still less than a century later, after Linnaeus had published his famous work on the classification of plants according to their sexual characteristics, he was thunderously denounced from the pulpit. “Nothing could equal the gross prurience of his mind “

It is indeed a fascinating book, perhaps a little tough going in parts, but full of information. I urge you to try and get it!

Question: I have a four year old pear tree that hasn’t blossomed yet – what if anything is wrong???
Answer: It is not surprising that the tree hasn’t blossomed yet. Ordinary, standard or full-sized pear trees are slow to blossom taking as long as 5 years or even longer before they set their first flower buds. Patience is required here!

Question: Why does my very old Queen Anne cherry tree become loaded with blossom each spring? But the blossoms fall off within a month and then of course no cherries.
Answer: Within 100 feet of the present tree, plant another variety of sweet cherry such as Black Tartan, or Bing Cherries. With the two sweet cherry varieties you should get fruit on both trees.

Question: When is the best time to harvest my Chinese lanterns?
Answer: When the little globes turn orange, if you pick them whilst they are still green they will not turn that brilliant orange. These plants can be terribly invasive – so keep an eye on them, being ready to rip them out if they seem to be taking over your garden.

Well my dears, hopefully you are all enjoying this wonderful weather – I love it – but be careful, the sun is very strong and hot. So, sunscreen, hats, gloves, bug repellent, and even more hats. Oh Avante Garde in Peterborough has wonderful hats for sale – do go and visit them and tell Brenda that I sent you. Goodnight and blessing on us all. Remember on the 12th to go outside at dawn to see the meteor shower – it is going to be spectacular this year!

Good Gardening, I wish you soft gentle rain in the nights!

Lovingly, Beryl!