Gardening Through Extreme Weather: Tips for a Resilient Landscape
The chaos of summer in the garden is certainly easing, although the long hot spell did cause some plants to go into early leaf fall. We have a couple of established Viburnum Plicatum, (Japanese snowball bush) which has tiered horizontal branches with flower structures like a flat ‘lacecap’ hydrangea. Around a month ago their leaves started turning bronze red, a sign of early senescence, I checked closely and there were no signs of pest or disease attack so concluded that it was in response to the extreme hot weather, so I decided to give the soil around them a good drench of water, repeating this every week until the rain arrived in mid August. Every alternate week I mixed up a can of half strength tomato liquid feed and applied it around the root base. The leaves continued to drop with the exception of those at the very tip of the branches, a thumb-nail test midway along the branches revealed green tissue just below the bark, so hopefully it will be just resting and will return next spring. Most plants are quite resilient but sadly there are some that just don’t like extremes in the weather and we will no doubt have to make choices in the future that mean our gardens become more resilient.
The royal horticultural society is inviting gardeners to take part in an online survey that will pull together information on the impact of this summers prolonged hot dry spell in our gardens with a view to providing guidance on the best ways to prepare for such occurrences in the future.
Some of our herbaceous perennials have suffered a little and we have had to selectively water to keep them going, but many have been fine, due mainly to the fact that they originate from drier climates. Plants such as eryngium, euphorbia, artemisia, hylotelephium (sedum) and many of the grasses are quite tolerant of long dry spells. Tidying up perennials in late summer is not about cutting them back but rather removing any collapsed stems to those that may have been snapped by a wayward football. Many of the hardy geraniums we cut back in late spring after their first flowering are again putting on a show, another good plant for hot summers but do be careful to select those cultivars that will tolerate open sunny positions, such as geranium sanguineum, g. X cantabrigiense, and the readily available cultivars such as ‘rosanne’ and ‘rosemoor’.
We have quite a few herbs planted amongst the borders, most of them are quite easy to grow and many are suited to the mediterranean climate coping well with the long hot summer although preferring a free draining soil. They may not be bright and blowsy but add texture and structure with the added benefit of a supply of fresh flavoursome delights to summer dishes and cocktails. Ideally suited to growing in pots that can be moved into a conservatory or greenhouse to extend their season. Benefiting from regular trimming the resulting shoots can be dried and stored for use during the winter months thin out the longer stems, tie in bunches and hang them up in an airy shed or garage to dry. Carefully remove the leaves by gently squeezing the bunches to dislodge the dry leaves, best to do this over a large piece of paper, then transfer them to a suitable airtight container to use at a later date.
There is still time to take a few late cuttings which should root in three or four weeks, after which they can be potted, 3 to a 1.5 Litre pot and grown on in a frost free place, windowsill or cool greenhouse. They will grow away slowly but with care will provide fresh leaves throughout the winter months when some die back like herbaceous perennials.
Whilst it is possible to grow many of the different herbs from seed, especially those that are classed as annuals, I prefer to buy plants of those that are perennial such as rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano and fennel as they are usually quite reasonably priced. 
The popularity of houseplants has really taken off over the past few years, understandably so as it provides the opportunity to engage with plants even if you don’t have a garden or are spending some time working away from home or at university. The range and diversity both in size and character is incredible and there are many nurseries and garden centres stocking an amazing selection. Another advantage of giving room to houseplants is that they are good for you, and clean the air we breath, they are also remarkably easy to look after providing you follow a few simple rules.
Dry centrally heated rooms can affect house plants which prefer a little humidity but this can be provided if you stand your plants in a shallow tray or saucer half filled with clean gravel, keeping the gravel moist will create a little humidity around the leaves to stop them drying out and going brown at the edges. It is also a good idea to have a hand mist sprayer filled with fresh water to lightly spray the leaves every week or so, this is especially good for those houseplants with thicker leathery leaves that generally originate form the more tropical regions of the world. Most houseplants prefer to be out of direct sunshine as this can scorch the leaves and dry compost out very quickly, arranging a small group of houseplants of different sizes and textures in the corner of a room can add a different dimension to an otherwise furniture dominant space. There is no particular right time of year to repot a houseplant so its a good idea to keep checking the drainage hole and if roots are starting to emerge, its a sure indication that it is ready for repotting. Most garden centres and plant nurseries will stock a range of pots and containers and a suitable growing compost.
Happy gardening
Martin
(Next month, replacing summer bedding in containers, preparing your greenhouse for winter and start clearing up leaves).
