COLUMNIST: ANDY PEASGOOD
As the garden relaxes through September, I begin to create my list of jobs which is extensive and variable. It is a list that I ‘tick off’ through late autumn and winter.
I consider my garden to be small, at only 6 x 8 metres (20’ x 26’), with various other pockets around the house. Small gardens, courtyards, balconies, windowsills, and roof terraces are all small gardens or small spaces, and it is here where an area can be very reliant on container gardening. The maintenance around container gardening is my longest set of jobs due to the amount I have in the garden, and this is why I spread it out from late autumn into the depths of winter.
All annuals are removed from their containers and the compost disposed of. I try to reuse it where I can, so the compost is taken to a green space on the new-build development where I live, to be used as a mulch around the newly planted native species hedgerow to aid soil conditioning.
Any plants that I want to put out into the borders get removed and either temporarily potted up into plastic 2-5L containers or planted out into their final places.
I then begin to inspect the compost of the remaining plants in containers. What I am looking for is structure. If the compost is a light brown, almost grey colour and is flaky, then it has lost its structure and nutritional value. In this case, the plant will be removed and the root ball tapped to release any attached compost. I then remove the rest of the compost from the container, checking if it has sufficient drainage.
Finally, I repot the plant with fresh compost and top dress with a thin layer of horticultural grit. I used to top dress my containers with composted bark, however, the longer seasons of wet and warm weather are encouraging fungal growth and whilst most fungi are a sign of a healthy garden, I am not looking to encourage it in my container display.
Plants that hold their structure well throughout winter will be left for wildlife and not cut back. If it reduces down and becomes ‘mushy’ then I cut it back. This is because most of my containers are on gravel patches and I cut back anything going through decomposition to mitigate my time spent tidying any hardscaping - I need to spend my time wisely on horticultural projects (or studying for my Garden Design Diploma)!
All containers that are now empty get a thorough clean. I remove all crocks and with a wire brush remove all the remaining compost inside the containers, before using hot, soapy water to clean the containers. I like to remove the green algae on the outside of my containers too.
TOP TIP: Buy a cheap toilet brush for the cleaning of the inside of the containers. It is designed for such a shape and speeds up the job!
Some people use crocks and others do not - I use crocks.
Any broken terracotta pots make good crocks, but if you do not have any you can reuse small 9cm (3.5”) plastic containers by either placing them in the bottom of the container or by crushing them and placing them there. They do not reduce down so they work in the same way of preventing any blockages to drainage holes. It also prevents them from going to landfill.
If I have a good enough supply, I also add a layer of horticultural grit to increase the drainage area. It is particularly useful in times of heavy rainfall where the drainage layer acts as a sump, providing a space for water to build up and drain away, stopping roots from getting too wet and rotting.
Lastly, I plant up any spare containers with winter plants such as Skimmia japonica, heathers and Cyclamen.
Once planted, I place them in the garden spaces where I pass through most. With it being winter, I am not exploring the garden as I would from May to September, so more common areas like entrance ways and path lines are ideal to benefit from some much-needed winter colour.
Andy Peasgood is a keen gardener who enjoys design, plant combinations, and a ‘hands on’ approach to projects, as he shares the development of his garden.
A former Principal Dancer with Scottish Ballet and now a professional teacher and coach in vocational classical ballet training, Andy is most recently, a garden design student.
Follow more of Andy’s gardening journey on Instagram.
