May 2019 17
Hospice launch forget me not campaign Woodlands Hospice have launched their Forget me not Campaign 2019. The campaign will give people the chance to celebrate the life of a loved one by dedicating a special forget-menot flower for a donation to Woodlands Hospice. Through this simple act of remembering a loved one you will be helping the hospice to care for patients and their families at a difficult time in their life. The flowers are individually hand crafted and will be displayed in the hospice gardens during the month of July. When you dedicate a flower you will receive a certificate of dedication and you are welcome to come along and see the flowers on display during the month of July before taking them home, during our collection week-end in August, as a permanent reminder of someone special. To dedicate a flower you can contact Carole Riley at the hospice on 0151 529 4143 or e-mail: carole.riley@aintree.nhs.uk or visit www.woodlandshospice.org/forgetmenot
Outdoors with The Hairy Gardener Hello again From a very warm Easter to a near hurricane storm within a week these are the conditions gardeners in our area have to cope with but we do so with a smile. You may have read my article about growing potatoes in bags and I’m delighted to say that the stems have reached the top of the bag, so I have been carefully adding more compost around the stems to encourage the growth of more tubers. If you are growing potatoes this way or in the ground, when earthing them do not bury the stems with compost as this will put the plants energy into pushing its way through again instead of forming new potatoes. We also grow onions from ‘sets’ and this year they are growing in a deep propagator on legs which accommodates 30 onions. The basic requirement for onion growing is a sunny position, I’ve had success growing them in window boxes and just like most plants they require watering and feeding. Now the watering and feeding has to be regular if it isn’t there will be a check in growth which can and will produce inferior bulbs. In the late summer when the leaves are yellow and dying you can bend them gently over to expose the bulbs to light and air. This then starts the ripening process so discontinue any watering and feeding. A dry day obviously if you’ve grown them in the ground is best for harvesting. Lift gently by hand or with the aid of a garden fork and lay them on the ground or sacking
and turn them regularly to ensure even ripening, in a wet season this can be done in a shed. The onions are ready for storing when they are thoroughly dry with brittle papery leaves, ours are stored by threading the leaves through a string loop suspended in the shed. Last year I had a big problem with our pear trees with a rascal to pear growers called the pear midge and in a future article l will tell you how I’m battling it with onion water. Although it might be sunny today give your tender plants a bit of protection with horticultural fleece or cloches from the drop in temperature at night. Until next time good gardening