Q. I have an Abutilon megapotamicum shrub that has outgrown my garden. A friend said she would have it but it would be put into her garden facing the north (in south-east England). Would the shrub survive facing in that direction and when would be the best time of year to move it?

I also have some young chestnut trees. When would be the best time of the year to move them?

A.  Abutilon megapotamicum should survive in the South East outside if in the appropriate position, particularly as winters seem to be becoming milder. They require full sun to do well however and while they might survive in a north facing position, they won't thrive. There is also the increased risk of frost damage from frosts that will be harder and longer in a north facing position. My inclination would be not to bother and plant a more appropriate shrub for the north facing position as the Abutilon will always seem a bit sickly there.

As for when to move it, now is the best time, trim about a third off all of the branches and dig it up with as large a root ball as possible and re-plant straight away.

The chestnut trees should be moved as soon as all of the leaves have fallen off, again with as large a root ball as possible. Support them with a stake or cane as appropriate so they don't get blown about by the wind until they have formed a new root system. (short stakes are better than long, just to anchor the roots and stop wind rock).

Q. Help!! On the north west side of the garden is a six ft high wooden fence, with mature trees behind in next doors garden. The border I inherited along this fence (40-50ft in length) contained nettles, bracken and snowberry. I have just had it dug out and a reduced to about 3 ft in width as I am no gardener. It is very shady for most of the day. What bushes and/or ground cover plants would suit such an area? I live in Sproughton, the soil is very good quality and moist with a lot of compost just dug in. Any inexpensive ideas? I am sure that I could find a lot of willing people who would give me cuttings, but which ones should I go for? I do hope you can help.

A. That's a long border that you've got and will need a lot of plants to fill it up! I could give you a long list of plants that would be suitable, but you'd then have a new job tracking them down and then would probably not be able to find the exact ones where you live that are quite common where I am.

The answer lies I think in the fact that you say you can find lots of people willing to give you cuttings. If this is the case, you can get a good idea of what the mature plant will look like and also where it is growing in their garden. Ask for cuttings from the shady parts! Also, I presume that these people are local, in which case the plants that they have will be suited to your local soil and weather conditions.

As you have reduced the width of the border go for relatively low plants. Taller shrubs in particular tend to spread out as far as they are tall, so you might get a plant that covers your fence admirably, but then spreads too far into your lawn. You could also look at growing plants from seed. Delphiniums, Lupins, Foxgloves and Hollyhocks are large perennials that can be easily grown this way saving yourself a fortune in garden centre bought plants in the process. Small ornamental conifers that grow to 6 - 10 ft will be good too as they will give height without width, go for the plain green ones as the variegated types need full sun to bring out their color.

Q. I have a small container garden and would like to over-winter plants in my shed over the cold period. The problem is that the design of the shed is a basic 'shiplap' construction and has lots of gaps in and amongst the joints which allows frost and rain to enter in. Can you suggest a suitable type of lining which would be the most effective to guard against the cold and damp?

 

A. I lined a shiplap shed very successfully a few years ago using fibreglass roofing insulation held in place with pieces of hardboard. The insulation fits into place between the internal batterns with hardboard nailed over. (Get help when it comes to the roof!) You may want to use a plastic sheet liner against the wood first if it leaks though. Wickes supply the necessaries at a reasonable price.

 

Alternatively, you could use polystyrene insulation board or plasterboard. You don't say how large the shed is and you could end up spending as much to insulate it as to buy a small lean-to greenhouse or coldframe with a small paraffin heater inside, so maybe consider this as well?

Q. The area where I wish to place a trellis climber will be in the shade of my garage and not therefore in a sunny spot. Could you please recommend a suitable foliage and/or flowering climber that I can plant in a container.

A. I'm not a great fan of climbers in containers as they can grow pretty big and then they either don't do well or you have an awful lot of watering and feeding to do.

Clematis are a good bet for such a position, they prefer some sunshine if possible, but you don't have the problem of the flower color fading if they are in some shade, Jackmanii hybrids should do well.

Ivies of low vigour will also be good, make sure they don't get a hold of a wall to grow up if you don't want them to. Avoid the variegated or yellow leaved varieties as they will go darker and revert to green in the shade. "Duckfoot", "Tres Coupe" or "Parsley crested" would be suitable (the latter with a larger container.

Q. I bought a Flaming Katy from a supermarket a few years ago. It was in flower but has never flowered since. I have pruned it and re-potted it. The foliage is growing splendidly but no flowers. It is situated on the windowsill of a north-facing kitchen. What am I doing wrong?

A. I'd give it a bit more light, they are desert / succulent plants and prefer bright light though not full sun all day long. Feed it and don't prune it again, the chances are you may have removed developing flower buds. I know it's no consolation, but mine flower regularly, I suspect the pruning was the critical aspect.

Q. Hello, I am aiming to have a lavender hedge around our allotment and each individual bed surrounded by dwarf box. I have bought some small plants of lavender Hidcote and Buxus sempervivens Suffruticosa. To buy enough would cost a fortune . Could you please advise on the best way to propagate from my existing tiny plants.

A. Propagation of dozens of plants from a few will take years. I suggest that you look in the yellow pages to find a wholesale nursery that supplies lavender plants. They are much cheaper if bought in bulk. I can get 4cm lavender plugs locally for 18p each + VAT. 9cm pots are more expensive, around 35p each + VAT, with a minimum order of about 50. They don't deliver, collection only from Cambridgeshire.

As for your Buxus, a similar situation but slower, it will take you 5-10 years to get a good knitted together dwarf Buxus hedge and that's assuming that you don't attack what you've got for cuttings. I'd recommend that you use what you have as feature balls or pyramids and make a low hedge from Lonicera nitida or even yellow privet trimmed closely.

Q. If we are away from home for a week or 2 weeks how can we water our tomatoes that are just starting to bloom and have little tomatoes forming. Temperatures are about 72 daylight with full hot morning sun and no wind and evening temps are down to 60. We are 7 miles from the ocean and the tomatoes are east facing.

A. Not an easy one I'm afraid, this is rather a critical time for tomato plants and any upset in the watering regimen may well cause them to drop flowers or small fruit or cause the fruit to shrivel or split. The easiest solution is to ask a friend or neighbor to water for you, I get a friend of my son's to do it when we go away. Every day is ideal, every other day second best, and something is better than nothing! 

You could set up a wicking system with buckets of water next to the plants and a wick leading from the water to the soil. It's a bit hit and miss and I've never really tried this over more than about 3 days myself.

The best alternative over a long time period is to set up an automatic watering system based on a timer valve attached to a tap with leaky hose / dripper nozzles feeding the plants. It's effective if not cheap.

Q. I have recently shredded some laurel bushes (removed as they were inappropriately planted), and plan to use the resultant mulch on flower beds. I have been advised by a friend that I should not do this as laurels are toxic. Is this correct?

A. I've never come across this, though it may have some grain of truth as virtually nothing will grow under laurels (their roots and light shielding abilities help this as well though), many plants have various chemicals in their leaves to deter weeds or competitors. As long as you compost them properly before using as a mulch, you should have no problems. No shredded plant material other than bark should really be used as a direct mulch.

Q. Is it true that all plants have flowering potential? For instance given the right conditions will (for example) a Ficus benjamina flower? Do all plants flower whether insignificant or not? Can you tell me any that will not flower?

A. All angiosperms can flower, if they don't they are at an evolutionary dead-end. Ficus benjamina certainly flower but they don't do it until they are well on their way to the 100ft high by 50ft wide size that they can attain (they can be stranglers in the wild). Many houseplants that we grow in the UK are actually no more than small juvenile versions or saplings of large tropical plants.

Gymnosperms such as cycads, ginkgo, conifers and yew don't flower, nor do bryophytes - mosses and liverworts.

Some angiosperms don't as they have been artificially selected for other traits, lawn chamomile "Treneague" is an example.

Q. I have ivy growing up a my house which is pebble dashed. I want to remove the ivy and would appreciate any tips of when is the best time, how? etc.

A. Ivy clings very tightly and if pulled off, will leave marks behind that will be difficult to scrub off, and probably in an awkward place too.

There's not really an easy way to go about it, if you cut off the shoots just above ground level and leave it for a while to go dry and brown before you start pulling it off, then it will be easier and you'll have less marks. Just grab a shoot from the bottom where it's thickest and pull steadily upwards, that way it's less likely to break and leave you loads of little bits to get off separately.

You'll also need to dig up the roots, as cutting off the shoots will stimulate them to produce more. As for timing, now (early October) is pretty good as regrowth will be weaker and slower as the days get shorter and temperatures lower. Watch out for regrowth in the spring and dig again if necessary.

Q. May Miscanthus "zebrinus" be grown from seed? I've heard contradicting rules of thumb pertaining to Miscanthus. Please describe the seed itself, and when to pick the seed at its peak.

A. The short answer to your question is no. Miscanthus "zebrinus" is a recognized variety and as such the specific genetic combination that makes up this variety can only be obtained by vegetative propagation of the variety itself. i.e. by splitting plants to make more that are exactly the same as the parent.

It is possible however to grow Miscanthus hybrids from seed to obtain a variety of forms, some of which have striated leaves in a similar manner to zebrinus. I presume that from your question you have a Miscanthus you wish to gather seed from. Late summer / early autumn is the best time to gather the seed, place a paper bag over the seed head and shake it around, the seed should be dislodged with a lot of chaff. I can't remember how large the seeds are but grass seed are usually around 1/16th to 1/4 of an inch long, mid brown and spindle shaped.

Q. I have been growing Impatiens for years, at the end of the season I collect the seed pods for use the following year. Last year I planted some double-headed Impatiens, these however did not throw off seed pods, does this mean I need to buy seeds every year?

A. The short answer is probably - yes. The double Impatiens that you grew will be further removed from the wild-type plants than the types that you normally grow. They are more altered and helped along by the nursery to reproduce than "normal" types. Hence they are more reluctant to set seed if they will do so at all.

You didn't say whether or not you grew the doubles from seed or bought them as plants. They may have been F1 hybrids and so if they set seed at all won't ever come true to the parent, or from a variety that needs particular conditions supplied by the nursery to set seed. Conditions that don't seem to exist in your garden!

Q. Last year I acquired a Hydrangea from the midlands, (I am in East Anglia). The hydrangea is in a large tub. When is the safest time to replant the hydrangea from tub to garden and are there any special precautions I should take? I look forward to your answer as this hydrangea is very sentimental to me.

A. The best time to plant your Hydrangea is now - in the dormant season (November - March). The plant will be better off in the soil as the roots will be more protected from frosts that could freeze solid the above ground container. Give it a good start by digging a hole about twice as big as the pot and then half filling it with organic matter - well rotted garden compost or stable manure if you have it, peat or something similar if not. Fork the organic matter into the hole so that you make a transition between garden soil and what your hydrangea is currently growing in. I usually add a sprinkling of a slow release fertilizer such as blood fish and bone or Grow more. Plant in the hole and water in well, not so much to give it a drink, but to settle the soil around the roots. Hydrangeas like sunshine but aren't that fussy, it won't like full shade though. 

The soil that a hydrangea is growing in may affect the color of the flowers. Blue flowering varieties will change to pink if grown in an alkali soil. If this affects yours, you can buy proprietary chemicals from garden centres to change it back or try the (slower) time-honoured method of burying razor blades and rusty nails around the roots.

Q. I want to grow a fairly fast growing ivy (or other suggestion) up the west facing wall of my house. The wall gets full on sun from 2pm to sundown. I would preferably like something evergreen or at least for 3 seasons good coverage. Any suggestions?

A. I think ivy is your best bet here. There are many varieties available. As a rule of thumb, they grow faster the more green they have on the leaf, the variegated or yellowish ones being less vigorous. They also color-up better in full sunshine, though it sounds as though you have enough for a good color to develop if you go for a variegated variety.

Green varieties "Saggitifolia", Variegated "Sulphur heart" aka "Paddy's Pride", "Goldheart" - also has nice red-colored young stems.

Q. I am interested to know if my amaryllis will flower again. It was really splendid but now I am not sure if I should throw it away or try and grow it a second time.

A. It will if treated properly, but may well miss out a year which is normal as the bulb you bought will have been specially treated.

Keep it warm and sunny, watered and fed regularly as long as it has green leaves to build up energy for next year. When the leaves begin to turn yellow, stop watering and feeding and it dry out in its pot. Don't repot unless it is obviously too big for the pot that it is in. Cut the dried out leaves off just above the neck of the bulb.

It will start to sprout again during the winter, when it does so water again and bring into the warmth.

Q. We built a large raised herb bed last month which we filled with bought-in topsoil. The soil is dark, but very fine and sandy. We planted with established herbs and most seem fine, but we have had several "goes" with basil and Thai basil from several sources. In spite of daily watering they sicken and die within days. There is no sign of insect attack. Is it too cold for them in Norfolk, or could it be the soil? (We haven't tried shouting - Plant Lore.)

A. Basil is a very much a fair weather plant. It likes warm, sunny, sheltered conditions and little else is tolerated. It's probably just too cold for them still. The temperature has gone down quite low in the last month at night.

Q. I have a stock plant from last year but I didn't prune it and it is woody and the flowers are not good. Should I have pruned it?

A. Stocks of all types are usually grown as annuals or biennials for the reason that you describe. There isn't really anything that you can do to make your stocks like they were last year, pruning may certainly help, but far better is to discard them after they have flowered and start again next year with new seed.