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When
buying plants: When visiting a garden centre or nursery there are
a few simple guidelines to choosing a potted plant to ensure that the
plant is strong and healthy. You should get the best value for you money!
- Roots
should not be growing out of the base of the pot.
- The
plant should however be well rooted in the pot, i.e. if you lift the
plant it should not lift easily out of the soil. This indicates that
it has only recently been repotted, and has yet to establish itself.
- Choose
a plant with healthy foliage and where appropriate several new shoots
and buds, as this shows the plant is growing well.
- Look
for a bushy plant with a well balanced shape. Check if it has a single
stem/trunk or many, depending upon what you want it to develop into
i.e. shrub or tree form.
- Go
to the nursery throughout the year to get a sense of the seasons as
it can be tempting to visit a garden centre or nursery in the spring
and buy the attractive plants which are in flower at that time of year.
This can leave the garden without much interest for the rest of the
year.
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Planting:
When you get the plant home and are ready to plant it, follow these
simple guidelines to ensure successful establishment of the plant.
- Water
the plant well in its pot a few hours before planting.
- Ensure
the hole is deep enough to take the root ball of the plant. For most
plants the soil level in the pot should be level with the soil in your
garden.
- Make
the hole a good size larger that the pot. This will allow you to add
a good soil or compost to completely surround the roots and give it
a good head start.
- Add
compost/fertiliser to the compost or soil to be used to fill in the
hole. This will depend upon species and soil you have. Less inorganic
fertilizer is to be preferred.
- Mix
some of the soil with your compost and place some in the bottom of the
hole.
- Place
root ball in hole, fill in with well mixed soil/compost and firm around
the plant to secure it, but be careful not to firm so much as to compact
the soil.
- Water
in well and stake the plant to secure it against the wind, if it is
for example a large tree.
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Selection
of Plants: Here are few points to consider.
- Make
sure you have a idea of how big the plant will get (Height and Width).
This is especially important for trees and hedges. Note the difficulties
of Leylandii Cypress hedges. This makes a good hedge but it must be
well maintained as otherwise within a few seasons it can become out
of control.
- Is
the plant suitable for the soil and position see site.
Examples: Rhododendrons like acid soils. Senecio greyii is good
at coastal sites. Wet and waterlogged soils will drown and rot species
like Lavanders and other mediteranean species.
- If
design is important: does the plant suit the others it will sit with
(e.g. colour)? and as they grow will they overgrow each other in spread
and height?
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