Paul N

Rooting Rose cuttings?

No, no, no. Your cutting will be the named variety. Cultivated roses are grown on a root stock such as Rosa rugosa. Anything above the graft will be true to the variety. Seeds are another problem altogether.

Talkback: How to grow basil from seed

Rooting Rose cuttings?

Easy peasy. Some months of the year works better than others. I've cuttings taken in July and November 2011 and March 2012. More than 3/4 of the cuttings have taken with last July's having buds on already.

Wait until July, take a long length of stem. Cut into 9" lengths above a bud at the top and below a bud at the bottom. Add rooting compound on the bottom and insert into a tall pot of damp GP compost/vermiculite mixture. Cover with plastic bag for a few weeks. Keep out of direct sunlight

My attempts at planting these outside always failed as it's easy to allow them to dry out.

 Root growth will be slow so you will need to wait a whole year

until they are ready to plant out outside.

Is Vermiculite dangerous

Only if you try to eat it

Talkback: Monty Don returns to Gardeners' World

I've just made the mistake of dipping into this thread and the doom & gloom here is enough to make many of us weep. I'd hoped after leaving 'the other place' this would be nice and fresh, and in fact much of it is. I am absolutely delighted with GW as it is and with Monty. Easily pleased? I don't think so. I'm easily one of the grumpiest and hard to please people I know. Friday's half hour with a glass or two of Cab Sauv sets me up for the weekend.

PS I shalln't return to this thread. It's too depressing for words.

What's the weather like in your area?

Well the umpteenth day of fine drizzle. I could have filled all the water butts - all 433 gallons - thrice over. Fortunately I did spike, seed and move the grass during one dry spell, but everything looks lush and green. I can't wait to get on with tidying the weed infested borders though.

Talkback: How to build a raised bed

And as for what soil to add. For goodness sake, dig what's in the middle to about two spafe depths adding well rotted horse muck, old growbags, and so on. Our raised beds are a fertile at ferrets.

Talkback: How to build a raised bed

Our garden is on a slope so raised beds were built eighteen years ago when we moved in. I used old railway sleepers over most of the garden, one circular bed with modern treated 'railway sleepers', and the raised vegetable beds using 9" x 1.5" tanalised timber.

No worries about Elf n Safety, the veg is nice and tasty and the old sleepers are so damned heavy they almost never budge.

Going back to that demo, I almost never ever use nails. Drill pilot holes and use decent Posidrive screws. All that thumping and hammering without a nice sledge hammer behind the short posts to support them.....hmmm.

Just purchased an Olive Tree

You need to imitate the type of soil they grow in in Mediterranean countries ie gritty, good draining soil. They can be a bit tender in the UK until they get well established and used to the cold, damp winters and we lost one of our two olives last winter. So avoid damp, claddy soil or compost.

Robinia pseudoacacia 'Frisia' problems

Thanks Obelixx, this is what I plan to do and I suppose I should have done this last year. If she doesn't survive I have a Paulownia tomentosa currently growing in a large pot, to replace her. It's not the name which attracted me to a Paulownia but I've only ever seen one in bloom, in a park in Lille in Northern France.

Carol Klein's Glebe Cottage

Himalayan Balsam

Giverny in September

Chelsea Flower Show

Robinia pseudoacacia 'Frisia' problems

Globe Artichoke

Keukenhof

Britain's Oldest Rose Bush