The spring flush!
How are your garden plants looking at the moment? Garden designers and horticultural consultants in and around Glasgow are often asked about health issues and general performance of existing garden plants. During lockdown Glasgow enjoyed some sunny dry weather, but normal weather has since resumed, and we have been seeing the spring flush where grass and plants grow at a rapid rate. This doesn’t just apply to your desirable plants, but weeds including invasives like Japanese Knotweed all grow like crazy at this time of year.
However it can be feast or famine in the summer for plants, with prolonged dry spells leaving gardens looking tired and parched, and then ensuing periods of rain leading to incredibly vigorous growth. Plants get stressed during periods of dry weather and one of the responses to this is a slowing down in their rate of growth. Garden designers in Glasgow and beyond when creating their planting plans will always be looking for hardy, sustainable varieties that will survive the vagaries if our climate
Remember as well that your lawn is simply a collection of grass plants, so they get stressed too. It’s a good idea to raise the blades on your mower during periods of dry weather. It’s not good for your lawn to cut it too short at any time of the year, but more so during periods of drought. Brown patches that can develop in lawns during the summer are often nothing to worry about and resolve themselves once they get some rain. If this happens persistently it can help to spike the area with a garden fork and brush in some top-soil and sharp sand to improve drainage. If your lawns develop boggy patches during summer downpours the remedy is the same for the drought-induced dry brown patches mentioned above – topsoil and sharp sand. Remember that any plants that you have in planters will need regular watering during dry spells, much more so than plants in the ground. It is easy for planters to dry out completely and this can spell the end for the plants. One common problem too is planters that sit under the eaves of a house, at the front door for example. Even during periods of rain these may not be getting any water, so either pull them away from the shelter of the eaves or accept that you will need to water them even more regularly.
Once plants get a dose of rain after a dry period, and especially if the temperatures are still fairly
high, things can really take off. Weed seeds that have been lying dormant spring into life, and grass takes off and seems to grow as fast as you can cut it. In these circumstances it may be sufficient to hoe the weeds into the soil cutting their roots and buying you a bit of time to do a more thorough weeding when growth starts slowing from August onwards. If, however, you have noticed any non-native invasives like Japanese Knotweed, then you should be getting professional help to eradicate these, or bring them under control.
Tom Angel is a garden designer and horticultural consultant based in Glasgow. Services include garden design, plating plans, bespoke garden advice and japanese knotweed surveys.