So, if you’re just starting off your vegetable garden or allotment or re-doing part of your garden – where do you find information on suitable plants & shrubs to grow & the best varieties? Well you don’t need to go out and buy expensive books – you should be able to find lots of information on-line, you just need to know where to look. And we do have lots of knowledgeable Society members, who I’m sure will be happy to tell you what their favourites are!
Choosing plants & shrubs for the ornamental garden
Sorry, “the ornamental garden” sounds a bit pretentious, what I mean is the garden that’s not the vegetable garden!
The RHS website is really the place to look, but it’s not necessarily that easy to find what you’re looking for. I came across one section Award winning Plants for Places, which is definitely worth a look. Each month Graham Rice, a member of the Herbaceous Committee, lists 10 plants for a particular spot in the garden. All 10 plants have been awarded the RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM), so you can be sure that they'll do well in your garden - this month’s article is about the best shrubs with autumn berries. There are articles on Autumn grasses, Herbs, alpines, evergreen perennials, etc, etc. I’m sure there’ll be something of interest!
If you’re looking to attract more bees into your garden, then take a look at the Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust website. You’ll find a list of bee friendly plants for download on the website.
For Roses, as well as the RHS website, take a look at the David Austin website – they’ve selected their recommendations for each type of rose. Also on the Sarah Raven Blog, there’s an article on roses for a north facing wall.
If there are any particular sites you go to for inspiration and help in choosing varieties, please let me know & we can pass on the info.
Choosing varieties for the Vegetable & Fruit garden
It’s no easier choosing varieties for the Fruit & Veg garden……………………
If you’re just starting off growing veg, there’s a good article by Toby Buckland on the Telegraph website – as well as general advice, there are recommendations for varieties of veg.
Again, the RHS website is a good source of information & there is information on Fruit & Veg that’s been awarded the RHS Award of Merit.
John Branham, from the National Vegetable Society, came to see us earlier on this year – here are a few of his recommendations of veg varieties:
Bambino – tasty cherry tomato
Shirley – best tasting “normal sized” tomato
Lady Christl – a good First Early variety
Kestrel – favourite second early variety
And finally, here are Roger Umpelby’s favourite fruit & veg varieties (Roger spoke at the NVS Bucks branch meeting in November 2013).