Hoorah! I’m knee-deep in seed packets & compost bags, says FIONA CUMBERPATCH
Make life lovely
“When I step outside at this time of year, my heart flips.
Pots of tulips are blazing with sunset colours, the garden blackbird is singing at full throttle, there’s a haze of green shoots along my trellises and leaves are unfurling almost in front of my eyes.
I put down my phone: five mins outside turns into 10, and then a lot more. Yes, there’s loads I need to do, but none of it feels like a chore because I know I’ll be seeing the fruits of my labour in a matter of weeks. After a full season in my redesigned garden, I’ve now got a better idea of what works and what doesn’t, and I’m keen to get going with some new plants and plans.
I think cosmos are the easiest cutting flowers to grow from seed, and I’ll be sowing them again this year, waiting until the middle of the month, then germinating them in seed trays under a fine layer of compost on my kitchen windowsill. I’m inviting a new-to-me plant to the party too. I fell in love with strawflowers (helichrysum) after seeing some at RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival last year. With perky button-shaped heads on upright stems, I love the glowing colours of these tough hardy annuals (£1.79/250 seeds mr-fothergills.co.uk). They can be sown inside now, or sprinkled directly into a sunny flowerbed when warmer weather arrives in May. Either way, flowers are practically guaranteed July to October. As well as being drought-tolerant, the appeal of these gems with their papery petals is that they can be cut and enjoyed as a fresh flower, then dried to make cute everlasting bunches that keep their jewel tones well.
My small garden is no barrier to growing edibles, and my favourite is ‘Tumbling Tom’ tomato, which I’ll pair with some pelargoniums in a wall planter. Last year, one small ready-grown plant from Waitrose, planted out after the
