A question I get asked a lot is “when’s the best time to plant shrubs?”, and I think the answer is so much more complex than I used to answer when I first left Horticultural college.
The answer back then was “during the dormant period”, you see this was a world when the majority of plants were bought and sold in the Autumn-Spring period – typically bare root plants.
Then the advent of the container grown shrub came along and indeed became the mainstream option, and the answer to “when’s the best time to plant shrubs?” changed to “plant when there’s an R in the month”. This involved avoiding planting in the May-August period – the thinking was that the ground was too dry and that you would have to be bothered to water your newly installed plant.
Then there was the change from the single working person household to both adults in the household working, which meant that weekends became more precious as family time and spare time became more filled up with jobs around the house including housework and the likes.
Not only has this changed dramatically affected businesses like home milk delivery but gardening changed too. Now when the weather’s good we jump out the chairs and head off to the garden centre to pick up some shrubs to plant that day when the weathers good, and the whole family are outside enjoying the weather.
The idea only planting in the Autumn or Spring has long been forgotten!
The idea that gardening was something that ‘dad’ did and others enjoyed is a thing of the past, now gardening has become a key family activity and the garden being a key space for enjoying leisure time in the garden; Trampolines, Slides, Swings, Mud Kitchens all things that were far from commonplace 10 years ago.
The phrase “the cheaper way to extend your home is your garden” is so true, a few euro spent on shrubs, trees, play equipment or whatever hugely expands your living space in the garden and creates a space for enjoyment, relaxation, and escapism.
So my new answer to the question “when’s the best to plant shrubs?” is when you can afford to!
Late August in the garden is a funny time of year, the summer bedding plants are still looking amazing, and with regular dead heading will keep going for ages yet.
Some of the earlier flowering shrubs in the garden will be passing now, and if needed should be cut back now. The vegetable garden is pumping out the goodies, with onions coming ready now, carrots starting to come and the early potatoes being well harvested through.
Pest and Disease control is important so get some Yellow Sticky Traps for the glasshouse for Aphid control and keep on top of the moss on the lawn with an application of Mo-Bacter.
Yellow sticky card insect traps protect tomato plants in a greenhouse.
