When the seedlings have become mature plug plants they need to be potted on into single pots or containers filled with fresh Levington Potting Compost.
topical tip
To prevent damping off disease which can sometimes rot the stems of the newly emerged seedlings, water the compost with a solution of Murphy Traditional Copper Fungicide
HOUSEPLANTS
Many people will have received mixed bowls of houseplants as gifts at Christmas time. The mixture of attractive foliage plants and pretty flowering ones always look good, but are difficult to look after. For one thing the different plants usually have different requirements for water and another is that they are almost always planted into containers without any drainage holes so that they can be placed on any piece of furniture. Without drainage holes any excess water collects in the bottom of the bowl and this will drive out all air from the compost. The result is drowning at the roots and eventually the death of the plants.
Careful watering is the answer. Wait until the surface of the compost is dry and then water thoroughly. Use enough water to thoroughly wet the growing media and leave this to soak for ten minutes or so. Drain any excess water from the bowl by tipping it sideways and then leave the compost without further watering until the surface dries out again. Most bowls of mixed plants are killed by kindness - too much water, given too frequently.
To completely avoid the problem many people will pull apart the bowl and plant up each plant into individual pots with drainage holes. Use fresh Levington Houseplant Compost and clean plastic pots large enough to take the roots. To display your plants in an attractive and healthy way, group the pots on a waterproof tray filled with gravel or decorative stones. If you keep these stones moist you will create a beneficial moist atmosphere around the plant and avoid the problems of dry air, often noticed as brown edges to leaves.
Grouping plants helps to provide this moist atmosphere and regular misting with plain water over the leaves will also help to keep them cool. Do not mist over hairy or sensitive plants such as African violets, succulents and cacti.
There is little change you can make to the temperature in different rooms. Personal comfort in the home comes before plant well being. If you find you have plants that resent high temperatures try to find them a cooler spot in the house, perhaps trying the bathroom or a bedroom.
Like all living things, plants need to be fed when they are actively growing. Fresh compost will only feed for a few weeks, so supplementary feeding is soon essential. Most people prefer a liquid plant food that they can dilute when they water. Use one such as Miracle-Gro Concentrated Liquid Houseplant Food that contains all the nutrients and trace elements plants need to thrive. Just add a few drops to the water every time you water.
For those people who prefer to use slow release plant food sticks look out for two new ones from Miracle-Gro. Each Houseplant Spike is colour coded and provides a special feeding formula tailored for foliar or flowering houseplants. Miracle-Gro Foliar Houseplant Spikes are green in colour and rich in nitrogen to encourage strong stems and an abundance of richly-coloured foliage. Miracle-Gro Flowering Houseplant Spikes are red in colour and have lots of potash which encourages many more colourful blooms. Both spikes also contain chelated iron and a large number of vital trace elements for balanced growth and to give houseplants that extra boost. Each packet contains 30 spikes that provide essential major nutrients for up to 60 days
FRUIT AND VEGETABLES
Many traditionalists spray their apple and pear trees with a tar-oil winter wash while they are completely dormant. January is the best time. The idea is to reduce the over-wintering eggs of pests such as red spider mites, apple sucker and scale insects that may be hiding on the bark and in leaf axils. Unfortunately many of the brands that do this job in the garden are being withdrawn from sale later this year. As part of the European Review of garden pesticides many active ingredients will not be available for home use. Tar Oil is among the list of ingredients that are going. If your fruit trees are used to regular winter wash treatments then go out and buy Mortegg, Jeyes Fluid, or Armillatox products that contain tar oils and use them this winter.
Peaches are often affected by a crippling disease called peach leaf curl. It shows as large red blisters on the leaf that turns white, then brown, and falls prematurely. The disease survives in the bark and between the bud scales so you need to spray very early to stand a hope of controlling it. For good results spray with Murphy Traditional Copper Fungicide at the end of January or the beginning of February as buds begin to swell and repeat the treatment in the autumn at leaf fall. A couple of sprays every year should keep your peach trees clean.
Out in the garden cover rhubarb crowns with a large bucket or tub to encourage early pink sticks of fruit. To provide some heat, add some fresh animal manure and fill the bucket with straw to act as good insulation. In theory the manure will heat up as bacteria breed and should encourage new rhubarb even earlier than normal.
Continue to cut winter greens in the form of Brussels sprouts, kale and winter cabbage.
topical tip
Apply a good fertilizer such as Miracle-Gro Controlled Release Plant Food or Osmocote granules around the root area of fruit trees to ensure long slow feeding throughout the season. A mulch dressing of Levington Mini Chipped Forest Bark will help to suppress weeds and aid moisture retention.
IN THE GREENHOUSE
Keep the compost of fuchsia plants moist but not wet. Check for whitefly on the underside of leaves and if found spray with BugClear Gun! or Natures Answer Natural Pest Control. After controlling these adults it is a wise precaution to check these decorative plants again a fortnight later to see if further whitefly have hatched. If so spray again at fortnightly intervals.
Start to water stools of chrysanthemums, moving them closer to the light so that emerging shoots are strong and sturdy. When the shoots are about 7 cm long (3") remove cleanly and trim just below a leaf joint with a sharp knife or craft blade. Remove the lower leaves and insert four to six prepared cuttings around the edge of a 7 cm (3") pot filled with Levington Seed & Cutting Compost or Levington Multi-Purpose Compost. See that the temperature is at least 7 degrees C (45 degrees F) to ensure quick rooting.
Check the installation of bubble double-glazing ensuring vents are still openable on mild sunny days.
topical tip
Scrub clean all seed trays and empty pots ready for use in the coming season.
ROSES
If you take some time to tidy up the ground below all rose trees you will receive multiple benefits. For one thing collecting and destroying all fallen rose leaves will dramatically reduce the carry-over of rose blackspot disease to next season's growth. The disease spores remain on the fallen leaves and will splash up onto new growth as soon as the new leaves unfurl in the spring. After you have cleared the soil of debris loosen the surface with a fork and then spread a mulch layer of Levington Mini chipped Forest Bark about 5cm (2in) deep below your bushes. This fresh mulch will not only hold in soil moisture but will also act as a semi-sterile layer that will help to reduce rose blackspot infection.
Once you have cleaned and tidied under your roses the next step is to remember to protect this year's foliage with a good fungicide such as RoseClear Gun! or FungusClear concentrate when the leaves unfurl in the spring. This initial treatment is the secret of success in the fight against rose blackspot. If you start spraying in March and follow up with a few more sprays at fortnightly intervals you will definitely have the whip hand. And as a result you will have healthy roses that will reward you with more beautiful blooms on trees that retain their foliage right through until next winter.
THE GARDEN