A very happy Christmas to all my readers.
There are many shrubs that are pruned with shears. The bougainvillea is not one of them. The best way is to cut all the old flowering shoots with secateurs down to a few inches in length in order to stimulate the growth of new shoots during the rains. They produce flowers on the new shoots in just the same way as bush roses. Now a lot of gardeners treat hedges like soldiers. They must stand straight and regimental. They are clipped so that the new shoots grow very closely together (good shelter for birds). As I’ve just said I much prefer to have bougainvillea cut with secateurs. It’s a longer job than using a hedge trimmer but does less damage. For those wishing to have a straight top to their hedges the best way is to stretch string between two tall posts of the right height at either end of the hedge. However the informal look given by long flowering shoots of bougainvillea seems more appropriate than the military treatment.
For those of you with a penchant for growing sunflowers may I put in a word for our feathered friends this Christmas. Many of them love flower and grass seeds. Quite a few also love sunflower seed, and the fat off meat. So as it’s Christmas, why not build them a bird table so that the cat doesn’t have them.
One of the greatest, and loudest sights in the tropics is that of a collection of cannas in full flower. It is one of the most accommodating of plants, and if you had to choose you could put it near the top of your list of plants that like it hot. You may know that its common name is the Indian Shot. Why? I will tell you. In the olden days of the British Raj the Indians had no access to the metal shot to fire from their guns. The outcome was that with typical Indian ingenuity they got the idea that the seed of the Canna plant was just as good as the real thing. And so it turned out.
The level of acidity and/or alkalinity of your soil determines how well the majority of your plants are going to grow. The majority prefer to be in a soil with a pH of 6.5 – that is on the slightly acid side. This will enable them to take up all the essential minerals they need for healthy growth. Too much lime and they will develop all sorts of peculiar diseases, many of which cause the leaf veins to become prominent and the spaces in between to become an unhealthy pale colour. Other deficiency diseases cause stunting of growth, poor fruit and flower production and premature death. Most deficiency diseases can be corrected by reducing the level of alkalinity which enables trace elements to be absorbed. Of course most
people’s gardens do not suffer from them at all if the normal techniques of adding compost to the soil is done, because that in itself keeps the garden soil in balance, but I do think that it’s a very good idea to invest in a soil pH testing outfit. These are not wildly expensive and are a very useful guide, especially when there are heavy rains which can easily wash out many of the essential chemical elements.
Take care on the roads over the next few days. It’s very important you’re at home with your family rather than in a hospital. Don’t carry large amounts of cash with you. You’ve worked very hard for it, and there’s no sense in giving it away to someone who hasn’t. Hope you have a truly wonderful day.
Until next time, may your God go with you.
