Ladies' fingers

NO matter where we live, summer brings a freedom from care that is unlike any other time of the year. The season is full of playfulness, wild flowers, light and relaxation.

There are dog daisies, red valerian, hawk-bit, Queen Ann lace, and red poppies now growing along the highways where wild garlic and rape seed had been only weeks ago. They brighten our environment irrespective of the prevailing weather.

The daisies are composites, flowers with an amalgamation or blend of smaller flowers which make a larger image, but the poppies show themselves like fancy tissue-paper doilies at a wedding; shy, bashful and retiring. Valerian bunches like lilac and is undisturbed by wind or rain or the suction of passing traffic. Further back from the verges, in among the wild ash, whitethorn, and still fresh beech boughs grow semi-woodland plants such as ferns, primula, elder, and fuchsia.

Thankfully, the colloquial plant names for these are still in ready use. People recognise and talk about hollyhocks rather than althaea, Solomon’s seal rather than polygonum, and ladies’ fingers for digitalis. But this is not for any reason of linguistic chauvinism, it is just that their Latin names are rather colourless and the vernacular particularly vivid.

‘Ladies’ fingers’ or ‘foxgloves’ (digitalis purpurea) will always be known by this name and they make decidedly handsome garden additions apart from their attraction in the wild. And they come free to those who know how to satisfy their modest needs. Most are biennial flowering which means they complete their lifecycle in two years. Sown one year, they grow up to form a compact plant which does not flower until the following year.

Wallflowers come into this group, so too sweet william, a few salvias, canterbury bells, forget-me-nots, even the silver-pennied honesty. However, few of these are happy growing under trees or in other shady places except for the foxgloves.

This year I have some good coloured forms of foxglove and as soon as flowering finishes and the seed pods are ripe, I will cut a spike, take it to a (new) area and scatter the seeds onto raked soil. These will be watered to settle them down. You can do similar if you find a white form in the wild or know where one can be sourced from a friend.

Later, during mid-August, the resulting seedlings can be thinned (if they appear congested) while allowing the remainder to grow on. The job is easy and takes but a few moments, yet it ensures one is never without a constant supply of replacement plants.

A reliable and handy way of knowing in advance which foxglove seedlings are going to be the standard purple colour (or indeed white bordering on cream which are far more desirable) is to inspect the leaf stalk of the seedlings as they develop and grow stronger. Any trace of purple or red in these means the mature plant will be purple or deep red. White forms tend not to show any leaf-stalk colouring.

Giving out this kind of advice can sometimes be unwise. You see, it is awkward to write about one’s own garden and the doings within, but I do wish to enthuse ever more readers into raising new plants for free (especially those from seed) and to cut down on the general expenses of gardening. That’s what this column is really all about.

GARDEN NOTES

¦ Visitors to the Mallow Garden Show can avail of a free shuttle-bus service from Mallow train station.

¦ An open garden event takes place tomorrow in the gardens of Len and Mairead Harty, ‘Poulacurry House’, Castlejane, Glanmire, from noon to 6pm to aid the restoration work at St Marys and All Saints Church, Glanmire.

¦ An ‘Open Garden’ coffee day and vintage display in aid of CUH (cancer treatment) takes place at the garden of Frank and Valerie Jennings, Cashel Beg, Enniskeane (on the main Bandon - Clonakilty road) tomorrow from 10am to 8pm. Watch for signs.

¦ Discover the beautiful gardens at Templebreedy Grounds, The Old Rectory, Crosshaven tomorrow from 1pm to 5pm and help raise money for Cork Simon. The gardens will be signposted from all approaches.

¦ A coffee morning and garden walk in Aid of Co-Action West Cork takes place at Snipevale Cottage, Tullineasky, Clonakilty, tomorrow from 11am to 6pm. On the road to Michael Collins’s birthplace watch for signs. This event will aid CoAction. Details: 086 8552474.

¦ An ‘Open Garden Event’ takes place tomorrow at the home of Hazel and Eugene Wiseman, Carrig Abhainn, Durrus, Bantry, Co. Cork. Open from 2pm to 5.30pm. Proceeds will aid Bantry Hospital and Hospice. Signposted from all approaches.

¦ An Open Garden event takes place on June 23 12pm to 6pm in the gardens of Mary Lynch, Granig, Minane Bridge, near Carrigaline Co Cork. Visitors should bring bags for the plant sales and cuttings counter Proceeds will aid Marymount Hospice.

¦ Blarney and District Flower and Garden Club invites its members to visit West Cork Flower Festival in Clonakilty on June 23 leaving at 9pm. Contact Alice at 087-6649318.

¦ The Pavilion Garden Centre, Ballygarvan is hosting a plant fair this Saturday and Sunday from 12-5pm. Gardening workshops, specialist plant nurseries and more will be present in a marquee. Everybody welcome 021 4888134 or www.thepavilion.ie