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Expert solutions to all your problems with trees, shrubs, climbers, roses and hedges
Rambling rose is out of control
Is now a good time to deal with a rambling rose that has got completely out of control?
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Home-raised strawberries
I decided to dig up my old strawberries last year. I potted up 50 runners and these are now in an open cold frame, but I’m worried about virus. Will it be safe to continue with them or should I buy more plants?
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Flowering tree for a small lawn
I’d like to give my son and daughter-in-law a flowering tree for the lawn at their new house. Their garden is small, but sheltered and south-facing.
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Liquidambar is member of witch hazel family
Would you please settle a dispute? My neighbour insists that his tall liquidambar tree is a kind of maple because the leaves are like sycamore leaves. I keep telling him he’s wrong, but I don’t know what family the tree is in. How can I prove to him it’s not a maple?
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Can I eat fruit from quince?
My chaenomeles (Japanese quince) is covered with lovely big fruits this winter. Is it possible to eat them or should I just compost the quinces?
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Will my palm ever flower?
A Trachycarpus fortunei palm grows in a west-facing position in my garden. I want it to produce flowers and fruit but none have appeared so far. How can I encourage it?
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Search for a coppery-coloured shrub
I would like a few suggestions for a coppery coloured shrub for a mixed border in average sun. I’d prefer an evergreen, ultimate height being about 1.5m (5ft). I’m taken with a cotinus, but they’re deciduous.
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Who is right about height?
I’m thinking of buying two Phyllostachys nigra from Thompson & Morgan. They state that they grow 3m (10ft) high, your book Plant Solutions tells me they grow to 8m (27ft), The RHS Encyclopedia says 6m to 8m (20-27ft). Who is right? Can you also suggest any other bamboo?
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Conifer hedging is suffering
Two parts of my conifer hedging, which is 25 years old, are showing severe browning. What can I do?
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Buddleia’s having a bad hair day
What can I do with my Buddleia alternifolia which has grown out of control? It looks as if it’s had a really bad hair day, but I want it to weep gracefully.
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Something’s eating my viburnum’s foliage
Something is eating the foliage on my viburnum. My son’s plant two doors away is clear, so what is eating my plant?
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Am I too late to prune wisteria?
I didn’t prune my wisteria in August. What do I do now?
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Dig bamboo roots out a bit at a time
I have recently cut down a bamboo, but I am left with the roots still in the ground. Is there any way I can remove them?
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Sweet chestnut trees are notoriously fickle
Do sweet chestnuts fruit in the UK? I have a mature tree which bears a good crop every year, but the nuts never plump up. I did notice on television that Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall collected sweet chestnuts here in Dorset. Is that just artistic licence by the programme maker?
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Will anything get rid of black spot?
I have a big problem with black spot on my roses. I started spraying with Roseclear 3 every two weeks from mid-April and removed infected leaves, but it
didn’t seem to make any difference. Is there anything else I can use? more...
Worrying about my trees
I’m anxious about two trees in my garden which appear unhealthy. I’ve enclosed leaves which began falling thick and fast last month – much earlier than usual.
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Bottlebrush hasn’t been flowering
Can you tell me what to do with my Australian bottlebrush? It has not flowered for two years. more...Pyracantha infested with caterpillars
I have a five-year-old pyracantha which was infested with dozens of caterpillars of a type I’d never seen in 70 years of gardening. I discovered that these are vapourer moth larvae. I’d appreciate your views and advice.
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Bad year for robinia ‘Frisia’
Are robinia ‘Frisia’ having a bad year? Ours has a lot of die-back and on our daughter’s 12-year-old tree, two thirds has died back.
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Mystery plant is walnut seedling
Can you identify this shrubby plant which is growing in my border? It is vigorous and tends to smother other plants. I’ve tried to dig it up, but the roots are too well embedded.
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I want to propagate acers
Can I propagate acers? If so, how? I have two greenhouses and plenty of facilities.
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You can prune your tree trio
We bought three trees – Cercis siliquastrum, Ginkgo biloba and Euonymus hamiltonianus – but have discovered they will grow larger than the labels suggested. I think we’ll get rid of them because they can’t be pruned.
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Viburnum hasn’t flowered for two years
My Viburnum carlesii ‘Aurora’ has not flowered for two years and has curled leaves with brown edging.
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Leaves are falling off my crinodendron
Leaves on the main stems of my Crinodendron hookerianum have been browning and falling off. Smaller, newer stems are fine and have buds. Also, I’ve scratched the main trunk and discovered green beneath the bark. Is this a disease?
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