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Over the years, Gerry has answered more than 5,000 of your gardening questions. His knowledge is based in science and practical experience, and by working on radio and television.
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Gerry, Need your opinion please. I am putting down shrubbery beds and have received different feedback - for a low growing shrubbery bed (54ft long x 24ft wide) would you put down gravel or wooden bark to cover a weed blanket? People tell me gravel is better as wooden bark fades after the first year and looks dirty...I want it to look nice but with very little maintenance....as I am conscious that really it is only going to need to look well until the shrubs develop and fill up over a few years....
Gerry, Help!! I have killed off some of my lawn for a shrubbery border (54ft long x 17 ft deep). I used Round-Up about 2 mths ago as the local garden centre said I could plant again after 4 weeks. It has killed off all of the grass but due to the volume of rain some grass is growing back and there are alot more rushes after appearing in the area. There was always a few rushes in the area but the lawnmower always kept them down when cutting the lawn. It is at the back of the garden and I wanted to put a 3 tier shrubbery, with large evergreen shrubs, then a layer of medium shrubs and then a layer of low growing ones at the front. What can I do to get rid of the rushes as I have weed blanket to put down and I'm worried if I put the weed blanket down over the existing rushes they'll continue to grow and puncture the weed blanket.
what can iget to kill off nettles and will it kill them off for good
I have an old yard and a neighbour pointed out a troublesome weed to me about a year ago. He called it Japanese Knotweed. I have tried to kill this with Roundup, by covering the area with stones after spraying with Roundup, by cutting all shoots away, and all to no avail.How can I kill this Japanese Knotweed plant. I think that it is now spreading and appearing around the yard?Tangman
I have a huge heap of leaf compost from last years leaves. I used composter and it has worked a treat. The trouble is, when I used the previous years leaf mould on the garden, I got thousands of tree seedlings growing plus a few other weed seeds which had invaded my heap! Is there some chemical I can use on the heap to kill the seeds before I use the leaf mould in the garden? Would something like Roundup be suitable? I don't want to kill the plants in the garden!
We have bought an old school house with tall conifers on either side of the house. I sprayed the driveway with Hytrol for weeds and now it looks as though the tree nearest to it (about five feet away) has been affected... it has yellowing of the base of the leaves. Is it possible I am to blame for this? I am most concerned as these trees are at least 70 years old and 70ft in height! Is there anything I can do about it?Lilian
I have two mature grey sally (willow) trees growing on the boundary of my rural garden. These shed lots of seeds during the late spring, which means lots of seedlings all over my flowerbeds. I also have an ash tree which is threatening to stifle a neighbouring beech tree. I plan to have these cut down and paint the stumps with SBK Brushkiller. Is this a sutiable time of year or should I wait until Spring?
We had a commercial chipper in to chip a large ash tree which had fallen down. How long until the chips can be used on the garden? A year? Two years? !! I have a huge pile.
How can I remove ivy that was planted to cover a wall some years ago (8 - 20 years) I have pulled and cut it away frrom the wall and am left with the stump and root in the soil. Do I need some strong weed killer.This is the varigated kind, not wild ivy.GLAD TO BE ABLE TO CONTACT YOU AGAIN..
Gerry,I was at a Garden Show recently and was told by a company selling organic compost that Bark Mulch is bad for shrubbery beds or for on top of weed blanket as it takes nutrients from the soil. Is this correct? They said they had received a circulation from Coillte......Thanks
My neighbour used roundup near my Olearia macrodonta hedge. I have noticed some leaves becoming discoloured and curling up at the edges. Do you think this is the damage from the weedkiller? Can the affected plants survive? How long before i can be sure no other plants are affected? Regards ,Bobbi
I had a black poplar cut out of the garden 2 years ago as it was putting up shoots all over the lawn aswell as elsewhere in the garden. The tree stump is dead but i still have shoots everywhere and they are extremely problematic. Any suggestions please.
Hi Gerry, I have a very sloped back garden .i have decked the top half and planted shrubs on the slope would i be better laying bark or gravel around the shrubs or will the rain wash it to the end of the garden?
How soon after spraying with Brushkiller can i put down mypex and begin planting winter heathers ?
i have a problem with weeds around my beech hedge. i have Gallop weed killer. is that ok to use? if not can you suggest what i should use? also i have a high bank which is taken over by weeds. there is lavander planted on it. can i weed around the lavander with weed killer without damaging them??
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