David's gardening tips
As the summer arrives, we share some top gardening tips from David, our resident gardening fundraiser.
David worked for the NHS for 20 years and back at the start of the pandemic, he started growing plants and selling them on his drive to raise money for NHS Charities Together. His stall is open every day and fundraising has grown so much that he even caught the attention of King Charles, who awarded David a B.E.M. (British Empire Medal) earlier this year.
Read on for some of David's top tips for gardening this summer...
Gardening tip 1
Remove the growing tips from your Cosmos plants. This encourages more side shoots to grow, giving more flowers throughout the summer. Pinch out just above a double leaf node when the plants are 150mm plus high as shown here by David.
David grows a variety: Purity which is a white one, Fizzy White which is a double, Dazzler which is a bright pink, and Candy Stripe, which is a white with pink stripes. The plants can grow over one metre tall depending on how often you take the growing tips out.
Gardening tip 2
When planting Nerine bulbs leave half the bulb out the pot or ground. The same applies when dividing and replanting in the ground. Nerines give beautiful flowers in the late season from September onwards.
David is growing a mix of pink and white this year although in his garden he loves his Nerine Bowdenii Pink version.
Gardening tip 3
Remember to pot on your tomato plants into larger pots, grow bags or the ground as soon as they become pot or root bound, as shown here by David. When the leaves start to turn yellow it most probably means they need potting on.
This year David has grown these varieties; Moneymaker, Red Cherry, Gardeners Delight, Roma, Golden Sunrise and Tigerella for his plant stall.
