[Help] Gardeners Question Time.

[Jack Straw]

I have a lot of climbing hydrangea on our house, not sure how to trim it. View attachment 137705View attachment 137706
Don’t know why they’ve come out sideways There’s Virginia creeper there too.

I've cut and pasted this from the RHS guide;
Pruning climbing hydrangeas
The climbing hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris) should have overlong shoots cut back immediately after flowering. Most flowers appear towards the top of the plant, so try to leave as much of this un-pruned as possible
Established plants will tolerate hard pruning in spring, but extensive cutting back all in one go is likely to reduce flowering for the next couple of summers. To prevent flower loss, stagger drastic pruning over three or four years, reducing the size of the plant gradually.

 

[LamieRobertson]

Any clues as to the cause of this...planted over a year ago

Lot in the first photo not good...second one not so bad ...they are left and right of a pathway

 

[Jack Straw]

Any clues as to the cause of this...planted over a year ago

Lot in the first photo not good...second one not so bad ...they are left and right of a pathway

View attachment 137710

View attachment 137711

To confirm, are they Laurels or Portugese Laurels? Is that a shine on the leaves or Leaf Miner damage?

 

[LamieRobertson]

To confirm, are they Laurels or Portugese Laurels? Is that a shine on the leaves or Leaf Miner damage?

I didn’t plant them, but think it’s the latter ..it’s just shine ....the damage to the leaves has been happening since last October...it’s just got much worse.

 

[Weststander]

I have a lot of climbing hydrangea on our house, not sure how to trim it. View attachment 137705View attachment 137706
Don’t know why they’ve come out sideways There’s Virginia creeper there too.

A house built at 90 degrees, that’s an improvement on the builders’ more recent project.

 

[Jack Straw]

Anyhoo the customary 'before' photo.
I got this for next to the P thingy, as seemingly 50% of the shrubs at the GC looked like a variation of the P thing.

View attachment 136096

What does the black-leaved thingy look like at the moment Stat? (Photo?)

 

[Stat Brother]

What does the black-leaved thingy look like at the moment Stat? (Photo?)

I've booked Jnr for tomorrow morning's Hoe-Time!
So might have a photo or two, then.


The black thing went nuts, proper nuts, growing exponentially but some poppies have found their way over and have rather hemmed it in.

So I'll free that up tomorrow as well, hopefully it'll have room to breath.

 

[Stat Brother]

Here's Denzel Dumfries-Frog.

Jnr reckons he's thrown it over the fence 3 times this summer, yet he keeps attacking us down the right

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

Any ideas about this one? Is it a verbascum? Flowers are very inconsequential, but the bees are loving them. It's growing right next to a geum that I recently pruned back, so don;t let those leaves fool you.

Whatever it is, the black/white/yellow caterpillars are loving it to the point of destroying it completely.

As ever, the brains trust at NSC are thanked in advance (and Stat Brother)

 

[jakarta]

A new topic, ANTS. We have had them at Jakarta Towers since we moved here 25 years ago.

Have willingly let them do their stuff over the years BUT we now have several Ant Mountains plus patches of brown/dead grass.

Before I napalm the little oiks I need to know if these facts are linked (if I have to terminate them with extreme prejudice then some fact based stuff would be appreciated).

 

[1066familyman]

Any ideas about this one? Is it a verbascum? Flowers are very inconsequential, but the bees are loving them. It's growing right next to a geum that I recently pruned back, so don;t let those leaves fool you.

Whatever it is, the black/white/yellow caterpillars are loving it to the point of destroying it completely.

As ever, the brains trust at NSC are thanked in advance (and Stat Brother)

View attachment 138293
View attachment 138294

Looks like it's got square stems, so possibly a Verbena of some sort?

 

[Moshe Gariani]

This olive tree is in the wrong place - shading a flower bed and patio as well as just getting too big.
I want to remove it.
Can I just saw the branches off and then dig it out with a spade? Or will that be too difficult?
Also, just checking, it doesn’t have a sale value, does it?

 

[Jack Straw]

Any ideas about this one? Is it a verbascum? Flowers are very inconsequential, but the bees are loving them. It's growing right next to a geum that I recently pruned back, so don;t let those leaves fool you.

Whatever it is, the black/white/yellow caterpillars are loving it to the point of destroying it completely.

As ever, the brains trust at NSC are thanked in advance (and Stat Brother)

View attachment 138293
View attachment 138294

I'm going Scrophularia auriculata. https://www.uksouthwest.net/wildflowers/scrophulariaceae/scrophularia-auriculata.html
I'll consult my expert tomorrow to confirm.

 

[Jack Straw]

This olive tree is in the wrong place - shading a flower bed and patio as well as just getting too big.
I want to remove it.
Can I just saw the branches off and then dig it out with a spade? Or will that be too difficult?
Also, just checking, it doesn’t have a sale value, does it?

I doubt if it has any sale value whatsover. It will be one-sided, won't transplant easily and you won't get it out with much root on. Just get rid.
Cut off all of the top growth, leaving the trunk or stems about 5 feet tall. Dig a trench about 2 to 3 feet away from the trunk or stems, one spade wide. Use a "Grubbing mattock", (Like a pick-axe but with blades, rather than points) and a spade, dig your way around, down, and try to go under, cutting any roots as you go either with the mattock or secateurs. Every now and then, try rocking the trunk or stems to see if there's any movement. This is why you leave them longish so you have some leverage. Keep working your way around, digging and rocking, and after a lot of sweat and swearing, you will eventually become the victor.
If you're local to Brighton and wish to borrow my mattock, please PM me and I'll drop it round for you.

 

[Moshe Gariani]

I doubt if it has any sale value whatsover. It will be one-sided, won't transplant easily and you won't get it out with much root on. Just get rid.
Cut off all of the top growth, leaving the trunk or stems about 5 feet tall. Dig a trench about 2 to 3 feet away from the trunk or stems, one spade wide. Use a "Grubbing mattock", (Like a pick-axe but with blades, rather than points) and a spade, dig your way around, down, and try to go under, cutting any roots as you go either with the mattock or secateurs. Every now and then, try rocking the trunk or stems to see if there's any movement. This is why you leave them longish so you have some leverage. Keep working your way around, digging and rocking, and after a lot of sweat and swearing, you will eventually become the victor.
If you're local to Brighton and wish to borrow my mattock, please PM me and I'll drop it round for you.

Thank you so much for all of that. Top drawer advice as usual from the experts on this thread. I’ll wait for the weather to clear up and give it a whirl this afternoon.

Attached is photo of my flower bed all new this year.

 

[Jack Straw]

Attached is photo of my flower bed all new this year.

That looks really nice. Well done.

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

I'm going Scrophularia auriculata. https://www.uksouthwest.net/wildflowers/scrophulariaceae/scrophularia-auriculata.html
I'll consult my expert tomorrow to confirm.

Reckon you've nailed it - so self sown probably.

 

[Moshe Gariani]

Nearly there....

 

[Jack Straw]

Nearly there....

Keep rockin'!
When you eventually push and pull those stems and the last root snaps and the stump is completely free, you won't have experienced such elation for a long time!

 

[Jack Straw]

Reckon you've nailed it - so self sown probably.

I've had another ID from my expert friend who confirms what I posted is indeed correct.