Gardeners Question Time

When I first started living abroad, one of the things I missed most about Britain was the radio – especially Radio 4. But since the BBC started broadcasting over the Internet you can both listen live and catch up with programmes you missed by accessing the archive.

Yesterday I went into the Gardener’s Question Time page and noticed that they had a list of vegetables recommended by the Royal Horticultural Society for growing in containers. I’ve never done much fruit or vegetable growing, mainly because the few miserable tomatoes and beans which I have tried have always failed miserably. But I might try and get hold of these for next year and have another go. They've all been given an Award of Garden Merit, and there are brief instructions given for sowing etc.

If you don't already know them, the BBC’s general gardening site is also one of the best I know and well worth checking out, as is the site of the RHS.

Despite my general failures however, this year’s melon experiment worked and the “babies” are growing visibly day by day – here’s the result so far. Definitely something to do again, starting much earlier, next year.

Virus Attack

After four months of blooms, the hollyhocks are still going strong and, although the stems are getting a bit straggly, I haven’t the heart to pull them out yet. I’m going to have to though as one has got what appears to be mosaic virus (see below). I’m a bit worried about it – I can destroy the plant and change the soil in the container, but the container itself is a large stone pot which is far too heavy to move or tip up. So disinfecting it would be a big problem. I can’t just pour in disinfectant as it would run straight out of the drainage holes – and straight onto the balcony below. But I’d like to grow more hollyhocks in the same place next year and I’m worried that the virus will just be passed straight on. I've already got a lot of young plants coming on, but sadly, my favourite purply red flowers didn't produce seeds. I don't know why. It bloomed as well as the others, though a bit later, but just didn't produce seed pods.

My pelargoniums also seem to be having problems. I noticed this problem of leaf colour (photo below) a few weeks ago. I thought it was a nutrition deficiency problem, so changed the top layer of soil and fed the plant fairly generously. But now it’s appeared in a second pot and I’m wondering whether it too isn’t a virus. I really hope not, because it’s attacked a huge plant which I’d be very loathe to lose, and which I was about to take cuttings from. Does anyone recognise it?