麻豆约拍

(www.greatdixter.co.uk)

Rachael Dodd has been a gardener at Great Dixter for the past four years. She started at the garden on the Christopher Lloyd Scholarship, learning how to propagate, plant for a long season of colour and how to create dazzling plant combinations. Here are some of her favourites:

• Aconitum 'Spark's Variety' with Phlox 'Logan Black' and Thalictrum delavayi聽 The rich inky blue of the monkshood picks up the deep black stems of the phlox making it a slightly moody combination. But the bold colour of the phlox gives it a strong punch and the Thalictrum brings in lightness and movement.
  

• Farfugium japonicum with Fatsia japonica 'Spider's Web' 聽We grow a superb form of the Farfugium with rich glossy leaves that Fergus Garrett found in the south of France. It's not hardy, but it's worth molly-coddling through the winter for its striking summer display. It looks especially good when combined with the unusual foliage of Fatsia 'Spider's Web'.
  

• Parthenocissus henryana with Crocus sativus聽 With svelte foliage from the moment it emerges, this climber ends its season with an explosion of flame-coloured leaves. And it looks even better when it has an autumn-flowering crocus, like Crocus sativus, planted at its feet. The delicate lilac petals of the latter light up amongst the fallen leaves of the Parthenocissus.
  

• Phlox 'Miss Mary' with Crocosmia 'Limpopo' and Lilium fortunei var. 濒补苍肠颈蹿辞濒颈耻尘听 This short magenta phlox is one of the most vibrant I've ever seen, put together with a crocosmia that describes itself as orange, pink and peach all in one flower head! Add in the striking performance of this tall species lily that has fine orange petals with black spots and dark stems, and you have an eye-popping high summer combination!
  

• Tulipa 'Beauty of Apeldoorn' with Lunaria annua 'Alba' and Myosotis arvensis聽 This golden-orange tulip looks fantastic when planted en masse with white honesty and sky-blue forget-me-nots, especially when backlit by the sun. These delicate spring elements dance their way in plentiful numbers through the emerging perennial foliage in one of our largest stock beds in the Peacock Garden.

Earwigs like to eat the flowers and leaves of dahlias, with the older foliage sometimes being reduced to a network of veins. The earwigs hide in sheltered places during the day and emerge after dark to feed. By filling upturned flower pots with straw or shredded paper and placing them on top of canes amongst your plants, you can trap the culprits by providing them with somewhere to hide. Check the pots daily and deal with any hidden earwigs as you see fit!

At this time of year, it鈥檚 worth keeping your camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas well watered. The plants are forming their flower buds for next spring and it鈥檚 important that they don鈥檛 dry out otherwise they may drop off before they open. Give them a good soak every week for the next month and they should put on a good display next spring. Be especially mindful of specimens growing in pots and if you have any under the eaves of your house, move them out so they can catch the rain.

(www.rhs.org.uk)

You can ensure a supply of mint through the winter by potting up a clump now and cutting back the top growth. Once you鈥檝e given it a good drink, place it on a bright windowsill or in a greenhouse, and as your outdoor mint starts to dies back, you鈥檒l have a fresh source of leaves for the kitchen.

(www.rhs.org.uk)