Last week, I was invited to attend a gardening workshop at Clifton Nurseries in London. It was called ‘Transform your Garden through Clever Pruning’.
I have a little knowledge about pruning, taught to me by Auntie Planty a few years ago. And, when I have time, I deadhead the roses in our garden.
But, I really don’t have a clue about pruning any other plants and am always unsure as when is the best time of year to do it.
So this one hour workshop, which was run by Clifton Nurseries MD, Matthew Wilson, was just what I needed…
To start, Matthew explained that there are three main reasons why you prune:
Horticultural
To remove dead wood, disease and damage (the 3 Ds). Plus to help the tree or plant produce better fruit or flowers.
Aesthetic
For example, topiary or cloud pruning (a Japanese method of training trees and shrubs into shapes resembling clouds).
The Wrong Reason
When you prune something because it’s growing in the wrong place or you want to keep it in shape.
Matthew talked us through the different types of equipment which you can use to prune including secateurs, pruning saws, pruning knives and loppers.
And he also recommended some books on the subject which we may wish to read.
Then, he explained the different pruning techniques that he uses and advised us when’s the best time to prune certain plants and trees.
I learnt so much! The workshop was very easy to follow with no technical jargon. It would be a perfect introduction for a complete beginner.
And it would be equally useful for people who’ve been gardening for some time, as there was ample opportunity to ask Matthew questions about pruning specific plants that you may be having challenges with in your garden.
Today, Thursday and Friday this week, Clifton Nurseries are holding a Colourful Containers for Autumn Workshop.
Sarah Glenny, their Nursery Manager, will be showing how to create a splash of colour in your garden with containers.
And they’re planning more workshops for the future, plus Christmas events.
Whilst I was there, I had a look around and captured a few of the wonderful plant displays on my iPhone, which I thought I’d share with you…
So, if you’d like to improve your gardening skills, why not book yourself onto one of their gardening workshops?
Or if you live in or are visiting London, why not take the tube to Warwick Avenue and pop in to see their excellent selection of plants for your garden and for your home?
To keep up-to-date with news about Clifton Nurseries, they’re on Twitter and Facebook, plus have a blog. And Matthew Wilson is on Twitter too.
P.S. If you’d like to read more about Clifton Nurseries, here are two blog posts from my visit there last summer : Part 1 & Part 2.
(Images : Rona Wheeldon for Flowerona)
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