Trump's mission is to bring peace to Europe, says JD Vance
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Daily Mirror
11 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Gardeners urged to prune 5 plants in August 'before it's too late'
These five plants should be pruned back in August (Image: Getty Images/Image Source) Gardeners are being urged to start shearing away at these five plants – or risk producing lacklustre growth the following year. As the weather continues to heat up and the sun blazes, more Brits are spending time outside – which means you want your garden looking as well-maintained as possible. Aside from the usual mowing, watering and weeding, a task which is often overlooked when it comes to gardening is pruning. Pruning is one of a gardener's most important tasks when it comes to keeping plants healthy. By cutting away dead, wilting or excess blooms, branches and leaves, you help redirect energy and resources back to the plant. READ MORE: 'I'm a professional gardener - these are the most beautiful flowers to plant in August' READ MORE: Gardeners told to put one common food on their bird table as soon as possible Pruning is an important gardening task (Image: Getty) It also helps bushes and trees keep their shape. This in turn prevents them from growing out of control and taking over large swathes of your garden. When it comes to flowers, pruning also encourages them to produce fresh blooms and can lead to a more vibrant appearance. In turn, it will help your garden maintain a lush summer look. Another important benefit of pruning is that it can help curb disease by cutting away afflicted parts of the plant. This way, you can help stop the spread. So, which plants should be pruned back in August? According to a gardening expert, there are five plants in particular that you should pay attention to this month. Richard Barker, a gardens expert and commercial director at LBS Horticulture, told Country Living: "When left alone, lavender can become woody, so it will need to be pruned in late summer after flowering has finished to keep the plant compact.' Richard advised that climbing hydrangeas should be pruned in summer, once it has finished flowering. This way, the plant will have had enough time to develop flowering wood for the following year. Wisteria should be pruned twice a year to ensure more blooms (Image: (Image: Getty)) According to Richard, wisteria should be pruned twice a year – once in July or August and once in January or February. While it can be left to ramble, pruning at these times helps the plant flower 'more freely and regularly'. Rambling roses should cut back in summer once they've produced flowers and hips, as per Richard. They can be pruned at any point up until late autumn or winter. You should prune apple trees in the summer (Image: Getty) Richard advised that apple and pear trees grown in restricted form should be pared back in summer, and that the plant will be ready to prune 'when the bottom third of its new shoots are stiff and woody, with pears ready before apples.'
Evening Standard
a day ago
- Evening Standard
Trump's mission is to bring peace to Europe, says JD Vance
'And if you look at the long sweep of history, every time something big happens for the world, every time a great victory is won for freedom and for peace and for prosperity, it is almost always the Brits and the Americans that do it together, and we win every single time we go to war together.
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Daily Mirror
'I moved from America to the UK and gardening is so different in Britain'
An American man who now lives in the UK with his British wife has shared three big differences he's noticed when it comes to gardening in both countries and some of them pleasantly surprised him Many people in various countries across the world enjoy gardening as it allows them to bond with nature and savour the joy of growing their own produce. It can prove therapeutic for many and there's an array of plants and blooms that can flourish in domestic gardens. The fundamentals of gardening involve grasping soil composition, selecting appropriate plants according to climate and cultivation conditions, and efficient planting methods. There are certain straightforward tasks that must be carried out in every garden, such as sowing, weeding, watering, pest management and general upkeep, like cutting the grass. But, there are some gardening distinctions depending on the nation. TikTok user @grande_americano is a man from Texas in the US who lives in Suffolk with his British wife. He offers his followers glimpses into his life in the UK, including how it differs from America and in one of his clips, he discusses how gardening in America contrasts with gardening in the UK. He then outlined three differences he has observed to share what he has learned with his friends in the US. 1. Brits don't say 'yard' or 'yard work' The Texan initially observed that Brits don't employ use the terms 'yard' or 'yard work'. He clarified: "Gardening means everything you do in the yard. When I grew up you did yard work, which was mowing, trimming, edging, and a garden was a separate thing." He explained that a garden typically means a space for flowers or vegetables, but in Britain, the term "garden" covers the entire outdoor area - what he would call the yard, lawn, and the spots where flowers and vegetables grow. The expat also discovered that when a Brit mentions having a garden party, they're actually referring to an event held in the yard 2. The soil is 'nice' Moving on, the TikTok creator said: "The second thing is the soil is nice. I did a little bit of gardening today and it was actually somewhat pleasant to be able to pull weeds and dig around and not be hitting rocks after a half inch of top soil, like I would be doing in Texas where I'm from." He found that there's no limestone or dolomite to chip through in his UK garden, unlike in Texas. The American described the soil as "nice, rich dirt." 3. No 'weird' critters in the UK The final difference he noticed is the lack of " weird critters" commonly found in Texas, such as scorpions or venomous snakes. He commented: "I did see quite a few spiders and slugs and snails, [I] even saw two newts." Despite seeing "plenty of critters wandering around" and "lots of good fishing worms" in the soil, he noticed that they go about "minding their own business." The Texan added: "I've been told that there are some snakes here in the UK and possibly one viper, one venomous snake but I've been told that you'll be lucky to ever see a snake, much less a poisonous one." The American man acknowledged that although he might get used to grumbling about the weather, it is actually the mild climate, along with the moisture and humidity, that produces "such beautiful lush gardens and scenery and countryside that we all really love."
