I returned home this afternoon from a day in Leicestershire to find my garden had once again been scorched by the sun and was desperate for nourishment. Amidst its weakened plants, such as my Parsley Japanese ‘Cryptotaenia Japonica’, I noticed an unwelcome pest – hordes of aphids had taken residence on my Sweet Pea ‘Cupani.’
Every branch of the tree seemed to be holding a rowdy gathering, as each leaf and bud was teeming with hordes of marauding green insects.
After spotting a few unwelcome aphids on the rose bush near the Sweet Peas, I reached for an old-fashioned – but effective – solution: a plant sprayer filled with tap water and generous dollops of Fairy Liquid. Hopefully this remedy will solve our pest problem in no time!
Don’t let aphids have the last word! Get yourself a simple water sprayer and mix up some chilly tap water with washing-up liquid – then give those pesky bugs a spritz. The sticky, oily coating that this mixture creates will seal off their breathing passages so they’ll suffocate before you know it. Sounds like sweet revenge to us!
As the summer heat wave caused a beloved blue Salvia ‘Nemerosa Ostfriesland’ to suffer, I decided to pot it up in an available medium-sized container. To complete this lovely display and provide contrast for both the recovering salvia and upright Antirrhinum ‘Chuckles’ plants, some South African Spider Plant ‘Chlorophytum Comosums’ were tucked into the arrangement – perfect little houseplants that will sparkle throughout autumn until winter comes knocking!
After a brief but glorious stint, the days of the fabled ‘Skyrocket’ salad leaves have come to an end in this pot. With heavy heart I bid farewell to these valiant plants that had been so eager for their moment in bloom before they were uprooted and replaced with new seeds – all ready to germinate within just three short days!
