Of course it’s depressing to start thinking about Christmas when you still have shiny tanned skin from your summer holidays. Think about it you must if you are to provide a superior feast for your family. This is the time to make way in the greenhouse for Christmas potatoes. What could be nicer than some home harvested spuds to toss in the goose fat?

I’m growing Red Duke of York (a great favourite), Beauty of Bute and Ulster Sovereign amongst others.

Potatoes that are planted in August or early September are ordinary seed potatoes that have been held back in cold storage so that you can harvest them later. Since the plant is not frost hardy, the greenhouse is the perfect place to provide protection – you can either grown them in border soil or in tubs.

Start by putting  6 – 10 inches of soil in the bottom of a bucket or tub that has drainage holes, then plant three or four spuds on top (depending on the size of container).  All you have to do is to keep throwing more soil on top as the plant grows up to encourage more tubers to grow. The trick is to keep the plant well watered (don’t let it get really dry), but not to let it be water-logged  or soggy either.

You can use fertilizer , though you’ll still get a reasonable crop without it.

At least if you’ve missed the boat with planting sprouts or parsnips, you’ll have something to put down on the table with pride.

If you have extra space in the greenhouse, carrots can also be planted in a tub about 18” (45cms) deep. Choose an early variety like Nantes or Jeanette which will mature quickly.  Fill your container with mixed compost (50% horticultural sand, 50% general purpose compost) for good drainage.  Similarly, winter salads are also a good bet for Christmas when you’ve returned from summer holidays.

My last piece of planning concerns dessert: last year I longed to have a Christmas tree.

bundt cake pan (yes,  yes, I admit, I was seduced by Nigella. ) You could not buy them for love or money as they’d sold out here and in the US. This year they may well go the same way. You have been warned.

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I’m off to Sweden for my holidays this year (can you tell who has been watching Wallander?). One of the highlights of my tour will be a visit to the Glass Bubble community centre built by the talented landscape architect and artist Monika Gora in Malmo harbour.

The tower blocks which stood in the howling wind were already there when Gora was asked to fill the void and build a structure that could be used as a community centre for the retired people who lived there.  In a country where the lack of light can be an oppressive to citizens of all ages, she came up with the idea of a glasshouse that provides year round warmth and greenery. The curved structure is full of tree ferns and exotic plants and is a cosy, inviting place for people to socialise in.  Would that all local governments were as forward thinking as to commission glasshouses as community centres.

And while on the subject of Sweden and glasshouses – I note from news and current affairs website The Swedish Wire that a company called Plantagon has approached the Swedish authorities about building large greenhouses in the middle of cities where vegetables can be grown. The plan would be for them to grown in geodesic glasshouses where the plants can slowly rotate round the structures so that they can be exposed to the maximum light.  Each sphere is planned to cost around £18 million ($30 million dollars).  That’s an awfully expensive cucumber to eat with your herring!

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In The Greenhouse with Lila Das Gupta

One of the things I love about gardening is that it fills you with hope for the future.   We may well be in high summer (literally and metaphorically), but while you have a packet of seeds there is always much to look forward to.
Last week I attended the open day at Thompson and Morgan’s show-grounds in Ipswich - my notebook is already stuffed full of ideas.  Every autumn I curl up with the new catalogue, but nothing beats seeing the real thing.  You can rule out problematic contenders like Salpiglossis (very beautiful flower, very floppy foliage). It’s also a chance to be see plants that the catalogue doesn’t do justice to, like the majestic like tree lilies.

So, for 2010 here are some of my favourites.  Without realising it I seem to have been drawn to claret-coloured flowers for next year. (I avoid mixed seed packets altogether since they are hard to combine with other plants).  Not all of these plants will be available from T&M’s catalogue but they are worth keeping an eye out for. With some on-line detective work they shouldn’t be too hard to track down.
1. Cosmos ‘Rubenza’ – pinky, brown wine coloured flowers – they change and fade as they grow.

2. Tree Lily ‘Time Zone’ – This variety is on trial and may be offered next year. The flowers are a deep burgundy and the plant is over six feet tall with an abundance of blooms.  Spectacular for a pot on the patio or at the back of the border. For a selection of colours currently available as bulbs click here.

3. Petunia Debonair – ‘Dusty Rose’.  Bred in the US, this is not yet available in the UK, though it will probably be on the market for 2010. The flowers are a faded wine colour, some with a splashed effect.

White is a colour I find hard to combine with others, especially in a hot border, but if you are thinking of having a go at a Sissinghurst-style white garden a couple of useful plants to raise from seed are these:

1.    Papaver rhoeas ‘Bridal White’ is a delicate and unusual field poppy.  Just toss the seed down where you want it to grow and the rest will be taken care of by nature.

2.    Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Double Click’ Snow Puff has double white flowers and is useful when you need fine, feathery foliage.  Keep deadheading and the plant will go on all summer till the first frosts.

Many people are sensible enough to use shrubs and perennials as the back bone of the garden, using annuals to fill in the gaps or provide splashes of colour, but sometimes it’s refreshing to break the rules. For the last couple of years I’ve taken to planting annuals, almost exclusively, on one side of the garden, just to provide a heightened sense of drama and variety.  If you’re not careful this style of planting can leave you with swathes of bare earth during the winter, but with the judicious planting of wall flowers and tulips in the autumn and even some pak choi and broad beans, you can have an awful lot of fun and still get away with it.

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