At the last couple of meetings the question has been raised on more than one occasion about whether cuttings and young plants should be planted directly into the ground or started off in a pot.

There are 2 points to really consider here in order to properly answer that question, one, the state of the soil in this area and 2 what you are actually expecting the plant to do when either transplanting it or planting it out as a new cutting.

 

The Soil

For those of us fortunate enough to have soil in our gardens and not builders rubble there is little comfort.

The soil is generally  full of rocks, with a high lime content, baking to an impenetrable block in the summer and scant few of us possess "huerta"properties with good digging soil. Nutrients in general are in fairly short supply and the intense heat means there is little vegetation to rot down and improve the soil, whilst the wind blows away loose material, and the torrential rains wash away decent topsoil, leaving behind a top layer of rocks and stones.

Its not a pretty story.

Whilst the sensible thing to do is only cultivate plants that are adapted to these soils, such as the many native plants and cacti or succulents, many gardening members want to grow shrubs and flowering plants that require better soil than this, so the answer is that if you want your flowering shrubs to flower profusely, a little work is required to obtain this result.

 

When planting, dig a hole a good 3 times the size of the one you actually require and back fill with a better mixture of soil, enriched with a small amount of slow release granular fertilizer, to give the plants a fighting chance.

We ourselves use a mix of one third well rotted manure, one third soil and one third home produced compost, with a small handful of chicken fertilizer.

Our own compost is a really potent mix of all household peelings, eggshells, teabags, weeds, seaweed off the beach, shredded paper, leaves and chicken droppings from the henhouse, all mixed up and left to do its own thing in a series of pallet compost bins. You can buy plastic composters, but if there is a little space available they're easy enough to build, or if you are gardening in large communal areas, why not hire a digger to create a series of pits in which composting can be carried out instead of filling up green bins with weeds and easily compostable materials.

If home produced compost is unavailable, spend the money and use bought compost- the texture will at least give the plants a fighting chance, and you're far less likely to lose the plant, which probably cost a lot more than part of a bag of compost.

The idea is to create better soil for the new plant to settle into, giving it nutrients and soil that will help it to put out a better root system more easily.

As we discussed at the meeting, plants such as hibiscus will still need top feeding, but soil improvement will go a long way to helping you with better results.

 

At the bottom of the page are directions to a local stables where Cindy will be happy to assist with the supply of well rotted manure.

Our top tip if you're an active gardener- buy a builders pneumatic drill if you see one going at a carboot sale - they're amazing for breaking up the ground when trying to dig holes in this soil- saves a vast amount of back-breaking work!

 

So to the second part of the question, what is the first job the plant has to do when first settling in as a new cutting, and how will the soil it's planted in affect it?

 

This question came from the last meeting - was it possible to put cuttings straight into the ground or should they be grown on in a flowerpot first?

Think about that soil. The first thing a new cutting has to do is put out some roots to enable it to survive and grow. If it goes straight into this local soil it will be like trying to put out tiny, delicate roots into a block of plaster, so do everything you can to help it along the way. By putting the cutting into nice, soft compost, you greatly increase its chances of survival, and give the new plant a greater opportunity to flourish.

If lack of space for cuttings in pots is a problem, dig a larger hole in the ground and fill with softer mixed soil or compost, forming a flowerpot within the soil, but don't forget that young cuttings will wilt and die in the full sun if they've not had chance to get any roots out, so shade cuttings a little if you're going to put them straight into the ground.

Some of the succulents and cacti we propagated at the meeting will be fine directly into the ground, such as the prickly pears, aloe and agave offsets,  giant euphorbias and carbobrotus (pig face, the huge pink flowering ground cover plant) but most of the others would be better started off in pots and grown on until they have established root systems.

 

Directions to the manure.

Finca La Herradura.

From Mazarron/ Camposol direction, follow the RM3 towards Alhama and come off at exit 4, which is the one after the Condado de Alhama, Polaris World. At the roundabout, take the 1^st exit back on the service road  heading back towards Mazarron. When you reach some houses on the left, turn left, then take the second small lane on the left and the finca is about 1 and a half km further on, situated on the left.

The last left hand turn is the one everybody misses, so if there isn't a lorry weighbridge on the left then you've missed the turning  and will end up in Los Munoces.

Cindy will deliver to the  Camposol area, but because of the cost of fuel, has a minimum of 5 sacks at 3 euros each, with approximately 30 kilos a sack.

It is advisable to call her on  639 212 871 before going over for manure or ask her to bring you a sack if she's coming to the gardening club meetings..

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