Bob,

Thank you for your kind offer of leaves, I seem to have rather a lot at the moment but thank you anyway.

Grass for shady places is available from a good seed merchant - bit late for sowing but temperatures above 6 deg celcius and the grass will grow. Better germination rate can be achieved in the Spring and also when the extra risk of falling leaves smothering the new seed won't be present. Such seed as a 'woodland mix' won't like being mown very often though.

Perhaps a better option might be a naturised area of bulbs/corms for interest. At this time of year woodland floors can be carpeted by cyclamen (coum/hederifolium) which are well adapted to cope with the leaf fall. Try fritillaries for the Spring too which also depend on leaf mould being present. Then there's all the usual suspects - snowdrops and daffs etc. Know the deer won't eat the daffs but unsure on the rest.

In the meantime, ask your son if he wants to earn some pocketmoney and sweep them up for you.

Regards

Adrian

Adrian,

I am now clearing fallen leaves from the lawn and note there are several bare patches in some recently sown grass under overhanging trees. Is it too late to sow more seed? Am I wasting my time anyway trying to establish some lawn under overhanging trees?

Bob

ps Would you like a few lorry-loads of leaves? All good stuff, organically grown, top of the tree, best English oak, ash and chestnut.

If you have any questions about the plants in this show, or about gardening in general, post them here and Adrian will do his best to find the answers for you.