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Shepton Mallet Snowdrop Festival: Anaerobic Digestion, Apple Maggots and 鈥奝yramid Orchids

Should you mulch, feed, or leave snowdrops? What's better - anaerobic digestion or aerobic digestion? How do I get rid of apple maggots? Peter and the panel have all the answers.

Snowdrops - do you mulch, feed, or leave them alone? What's the difference between anaerobic digestion and aerobic digestion? How do I get rid of apple maggots?

Peter Gibbs and the GQT team of experts return to Shepton Mallet to solve various gardening conundrums. On the panel this week are house plant guru Anne Swithinbank, pest and disease expert Pippa Greenwood, and garden designer Matthew Wilson.

Later in the programme, Anne Swithinbank and Dominic Weston discuss all things snowdrops ahead of Shepton Mallet's upcoming snowdrop festival.

Producer: Daniel Cocker
Assistant Producer: Rahnee Prescod鈥
Executive Producer: Carly Maile

A Somethin' Else production for 成人快手 Radio 4

Available now

42 minutes

Plant List

Questions and timecodes are below. Where applicable, plant names have been provided.

Q 鈥 Snowdrops鈥o you mulch, feed, or leave them alone? (01鈥46鈥)

Q 鈥 Should I cover my compost heap to encourage anaerobic digestion, or should I leave it open to the air for aerobic digestion? (05鈥41鈥)

Q 鈥 I鈥檝e inherited some very large and very old salvias,鈥奾ow hard should I cut them back? (10鈥08鈥)

Q 鈥 We have two mature Bramley apple trees which are infested with worms 鈥 is there a way to prevent the moths from settling? (14鈥19鈥)

Feature 鈥 Anne Swithinbank and Dominic Weston discuss Shepton Mallets upcoming Snowdrop Festival and provide some advice on how to establish them successfully. (20鈥07)

Dominic Weston 鈥

Galanthus 'Magnet', snowdrop 'Magnet'

Galanthus 脳 hybridus 'Merlin', snowdrop 'Merlin'

Galanthus听'S. Arnott', snowdrop 'S. Arnott'

Q 鈥 I鈥檝e been carefully nurturing two lovely spindle trees in pots,鈥奀an I trim them and safely leave them in pots? (24鈥58鈥)

Matthew Wilson 鈥

Euonymusalatus听'Compactus', compact winged spindle

Q 鈥 How do I encourage pyramid orchids to flower in my garden? (29鈥18鈥)

Q 鈥 What planting would the panel suggest for the windy sides of my house? (33鈥31鈥)

Anne Swithinbank 鈥

Ilexaquifolium, common holly

Ilex听脳听altaclerensis, highclere holly

Pittosporum

Pittosporumtenuifolium, tawhiwhi

Matthew Wilson 鈥

Acer campestre, field maple

Allium听'Gladiator', allium 鈥榞ladiator鈥

Allium 'Ambassador', allium 'Ambassador'

Tulipa 'Jan Reus' (3), tulip 鈥楯an Reus鈥

Tulipa 'Paul Scherer' (3), tulip 鈥楶aul Scherer鈥

Tulipa 'Queen of Night' (5), tulip 'Queen of Night'

Tulipasaxatilis听(15), candia tulip

Veronicastrum听'Apollo', culver鈥檚 root apollo

Q 鈥 鈥奍 have a suspicion that if snowdrops bloomed later and were not the herald of the end of winter, they would not have a cult following. Does the panel agree? (37鈥58鈥)


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