Experimenting in the garden Olive Trees and a Clover lawn

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In the lovely spring sunshine we experienced in early April, as well as enjoying the blossom on the Cherry tree and the display of the Tulip Fire Wings amongst other things, I have been experimenting somewhat in the garden. 

I have taken three cuttings from the Olive trees I own, I have five in pots on the patio at the end of my garden, in the hope that I may be able to grow two or three new trees from these. I have never tried before so it is very much trial and error. From research I discovered the best time to take Olive tree cuttings is in the late spring or early summer when the tree is actively growing and have the highest chances of rooting successfully. Each cutting taken was roughly 6-8 inches in length and I removed all the leaves from the bottom of the cutting, leaving only a few leaves at the top. Each cutting was then dipped into rooting hormone and the cutting placed into a terracotta pot filled with a potting mix of peat-free compost and perlite, about 75/25 percent mix, to ensure a free draining mix which should encourage root growth. The pots have been placed in the log store at the end of my garden so they are sheltered from any late frost or heavy rain and winds but will receive a fair amount of sunshine. My fingers are crossed that they will root and grow on. 

I am also experimenting with my lawn, or should I say experimenting with creating a new type of lawn. On patches of the lawn that have been damaged over the winter or that historically struggle, such as the more shaded part near my patio and pergola by the house, I have been sowing Clover seeds. Benefits of adding Clover to a lawn include the fact that Clover is low maintenance and creates a dense low-growing carpet, it is drought resistant, stays green in summer, fixes nitrogen improving your soil condition and is great for attracting wildlife to your plot the little white flowers the plant sends up being very attractive to pollinators of all sorts. Sown very much as you would grass seed it will be interesting to see how this experiment works out.

Cheers 🍺

Location: London Borough of Havering, UK

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