I have been chopping off old Hellebore leaves recently since the new growth seems to be starting at the base for the Winter flowers. They looked unsightly anyway since I have been plagued with snails again despite the slug pellets. I think the clay soil must suit them and I have a neighbour with an aversion to killing them; she prefers to take them into the wood opposite "for the hedgehog" who often doesn't seem hungry so they safari nocturnally across the road to my garden and feast on my plants!
Have had to move where I park my car and now some branches on my 5year old plum tree poke me in the eye when I get out. Can I cut off some branches without causing problems? Can I cut close to trunk or just shorten the branches.
LoopyLoo, don't prune your plum tree until early spring or (preferably) midsummer or you risk it getting 'silver leaf' which is a nasty fungal disease which infects stone fruit trees in their dormant season and may kill it. If you absolutely must cut it back, then remove a minimal amount now and then cut those same branches back in spring or summer. That way you should remove any infected wood before it spreads throughout the tree. You can cut branches back to a side shoot or close to the trunk. See the RHS advice here:
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Hi KayL
When does it flower?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
LoopyLoo, don't prune your plum tree until early spring or (preferably) midsummer or you risk it getting 'silver leaf' which is a nasty fungal disease which infects stone fruit trees in their dormant season and may kill it. If you absolutely must cut it back, then remove a minimal amount now and then cut those same branches back in spring or summer. That way you should remove any infected wood before it spreads throughout the tree. You can cut branches back to a side shoot or close to the trunk. See the RHS advice here:
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=339