APRIL 2004

    The best of intentions never seem to quite work out. My apologies for not updating this page more frequently. It was cold and dull and wet in the autumn and there was not much to report. I waited for better weather to include some more pictures but when there was a sunny day there was little to photograph. Jan and Feb just seemed to whistle bye and March was so busy that there just never seemed to be time, coupled with very slow internet connections which made it almost impossible to put up new web pages.

    The plants are now just beginning to come into flower and it looks like there should shortly be a good show of flowers. At present there are a number of Aloes in flower and now that the weather has improved the plants can be watered which will make them all perk up again.

    We have now nearly finished changing the compost in all the beds in the Cactus Garden, which means removing the plants, removing the old compost, filling with new and then replanting. As you can imagine this all takes time and the plants need a little while to settle down and look at their best. Now that the weather is warmer and the days are longer, it is time to start watering again. It's marvelous to watch the plants swell up and all the new growth appearing in the crowns of the plants and then the appearance of the buds, making one impatient for the flowers to burst open.

    It is now a good time to repot your plants and check for any intruding insects. With the current trend of the reduction of horticultural chemicals it is very difficult to give advice on insecticides. One thing that we have found quite effective is spraying oil. This is rape seed oil and an emulsifier and although it means spraying each individual plant it seems to work quite well with most insects. It is a case of being vigilant and treating any plants that are infected.

    Cacti and succulents are quite hungry plants and now is a good time to start feeding them with a cactus fertiliser. Plants should be fed every one to two weeks until the end of summer. If you do not put anything in, you can't expect a lot out of them. The difference is growing or survival.

    Next month and June are probably the best flowering months in the year and there should be thousands of plants in flower. Much will depend on the weather as to actual timing. 

    Having now completed this years catalogue and sown over 500 batches of seed, most of which have now germinated, we hope to be able to catch up on some of the other pressing jobs that always seem to need doing. 

    If you are able to visit the Nursery and Cactus Garden we look forward to meeting you. For those of you using public transport, here is now only a greatly reduced bus service between Horsham and Worthing. As the new service is in the process of being inaugurated we do not know what the timetable will be. It will however be better than no public transport at all!!

UPDATE
    It is now almost the end of the month and flowers are beginning to open up on many plants. The Lampranthus haworthii is in full flower, the Thrixanthocereus and Morawetzia have been in flower, the Soehrensias and Stenocactus are in bud, and on and on. It looks like being a good year for flowers.

    We are open every day and look forward to seeing some of you over the Bank Holiday weekend.

                                    Terry Hewitt.