King Charles III’s former gardener has encouraged everyone to prune their plants today (February 17) ahead of snow and rain set to hit the UK later this week.
Jack Stooks, who worked at Highgrove as senior gardener for 21 years, has since offered his advice to people around the country on how to look after their beloved gardens.
One job he has recommended people do is a spot of pruning, speaking on behalf of Savoo, he suggested now was a good time to do so.
As to why, he explained that if the plants get covered in snow, it could damage them and so pruning could protect them. Jack explained: “It’s also a good time to get things pruned back if you haven’t already.
“Make sure that any spindly growth or anything that might affect the plant if it gets covered in snow (for example, if certain plants get covered in snow, it might damage them by snapping certain branches off), so make sure you get some shrubs pruned and re-tied before any more snow hits.”
“You don’t want to be cutting back any spring flowering plants, such as forsythia – make sure you leave these alone, otherwise they won’t flower.”
This isn’t the first time Jack has offered his advice to gardeners, with the expert also recommending that people sprinkle coffee on their hydrangeas.
He told The Mirror: “Coffee is great for acid-loving plants, such as hydrangeas. If you want a really blue hydrangea in your garden, you would want to feed them these coffee grounds in the Autumn months. The coffee will be used as feed within the pots.”
Jack’s warnings come ahead of yet more wet and cold weather due to strike the UK as the country endures yet more rain this winter.
The Met Office has issued a series of weather warnings for the south west and south east of England alongside central and eastern Wales and parts of western England.
In a statement, deputy chief forecaster for the Met Office Steven Keates warned: “On Wednesday, weather fronts are expected to move in from the Atlantic into some western, southern and central areas of the UK.
“As they bump into the cold air already in place, we are likely to see some snow developing, although there is still some uncertainty around the details.
“Across southern England, rain will be the main focus, with 10 to 20 mm falling quite widely during Wednesday and into early Thursday, and a few spots, such as Dartmoor, quite possibly seeing double that amount.
“Strong east to northeast winds will accompany the wet weather. Temperatures will be around 3 to 5 °C for much of the UK on Wednesday (away from the far southwest).”
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