It was a pleasure to meet up with Johnnie Amos again since the Society’s tour of his very attractive HGS garden at The Old Bakery in Northamptonshire last year.

His interest in gardening was sown when he first went to school at 5 years of age where each child had their own small piece of land to grow  vegetables and flowers. This year alone he has attended 25 schools in England that have introduced gardens for pupils to get involved in gardening.

Johnnie who has a wealth of experience and knowledge across the gardening and horticultural spectrum with his work across the globe and for the BBC hosted a very entertaining and informative evening of questions and answers. Fortunately he was answering the questions many of which were formulated by members and guests beforehand.

So many questions, so little time ,60 minutes flew by! From coffee grounds, do they keep  slugs and snails at bay? to how to keep in check a large willow tree in a small garden (constant pruning spring and autumn).  Removing suckers? (do not cut but twist and pull to damage the roots) Interestingly coffee grounds are good for acid loving plants like camelias and rhodedendrons . Pine needles too.

Johnnie kindly donated several packs of  nematodes (keep them refrigerated before deployment), ideal for use in the autumn to defend hostas  and many other tasty plants  from slugs and snails whose eggs will be hatching ready to devour roots over the winter months!