Questions & Answers

Winter will end – some time. Even with the snow and ice, bulbs are up and blooming, and you can bet that weeds will soon be popping up in the most inconvenient of places.

Weeds don't need food to thrive – they're tough enough to survive without the help of sprays and applications. Sadly, the same can't be said of many plants.

Feeding flowering shrubs, perennials and climbers as they start to throw out new stems and leaves is something a lot of gardeners neglect to do.

But if you want strong healthy growth and plenty of flowering potential, it pays to apply a balanced feed.

There are numerous available for the amateur – there are even organic feeds, such as Miracle-Gro Organic Choice All Purpose Plant Food, derived from natural ingredients.

Some feeds act almost instantly; others spread their goodness over a period of months, slowly releasing nutrients.

Plants such as rhododendrons, azaleas, above, and and pieris, need to be fed with a special feed for acid-loving plants.