SOME of you might find this article quite controversial. Others it may offend. For certain though, I won't ever gain employment with the local council for what I am about to say.

It is something that I have always frowned upon in the back of my mind, but it really came to a head over the weekend. I spent last Saturday enjoying a well- deserved bout of retail therapy. I was looking for something suitable for the living room floor. Being a 'corridor' room, we left the original carpet in place until most of the other alterations and decoration had been completed in the house.

A year and a half later and we are now ready to put the final touches together. The original idea was a light- coloured rough carpet. That was soon scrapped. It just wouldn't be practical, what with my tyre-tracked garden books, the dogs' love of digging around in the borders, and the cat's ability to leave paw prints on even the driest of days (much to my next door neighbour's annoyance. Sorry, Peter). So, we spent most of Saturday driving between retail areas in search of suitable flooring material.

It's not often that I get to sit in the passenger seat. It gave me the opportunity to analyse the latest roadside planting schemes (and in a Land Rover you get see more than usual, thanks to the raised seating). I was pleasantly surprised. There were large swathes of amelanchier blending into the bright berried buckthorn, cornus varieties fluttering their winged leaves on multicoloured stems, and exotically scented eleagnus competing with the perfume of the simple but stunning rosa rogusa. At first glance you could miss the beauty, but examine it more closely and you sense the planning, the practicality and the year round suitability of the plants used.

However, there was one area of planting which really made me shiver. It is something that gets me wondering every year. Why, with the abundance of available flora, the increase in horticultural awareness, the hoards of young designers wishing to flaunt their wares, are roundabouts always planted up with small bare beds filled with garish mixes of pink and orange? Why the mix of dated, clashing Victorian colours? Why use annuals, which need planting, digging out and replanting several times a year? Why leave the soil bare and open to the elements, thus encouraging weeds and drought? It must surely all add up to a lot of man-power.

Surely a good design of complementary perennials would prove more cost-effective in the long run. There are two outstanding examples of this type of planting in this area. These are the two roundabouts on Portrack Lane and they're a joy to behold. Something creative has happened here. The same plants have remained in-situ now for several years without having to be dug up and replaced. All that is needed maintenance-wise is a quick cut down at the end of the season.

I must emphasise that my views are mine, and mine alone, and that all forms of gardening are purely subjective. However, I really do think that it's about time we at least considered the wasted opportunities that we are missing out on in not providing the motorist with something more artistic and challenging to look at whilst debating the correct lane.

JOBS THIS WEEK

Propagate lilies

REMOVE the small dark brown 'bulbils' that appear between the leaf and the stem of the plant. Plant these just under the surface in a general purpose compost, and place in a sheltered position outdoors.

Disbud chrysanthemums

IN order to produce large heads on chrysanthemum plants , you need to take out the smaller ones. This ensures that all the plants energy is used up by the one big flower, and not diverted to forming smaller ones.

Prune wisteria

SUMMER prune wisteria by trimming back side shoots to about six inches. This encourages more flowers next spring, as opposed to increased foliage growth.

Prepare strawberry runners

MATURE strawberry plants will be sending out runners. Take these and plant them (still attached to the parent plant) in a small pot full of compost. Once they have taken (they will resist a small tug), they can be severed from the larger plant and potted on, or planted out in the garden.

READER'S QUESTION

Francis from Middlesbrough e-mailed me with a question about his fig tree. It has been growing quite happily in a pot for three years. This summer he has noticed that it is covered with small flat grey lumps and is 'sticky'. What has happened to his plant and what can he do to cure it?

IT sounds as if your fig is suffering from an attack of scale insects. The fig is one of those plants that is susceptible to scale. Treatment is most likely to succeed when young scale insects, or crawlers, are emerging from under the scales and have not yet formed a protective outer scale. This can take place at any time during the summer, so keep a close watch out for them.

As soon as you see them emerging, apply an insecticide at two weekly intervals. Cleaning the leaves and stems regularly with soapy water can keep the problem at bay.

*Brigid presents Ask about Gardening every Sunday from 12-2pm on BBC Radio Cleveland. Send your questions to be answered in The Northern Echo to Brigid at brigidpress67.freeserve.co. uk, or write to her c/o Nature's World, Ladgate Lane, Middlesbrough.