I have always believed that you should only write or talk about what you know
After a hot week, when I have been trying to keep out of the heat so the garden has been a bit neglected, things may be getting back to some sort of normality. Lawns are looking a bit tired and some leafy plants have had a tough time. Any watering was done in the evening…
It has not been an easy year for butterflies. The cold April, followed by a wet May has not been ideal for flying or for the raising of caterpillars but the past week of hot weather has seen larger numbers of adults in our gardens. There are lots of flowers we can plant to provide…
Our summer pots and baskets should be looking perfect right now. All the plants will be flowering well and none will look too tired. Even if you have done nothing except water them they should be doing well on the nutrients in the compost. But this can’t last and if you want your pots to…
It is a sad fact that potatoes are so common that few people think much about them. Bags of them have to be labelled with the variety but most people don’t recognise any variation other than red and white. Admittedly the advent of ‘Rooster’ brought a rush of excitement to the nation but now ‘Rooster’…
At the moment I am glad I went to the trouble of sowing annuals in spring. So many people say they like these bright and colourful flowers but they are too much work; needing to sow and plant out young seedlings and keep them protected from slugs till they bloom – and repeat the whole…
When I worked at Nags Hall in the 80s, at this time of year, if the weather was good, I would sit on the sun-warmed peat bales (thank you Bord na Mona) to have my lunch. My sandwiches were augmented by mulberries from the tree that stood at the back of the car park or…
One of the joys of the summer garden is to see butterflies feeding on flowers – except cabbage whites of course. It is not difficult to plant to encourage these brilliant visitors and there are options other than the ubiquitous buddleias. You do not have to leave your garden to go wild to have them…
Patio containers are a lot more exciting these days than in the 80s! Not only are the pots themselves more varied and attractive, the choice of plants is vast. In addition to new forms of all the old favourites such as petunias and marigolds, there are diascias, nemesias, bacopa and callibrachoas (above) which we had…