I have always believed that you should only write or talk about what you know
Yes, it’s that time of year again. No. I don’t mean Wimbledon, but strawberry season – though the two are inextricably linked. If I was forced to pick a favourite fruit it would be easy for me to choose strawberries and fortunately it is easy to grow a few at home, whether in beds, pots…
With so many different plants to grow, I can’t grow all my favourite plants every year. I am sure you are the same. But there are a few, special plants that I like to have every summer. Many of these are fragrant or aromatic. I always like to have at least a few wallflowers, I…
If you started your tomatoes in spring then it should not be long before you will be picking your first ripe tomatoes, especially if you are growing them in a greenhouse or polytunnel. I covered the basics in spring and it may be useful to have a quick look at that . But the year…
Many years ago, when I worked at Nags Hall, alstroemerias were far from popular garden plants. The only kinds you could get for the garden were forms of Alstroemeria area, in gold and orange and they were not good garden plants. They flowered profusely in June but then set seed, and died down by August,…
You may think that secateurs are something you use only in winter but you should really be using them all year round. Apart from using them for cutting flowers, you should be pruning different things all year round. Summer is the time for pruning plums, gages and damsons and peaches. These must never be pruned…
Summer is in full swing now and traditional border favourites such as lupins, delphiniums, iris and peonies are filling well-planned gardens with colour. Of all these, I find peonies the easiest to please and the least work because they bloom reliably every year, are hardy and they live for years, indeed decades. Unlike the bedding…
It can be difficult to get your veg plot started in early spring. The plants grow slowly, seeds may take a long time to germinate and there seems to be an endless list of pests ready to eat your plants before you do. But now that frosts are over and plants are growing so quickly…
With RHS Chelsea Flower Show next week the whole nation will be thinking about their gardens! Of course, some of us are thinking about our garden all year. Chelsea always means the introduction of new roses. I can’t wait for my roses to be in full bloom. A few are already opening and I am…
With so much to do in the garden our houseplants can get a bit neglected at this time of year. Yet it is the ideal time to repot any that are getting potbound and generally give them a clean or tidy. I have been repotting some of my houseplants. It is often recommended that houseplants…
This weekend may be all about celebration but gardeners don’t need a reason to celebrate. I have been enjoying the tulips for many weeks now: the cool weather has helped them to last well. The red tulips with the wallflowers have coincided well and done exactly what I wanted – colour and scent. They are…