The plug plants for the greenhouse have arrived and now it feels like the year is off to a proper start. Plug plants are a bit of a cheat, but a brilliant one. I know most gardeners love to sow seeds, and I do too, honest. I love the magic of seeing those shoots of […]
Today, in the third week of April, it snowed in Chicago. Temperatures are still falling below freezing at night. Which is why I’m glad I didn’t buy petunias when I saw them for sale, in full bloom, three weeks ago–on April Fool’s Day, appropriately. Petunias, with their ruffly bell-shaped flowers, are popular for summer gardens […]
No, I’m not referring to clandestine comings and goings you understand. I’m talking about those shady corners in need of softening. All gardeners have them, including me, despite the fact that most of my garden is resolutely south-facing I still have some spots that get very little sun. One path, between the woodland borders, gets […]
Sometimes life can be overwhelming. It can creep up slowly and gently cloud your mind, or knock you sideways and off the tracks It’s not always easy to find a way through the tough times, but our gardens, greenhouses and nature in general can provide a safe place of peace and quiet. The very act […]
Tomorrow I am meeting a new arrival to Colorado, an Englishwoman from the Home Counties who has bought a house to be near family. She’s keen for advice and gardening connections in this strange land—her English garden sounds like a veritable Eden. She may be surprised that the best advice I can give her for […]
Why on earth would you grow carrots in your greenhouse? After all there’s seldom shortages in the shops, they’re usually on sale year round and are inexpensive. Well simply because carrots are crunchier and sweeter when home grown especially when pulled just before eating not stored for months. Then of course there are so many […]
This is the time of year when the greenhouse becomes a plant production line, and shows its value for side stepping the effects of the weather – particularly in cooler areas. It’s also the time when you will be rewarded for the hours spent washing pots and trays during winter. Sow the following in trays […]
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This is just about my favorite time of year in the garden, because it’s time for wildflowers. They’re blooming in the woods where I take long walks, but they’re also in bloom in my yard. I don’t live in the woods—far from it. Most of my garden grows in the shade between a four-story apartment […]
I have an exciting new plant for the greenhouse, which I am going to start on starting into growth this week. Gloriosas are beautiful colourful climbing plants, and sometimes known as climbing lilies, though really their flowers are not particularly lily-like. They have extraordinary twisted petals in red and orange and are the national flower […]
The weather can cut up rough at this time of the year, particularly when you live in Cold, Cold Aston as I do. I always say that the clue is in the name! It’s a chilly little spot, perched on a plateau on top of the North Cotswold in an area known as the Empty […]
Why pay the financial and environmental costs of a propagator, when our own well-heated homes offer plenty of ideal places to germinate seeds and nurture seedlings? “Sow your seeds and germinate them in a heated propagator at… blah, blah, blah.” If I had a penny for every time I’ve read or heard this outmoded gardening […]
