Every garden Iāve visited has taught me something new. Be it a tropical conservatory that reveals an exotic plant Iād never before seen, or a hard-working greenhouse that tutors me in a growing technique to raise better plants, it all makes for a smarter garden and gardener. For example, at Hunting Brook garden in Ireland, […]
If you want to do something that will make a big difference to the environment, plant trees says Jean Vernon Trees are the lungs of the planet. During the day they use carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in a process called photosynthesis that makes sugars to fuel their growth and produces oxygen. Itās a phenomenal […]
How would you like to meet more of your neighbors, celebrate the bounty of your garden, forge new friendships on common ground, and strengthen your community ties? Dina Russell, gardener and founder of PlantShareĀ®, believes plants can help you do all of that. āThink about itāthe development of the original human society was created by […]
Devilās Ivy is a robust variegated scrambling climber, not exactly exciting but so very useful. Itās one of those near bomb-proof plants essential in warm greenhouse, frost free conservatory, the home and many an office. A born survivor it puts up with shade and neglect only eventually dying from cold, prolonged drought or severe water-logging. […]
In June there is plenty to do. Aubergines, peppers and chillies should be transplanted as they grow into pots one or two sizes larger when there is a good root system but before they become pot bound, finally transplanting into 23 cm pots or two per growing bag. You can instinctively tell by the size […]
Because potting mediums rarely provide enough nutrients for long-term growth, most greenhouse plants need fertilization. Plants three main macronutrients (those needed in relatively large amounts) are nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). On the fertilizer package, the proportion of each is given by a numerical ratio, with the order always being N to P […]
A good garden should shine throughout the year and it should also provide plenty of nectar from early spring until late autumn. This is the time of year to think about late-flowering plants, because many of them come from the southern hemisphere, particularly South America. Flowers tend to be pigment packed, with plenty of reds, […]
It is time to pull the hanging baskets out of the glasshouse and let them take their chances in the outside world. I love cosseting hanging baskets in the greenhouse early in the year, it is one of the real benefits of having a greenhouse: that you get to grow them on for a bit […]
I was out in the garden on a bright spring day, enjoying the fresh green of the unfolding fern fiddleheads, the yellow of daffodils, the white of the bloodroot and purple of the sharp-lobed hepatica in my wildflower garden, the unfolding leaves of the native wild ginger, when something seemed ā¦ wrong. My Spidey sense […]
Glasshouses have long been pivotal to advances in architectural engineering, marrying old traditions with the new technological advances. For example, The Palm House, the centerpiece of the Royal Botanical Garden, Kew, opened in 1848 as a repository of the worldās plant diversity flooding in from all corners of the Empire and beyond. In 1851, Queen […]
