Search - Articles

Picking broad beans really is a family affair in the Pasco household. The fat, swollen pods are full of promise and we eagerly pop them open to release the harvest.Much to my wife's surprise, my two children really enjoyed their first taste of broad

plans. Each plan contains an easy-to-follow growing calendar for 10 recommended crops. Simply choose which profile suits your circumstances best, and start sowing:• Allotmenteer• Container grower• Gourmet grower• New to the plot• Weekender

they simply become bird food!Crops are planted in beds about 1m wide with a narrow paved path between each for easy access. I've just finished digging the beds, adding plenty of homemade compost deep down in the process, and now I'm planning what to grow

will not grow 'true’. You can still try, but there's no guarantee of the quality of the crop. There's more information on saving seed in Sue Stickland's article in the September 2011 issue of Gardeners' World Magazine.So which seeds are you saving?

of salad leaves possible; lettuce, spinach, pak choi, mizuna, beetroot, watercress, parsley and chives, as well as tomatoes, beans, courgettes and new potatoes. Although I've tried growing them, I haven't had much success with either sweet potatoes or soya

.Types to sow now include crimson clover, fenugreek, field lupins - even broad beans. They germinate and grow quickly and reduce weed growth. Flowering varieties even attract bees and beneficial insects.Nothing could be simpler, and the green manures help break

and cooking crops. Do let us know in the comments section of this blog if there are any harvesting tips you'd like us to cover.Finally, do join me and a host of other experts on the ‘Grow Your Own’ Garden at BBC Gardeners' World Live (15-19 June 2011) for more

to dig up half my flower garden to accommodate them all!My personal nominations for the list include:1. Courgette 'Tromboncino'2. Dwarf French Bean 'Maxi'3. Mangetout 'Oregon Sugar Pod'4. Sweetcorn 'Rising Sun'5. Watercress 'Aqua'And if I had to pick just

We're all looking for ways to recycle more, save money and grow our own edible crops, so it's great finding a way to combine all three at the same time!OK, there's nothing new about re-using cartons and packaging that would otherwise find its way

trumpets bursting open at tip of yellow courgettes are pure beauty – and yes, they are good enough to eat (deep fried in a tempura batter sounds appetising).Flowers adorn climbing beans, squash, tomatoes, aubergines, chillies, garlic chives and many more