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Growing native plants is big news these days, but what is a native plant exactly? Well, it's not just a plant native to our country. According to the Natural History Museum, if you want to grow native, you need to grow plants native to your postcode

For two years, I have been trying to grow climbing plants to cover the walls of my garden. I've planted honeysuckle, passion flower, jasmine, numerous clematis and a revolting rose I found in the street. Some died, others developed mildew, while

For me, the competition to grow a giant sunflower is over. My six sunflowers are either in flower or just about to bloom, which means they're not going to grow any taller. They look good, particularly the two that are providing support for the rogue

A 'weed' is just a plant growing in the 'wrong place', and in my garden, most weeds are more than welcome. There are some exceptions, of course - Japanese knotweed and Himalayan balsam to name two - but the more green leafy weeds in my plot

I've just bought a new compost bin. This is all the more exciting because next year I'll use it to grow pumpkins. I plan to raise the bin on bricks and plant pumpkin plants in the exposed compost. The well-rotted matter will provide the plants

It's easy to consider bees and birds when gardening – we see plenty of them if we grow the right plants – but what about bats? Emerging from their roosts at dusk and returning by dawn, they can often go unnoticed.My partner is a huge fan of bats

In last week's Observer Magazine, Dan Pearson wrote about collecting berries from hedgerows near him, so he could grow plants with local provenance. This is a subject I've been thinking about a lot recently, so I read on with interest.Put simply, a

I love the way plants hold associations with places and key events in your life. Some - like pheasant's eye daffodils - I grow in my garden as a fond reminder of the childhood associations I have with them. Others somehow seem to slip the net

I seem to have created the perfect habitat for my frogs. It's not a large garden, marsh or meadow, but a tatty grow bag from last year, screened by willow edging and topped with dead foliage. It's an absolute eyesore and I hate it, but to my frogs

I seem to be bucking a trend among homeowners. Rather than paving over my garden, I have 'un-paved' it, unlocking the earth and growing a range of plants to provide habitats for wildlife.The paving of front gardens is becoming increasingly common