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tray to keep moist. Within weeks beautiful well-rooted plants had developed, ready for planting directly outside without risk of disturbing the rootball.Following this success I've tried growing other crops in newspaper pots, including beans

girding of loins and a flourishing of hoes.Casting an eye over my borders recently, I noticed that some of my plants were badly in need of splitting. In particular need of attention was a fine grass called Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Karl Foerster', which

Do you remember the first plant you ever grew in your own garden? Not the mustard and cress or sunflower that you nurtured in a little patch of your parents' gardens but the first plant that you grew just for yourself?I found some ancient

and dusty radish.However, I think it is generally an excellent thing to try and get children to grow stuff - if only so that they understand how plants behave. Schools are now much more proactive in encouraging gardening clubs and planting up areas around

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

If you're bearing a grudge against your neighbours, one way to exact revenge is plant a leylandii hedge in your garden. Left unclipped, it could grow to up to 35m high and 5m wide. It will be a haven for garden birds, insects and even the odd mammal

barely seen any rain at all.In drier parts of the UK, plants are bursting into flower earlier, bees and butterflies are out earlier, and the ground, which should be warm and wet from April showers, is parched. All this and some areas are still getting

Has the snow been a good or bad thing for our gardens? Well, probably a bit of both, but I do live in hope that the cold weather has helped kill off a few garden pests. We've all had our fair share of snow over the past couple of weeks, with varying

If only our gardens could really look like those at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Plunge pools and outdoor kitchen areas aside, I don't think I have a hope of achieving the 'Chelsea look'. My garden is far too scruffy, most of my plants have been

not the only gardener with an environmental conscience. Our hobby does require us to both protect tender plants and raise new crops from seed every year, so some heating is an essential requirement, isn't it? Or should I forget the tender stuff and concentrate