Search - Articles

Follow Sarah Raven's step-by-step video guide to creating an attractive display of paper-white narcissi for the Christmas table. Sarah gives tips on compost, planting depth and how to support the flowers.autumnChristmasMore Christmas projectsHow to plant hyacinths in a pot.How to...

Sarah Raven demonstrates how to plant up a container of spring-flowering bulbs, narcissus, crocus and tulips, in our video guideautumnspringMore autumn planting projectsPot of azaleas and campanulas.Early spring-flowering container with thyme

If you want a spring-flowering display to go on as long as possible, plant separate layers of different varieties of bulbs in one pot. All you need to create a display which flowers in succession is a large pot and a variety of bulbs

Most lily bulbs are sold in spring, although some, such as Lilium candidum, are sold in the autumn. This is a time when mould can thrive, so check them carefully when you buy to make sure there are no signs of it - an infected bulb can easily spread

A fungal disease weakens the plant and can seriously reduce its flowering performance. The brown spots eventually grow together and develop grey centres. Infection is caused by air or water-borne spores entering the plant through damaged leaves. In wet weather the fungus spreads ...

30 minutesCarefully remove the tiny bulbils growing from the leaf axils of the plant.Treat the bulbils as if they were large seeds. Plant several in a pot of multi-purpose compost, spacing them 2.5cm apart.Cover with a layer of compost and water using

the hole 10cm - 15cm deep and place the bulbs at the base of the hole. Fill around the bulbs with soil taken from the hole, ensuring that some of the leaf is above the surface.AdamDon't remove the leaves from your snowdrop bulbs. Leave them to die down

or they'll fly off.At the first sign of attack, spray plants with imidacloprid, thiacloprid or sunflower oil. Treatment is more effective on larvae than adults.lilies, fritillaries and Solomon's sealspring, summer, autumnMore common garden pests

Carol Klein offers advice on getting the best results from moisture-loving plants cowslip and fritillary.springMore advice on growing primulasTreating primula leaf spotHow to rejuvenate primrosesBrowse primula varieties

Primula e.g. 'Gold-laced' group x3Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens' x1Glazed pot, 20cm diameterPeat-free, multi-purpose compostCrocks Watering canPlace a few crocks in the bottom of the pot for drainage. You could also use broken polystyrene or small