Search - Articles

Oh snow, where were you in London on Christmas day? Why are you here now, hampering our efforts to burn off mince pies through brisk gardening? There's nothing I can do in my garden, except ponder when the compost heap will start breaking down again

March is not really prime garden visiting time: a few gardens with specialist collections are open for the wonderful National Gardens Scheme, but most of them are keeping their powder dry in readiness for spring and summer.However, gardeners still

corner of Hampshire?I assume the weather conditions last year were responsible for the lack of dandelions, and perhaps the long, cold winter and burst or warm spring sunshine responsible for the recent dramatic display. I guess I'll not be alone

the ground. (I love dandelion leaves. There're so crunchy and refreshing after a winter of meagre salads. The trick is to pick them before they flower, after which they can taste bitter.) Then the nettles and wild garlic appear (which together make a

With such a dull, damp and dismal start to the year, I didn't feel very motivated to venture into my garden. That all changed last Friday as I watched Carol Klein's new series, Life in a Cottage Garden, documenting her gardening year at Glebe

Although there is not a huge amount of ‘planty stuff’ to be done at this time of year, it doesn’t mean you should be sitting in a comfy chair watching afternoon television.Late winter is your last chance to sort out any hard landscaping jobs

To continue my (very) occasional series about interesting gardeners: have you ever heard of Johnny Appleseed? He is one of the folk heroes of American horticulture and has been immortalised not only in books but also in a song by the late, great Joe

 domesticate it are always a disappointment. When I used to rush around London replanting window boxes we often used heathers for a bit of winter colour - along with those rather ghastly Solanum (the ones with orange berries). Although they looked sort of

to be done. Spring is a bit like a rollercoaster: you get very slowly winched up through the long days of winter until you teeter on the top. Then suddenly it is downhill rush as everything starts sprouting and growing and flowering and, unless you

Thinking back to the brown expanse that took centre stage in my garden during the summer drought, and how subsequent rainfall brought it back from the dead, I marvel at the resilience of grass.Well, the doubting Thomases among you may have thought