Recycled garden furniture, landscaping and planters can save you money. And they always add character and individuality to your garden or backyard. Plus it’s the most sustainable way of living. Even if your recycled garden isn’t cheaper than buying new, it’s still a better use of world resources. Recycling can look contemporary – or it …
Snowdrops (Galanthus) are the flowers that say ‘winter is ending’. They symbolise a garden about to spring into life again. And these tiny, pretty white flowers are almost completely maintenance-free. Plant them and they will grow. Snowdrop days or ‘snowdrop walks’ are the first events of the garden visiting season. The National Garden Scheme has …
Can you sow edible flowers in April and still pick enough blooms for summer salads? Yes, but only if you choose fast annuals, sow in more than one batch, and keep the flowers away from treated plants. A packet scattered once in cold, wet soil can produce a thin display just when you want colour …
The best way to tidy a garden shed is to empty it completely, keep only tools you actually use, and put daily-use equipment between waist and shoulder height. I have tried the pretty-box approach, the “put it somewhere for now” approach, and the heroic spring clean that collapses by June. A simple layout based on …
The flowers have faded, and the leaves are flopping across the border in untidy yellow-green clumps. It looks like the display has finished, but the bulb is still working below the soil. The best aftercare is simple: remove spent flowers, keep the foliage intact while it is green, then let it die back naturally before …
Alright, let’s talk real for a minute. I’ve been doing this design thing, in one form or another, for over two decades. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: most people completely misunderstand what "good" interior design actually is. They think it’s about copying the latest Pinterest aesthetic, buying every "must-have" item from …
Which perennials should you divide in April? Choose plants with cool-season root activity April division succeeds because many perennials are growing roots before they face intense leaf growth and summer heat. Daylilies, hostas, Siberian iris, Shasta daisies, yarrow, rudbeckia, catmint, hardy geraniums, and ornamental grasses usually recover well when divided early. These plants can replace …
Greenhouse gardening can stretch the flowering season, giving you blooms up to six weeks earlier than usual. And although a full size greenhouse can also be a living space – a haven away from the world – you can get the same growing benefits from lean-to greenhouse shelving, cloches and cold frames. Tom Brown is …
Scented plants tap into the brain’s emotions. They trigger nostalgia, calm, happiness or other memories. And scent is vital for wildlife. Foraging pollinators use scent to help find their way to nectar and pollen. Yet many of today’s plant varieties have had scent bred out of them. While we were all focused on getting plants …
You may not have heard of a ‘blobbery.’ But you have almost definitely seen blobberies in some of the most stylish gardens. They give a garden structure and interest all year round. And they are easy to clip and maintain. It’s a term coined by the company Architectural Plants, so I talked to Guy Watts, …