The ‘Indian Azalea’ is one of my favourite winter houseplants, the deep green foliage and delicate, tissue paper flowers are just perfect. With care plants last for many years and become a family heirloom: here are the secrets of success. Keep it in a cool, bright place and the compost moist with tepid soft water. […]
I’m not even going to count the days till Christmas, but if you still have some shopping to do for the gardener in your life, here are a few ideas. All prices exclude postage and packing. Rostaing Leather Gardening Gloves – £22.65 The Rostaing tannery in France has been in business for two centuries. These […]
We’ve had so much rain in the last few weeks that the greenhouse has been a haven from the elements. The gutters on my greenhouse were filled with needles from next door’s ancient cedar of Lebanon and when it rained they overflowed violently. It didn’t take long to clear them out and free up the […]
Although ‘Growing your own’ has ignited an unprecedented interest in vegetable growing, a fascination for fruit is taking a little longer. Sales are increasing slowly but people still believe that growing fruit is too challenging – birds steal the crops, lists of pollination partners are incomprehensible, and pruning, an impossible mystery to all but the […]
In this series of monthly articles Bob explores the incredible range of plants you can grow in a greenhouse, conservatory or plastic tunnel. Not just the purely decorative but the scented and edible also, and maybe those plants that are just downright interesting. This month Bob nominates ~ The Swiss Cheese plant. We all know […]
Now I must admit ginger is not the easiest crop to grow well, but then the sense of achievement is all the greater. The foliage has wide grass like leaves angled on verdant thick rush like green stems, somewhat resembling a rare lily, and reaching a couple of feet or even a metre in height. […]
Many winter flowers are highly scented to attract any pollinating insects that are brave enough to forage outside on a still and hopefully sunny day. In the garden many of these winter stalwarts are already in flower. I had great intentions to plant some prepared hyacinths in August and September so that I had plenty […]
Whatever the weather in October, from the beginning of November, temperatures drop and strong winds begin to blow, clearing the leaves from deciduous trees. It’s the time of year to tidy the garden, making sure that tender plants are protected and that everything can withstand the winter blast. Last year came as a surprise; I’m […]
Ever since I harvested the last of my greenhouse crops, I’ve been dying to go forth and propagate. It’s not that I need more plants, but I’ve never had the space for cuttings before and besides, it’s always useful to have a tray of plants to take to the school fair or the local jumble […]
I’ve left the greenhouse to it’s own devices for the last few days as I’ve been working away. Normally I leave the key with a neighbour, who diligently waters everything in my absence, but most of the established plants are at the end of their cropping period so they didn’t need much attention really. Now […]
In this series of monthly articles Bob explores the incredible range of plants you can grow in a greenhouse, conservatory or plastic tunnel. Not just the purely decorative but the scented and edible also, and maybe those plants that are just downright interesting. This month Bob nominates ~ Sweet potatoes. Now here is a plant […]
When is a good time to clean the greenhouse? Many gardeners recommend early spring, just before seed sowing when over-wintering pests can be got rid of, but I’ve chosen my first major clear-out in October. I could have kept my tomato plants going for much longer, but I decided to boot them out because it […]
