garden planning

Forest gardening aims to mimic the natural balance found in forest or woodland ecosystems. In the UK, woodlands support a diverse array of plants, wildlife and … Read more

It might sound like a phrase from some futuristic sci-fi story involving androids and off-world colonies, but xeriscaping actually comes from the Greek word ‘ … Read more

Butterflies are one of the most charismatic of all garden visitors, with their vividly coloured wings and elegant flight arcs. Species like Red Admiral, Pe … Read more

Why I Grow in Raised Vegetable Beds I guess the best place to get started is why should I grow in Raised Vegetable Beds in the first place? For … Read more

Right, well it's started to get a bit cold and the leaves are falling so I suppose we will have to admit that winter is coming. I have mentioned it here before … Read more

You’ve probably seen the word 'sustainable' a fair bit, but we wouldn’t blame you if you’re not entirely sure what it means. With the way it&r … Read more

Put that shovel away! No-dig gardening continues to grow in popularity with home growers and gardeners, but what does it actually involve? Will you need to se … Read more

They may not be the first thing you think of when planning a vegetable garden, but herbs are very easy and rewarding to grow. They provide a rich array of opt … Read more

Crop rotation is a system of moving the position of certain crops (or families of crops) around so that they are not being grown in the same place for successive … Read more

I don't know what it has been like for you, but March has been a relatively dry month in my garden which meant I was able to do a bit more outside than … Read more

Last week the blog included some tips on starting a new vegetable garden and, judging by the emails I received (thank you), a number of you found it very help … Read more

A new year brings with it the temptation to try something new in the garden, overhaul your growing space or simply fine-tune the way that you do things.&nb … Read more

Last week I touched on succession sowing and said I would include my plan for this year and, being very organised these days (new years resolution), I am plea … Read more

As someone who makes a lot of mistakes, I have to say I absolutely love a clean slate. I can literally drag myself to the end of the year yet emerge completely t … Read more

My apologies for not posting last week, I am afraid drawing up planting plans and adding them as products to the site has taken a lot longer than I … Read more

This week I thought we would take a break from vegetables and look instead at the flowering garden. Some of you may remember my ambitious plans earlier … Read more

Right then. For the last while I have been both adding to our list of flowering perennial plants and working on planting plants and corresponding plant packs. As … Read more

Victory gardens are fruit and vegetable gardens grown by the public both at home and in a community setting. In times of war huge pressure is put on the fo … Read more

Just what tools and supplies are needed to start a vegetable garden? There are a multitude of tools available out there for absolutely any eventuality in the gar … Read more

What exactly do you need to grow vegetables? If you are asking this question then it is safe to assume you are thinking about growing your own vegetables for the … Read more

The vegetable garden is still pretty quiet this week so I thought we would return to ornamental gardening and look at some of the plans for my garden and some id … Read more

As I mentioned in my mail the week before last, I have a lot planned for the garden this year and just to prove it wasn't a load of old waffle I include some pho … Read more

Like you, I am itching to get outside and can't wait for the season to get started. This year I will be spending more time in the garden as my output of video an … Read more

A new year brings with it the temptation to mix things up in the garden, expand your growing ambitions or simply fine-tune the way you do things. I myself s … Read more

A raised bed can provide the perfect environment for creating a herb garden. It can be positioned anywhere that suits you and can be maintained easily. A sele … Read more

Like so many garden projects designing a pond requires careful planning. There are so many options to consider depending on use, size, shape, material and situat … Read more

If you are considering building a garden pond you may want to calculate the volume of water for water treatment or if you intend to introduce fish. Water treatme … Read more

Timber raised ponds can create a beautiful water feature centrepiece for your garden. With a raised structure you can have an instant garden pond in your garden … Read more

This March I am starting a new monthly update project which is centered more around what I'm doing in my garden. This is because it's easier for me to write but … Read more

With so many available options causing confusion for novice gardeners here are some simple suggestions for anyone planning to grow vegetables.Herb Garden Prefer … Read more

1 Planning. Decide what you want to do with your vegetable garden and spend time working out the best way to achieve it. There are so many choices –fruit or veg … Read more

If you read any of the guff I write you will probably have heard me mention Charles Dowding before. He's a bit of a hero of mine basically because his book 'O … Read more

The number of people having a go at producing some of there own fresh produce is on the increase every year. The latest revolution is the small space urban g … Read more