Choosing sweet peas for colour, scent and structure
Sweet peas come in a bamboozling range of colour, scent, patterning and shape. How do you decide which ones to buy for home, garden or exhibition?
Winter flowering shrubs
Providing colour, scent and funky flowers in the dark days of January, winter flowering shrubs all offer something entertaining to the winter garden. Here are my top 6.
How to make a Christmas wreath using foraged plants
This year, in old-fashioned tradition, I set out to make a Christmas wreath using only greenery from the garden. With a frugality that Scrooge would be proud of, this Victorian approach is also thoroughly modern. The wreath is fully compostable and plastic free.
Winter garden colour – bright berries
Six of the best winter berries to brighten the cold garden.
Winter preparations
As we move into the winter it's harder to find beautiful things in the garden. This week I'm focussing on feeding birds over the winter months, digging up dahlias, ordering seeds and eyeing veg for winter comfort food.
Greenhouse gems
This week I take a visit to the greenhouse to show some plants that are providing late colour and winter interest - an explosion of Chrysanthemums, a glowing salvia and a sand box of tiny alpine delights.
Autumn bites
Dull days need brightening with autumn colour and as we tip slowly towards winter, there are still plenty of flowers showing us their autumn best.
How to plant Wood Anemones
Wood Anemones light up the floor of deciduous woodlands in March and April with starry constellations of pure white or pink tinged blooms. The flowers are lifted above a shaggy carpet of lush green leaves, an emerald sky to the white star flowers. This is not a flower I was [...]
A stage for rock stars
This week I set about building a rockery - set to be the stage for some rock star alpines. I also plant some new woodland plants and collect seeds from a magnolia.