If you are growing fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers for cutting, here’s my quick round up of what you can be doing this month. In the kitchen garden: Protect late crops such as carrots, pak choi and peas with horticultural fleece to extend their growing season and give you more produce. Leave squash and pumpkins on the […]
If you’re a keen gardener you’ll no doubt appreciate that there’s rarely a time when you can kick back and forget about your garden. Even as summer draws to a close and it feels like there’s a chance to relax, it’s already time to be preparing next year’s garden. Spring bulbs need to be planted […]
Here’s a small selection of wonderful plants I’d recommend for the garden in September. When I drew up the shortlist I hadn’t realised that most of them hold the RHS Award for Garden Merit (AGM), but that just helps to indicate what great plants they are. No need to just take my word for it!! Tricyrtis formosana […]
Mid to late September is an ideal time to start autumn planting as the ground is still warm, and plants should be able to establish well before winter kicks in. Clean your greenhouse & coldframes to help prevent pests over wintering, and move tender plants under cover as the night time temperatures drop. Treat perennial […]
My seasonal tips if you’re growing fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers for cutting CUTTING GARDEN Keep deadheading annuals and late-flowering Dahlias & Salvias to prolong flowering (and don’t forget to support them as the plants get bigger and top-heavy). Direct sow hardy annuals (such as Nigella, cornflowers and Calendula officinalis) in to the ground now […]
When I’m designing gardens, possibly the most important factor to take into account before drawing up a plan is to work out which are the sunniest parts of my clients’ gardens, because that is usually where the entertaining areas go – whether for dining or just sitting outside. With our totally unpredictably climate we do […]
If you’re looking for colour in midsummer, here’s a small selection of my favourite easy plants for August Perovskia atriplicifolia This plant, commonly known as ‘Russian Sage’ is technically known as a sub-shrub, as it grows from a woody base. This is a plant that thrives in hot sunny borders with well-drained soil and it’s […]
There’s not too much to do in the garden maintenance-wise at this time of year, but it’s important to keep up with deadheading, watering and feeding to ensure as much flowering as possible for the rest of the summer. Here’s a short list of other jobs to keep you occupied this month: HEDGES & TOPIARY […]
Get the most from your kitchen garden and cutting garden this month by keeping on top of your seasonal jobs CUTTING GARDEN Keep up with cutting, feeding and/or deadheading on a regular basis. Dahlias don’t open in the vase so only cut them when the flowers are open. Collect seeds as they start to ripen, […]