Tackle perennial weeds
Tackle perennial weeds like bindweed, couch grass and ground elder weekly at this time of year, as the moment your back is turned they’ll take over your garden and swamp your precious plants. These pernicious, fast-growing weeds are every gardener's nightmare, but it's a rare patch that doesn't have at least a few of them muscling their way through [...]
Gardening is good for you
Gardening is so good for you, it should be prescribed on the National Health Service according to a new study looking into the role gardens play in mental and physical health. The report, compiled by researchers at The Kings Fund for the National Gardens Scheme, found that gardening reduces depression, loneliness, anxiety and stress, and can help with conditions [...]
Britain is a nation of wildlife lovers
Britain is a nation of wildlife lovers according to a recent survey of 2000 gardeners which found that almost all of us – 98% - enjoy watching wild creatures in our gardens. Over three-quarters leave an area of their gardens wild, to be colonised by frogs, toads, beetles and other creepy-crawlies; and around a third spend over £50 a [...]
A new weapon against slugs
Gardeners are getting a new weapon in the war against slugs and snails as the RHS launches a year-long research project into how best to tackle our no.1 garden menace. Slugs and snails have been top of the RHS’s annual list of worst garden pests for seven of the last 10 years. The Society is now testing six different [...]
Thin your carrots
Thin carrots you sowed earlier this spring – but this year, instead of following the traditional routine of removing all the seedlings to leave those remaining at their final 5-8cm spacings, try taking a more relaxed approach. However sparingly you sow, you'll always get a few seedlings coming up in clumps, or too close to their neighbours. But instead [...]
Jobs for June 4
Flaming June and the garden is really starting to get into its stride – in fact you may have to speed up to keep up with it! Here are a few of the jobs you can be getting on with this month. General tasks: Tackle perennial weeds as soon as they appear, forking out bindweed, couch grass and ground [...]