Sow leeks this spring
Leeks sown this spring should be a nice healthy size by now, and it’s time to transplant them across into their final growing places. If you didn’t get around to sowing seeds, don’t worry – you’ll find ready-grown leek seedlings among the great range of veg plug plants at our garden centre here. Instead of just plonking them in the [...]
The Chelsea Flower Show
Dust off your best frock – it’s time for the gardening world’s premier event of the year! The RHS Chelsea Flower Show opens this week and we can’t wait to see what the world’s best designers have come up with this year. Expect groundbreaking designs, superb plants, drama and above all glamour from the moment it starts this Tuesday. This [...]
Growing Greenhouse Cucumbers
Have a go at growing greenhouse cucumbers and you too can enjoy the slim, elegant, dark green cukes you buy in the shops. Greenhouse cucumbers are easy to grow, crop prolifically, and unlike outdoor cucumbers, you don’t have to peel them before you eat them. Growing cucumbers under glass is also good insurance in case wet weather rots outdoor plants [...]
Count your earthworms!
Count your earthworms and help Oxford scientists find out more about the soil that keeps your plants healthy in the latest ‘citizen science’ project from environmental charity Earthwatch. All you need to do is dig two holes somewhere in your garden where there are at least two different habitats – say, lawn and flowerbed - and count how many earthworms [...]
Plants blooming on Valentine’s Day
The number of plants blooming on Valentine’s Day this year shot up by over 60% according to the results of the National Trust’s 11th annual February flower count. Each year the Trust counts the number of flowers in bloom on February 14th at 18 of its gardens in the south west of the UK. The sudden increase this year is [...]
Plant rhubarb now
Plant rhubarb now for bumper crops next spring. Late spring is a great time to plant permanent crops, as it's warm but there's plenty of rain about – ideal growing conditions. Big, hungry plants like rhubarb need time to get their roots down into the ground to fuel those stout stalks and huge leaves, so planting crowns before the heat [...]