By September the greenhouse is starting to look a bit tired, well not so much the greenhouse, more the plants inside. I often think that the plants I’ve chosen to grow inside the confines of my wonderful glasshouse are almost forced into productivity, a little bit like battery hens, cooped into a small space to […]
Most gardeners will have saved a few seeds over the years. Runner beans are the most likely candidate and one of the easiest seeds to save. There are lots of reasons to save seed, it’s a technique used by man since the early days of farming. By selecting from the strongest, most prolific plants gradually […]
One of the most magical things about gardening is taking a cutting and watching it suddenly start to grow into a whole new plant. That moment when you can’t resist the temptation any longer and you tug on it gently. If it resists you know it’s been a success and has already rooted and started […]
If your greenhouse is like mine at the moment, it’s full of tubs of French beans, pots of tomatoes, planters with cucumbers, courgettes and masses of salads. I’ve even been sowing a new batch of seeds late in the season to keep everything growing. If you read gardening books and seed packets you always get […]
One of the best things about having a garden and a greenhouse is that when you have been away for a few days you know that there is something fresh to eat when you get home. It’s amazing how much the plants grow in just a short space of time. You can go away one […]
If there is one thing I absolutely hate about my greenhouse in the summer, it is the buzzing flies that accumulate in the apex of the roof in hot weather. I hate the noise that they make; that incessant buzzing sound as they flit around above my head and interrupt my silent thoughts. I hate […]
Everyone loves the smell and the taste of strawberries. But when a small bowlful can cost the earth, isn’t it time you grew your own? The flavour of these home-grown fruit far outweighs anything you can buy in the supermarket and even if you only pick a handful of fruit for the first year, you […]
When you are growing plenty of plants to eat it can be particularly disheartening to find that other creatures are helping themselves to your hard grown crops. Now I don’t mind sharing the odd fruit or veg in the garden, I can hardly complain if a hungry creature needs to feed its offspring, but I […]
If there’s one way to get children interested in gardening its to give them their own growing projects. Kids either need to grow something that will give them fast and obvious results, like salads and potatoes, or a project that creates something that inspires them. Children love to grow giant sunflowers with their big smiley […]
If there’s one herb that conjures up summer for me it has to be basil. Its intense fragrance and flavors creates an instant Mediterranean feel to the garden, the greenhouse and to summer meals. Basil is a tender annual that has exacting needs. Although it can be sown from seed early in the season, it […]
A bean feast is more than a sumptuous spread of leguminous vegetables, it is a celebration of self sufficiency and the ‘raison d’etre’ to which most gardeners will cite for their ‘grow their own’ activities. And so in recognition of the title of this monthly section and in celebration of the humble bean, this very […]
All greenhouse owners have experienced it at one time or another, munched on plants, missing leaves, and more. There are more than just bugs in my greenhouse. Over the years I’ve seen a whole menagerie of creatures setting up home in my greenhouse. For years I had a huge warty toad that helped despatch slugs […]
