Hartley Magazine

All the latest news, hints, tips and advice from our experts

Ten reasons not to use pesticides

Keep your greenhouse and garden free from toxins for the healthiest crops, says Jean Vernon You don’t need to use pesticides in your garden or greenhouse. Some gardeners reach for the spray with little thought about what they are doing, intent on destroying whatever bug or creature is eating their plants. But pesticides cost the […]

What’s the most nutritional glasshouse crop?

This depends on so many different factors. We might consider concentration, range or sheer quantity of vitamins produced. Or minerals, antioxidants, antho-cyanins each contains and so on. Any contender will be lesser value if the crop comes all at once and has difficult storage or processing, ideally it’s continuous year round. And of course it […]

Unseasonal temperatures turn the season around

Recent weather has turned the seasons so far around; I just wonder what the new year will bring. Here in Hertfordshire banks of daffodils were flowering just before the New Year, Viburnum x bodnantense ‘Dawn’ burst suddenly into full bloom and in the garden I lifted tender Canna’s for storage in the greenhouse between Christmas […]

Snakeplant

Snake or perhaps it should be Witch plant

More a house than a glasshouse plant the Snake plant, Sanseviera trifasciata, is actually a very useful specimen in either place. Many plants are described as bomb-proof, the Snake plant is as close as you can get. Drought and shade seem to leave it untouched, cold is no problem though a real freeze will be. […]