Myth and magic are woven through gardening, like multicoloured ribbons round a maypole. Folklore is handed down through the generations. My grandmother told me, quite explicitly, that potatoes must be planted on Good Friday and that leeks must have their roots trimmed, having learnt it from her father, little knowing that her ideas went straight […]

When I first fell in love with greenhouses, it was a combination of the earthy aroma coupled with the plant fragrances. But it wasn’t the floral perfumes that tantalise my sense of smell; it was the spicy notes of aromatic foliage that transported me into this leafy world of wonder. If I could bottle the […]

Some may want to move from a purely ornamental greenhouse to also producing items for the table but worried this may result in the greenhouse not being ‘quite as pretty’. Well Citrus may be your answer. No other choice is so good looking the whole of the year, so neat, so reliable, and gives a […]

Fill your watering cans with water and allow them to stand in the greenhouse for at least 24 hours to warm before watering your plants. You may need to water two or three times while the weather is hot, especially if you are behind on your potting on and large plants are in small pots. […]

Social distancing quandaries, money worries and stock shortages are making garden centre trips fraught with anxiety – but home-mixed solutions will eke out your compost supplies. Seedlings need potting. Young plants are dropping through the letterbox, ready to pot up. Your greenhouse tomatoes, peppers and other veg are ready for their summer containers. You’ve got […]

After the shock of the mid May frost put all of my gardening plans temporarily on hold, the warming weather has meant that the greenhouse is now fully planted up and romping away. The task now is to give some of the plants a little attention and pinching out to direct their energies the right […]

The wonderful thing about having a Hartley greenhouse is it allows you to go forth and propagate! Propagation appeals to me on so many levels. The Yorkshire part of my heritage admires the fact that I can raise plants for virtually nothing. The Christian enjoys the fact that this quote about ‘going forth and propagating’ […]

If you’ve got a handful of precious tomato plants for this season, this is how to make them go further It’s pretty easy to grow tomatoes from seed, but unless you sowed them in January or February or even March before lockdown, then really it’s a bit late for this year. However you might have […]

A greenhouse of foliage and flowering plants is easy to tend. Naturally you water, feed occasionally, maybe dead-head and sometimes propagate. It’s important to open and close ventilation unless you have an automatic set-up. And to keep watch for pests or diseases, and then take action. The care required is not huge however it increases […]

I have never quite swung into filling my greenhouse with seedlings and plants so quickly in a season before. There is an urgency to this year: we have been forced to be less dependent on the supermarkets, but also need to stay in great health. Growing what vegetables we can feels necessary now. But don’t […]

The most experienced of gardeners can be bested by vine weevils – but calling in a microscopic earth-friendly ally will settle the score. Otiorhynchus sulcatus got me in the end. After 17 years of mostly grub-free bliss, when I’ve relied largely – apart from the occasional gentle shove – on nature (and some wire mesh) to […]