Itās time to get sowing and growing, because spring is in the air. In the last few days, Iāve had a cup of tea in the garden, my face warmed by the sun for the first time this year. My ginger tomcat Frank has been rolling about, with his legs in the air, and this […]
One of the plants I have kept in the greenhouse all winter is wasabi. Wasabi is native to Japan and in the wild it grows in near woodland streams, on mountains, and so at high altitude. All of this works in our favour when growing it in the UK. Japan and the UK are not […]
Peaches and nectarines flower early in the year when there are few insects about, so hand pollination is the only way to ensure a good crop. It works best after two or three dry warm days when most of the flowers are open. When the time is right, there will be a dusting of pollen […]
For passing wild life, a garden made in nature offers a welcoming stopover ā and for the gardener, there is the joy of myriad encounters with the creatures that share our world. A gang of long-tailed tits has just swept through my garden on a tepid February breeze, lit up by milky, spring-is-around-the-corner sunshine. Darting […]
Itās cold in Cold Aston and my two lovely daughters do a wonderful Stella Gibbons act in the same sort of northern accent you get on the Hovis advert ā where the young lad pushes the bike up Gold Hill in Shaftesbury in Dorset.Ā I have trouble propelling myself up that steep hill, let alone […]
Does a plant of Scarlet Pimpernel by your greenhouse door warn you of incoming bad weather? There was only one way to find out, by growing some and observing. In the trial Anagallis arvensis turned out such a pretty thing I grow a pot or two every year, hanging pots which suit the trailing habit, […]
It doesnāt matter how long you have been gardening there is always time to learn something new or change the way you do things. The greatest thing about gardening (for me anyway) is that there are a hundred and one ways to do the same thing. There may be lots of rules, but you learn […]
One of the exciting things that happens this month in my greenhouse is the blossoming of the nectarine. It always feels too early, blossoming while it feels so wintery out there, and is one of the first bits of blossom in my garden. It is a wonderful harbinger of spring. My ātreeā is actually a […]
From February onwards, it is time to sprout (or āchitā) new potatoes and the first big sign that the gardening year has started. Put your potatoes in a tray or egg box with the āroseā end, where all the buds are, at the top, keep them at about 7C (45F), then, after four to five […]
Weāre in the bleak midwinter in the village of Cold Aston, high in the Cotswolds. And yet, thereās solace in the garden despite the bitter easterly wind and the threat of snow lingering in the pink-tinged clouds. We do snow well in Cold Aston, it falls thick and deep. However, I already have one witch […]
As the climate crisis escalates, we need to garden smarter ā and thereās no time to lose. AI could deliver the data to fast-track the right decisions for our natural world. We gardeners need help: heavyweight, ultra-intelligent help that can only come from the smartest ā and getting smarter by the second ā minds on […]
āOh Bob, how could you?ā said a friend spying this nestling amongst my edible, scented and useful greenhouse specimens. Coral Bead plant does catch the eye, and to all the world looks just as if itās one of those market stall plant travesties sprayed with paint, glitter or bedaubed with plastic flowers, fruits or bugs. […]
