Spring gardening jobs – our top ten list
Gardens can look desolate in March, despite the valiant efforts of spring sunshine and blooming snowdrops, daffodils and crocuses. Lawns can look ragged, pale and full of moss, flower and vegetable beds bare, and the ravages of winter storms are on full display. Even...
How to get the most out of your garden in winter: patio, pergola or gazebo
Winters (and summers) seem to be getting wetter, so if you're fed up of not being able to use and enjoy your garden when it's wet, check out our guide to the best design solutions that incorporate a patio, pergola or gazebo: Look down, look up Where to start when...
Keeping chickens in your garden? What you should know
Thinking of keeping chickens in your back garden? Until a few years back, there were five ‘typical’ British family pets: dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs and hamsters (in no particular order). But there now seems to be a sixth on the list: chickens. Keeping chickens...
Conservatory versus summer house – the pros & cons
Conservatory versus summer house? Here's our quick run down of the pros and cons followed by some detailed and important pointers: Pros & Cons Conservatory Summer house Self install available? No Yes Planning permission required? Possibly, check local laws...
The best gardening websites to get your garden growing
Whether you’re a total garden novice intending to grow some container plants, or you’re 30 years into a passion for horticulture, there are thousands of gardening websites and blogs to guide and/or inspire you. And that’s the problem – there are just too many to...
The best outdoor lights for your garden?
The 21st-century trend for using our gardens as extra living spaces has illuminated people’s interest in garden lighting. Traditionally outdoor lighting was simple and practical: security lights and lighting for paths. Now the choice is endless: eco lights,...
Creating a garden windbreak, our top tips
Complaints about the weather are an essential part of the British summer, and in August the post-mortems begin – too much rain, not enough rain, too much wind, and so on. But if your main complaint is wind blighting your summer, spare a thought for your garden. It...
How to use rocks to make your garden design more interesting
Rocks in a garden used to mean an old-fashioned rockery, with a few mossy stones and Alpines used to disguise a ‘difficult’ patch of sloping garden. For most of us they seemed as old-fashioned a garden design as you could get. But don’t dismiss rocks as something...
How to design and make a wildlife-friendly garden
There were newspaper reports this month lamenting the tidal wave of grey sweeping Britain’s front gardens. They were based on a report from the Royal Horticultural Society stating that 3 million front gardens had been paved over in the past 10 years, and that 5...