June bestows blessings upon us – a final opportunity to grow incredibly productive and delicious vegetables this summer! Savvy gardeners who sow cucumber and courgette seeds directly in the soil now avoid the hassle of washing up pots, the time needed to pot up seedlings, and the expense of buying compost.
All risk of frost has passed so you don’t need a greenhouse.
I adore mint and relish this herb’s energy. Freshly harvested mint leaves can be used to make enticing cocktails, herbal teas, and an array of delicious savoury and dessert recipes. Most people are familiar with peppermint or spearmint, but have you tried any other varieties?
A whole world of different flavoured mints is available to those who grow their own plants.
To celebrate Compost Week, I’m sharing tips to help you make top-quality compost in your garden, allotment, or neighbourhood.
Why Compost?Making a compost heap or setting up a compost bin is such a positive thing to do. Even if you don’t really care about getting fabulous (free) compost delivered straight to your garden, or you’re not interested in improving your garden soil, if you compost your grass cuttings, prunings, and vegetable peelings, you’ll save yourself time and energy, and spare yourself the need to make trips to the tip to get rid of your garden or kitchen waste at weekends.
Welcome to the third part of my overview of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2021 (see part one here and part two here)……
Welcome to part two of my overview of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2021 (if you missed part one, please click here). Let me take you on a tour of the gardens and exhibits I visited at this year’s very special autumn RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2021…..
For one year only, the Royal Horticultural Society’s Chelsea Flower Show 2021 has moved to September! How has the change of date affected this event? Moving from a late spring show to an early autumn spectacle has opened Chelsea’s door to allow new VIP (very important plant) access for late summer flowering perennials, berries, seed heads, dahlias, pumpkins, tomatoes, and vegetables!
Earlier this year, Greenhouse Sensation sent me a Quadgrow Self Watering Planter to try. If you’ve not seen a Quadgrow before, it’s a plastic container growing system (made from recycled plastic) that uses capillary action to provide plants with automatic watering. This clever design alters the way we irrigate plants. Instead of watering plants in the traditional sense (watering plants from above with a watering can), with the Quadgrow we deliver the water and nutrients right where they’re needed – at the plants’ roots.
In times of stress, our gardens and allotments become our refuge and remind us of the true value of plants and outside spaces. For me, time in my garden is priceless; it lifts my spirits, leaving me feeling revitalised. One of my favourite things to do is to grow my own food.
You don’t need a large garden to grow your own vegetables.
Since I first told you about my Vegepod much has changed. Back in 2018, my Vegepod was set up in an area of my garden that enjoyed partial shade, but after trialling the Vegepod in this fairly beneficial position (vegetables thrive when they’re grown in sunny and partially shaded sites), I decided to move my Vegepod to a more shaded area of my garden, to see what I could grow successfully inside my Vegepod with more challenging growing conditions.
I love growing vegetables, it’s a truly wonderful, soul enriching experience to grow your own food! Sadly an increasing number of us are without the luxury of a garden or allotment and have nowhere to grow vegetables, herbs, fruit, or flowers; while a great many others struggle to garden in small, often paved spaces, without any access to the soil.
City Living was designed by Kate Gould and built by Kate Gould Gardens. The RHS judges presented this Fresh Garden with a Gold Medal, and the prestigious title of Best Fresh Garden, at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2017!
Garden designer Kate Gould is passionate about greening up derelict, uncared for and unloved inner city spaces. Kate is so passionate about Greening Grey Britain, that she has self funded the entire build for this Fresh Garden, at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2017, to inform others as to how they can improve their city living.
Heralded as the world’s most prestigious horticultural event, the Royal Horticultural Society’s Chelsea Flower Show 2017, opens to the public from Tuesday 23rd May 2017 until Saturday 27th May 2017. Visitors will be treated to exhibits showcasing the latest new plant introductions, alongside beautiful gardens, which demonstrate the latest ideas in garden and landscape design, many of which feature new, rare, unusual, and interesting plants, grouped together with much loved old favourites.
Whether you’ve got a garden, patio, balcony, or a windowsill, remembering to choose flowering plants that produce pollen and nectar that bees and other pollinating insects can access when you’re selecting new plants is a wonderful and worthwhile thing to do.
At this time of year, it’s lovely to look through the catalogues and choose seeds, plants and other exciting new products to try out. While I was looking through The Organic Gardening Catalogue I spotted the EarthBox, a patented container gardening system, developed by commercial farmers, who designed it especially to offer a low maintenance, self-watering, portable method to garden and grow vegetables, even if you don’t have a garden.
Gardening can be as expensive an activity as you’d like. Whatever your budget it’s important to spend your money wisely on items you’ll find useful, indispensable or wonderful!
Specialist Plant Fairs, Seed and Plant SwapsVillage Fetes, Open Gardens, Gardening Society Plant Sales, Seed and Plant Swaps are all great places to buy plants at fantastic prices.
