My heart is full of love for butterflies, so I’m encouraging everyone to take part in Butterfly Conservation’s Big Butterfly Count, which starts on Friday 17th July 2026 and runs until Sunday 9th August 2026.
Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) are beautiful, reliable plants that flower for ages, their attractive blooms provide an abundance of nectar for bees and butterflies. Plus, chives produce a regular supply of tasty leaves and flowers from May until the end of summer – they’re such great value plants! In addition to all of the above, chives flourish in containers of peat-free compost or will thrive planted in any soil (apart from waterlogged soils) in a sunny or partially shaded site.
First things first, if you’ve not sown any courgette seeds yet, don’t miss this chance – sow seeds now! I like to sow a few courgette seeds outdoors in May, then I sow a couple of extra seeds at the start June, and two more towards the end of June. Staggering seed sowings ensures a steady supply of courgettes from summer until the frosts arrive in autumn.
I dedicate a substantial amount of my time and energy into running gardening trials, searching for the top-performing and best tasting vegetables. I share the results in my columns to help my readers discover the best vegetable varieties on the market. If you sow seeds I recommend and follow my gardening advice, I hope this year you’ll enjoy your most successful growing season yet!
Nothing beats growing plants in the soil. Plants are usually happiest growing in the ground, which makes us happier too, as watering is so much easier and our soil-grown plants tend to be stronger and healthier. We’re not all fortunate enough to have access to the soil, but thankfully, patio and balcony gardeners’ dreams can be successfully fulfilled with the right choice of containers, growing media, and vegetable varieties.
One of the many joys of growing our own food is providing ourselves and our families with freshly harvested fruit, vegetables, and herbs, which often have a dramatically improved flavour and freshness, compared to those we buy at the supermarket.
When we picture home-grown vegetables and herbs, we usually imagine produce that takes several months to a year (or more) to deliver a harvest of vegetables, fruit, or herbs.
The best gifts of all are true love, friendship, and respect, which cannot be bought, yet are priceless gifts that we all aspire to receive. If you’re considering purchasing a gift for someone special, may I recommend seeds of a sweet pepper that I’ve trialled, tested, and found to be easy to grow, tasty, and productive. I’d also like to share with you the gift of advice: sweet pepper plants (and chilli peppers) are tender plants that are killed by cold temperatures.
The greatest gift in life is true friendship and time spent together; nothing is more important or as valuable as our love for each other and our genuine connection. However, if you’re looking to give a physical gift this Christmas, seeds are a truly special something that can be wrapped up and given or posted inside a Christmas card (NB: Remember to use a padded envelope to protect your seeds from the machinery that processes our letters at Royal Mail’s sorting offices; post from a Post Office to ensure you pay the correct postage).
As autumn’s whisper reverberates through our landscape, many plants begin to fade, as they respond to the changing season and wither in the ever-lengthening nights’ embrace. This is a season of salvage, protection, and celebration; it’s time to bring tender plants inside our homes, conservatories, and glasshouses, and gather in our harvest.
At this time of year, Late Blight (Phytophthora infestans) is often viciously working its destruction through our tomato and potato plants, marking leaves and stems with patches of brown and spreading rot and disease, turning green or ripening tomatoes a deathly brown.
It’s difficult to predict what our Great British weather will deliver from one week to the next, but there are beneficial activities we can do now to make the most of whatever conditions we experience in our gardens and allotments this August.
If we’re blessed with a night without rain, followed by a sunny morning; head out first thing and harvest herbs to hang up and dry for use over autumn and winter.
Many of the edible plants we can grow from seed need to be grown in a bright location where they bask in the sunshine in order to generate strong and healthy growth and enable these edibles to really flourish; however, we are not all blessed with sunny gardens. If your garden is shaded, or if you’ve struggled to grow your own edible plants in the past, I’ve got two fabulous suggestions of seeds that germinate readily, can be sown directly in the soil or in containers of peat-free compost on a patio, balcony, or window box now.
May is a totally thrilling month, as there are just so many exciting plants that we can grow from seed now! Courgettes (Cucurbita pepo) are quick-growing plants that can be very productive, making them desirable additions to our gardens and allotments. Varieties vary in their colour, texture, flavour, and productivity, so it’s worth taking the time to do some research before you order your seeds.
April is such a wonderful month to sow seeds of edible plants, as it’s possible to grow almost anything from seed at this exciting time of year! Make the effort to get out in your garden or allotment now and benefit from the opportunity to sow seeds of carrots, parsnips, globe artichokes, and other edible plants that take more time than others to grow and develop.
I adore tomatoes and devote a phenomenal amount of energy into running Tomato Trials in my never-ending search for the best tasting tomatoes. I snap up the tomato varieties that the seed catalogues declare are the best and trial them – they often taste very different to how they’re described. I’m excited to share my findings and help you discover tomatoes with truly tantalising flavours this summer!
Is there a better gift than a plant? I can’t think of any gift that surpasses that of a plant – my favourite gift would be a houseplant. I’d prefer to receive a houseplant over a garden plant as a surprise gift, as it’s easier for me to find a suitable space and make room for an indoor plant than a garden plant.
The buttered and burnished tones of falling leaves and ethereal, early morning mists enhance the beauty of our autumnal gardens and landscapes. Autumn is an evocative and reflective time, it’s the ideal moment to consider how we might improve our gardens for the future.
Is your fence looking like it lost a battle? Will your wobbly fence survive winter gales? Have you considered replacing your fences with a hedge?
Life isn’t always as relaxed as we’d like it to be. Daily demands and pressures can leave us feeling tense, stressed, and exhausted. My favourite way to relax, recharge, and re-energise my body and soul is to spend time outdoors in a garden or allotment, or to take an uplifting walk outside in our beautiful countryside.
If you’re looking to unwind, make time to enjoy a pot of tea in the garden.
Squire’s Garden Centres have now stopped selling bags of peat-based compost from their centres. Customers can now pop into any branch of Squire’s and enjoy certainty that the bags of compost the company sell are all peat-free.
Growing plants from seeds sown in peat-free compost is a great way to garden more sustainably; however, sowing seeds directly in the soil is an easier option that’s both more cost-effective and sustainable.
Homegrown peas are a taste sensation! Peas are decorative plants that produce handsome flowers and tasty edible leaves, tendrils, pods, and peas. You’ll need a bright and sunny area to grow these delicious vegetables (peas won’t grow in the shade).
At this time of year, as temperatures plummet and frosts highlight winter foliage with sparkles that glisten in the morning sunlight, gardeners are blessed with a seasonal window of opportunity to plant bare root plants. Be sure to capitalise on this moment, as bare root plants are only available during the winter months. This is a chance to purchase top-quality plants, whilst making a substantial saving on usual retail prices.
