My garden’s been flooded, what can I do?
A garden or allotment can look a complete mess after surging floodwaters have passed through. It wouldn’t be so bad if it was just rainwater, but most flood water carries with it all sorts of...
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In search of good companions
Its that time of year when we are all planning what to grow on our plots. Kim Stoddart outlines her favourite produce for effective buddy planting on the veg patch… To be perfectly honest with you, my...
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It’s going to rain this week!
This blog was published on 4 June 2019 and a similar pattern has emerged in 2020, except this time the months of March, April and May have been hot and dry …. Hurrah, some rain is forecast. I know,...
View ArticleSoil health
Kim Stoddart gets up and close and personal with this important enabler of veg patch life and explains how to keep it fertile and simply fantastic all year round… It may not look very glamorous but...
View ArticleGrowing salvias
Salvias are generally drought resistant, long flowering and many have scented foliage, plus they are great for attracting pollinators too. They are the perfect option for a hot, dry border with free...
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Flowering times and global warming
We have all seen flowers appearing earlier than ever – daffodils in December, magnolia in February – but now the extent of the change has been revealed by a new study. The research, carried out by a...
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Coping with a hosepipe ban
Here are a few top tips to help get you through the current drought especially in those areas where you can’t use your hose pipe Prioritise the areas of the garden that need water – pots, newly...
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Winners and losers in the climate change garden and some surprises
After a summer of high temperatures and little rain, gardening magazines, blogs and posts are full of recommendations for drought-tolerant plants. But are drought tolerant plants the answer? Looking...
View ArticleHalophytes – the answer to drought?
As an ecologist, I love exploring salt marshes and shingle banks where conditions are truly extreme for plant and animal alike. Its here that you find sea kale, thrift, yellow horned-poppy, sea...
View ArticleCreate a polyculture bed
Posted on 19th January 2022 by Sally_Empire As a new gardener many years ago, all the books I read described growing vegetables in a rotation with neat, weed-free rows. But over the years, I have...
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