If you’re anything like me, by January you’ll have had enough of being content with looking forward to sunnier days and will be longing to get outside and plant something. I dearly love the whole process of coaxing plants into life and it feels like an age since I last pushed a seed into some earth and willed it to grow. I think I have the gardening equivalent of itchy feet! To satisfy my cravings I’ve been looking at what will actually ...
How to grow radish
Radish can really perk up a salad, and it's speed of growth makes it great to grow with children too. This guest post has lots of tips to help you get a bumper harvest. Radish is very easy to grow, and doesn't need any complicated care measures. It handles low temperatures well and the vegetation period is short, so it is perfect for cultivation in early spring, although you may also sow it at the end of summer for the autumn ...
What to plant now – November
As the gardening year starts to draw to an end, the amount of work to be done outdoors gradually decreases. So far this month my gardening time has been spent clearing up and putting away, rather than looking ahead to next year’s flowers and harvest. But it’s not all about putting things to bed for the winter this month, there is still some planting to be done in November if you feel like a more uplifting task in your garden. Here are some ...
How to plant garlic
This week I've been planting garlic at the allotment. Garlic is a great crop to grow; it doesn't take up much space, it's not very fussy, and there are lots of different varieties available for you to experiment with. It's also a great crop to involve children with too because it's easy and fun to plant. This year we're growing three heritage garlic varieties from Marshalls. Bohemian Rose comes from the north of Bohemia near to Prague and ...
What to plant now – October
Autumn is really underway now. Leaves are falling everywhere you look, and I’m a little obsessed with the pumpkins we’re about to harvest for Halloween. October isn’t all about harvesting and hunkering down for the colder months though, there are still some crops and plants you can grow. Here are some ideas for what to plant this month. Asparagus Some varieties of asparagus can be planted in autumn; planting now helps them to get ...
What to plant now – September
Well here we are - autumn. Summer is such a busy time - with a young family off school, but also in the garden - and September always seems to arrive so quickly. It’s a lovely month though; harvest time, beautiful angles of sunshine, and still plenty of warm weather to enjoy. And it’s also quite a productive month for sowing seeds, planting bulbs and growing new plants - some to enjoy soon, and some to get started for next year. ...
What to plant now – July
We’re into the height of summer now, and you probably think it’s a bad idea to start off seedlings when there is such a high risk of failure due to the hot, dry conditions we (hopefully!) get at this time of year. You’re right to a certain extent, but there are still some crops that you can sow for harvesting later on in the summer. And I know none of us want to think about it yet, but now is also a good time to make a start on crops that you ...
Fun gardening: How to grow your name in courgettes
This may sound like a rather odd title for a post, but bear with me.... If you're growing courgettes this year, right now you're likely to be inundated with them, and busy trying to find new recipes to use them in or giving them away to friends, neighbours and any random stranger who'll take them. This makes it the perfect time to grow a name in one of your courgettes; it's dead easy, takes a couple of minutes and is an absolutely brilliant, ...
What to Plant Now – June
You may be reading the title of this post and thinking “but it’s too late to plant anything now”. Watching all the pros down at the allotment already harvesting some of this year’s crops, I feel a bit like I’m late to the party too. I have planted lots of things, just a little later than I meant to - which is fine, we’ll just have our harvest a bit later this year. And while summer may be upon us, there are still plenty of ...
Review: First Tunnels Mini Polytunnel
If you grow your own fruit and vegetables on any scale, you're probably familiar with trying to keep pests away from your precious crops. Caterpillars, birds, slugs and snails... there's a seemingly endless list of hungry garden visitors who will happily feast on your plants and crops given the chance. And while I actively encourage local wildlife to visit our garden and allotment, I do want to enjoy some produce myself too! Some crops are ...