how to make a hand-tied bunch Sarah shows us how to make a hand tied bouquet of flowers - using home-grown flowers from her cutting patch at Perch Hill Farm. Before you start, lay out all your condi
early flowering biennials for spring My spring garden is full of bulbs – scented narcissi, hyacinths and tulips of many different kinds. I also have cherry and apple blossom and patches of early-flowering annuals like Cerinthe majo
salvia 'amistad' | why sarah loves this One of my absolute favourite plants. Incredible flowers, excellent performance and loved by pollinators. One of my absolute favourite plants is Salvia ‘Amistad&rs
sowing flowers in late summer I am a believer in late summer sowing – getting most of my hardy annuals into the ground as soon as I can. The soil is warm in late August, and with a little rain the top few inches of ground sh
chrysanthemums as cut flowers It's now five weeks since I returned from Holland with a box of cut chrysanthemums and this morning I threw the last one away. That's an incredible vase life – five weeks in a dark, warm house a
how to use bulb planting trays Sarah shows you how to plant tulip bulbs using a bulb planting tray - a quick and easy way of getting autumn planting bulbs into the ground. I have quite rec
the history of the tulip Find out more about the history of tulips. From origins in Turkey to fame in the Netherlands, this is a flower that has remained popular for centuries. origins in Turkey The Tulip was actually origin
how to create a mini wild flower meadow When Britain hosted the Olympics in 2012, I heard almost as many people talking about the colourful meadows at the Olympic site as about Sir Chris Hoy and Mo Farah. The perennial wildflower meadows in
prepare your spring garden in autumn Without autumn-sown plants, the abundance and beauty of most gardens plummets for three or four weeks towards the end of spring. The British countryside is at its best in May, with lanes, woodland ed
how to grow grapes in britain There were only three entries for the glasshouse grapes at this year's RHS autumn show; the competitors were two dukes and a Ms M. Walshaw. The Duke of Marlborough went home empty-handed, Ms Walshaw b
planting and naturalising bulbs in grass This is more easily done if the grass is short, so cut in the late autumn, before planting. This has the added advantage that you’ll see the flowers much more clearly with the grass cut short.
annual flowers for pots If I had to choose my absolute favourite annual flowers for pots these would be it. All these flowers are perfect for pots in the summer and will give you maximum colour impact for minimal effort. Ann
a brief history of daffodils The Greek myth We get the word 'Narcissus' from Greek mythology. A nymph called Echo fell in love with a young Greek named Narcissus, but Narcissus told her to leave him alone. Heartbroken, she lived
preserving flowers and berries in autumn Preserving flowers and berries from your autumn and late summer harvests will give you some wonderful decorations come Christmas. I love preserving the zip and range of colour of Chinese lanterns (Phy
planting numbers for bulbs in borders If you are struggling to work out how many bulbs you will need for your intended area then you may find the guide below useful to refer to when planning your display... average number of bulbs pe
how to take plant cuttings This step-by-step guide will show you how to take plant cuttings... Early to mid-September is a good time to take plant cuttings. Most tender perennials are still going at full tilt and should ro
