growing brassicas from seed Growing brassicas from seed in June can seem a strange think to do when you're surrounded by the smell of roses but by sowing a few choice brassicas in early summer means you can have delicious and in
trendy herbs how to: sorrel & lovage Do you remember The River Cafe getting us all to start growing rocket about 20 years ago? Salad rocket was joined by the thin-fingered, peppery, wild variety. Then Jamie Oliver made Summer Savou
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
how to make your own calendula cream This calendula cream recipe is wonderfully soothing and healing, perfect for bruises, burns, irritations and open wounds. It works by helping the small capillaries to grow around the wound, enabling
why you should grow verbena rigida Sarah shares with us the reasons she loves Verbena rigida, and what conditions are best to grow it in. Verbena bonariensis, a tall purple plant, seems to be everyone’s f
sarah’s top roses for cutting A vase of garden roses is a lovely thing, a signal that summer proper is finally here. I have a small garden at Perch Hill dedicated to roses for cutting, so I can guarantee this luxury for months at
how to create a butterfly garden Walking through the hay meadows in Transylvania last summer felt like a visit to a perfect place, not just for the wildflowers – the salvias, aquilegias and orchids – but for the butterfli
direct sowing seeds Direct sowing seeds, sowing straight into the soil in your garden is not a mystery that only the 'green-fingered' can master. There is a science behind direct sowing seeds and if you know the facts, i
what and how to plant in paving cracks and wall gaps Why not try planting beautiful flowers in your paving cracks and wall gaps, instead of letting the weeds establish themselves. It’s such a pretty cottage garden look that’s very low maint
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
the basics of arranging cut flowers How should I treat stems – bash, burn, or sear? Anything that looks floppy should have its stem ends seared in boiling water for 30 seconds. Give woody stems a bit longer – so bluebells o
