Advice & Inspiration For Your Garden

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 butterflies you ki

history of the dahlia

Very little is known about the dahlia before the time of the Aztecs. It is believed that the Aztecs used parts of the dahlia for food and medicine. The mountain regions of Mexico and Guatema

starting a vegetable garden from scratch

If you've ever thought of starting a vegetable garden from scratch then start with this article. It will tell you everything you need to know about starting your first veg plot. Is your back

square inch gardening with charles dowding

Square-inch productivity is the name of the game with growing vegetables these days, getting the maximum harvest out of minimal space, effort and time. Many of us want to be able to eat from our ga

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.

perfect plants to create a cottage garden style

These are my top 12 favourite plants to grow to create a beautiful cottage garden... all selected based on their romance, subtle delicateness and pretty structure. These are my favourite reliable a

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

gardening at home with sarah | a tour of the dutch yard

Sarah walks us through the Dutch Yard at Perch Hill, discussing her favourite container plants.By viewing the video, you agree to a data transmission to Youtube.The data processing by Youtube is gover

gardening at home with sarah | walk around perch hill

Join Sarah on a beautiful spring morning for a tour of her favourite spots around Perch Hill.By viewing the video, you agree to a data transmission to Youtube.The data processing by Youtube is governe

how to layout a vegetable garden

With your bit of garden cleared and ready for a mini vegetable patch (see starting a vegetable garden from scratch), it's time to lay out your plot and create a structure that looks good and produ

the very best annual climbers

Behind the story of Jack and the beanstalk is some deep level of amazement at what a seed can do in the course of a year. By last September I had a French bean 12ft high and a cup-and-saucer vine

sweet peas at perch hill

When I was giving a talk at a Perch Hill open day, I showed a slide of my current favourite sweet pea, the very fresh pink, ‘Painted Lady’. Afterwards a woman came up to me and said, "Your ‘Painted La