Entries Tagged as 'Garden Organic'
Twitter has a lot to answer for. How else would you get 25 people from around the country to visit a garden on a glorious sunny , early September afternoon.
Meeting before going to the garden it was clear that all was not quite as it might have been! In order that the 25 recognise each other we were invited to wear a button hole in the true spirit of a blind date. All was going swimmingly with assorted flora being sported until one of our number arrived wearing a half eaten digestive biscuit secured with a badly mis-shapen paperclip!
Perhaps I should explain that this gathering was no ordinary outing but a meeting of gardening enthusiasts of various persuasions found loitering with intent on Twitter and the garden we were to visit was Highgrove, the garden of HRH Prince Charles. The biscuit arrived courtesy of James Alexander-Sinclair which somehow saw the topic of conversation move on to cakes.
Tags: blog · garden design · Garden Network · Garden Organic · gardening · networking · Plant · sunshine · sustainable · Twitter
One of my main reasons for visiting as a Garden Designer is to look at the Show Gardens. Malvern isn’t known as a hotbed for innovation particularly but it can provide some neat glimpses at how other designers approach a garden or planting and I particularly enjoyed chatting with Deb Bird about her garden The Nature of Nurture which particularly struck a chord as I learned much of my gardening from my parents and grandparents. Perhaps one of the most interesting ideas though came in the Schools Section, where two gardens featured greenhouses made from recycled plastic bottles.
Tags: blog · enjoy · garden design · Garden Organic · imagination · Inspiration · networking · One Pot Pledge · Plant · weather
The soil in Wiltshire, where I live changes dramatically – heading West towards Bath it is predominantly very heavy clay over sandstone, while less than a mile to the East, heading towards Chippenham the soil becomes very sandy.
The small clay particles that make it so difficult to work and so poor draining have the benefit of retaining lots of wonderful nutrients. Nutrients that plants like roses absolutely love. Sandy soil tends to see these nutrients washed away.
The secret is applying a layer of organic material about 2 inches thick every year. Then sitting back and letting the worms do all the hard work! It is important to vary the type of organic material applied so that a variety of nutrients are released. Sticking with say – spent mushroom compost will lead to the soil becoming quite acid so use well rotted farmyard manure, leaf mould, soil improver and compost.
Tags: amelioration · clay · compost · garden design · Garden Organic · gardening · mushroom compost · organic material · Plant · soil · Soil pH
Wouldn’t it be great though if instead of having to sow fresh seeds each year you just waited for the plant to come up and produce food for you? You are probably getting interested now – particularly if you have limited space and time. You heard right plant once and crop for ever!
Tags: benefit · Garden Organic · gardening · grow your own · Inspiration · lifestyle · low maintenance · money saving · One Pot Pledge · Plant · sustainable · value
In order to create a succession of sweet scented blooms throughout the summer months I now plant a further batch of seeds. These are now a few weeks behind the first batch and will flower that bit later. Repeat this process until you have used all your seeds and you will enjoy a much longer season of cut flowers!
Tags: Conservatory · Garden Organic · gardening · Inspiration · Plant
Rural insurer NFU Mutual is delighted to announce a new affinity partnership with the Garden Network From 1st March 2010, NFU Mutual will become the Garden Network’s exclusive insurance provider, meaning it can promote its range of insurance, pensions and investments to the Garden Network membership. Blanche Surman, Affinity Marketing Executive at NFU Mutual [...]
Tags: benefit · business · Garden Network · Garden Organic · gardening · goal · grow your own · lifestyle · money saving · networking · opportunity · value
A couple of years ago Danny Boyles portrayal of the slums in Mumbai in Slumdog Millionaire bought the plight of families living in abject squalor to the eyes of the world. It was a moving film and anyone who has seen it will undoubtedly have been touched by some of the sequences. For those of us living [...]
Tags: blog · Food Inc. · garden design · Garden Organic · gardening · grow your own · Hungry for Change? · lifestyle · One Pot Pledge · Plant · Soil Association
