Over the last few years I’ve been learning to draw and paint landscapes better, and across…
Britain has an arts funding crisis
Everyone loves art in one form or another, from music to writing, dance to drawing, garden…
Our escape to the country
In May 2024 Chris and I were filmed for a small segment on BBC’s Escape to…
Should we stop comparing fungi to apples?
I love fungi, looking for them in autumn is one of the things I look forward…
How to grow tomatoes in a polytunnel
Recently Chris and I were saying how fantastic our polytunnel has been, it’s a few years…
Artist spotlight with Charlie Ford
I’d like to introduce you to Charlie Ford, if you don’t already know him. Charlie Ford…
Why the UK needs a national map of potential wind farm, solar farm and housing sites
Recently I asked the Government Department for Energy Security & Net Zero for their map of…
9 reasons why biodiversity is essential to climate and human life
Throughout my life I’ve felt the same question from society, sometimes people actually ask me it,…
Can the UK re-introduce pet licences?
There’s something about the partnership with pets that I love, when the animal is put first,…
19 things at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2024
The vibe this year during Chelsea press day was very much relaxed, enjoyable and a sense…
Allotment plan 2024
This week I finally plucked up the enthusiasm to work out the plan for our allotment…
Five examples of when not to prune
I’ve been watching all of the posts on social media recently instructing us to prune this…
Small garden design: consider how you will use your outdoor space
What’s most important to you and your small garden: planting? A place to sit? A place…
Small garden design: become familiar with your outdoor space
For twenty years I lived in small flats with the tiniest (and often non-existent!) outdoor spaces,…
How to grow ferns from spores
Ferns are very easy to grow from spores and although it takes a number of years,…
How to coppice hazel for bean poles and pea stick supports
Hazel’s true name is Corylus avellana, it’s one of our best known wild trees all across…
How to grow pink oyster mushrooms without plastic
I’ve recently been getting into growing edible mushrooms at home, including the delicious lion’s mane fungi.…
10 steps to choosing plants like a pro for your garden
If you’re starting to think about new plants for your garden, as I am, my best…
Infected cuts and bites from gardening
WARNING THIS POST CONTAINS SOME GRAPHIC PHOTOS OF AN INFECTED BITE On Tuesday, during a photoshoot…
Review: Netatmo home weather station
When we first bought our old flat and garden in London way back in 2013, Chris…
From West Yorkshire to Pembrokeshire (via East Sussex) and back, with everything in between
For our summer holiday this year Chris and I spent most of the week in Tenby,…
How to remove ground elder organically
I love lots of plants people call weeds (see my book) but there are some plants…
Lady’s slipper orchid, Cypripedium calceolus
It’s been a long time coming but this year I visited one of the reintroduction programme…
The Farm, Yorkshire
In February 2021 Chris and I found ourselves moving to Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire where…
11 Things at Chelsea Flower Show 2023
It feels like the RHS Chelsea Flower Show has finally found its feet again after having…
Peat free plants at Tissington Nursery, Peak District
“People come to us specifically because we grow in peat free compost,” says Mairi Longdon, who…
How to create carpets of colour, Cluny House Gardens, Scotland
One sunny afternoon in late-April, while working on a remote landscape design in Scotland, I took…
Early spring flowering plants at Stillingfleet Lodge Garden and Nursery, York
Stillingfleet Lodge, on the outskirts of York, is a garden that has been managed organically for…
How to grow organic tomatoes including heirloom tomatoes
Tomatoes sit atop everyone’s grow your own lists, and if they don’t, they should! Relatively easy…
How to grow Lysimachia atropurpurea ‘Beaujolais’ from seed
A number of years ago RHS Chelsea Flower Show was filled with a new flower, Lysimachia…
How to prune salvias and when to do it – three pruning groups
A group of plants I grow a lot in my own garden and in my clients’…
How to grow hardwood cuttings
Hardwood cuttings are an easy way of taking pieces of woody stem of shrubs, some trees…
How to grow onions and shallots organically from seed
Growing onions and shallots organically from seed is easy, cheap and fun. In this post I…
How to grow Brussels sprouts organically and cook them
I used to have a mild apathy toward Brussels sprouts, boiled and soggy, I can’t say…
Allotment plan 2023
We took on our new allotment in Yorkshire in February 2021 and, with almost two full…
Sustainable plant nurseries
I have always bought my plants from as many independent nurseries as I can, the passionate,…
The importance and benefits of keeping fallen leaves around plants
One of the pieces of advice the gardening world has got wrong over the years is…
Why it’s time to ban non-organic pesticides from sale to the general public
Please take 30 seconds to sign the petition When I first started studying horticulture professionally in…
Horticulture industry bans corporations digging up precious habitats to make compost
The Government has, at long last, banned the home use of compost made from precious peatland…
Review: Wikomo solar deer repeller
We live surrounded by fields and woodland in which lots of roe deer live. Deer have…
8 tips for better watering technique
1) Water deeply When it’s hot and sunny it’s tempting to zip around the garden watering…
Jack on lawns: why it’s time to rethink our most sustainable usable surface
I seem to be thinking about lawns more than is healthy, and I’m not the only…
Book review: Regenesis: feeding the world without devouring the planet by George Monbiot
The first thing that struck me about Regenesis is one third of the book’s pages are…
Why I will no longer be drawn into the false narrative on peat free compost
I will no longer be drawn into the false narrative on peat free vs peat compost…
Review: Husqvarna 540i XP battery powered chainsaw
Last year I was given a battery powered chainsaw by Husqvarna to try for a no…
Imagining a garden
Yesterday I sat at dusk looking out from the top of our garden across the valley,…
How to grow dahlias from cuttings
Dahlias are remarkably easy plants to grow once you get to know them. One of the…
Allotment plan 2022
In our first year on the smallholding in some respects I should have done nothing but…