The biggest tip for success is to buy a pre-trained tree, this removes the trickier pruning required to shape the tree in the first few years. Some of the best…
How to
How to grow tomatoes
Well, that’s not entirely true. If you’d visited my garden last summer you’d have noticed the air had taken on a blue hue, thanks to me getting rather upset about…
How to plant raspberry canes
If you’re after a quick fix, where results outweigh the initial work you put in, follow the steps below for planting raspberry canes in November, for a bumper crops next…
Succeeding with self-seeders
There’s so much to celebrate about footloose and fancy-free self-seeders. These plants are annuals, biennials or perennials that simply scatter copious amounts of seed. For this reason, they pop…
Lawn Care: It Takes Two
Measure twice, cut once. If you want to do something well it pays to do it twice, whether you’re pruning – check twice before you cut – or planting…
On test: Lawn seed and fertiliser spreaders
Distributing lawn seed for a new lawn, or to thicken up your existing grass, can be a haphazard business if it’s broadcast by hand. The same applies to lawn feed,…
Lawns and chemicals
When we moved to Spring Cottage 12 years ago, the old shed contained a cocktail of chemicals, including DDT – an organochlorine pesticide that was banned in Britain in 1984.…
How to deal with garden pests
1 Box tree caterpillar The grubs cover plants in webbing. Pick them off, use a pheromone trap or nematodes, or try a chemical such as Bug Clear Gun, Defenders Bug…
Time to make a seedbed
With soil temperatures warming and windowsills overflowing, many gardeners are desperate to begin sowing directly outside during April. You’d think that making a seedbed would be a simple task, and…
How to create a garden pond
© Alamy A pond adds so much to the garden on every level. It need not be massive – if space is tight you can create a patio mini-pond in…