gardening

Monty revisits one of his classic books, Gardening at Longmeadow, in an occasional series.  Here’s why I like bedding plants – they’re cheerful and lift our spirits after a long winter; and they can be used in containers, hanging baskets, borders or as a display. Quite simply, bedding is beautiful and fun. Wherever you buy … Read more

BULK UP YOUR SNOWDROPS Snowdrops have been especially lovely this year, but now they’re going over.  If you want to increase numbers for an even better show next January, take action now. Single plants and small clumps need no action. Allow those to die down naturally after flowering.  But if you have established clumps of … Read more

As we peer cautiously into spring, the weather is still fickle but the light is stretching daily and green shoots are beginning to burst from hedges, frozen ground and sodden soil. It will be just a few short weeks before our gardens demand us to become active gardeners again, nurturing them after a long and … Read more

We can all be eco-warriors: Do your bit to combat climate change with these easy steps Nigel Colborn reveals Britain will host this year’s UN Climate Summit  He says it’s timely for all of us to run a carbon health check in our gardens  Expert shares the importance of having fertile soil and self-sustaining lawns By Nigel … Read more

1. THE DRY GARDEN The Dry Garden was made in early 2004 from a yard in front of old stables we had used to store building material over the previous decade.  It had a Tarmac covering, which I unpeeled with a shovel to reveal a solid bed of stone. This is the old red sandstone … Read more

Delightful Daphnes: Plant these pretty shrubs and blossom will fill the air Daphnes are a small but valuable genus of flowering shrubs you can grow in UK They come from Europe, North Africa and Asia with 2 species native to Britain The better known, Daphne mezereum, has fragrant, purple-pink spring flowers  By Nigel Colborn for … Read more

TIME TO SOW YOUR TOMATO SEEDS  From this week onwards, you can sow tomato seeds in your greenhouse.  You’ll need a guaranteed frost-free greenhouse and a heated propagator. Optimum soil temperature in the propagator should be 18c to 20c.  Fill a small pot with sterile seed-sowing or general purpose potting compost. Gently firm the compost down, … Read more

Back in January 2002 I found myself, for the first time in 12 years, with no television project lined up for the year ahead.  So I set out to write what I thought would be my definitive work on organic gardening. The book, which until a month before publication had the working title of Completely … Read more

The way that I have designed my garden is, as a friend of mine only half-jokingly described it, ‘like a series of allotments’.  It means there are a number of different areas, all quite separate and usually hidden from the rest. I make no apologies for this and enjoy the surprises and sense of enclosure … Read more

Commercial cut roses are loaded with romantic good intentions, but they lack the charm of almost any rose growing in the ground.  However, much as I adore my roses in their full summer display in the garden, I also love going out early on a June morning, when the dew is still fresh, and cutting … Read more