Watch these tidy planting tips from AG’s gardening editor, Kris Collins, for success with your summer patio containers
Posts Tagged ‘Amateur Gardening’
AG video: Planting summer containers
Spring will be stunning this year, says Alan Titchmarsh
Spring may have sprung late, but when it finally comes it will be sensational, Alan Titchmarsh has predicted.
The ITV Love Your Garden presenter shared gardeners’ frustration at being stuck indoors during icy blasts in March and April – but says we’ll all benefit from a late start to the season.
Speaking exclusively to AG, Alan said: “We are in for a…
Product review: lean-to cold frame
Best buy 19/20
Acacia Frame
£104.90 (inc p&p)
Mr Fothergills
Tel. 0845 3710518
www.mr-fothergills.co.uk
Build: 5
Acacia wood frame, polycarbonate glazing and steel fittings.
Features: 4
The Acacia wood is kiln-dried and the glazing is twin-skinned. Measures: 3ft 2in (100cm) wide x 231/2in (60cm) wide x 153/4in (40cm) high at the back. Has a micro-adjustable lid for ventilation and watering.
Performance: 5
Light and easy enough to move around and looked…
Weed control: beds and borders
Keep bedding and border displays weed free this season with top tips from AG gardening editor Kris Collins
Aim to dig out weeds growing in border soils unless you’re faced with persistent weeds that re-grow from bits of root left in the ground (ground elder, bindweed and couch grass spring to mind) .
Digging is eco-friendly, cheaper, and it removes the risk…
Weed control: Patios and paving
Keep patios, paths and drive weed free with top tips from AG gardening editor Kris Collins
Allow weeds to mature in the joins between patio slabs or block paving and it can be a real problem to remove them by hand. With no room to dig out tap roots, perennial weeds will likely return soon after pulling off or scraping away…
Weed control: Hoe, hoe, hoe!
Stay chemical free with regular soil cultivation, says AG gardening editor Kris Collins
Regular hoeing or cultivation of garden soils is the best way to prevent weeds taking hold. Scratch over the soil weekly with a hoe or clawed hand cultivator and it’s an easy job – but watch out for emerging perennial flowers. The soil never has time to compact,…
Kris’s blog: catch up on the veg patch
When it comes to planting potatoes, the old saying goes, “Get your earlies in late and your lates in early”.
Just as well considering the weather we’ve been experiencing this spring. Last weekend was the fist chance I’d had to get on the soil and plant out my chatted first early Pentland Javelin, even then I had to do it in…
Neonicotinoids: AG staff debate bees and sprays
Environment groups claim certain insecticides, known as neonicotinoids, are leading to the decline of bees, which pollinate many vital food crops. The chemicals remain legal and approved for garden use. But the issue has divided gardeners – including AG’s writers. Here, three of the magazine’s staff state their personal opinions on neonicotinoids.
Tim Rumball, Editor of AG – “NO BAN ON NEONICOTINOIDS”
Tim…
How to sow and grow a crop of basil
Kris shows how to start off crops of basil
Fill a pot with a good quality soil-based seed compost. Tamp down the surface. Lightly sprinkle a few seeds on the surface, then water.
Cover with a ¼in (6mm) layer of vermiculite. Label, then place in a light, warm place. A temperature of 13˚C (55˚F) is needed.
I place the seeds under a clear-domed…
Quick Easter containers
Kris creates an Easter hanging basket
Place a liner into the basket and secure with plastic ties if required. Once in, start by covering the base of the liner with multipurpose compost.
I’m positioning some sprouting dwarf narcissus in the centre of the basket. The blooms will be held above surrounding plants.
Next to go in are some coloured hybrid primroses. Three, planted…
