The rain keeps coming and the nights are cold. Don’t rush to plant out young seedlings or Jack Frost might get them! Jobs to do this month: Protect plants from the frost Sow all sorts of seeds in a heated greenhouse or inside on a windowsill: tomatoes, peppers, marrows etc Start hardening off seedlings that have been grown indoors by placing them outside on warm days Pot up cuttings of Fuchias and Geraniums in peat free compost Plant out Gladioli, Dahlias and Lillies mixing some plant feed and soil conditioner in with the soil. Apply a sprinkle of NG Soil Conditioner to the lawn and apply gras ..read more

This is a guest post from our friends at Rocket Gardens, a lovely company based in Cornwall that sell Organic Plug Plants for kitchen gardens – they have a wide range of different vegetable plants, herb plants, companions and edible flowers and soft fruit. It is surprisingly straightforward to keep your plot going all year round by planting three times a year. Below, we look at each of the three planting windows, together with a few key tasks that you can do keep all your crops growing well throughout the different seasons. Spring Planting Window (Late April to Early June) This is the time to ..read more

Raised beds offer a practical, fun and efficient way to grow your vegetables and flowers. If you are planning what you are going to grow in your garden this year, and where you are going to place beds, then there are many reasons why a raised bed is a good idea. We grow all our home grown vegetables and fruit in raised beds. You can see in the image below two beds that we made with untreated wood and metal supports. Raised beds placed and ready to be filled Benefits of a raised bed: Better Drainage: Raised beds typically have better drainage compared to traditional in-ground gardens, which c ..read more

Spring is almost here. The ground is saturated after all the rain which keeps coming. Time to do lots of preparation and sowing of early crops in the greenhouse or on your windowsills. The warm sun and dry weather is hopefully coming very soon!! Jobs to do this month: • Start off seedlings including annuals and summer vegetables like Lettuce, Cabbage and Beetroot • Sow flower seeds for summer colour • Plant summer flowering bulbs: Begonias, Gladioli, Lillies and Dahlias • Plant bush fruit and fruit trees • Remove any weeds and rake the soil of the vegetable beds ready for planting • If you hav ..read more

Spring is almost here! The days are gradually getting longer…..Time to do lots of preparation and sowing of early crops in the greenhouse or on your windowsills. Jobs to do this month: • Plant herbs in pots to keep in the kitchen, using our organic compost • Peaches and grapes can be planted in the greenhouse • Apply Natural Soil conditioner to vegetable beds ready for planting out seedlings from the greenhouse • Harvest winter vegetables: kale, purple sprouting broccoli, spinach and chard, parsnip, turnip, swede and Jerusalem artichokes • Sow early crops using our peat free compost in the gre ..read more

A new year has begun!! Welcome 2024!  Its time to make plans for your garden and allotment and order in seeds and plants!  We can now also look forward to ever so slightly lighter evenings as the shortest day has passed. Jobs to do this month: • Prune soft fruit removing old stems • Plant new fruit bushes when ground is not frozen, adding some of our soil conditioner to the soil to provide all the nutrients your plant will need when growth starts • Harvest winter veg: leeks, celeriac, parsnips, brussel sprouts, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, swede and turnip • Start chitting seed potato ..read more

World Soil Day is celebrated in December every year. The aim is to raise awareness of the importance of healthy ecosystems, by addressing the growing challenges in soil management, increasing soil awareness and encouraging everyone to do what they can to improve soil health throughout the year. Gardening with a focus on soil health is not only beneficial for your plants but also contributes to the overall well-being of the soil ecosystem. Here are some gardening practices that can help you look after the soil: Mulching: Apply organic mulch such as our compost or soil conditioner, straw, leav ..read more

Time to keep warm indoors and start making plans for next years vegetable crops and flowering bed designs. Dont forget to prune all the fruit and berry trees and bushes. Jobs to do this month: • Harvest winter vegetables • Cover rhubarb with forcing pots or a thick layer of our plant feed and soil conditioner to protect the rhubarb plants through the cold weather • Prune the blueberries and take hard cuttings of blackcurrants, redcurrants and gooseberries • Prune apple and pear trees, but don’t leave it too late as they start to grow early in the spring! • Plant out trees and shrubs adding som ..read more

It’s National Tree Week and it is the UK’s biggest annual tree celebration, running from November 26th 2023 – December 4th 2023. It was originally called “Plant A Tree in ‘73”, and was started in (you guessed it!) 1973 by The Tree Council in response to Dutch Elm Disease – a tree disease that stops trees from getting water properly. A wonderful avenue of trees at the end of our drive sadly died from Dutch Elm Disease many years ago. This year, we have replanted the avenue with Tilia Pallida Lime trees. You can see the beautiful old lime trees at the top of the avenue, and one day (unfortunatel ..read more

Tips for tulips – especially when growing in pots Planting and growing tulips in pots is a great way to enjoy these beautiful flowers if you have limited garden space and rely on container gardening: they will brighten up your balcony and bring a fresh spring feel to any patio or roof terrace after the cold and dark winter months have ended (roll on March!). To get the best blooms, you’ll need to make sure you’re giving the bulbs everything they need as you plant and care for them throughout the winter. The size of your container, the type and quality of compost you plant in, and how you plant ..read more