If you think there is nothing to do in the garden in November apart from tidying up leaves – think again! Now is the time to think about next year. Where are the gaps you need to fill? What worked and didn’t work? What is doing well in the garden? Filling gaps with existing perennials…
This is the time of year to gather your leaves and make the best soil improver you can find – Leafmould. It is by far the most efficient way to deal with leaves and it means you can re-use them in the garden, saving your petrol on the dump-run or the cost of someone else…
I have been visiting Le Garden Champêtre in Caunes-Minervois over the last two years. It has been lovingly created by Imogen Checketts and Kate Dumbleton on a normally very dry site near to the river L’Argent Double and specialises in perennials, ornamental grasses, bulbs, ground covers and herbs. These drought-resistant plants form a demonstration garden and…
Work is progressing well on the front and back gardens of this Strathbungo property. I am looking for a semi-formal look for the front garden, finally settling on randomly laid riven sandstone flags which will elevate the existing box balls and holly topiaries when all is completed. The animation above is my original concept…
Work is almost complete in Bridge of Weir. We still have a few details to complete. The sail shade is ready to go up, and there is a small sculptural feature to be installed near the seating area. There is a very different feel to this garden now. The setting is much more contemporary and…
One of the most common questions I get is when to prune hedges, and how to control their size. I like to keep things straightforward , so start by establishing a few facts about your hedge. First of all – is your hedge evergreen, semi-evergreen or deciduous? Does it grow vigorously? Do you need it…
July and August are wonderful months when real harvesting starts from your allotment or your productive garden. I really look forward to my Blackcurrants and Redcurrants, which are the first of my fruits to be ready. I have an abundant quantity and each year I have to decide what to do with them. This year…
Watering your plants is an important element of your garden care. The biggest mistakes we generally make is to under-water in warm weather. Even here in Scotland, the water table can drop quickly in dry weather. Shrubs and trees will be fine generally as they can search deeply for water, but herbaceous plants and anything…
I visited Lowther Castle near Penrith this week. These are magnificent ruins set in huge grounds scattered with the reminders of past eras. Roman baths and pillars intermingle with the remains of abandoned Victorian Iris gardens and huge ancient rocky stone steps lead into woodland rock gardens covered in ostrich ferns, mosses and lichens. Outside…
Now that the weather has turned here in Scotland, the slugs and snails are back on the job. They’ve been sheltering from the sun in the soil and cool damp places all summer, leaving our Hostas and Dahlias blissfully untouched. Not so much now – I can’t believe how many I’m picking off my plants and…