When people know you’re a gardener, every social event turns into some sort of question time. I’m sure doctors have it worse. I mean no-one’s trying to show me their bunion or ‘an irritating rash that just won’t go’ but...

You might have already noticed that I am a ‘just in time’ kind of gardener. I like this term. It sounds more like a streamlined process that avoids waste rather than what it really is: me on the verge of...

I am constantly adding to my mental list of ‘jobs I could never do’. Despite the odd random addition like ‘ Donald Trump’s press secretary’ the bulk of the roles are basically anything that involves getting up early, or facing...

The Victorian age gave us many garden innovations, from domestic greenhouses to lawnmowers. However their horticultural gifts weren’t always so helpful. By creating street after street of terraced housing their legacy would challenge generations of urban gardeners: the pesky side...

Garden designers respond to steep slopes the same way plumbers react to bathroom renovations: with a sharp intake of breath and a knowing shake of the head. Yes, we can sort it, but it’s not going to come cheap. The...

I have decided to cut out my cutting garden. It was a nice idea but if I’m being brutally honest it was the concept more than the reality that appealed. I had visions of myself as Lady Grantham, swanning around...

We might not have the hot and humid climate of a tropical rainforest, but it is still possible to conjure up a jungle-inspired design in a British back garden. Set the tone with bamboo or rattan furniture as well as...

I spent a few worrying minutes yesterday trapped under a particularly magnificent ten foot tall Norway Spruce. At the time the thought briefly passed through my mind that this would be an ironic way to meet my end: one of...

“I’m really sorry Dawn, but I have to admit I hate gardening” So said a friend of mine last weekend as we stood chatting – ironically, as it happened, in a beautiful garden. Another mutual friend nodded vigorously in agreement...

“Whenever we fall behind with outdoor maintenance, wildlife gardening is a great excuse. “You don’t want to be too tidy – it’s not wildlife friendly!” is a handy phrase to trot out when the grass hasn’t been mown, the weeds...