Horticulture

Now that your seeds have germinated you may suddenly struggle to work out what to do next. Well, the next stage in growing your own plants is what’s known in the biz as ‘Pricking out’. This is a term used to describe separating your seedlings and potting them on into their own individual containers. It’s […]

Updated 2021: Artificial turf is now serious competition for real lawns in our gardens. One installer has seen a 200% year on year increase in the demand for artificial turf compared to living grass. A visit to a ‘Garden & Landscaping’ exhibition in 2019 gave me first-hand experience of the sheer amount of artificial grass […]

Updated 2020: The soil type that you have in your garden can make or break your plans for a successful garden design.  Your plants will only be as successful as the preparation and planning that you, the gardener puts in! Rather than thinking of soil as dirt, you need to start treating it as the life force […]

Every garden should have at least one tree and when I speak to clients with tiny gardens the Apple tree is the one I recommend most frequently. Not only do apple trees provide a rich source of pollen for bees they are beautiful trees for a small garden. The bonus is that with some light […]

Compost is the life force of many gardens. Whether you’re buying it in bags from the garden centre (hopefully peat-free) or making your own with composting bins, this black gold is a multi-purpose wonder feed for the garden. However, most gardeners I speak to don’t know what to do with compost once it’s finished feeding […]

It’s a sad fact that an area the size of the UK is being lost each year worldwide to deforestation. Trees are being felled and cut down at an alarming rate. Now even local UK councils are stealth tree felling claiming that their ‘maintenance’ costs outweigh trees environmental benefits. It’s all too easy for homeowners […]

Battery-powered garden tools are becoming really popular amongst gardeners. Battery-powered garden tools, such as hedge trimmers are more flexible due to the lack of chord, they are usually lighter and better for the environment compared to petrol-powered hedge cutters. In fact, I now use a battery-powered lawnmower, strimmer, leaf blower and hedge trimmer in the […]

Plastic-free gardening is a hot topic at the moment. I’ve been detailing this journey on my gardening blog and my Youtube channel. So if you want to see where it started then have a look at this playlist to get up to speed. The idea of being plastic-free in the garden can sometimes be easier […]

If you’re a Garden Ninja follower you know I’m passionate about supporting local businesses, especially in horticulture. These local enthusiasts hold an invaluable source of knowledge and skills when it comes to growing beautiful plants. The brilliant thing about horticulture is the willingness for us all to share our knowledge and experience with other gardeners. […]

It’s been a pretty erratic few months weather-wise here in the UK. Going from a heatwave in April to then Storm Hannah battering gardens. Not exactly ideal for tender plants and pricking out seedlings. However, by growing in a greenhouse and gardening without plastic I have at least managed to avoid any casualties so far! […]