Propagating & Growing Plants

At A Glance White works with every planting style and every colour scheme, brightens shady corners, glows at dusk, and supports night-flying pollinators. This guide covers 35 of the best white flowering trees, shrubs, perennials, bulbs and climbers for UK gardens, with hardiness, size and flowering season for each. Whether you’re designing a classic white […]

Quick Answer Monstera leaves usually turn yellow from overwatering, by far the most common cause, though underwatering, poor light, a root bound pot, feeding problems, natural ageing, pests and environmental stress can all be responsible. Check your soil moisture and roots first, since this diagnoses most cases immediately, then match your yellowing pattern to the […]

Quick Answer Rose black spot is a fungal disease, Diplocarpon rosae, that causes dark circular spots on leaves followed by yellowing and leaf drop. It will not kill an established rose but weakens it over time. Treat it by removing and binning affected leaves, pruning for an open airy shape, watering at the base rather […]

Quick Answer For exposed and windy UK gardens, choose tough, flexible plants over rigid ones. Hawthorn, field maple and blackthorn make the best windbreak hedging, while Escallonia, Griselinia and Pittosporum are reliable evergreen shrubs. Achillea, sea holly and Stipa grasses sway rather than snap. Build shelter first with a permeable windbreak, never a solid fence, […]

Quick Answer Snake plant drooping is almost always down to overwatering and root rot, underwatering, poor light, temperature stress, a rootbound pot, or occasionally pests. Check the soil first, then the roots. Correct the cause and firm new growth usually appears within weeks, since snake plants are tough succulents that recover well once the underlying […]

Quick Answer Most garden buddlejas, Buddleja davidii and its hybrids, are pruned hard in late March to mid April, cutting back to 30 to 60cm above the ground since they flower on new wood. Buddleja alternifolia and Buddleja globosa flower on old wood instead, so prune these immediately after flowering finishes rather than in spring, […]

Quick Answer For most UK gardens you need three feeds. A seaweed based tonic such as envii SeaFeed Xtra for general plant health, a balanced NPK feed like Growmore or fish, blood and bone for hungry beds and vegetable plots, and a specialist feed for anything that needs it, meaning an ericaceous feed for rhododendrons […]

Quick Answer Peat compost is unsustainable because it is stripped from ancient peat bogs that take thousands of years to form, releasing stored carbon and destroying rare wetland habitats in the process. Good peat-free alternatives include homemade compost, wool and bracken compost, coir, bark and green waste blends. Each behaves a little differently to peat, […]

Quick Answer A hori hori is a Japanese gardening knife with a curved blade, one sharp edge, and one serrated edge that makes weeding, planting, and digging an absolute doddle. It replaces at least three other tools (trowel, weeder, and knife) whilst being sharp enough to slice through roots and tough weeds without creating craters […]

Quick Answer Olive trees grow successfully in the UK in a sunny, sheltered position with free-draining soil or gritty compost. Most varieties tolerate light frost down to around minus five degrees Celsius, but containers should be moved into a porch, greenhouse or against a sheltered wall during hard winters. Prune lightly in spring to maintain […]