Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2022 i Woman's Weekly Living Series

HISTORIC HOUSES GARDEN OF THE YEAR For the first time ever, a Scottish garden is the outright public winner of the Historic Houses Garden of the Year award. The transformation of Gordon Castle Walled Garden in Morayshire, began just seven years ago from a bare patch of land. Now, this eight-acre hidden gem, designed by Arne Maynard, is one of the biggest working kitchen gardens in Britain, producing veggies for the café, fruit for cider, gin and jams, and flowers for the castle as well as for essential oils used in cosmetics. Owners Angus and Zara Gordon Lennox said, ‘We hope visitors will be encouraged to come and visit the garden, to discover this beautiful area of Moray and Speyside and, inspired by what they find, leave with a smile…

GARDENERS Susan Bennett and Earl Hyde. LOCATION North London. LANDSCAPED The original tiny 9m-long garden was full of rubble and London Clay, but was later enlarged with the purchase of several adjacent strips of land, creating an area roughly equal to three tennis courts. Gradually, the garden has been subdivided into linked ‘rooms’, each featuring unique architectural features built by Earl. SPECIAL FEATURES A miniature Baroque-style temple, an oriental-style garden, a yellow mirrored wall outside the studio, a wildlife pool, containers, sculptures and salvaged items, all linked via winding lawns, gravel paths, beds and borders. ASPECT North-west. SOIL TYPE London Clay. PROBLEMS The third and final adjacent tract of land was bought in 1995, a tarmac playground that was found to conceal industrial waste. ‘Nothing would survive in the ground,…

WHAT IS NO-DIG GARDENING? There are three key things to remember: first, the soil is left undisturbed so that beneficial organisms are able to multiply. Second, the soil is fed with organic matter. Third, compost mulches are topped up annually to improve soil structure. WHEN TO START Any time as long as the ground isn’t frozen. It’s always best to make the most of the growing season and start in early spring if you can. But if you have a perennial weed problem, autumn is best, when weeds start to die off. THE BENEFITS It saves a lot of time and effort, it’s easy to manage and there are fewer weeds. It’s also good for the soil, as it means a better balance of undisturbed soil organisms. Providing you top…

A bumble bee feeds on the flowerhead of Phacelia tanacetifolia, an annual loved by beneficial insects. Good cut flower. Can be grown as a green manure to build up organic soil content. Corn cockle (Agrostemma githago), mingling with Corn marigold (Chrysanthemum segetum) in a wildflower meadow. A wildflower meadow annual seed mix of predominantly daisies, poppies, toadflax, clover, cow parsley and cornflowers. Ragged robin (Lychnis flos-cuculi), a perennial wildflower with ragged pink flowers in summer. Cultivated late summer meadow of cow parsley, pink and white cosmos, scarlet flax and field poppies (Anthriscus sylvestris, Cosmos bipinnatus, Linum grandiflorum and Papaver rhoeas). Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia), a perennial wildflower bearing nodding blue, bell-like flowers in summer. Lesser or common knapweed (Centaurea nigra), a perennial wildflower with hairy leaves and purple flowerheads, loved by…

✢ Bolting is a common problem – the plants flower and run to seed quickly. Avoid this by choosing bolt-resistant varieties, like ’Boltardy’ (see below). Sowing plants at the correct time will also help, as will keeping the compost moist. ✢ Birds just can’t resist pulling up the seedling leaves. Use bird-scarers, such as hanging CDs, or cover plants with netting. ✢ Aphids can be a problem. Pick them off or wash off with a hose, and spray with insecticidal soap if the infection persists.…

This May, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show returns to its traditional spring slot for the first time since 2019, bringing with it a cornucopia of horticultural inspiration from the country’s top designers and a host of the season’s most beautiful trees, shrubs and flowers. But for 2022, there’s a distinctly wild feel to many of the gardens, and the stars of the show are plants one would more often expect to find in a countryside hedgerow than on Main Avenue at the world’s most famous flower show. Reflecting an increased desire to connect with nature that accelerated with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rewilding movement has gained significant traction in recent years, driven by a greater understanding of how we can help tackle the climate crisis and the…

ROSA ‘BRING ME SUNSHINE’ A fragrant English shrub rose with large rosette flowers that unfurl in sunset shades of rich orange and yellow, and age to a soft apricot. H1.2m x S1.1m. Bare-root rose, £25; potted, £33.50, davidaustinroses.co.uk ALLIUM ‘LAVENDER BUBBLES’ A late-flowering variety (July-August) with a neat habit and abundant, dark purple flower heads up to 9cm across. Frost-hardy. H35cm. Potted 9cm plant, £14.49, thompson-morgan.com COSMOS BIPINNATUS ‘APRICOTTA’ A delicious combination of apricot, peach and raspberry-pink tones all in one flower. Long stems make this a good choice for the cutting garden. H1m. Seed, £2.85, chilternseeds.co.uk CALIBRACHOA CABARET ‘GOOD NIGHT KISS’ An exciting new trailing variety with trumpet-shaped, dark purple flowers with maroon and gold centres; June to October. H25cm. Five jumbo plug plants, £12.99, thompson-morgan.com…

Late to the party Q How late can I sow summer flower seeds – time is running away from me and I’d hate to miss out. A Most garden flowers, calendula, cosmos, sunflowers and zinnia, for example, can be sown in May. These later sowings are very useful, flowering in late summer and early autumn at a time when summer flowers, such as Helianthus (sunflowers) and day lilies, have finished, but before the autumn flowers, like Japanese anemones and asters, come into full bloom. Big seeded plants, like sunflowers, can even be sown in early June. Some particularly hardy flowers are actually better sown in early autumn, cornflowers, larkspur, and love-in-the-mist make much better plants than spring-sown ones, but they won’t flower until next year. RUNNER-BEAN SUCCESS Q How do…

With so much available information and so many mouth-watering crops to choose from, it’s difficult to know where to start on creating a working vegetable garden which fits into your garden design. But the first step is simple – assess how much ground is available, and choose crops accordingly to suit the space, soil and situation. Wherever space is at a premium, it makes sense to focus on crops where freshness is key to flavour – culinary herbs, cherry tomatoes, salad leaves or  heritage carrots, for example. In tiny plots, ‘mini’ vegetable varieties thrive in containers on patios or balconies and, being mostly sown in spring and summer, are harvested earlier than their full-sized equivalents. But provided there is a reasonable amount of sun, even a narrow side alleyway can…

FAIRS AND SHOWS SPRING ART AND GARDEN FAIR Isle of Wight, 15-16 April A one-stop shop for all your garden needs, with nurseries, equipment and landscape-product suppliers. There’s a local art exhibition inside the Grade-II-listed house, plus live music and family activities. ✣ Adults £3 or £5 per couple; under-16s free (proceeds to Northwood House Charitable Trust). Open 10am-5pm. Northwood House & Park, Ward Ave, Cowes. Tel 01983 293 642; northwoodhouse.org RHS GARDEN HYDE HALL SPRING PLANT FAIR Essex, 23-24 April A weekend of all things plant-related, including talks, advice and demos, along with plants for sale (including rare and unusual specimens) from around 30 nurseries. ✣ RHS and Plant Heritage members free; adults £12.95, children £6.55. Open 10am-4pm. RHS Garden Hyde Hall, Creephedge Lane, Rettendon, Chelmsford CM3 8RA; rhs.org.…

‘BOLTARDY’ [AGM] A popular globe-shaped variety, slow to bolt. Young leaves can be added to green salads. Deep red in colour and smooth-skinned, it’s recommended for early sowings and throughout the season. Perfect for pots. H12in (30cm). ‘BURPEES GOLDEN’ This golden-fleshed beetroot is mild-flavoured and tender and good for containers. Sow plenty of seeds, as germination can be sporadic. Looks attractive grated raw into salads. This variety doesn’t stain when cut. H12in (30cm). ’CHIOGGIA’ ‘Chioggia’ is a striking Italian heirloom variety with pretty pink-and-white striped flesh, which looks great sliced in salads. Doesn’t bleed like the deeper-coloured skin. It’s milder-tasting than most, but has a tendency to bolt, so keep it moist. H6in (15cm).…

Building a garden pond is one of the most satisfying, beautiful and nature-friendly garden tasks that are possible to do. There are so many more forms, shapes and types of ponds that you can create, however, so there’s plenty of freedom to design the right one for your outdoor space. Have a formal or rectilinear garden? Then a geometrically shaped pond is probably best. Or do you have an informal garden? If so, a loose, curvy form will be ideal. 1 CHOOSE YOUR LOCATION You’ll need to make sure the siting of the pond is appropriate. Safety is certainly worth considering, particularly if you have children, and this can guide where you place the pond in your garden – keeping it in eyesight of the house, for example. If it’s…

Meadows ripple with a life of their own – an ebb and flow of flowers mingling with wild grasses that changes with the light, the time of day and the season. Among the traditional favourites are buttercups, campion, ox-eye daisies, cranesbill, poppies, Granny’s bonnets, cornflowers, camomile and marigolds, creating waves of receding colour. It is a style that adapts easily to both large and small areas of the garden but, whatever the size, the loveliest appear as if handfuls of seed have been thrown into the air, to fall wherever nature chooses. It is this spontaneity that is so appealing, but it is not always easy to capture, and can involve a lot of preparation to achieve the look of a living picture. This country has some 1,500 native plant…

If you don’t have a greenhouse, or are limited for floor space, try growing tomatoes in a hanging basket. There are a number of suitable bush varieties which, unlike traditional pot-grown tomatoes, need no staking, training or side-shoot removal. Amongst the heaviest cherry tomato croppers are ‘Tumbling Tom’ and ‘Heartbreaker’. Tomato seed can be sown now, in pots, covered in a plastic bag, and germinated on a sunny windowsill. Within several weeks, the seedlings are sufficiently large to prick out into separate biodegradable pots: it takes about a month for plants to become mature enough to plant outside. Once the risk of frost has passed, young tomato plants can be planted in a lined hanging basket – wire, plastic or woven willow. Choose a sunny, sheltered spot and take care…

BEETROOT TABBOULEH Brilliant at buffets as its earthy flavours complement most things. The beetroot dyes the bulgar wheat pink, which makes it look so appetising and fun. PER SERVING 281 cals, 15g fat, 6g sat fat, 25g carbs SERVES 6 ✣ 90g (3oz) bulgar wheat ✣ 175ml (6fl oz) vegetable stock ✣ 4tbsp lemon juice ✣ 4tbsp extra virgin olive oil ✣ 150g (5oz) raw beetroot, peeled and grated ✣ 2tbsp chopped parsley ✣ 2tbsp torn mint leaves ✣ 2 tomatoes, chopped ✣ 3 spring onions, chopped ✣ Sprinkle of sumac, optional ✣ 200g (7oz) feta cheese 1 Put the bulgar wheat in a large bowl, add the stock and lemon juice and microwave for 5 mins, until the liquid is absorbed and the wheat softened. 2 Stir in the…

If the first thing that springs to mind when you hear ‘rewilding’ is nettles colonising your borders, you’ll be pleased to hear that it doesn’t have to mean neglecting your garden completely. Take inspiration from these wild ideas to improve sustainability and biodiversity on your plot – and not a nettle in sight. Lawns let loose Consider leaving an area of lawn unmown to allow plants like nectar-rich clover to grow through to support pollinating insects, or go a step further and lay some wild-flower turf. Weed all about it Not all weeds should be considered the gardener’s enemy: leave select ‘weeds’ to grow through your borders to provide forage for insects. Some, like common knapweed (Centaurea nigra) and red valerian (Centranthus ruber), are quite beautiful and others can act…