Plant Focus: Cotoneaster ‘Cornubia’
Cotoneasters are generally very easy to grow – and fast growing - evergreen and deciduous shrubs, with white spring flowers,… Read more.
Plant to Watch – Mahonia ‘Soft Caress’
I thought I would just share some details of this plant which was recently brought to my attention by several… Read more.
The Garden Designer’s Garden – February Update
As promised in last month’s blog, here are some photos of my new back garden patio, courtyard, mini formal lawn… Read more.
Designing & Landscaping A Garden Designer’s Garden
People always say to me “You’re a garden designer, I bet you’ve got a lovely garden”. Well, I have a… Read more.
Growing Brussel Sprouts
“How about writing a blog on growing Brussel Sprouts?” Sarah, our web adviser suggested a short while ago. “But I’m… Read more.
Learning to love Roses… well, … like them at least
Prospective clients often say to me "please don’t give me any roses - they're too much hard work", or "no, definitely… Read more.
Musings on choosing a garden designer
Garden designers need to know a lot about a lot of things. Just consider for a moment. He or she… Read more.
Sedum ‘Jose Aubergine’
I first came across this newish form of Stonecrop at an open day of our main perennial wholesale nursery a… Read more.
Growing Vegetables – Design Considerations
This is the second of a series of design blogs aimed at encouraging people to make space to grow vegetables… Read more.
Plant Focus: Sorbus ‘Joseph Rock’
Sorbus ‘Joseph Rock’ – a yellow berried form of Rowan / Mountain Ash - is one of my favourite small… Read more.
Making room for vegetables
I have been asked on numerous occasions over the years to give some tips and advice about growing vegetables and… Read more.
Plant Focus: Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’
Following on from last month's look at Euonymus alatus, this month I want to share another of my favourites with… Read more.
Garden Designer: Artist or Problem Solver?
When I meet people for the first time and tell them I am a garden designer, their first response is… Read more.
Plant Focus: Euonymus alatus
Every garden designer has his or her favourite/most-used plants, and I'm no different. But rather than sharing a long list… Read more.
How To Cope With Shallow Soils Over Chalk
When we refer to chalky soil, we mean soil which has a layer of chalk below it. Chalky soils tend… Read more.
How to Cope with Wide Shallow Gardens
If you have a wide and shallow garden it can appear to lack space and distance. But with some design… Read more.
Is It Safe To Plant In The Winter Months?
Some clients get very concerned if we inform them that we are planning to undertake some of the planting in… Read more.
How to cope with… a sloping garden
Sloping gardens. They're challenging for home owners and garden designers alike. In this in-depth piece, we take a look at:The… Read more.
How to cope with… an open plan front garden – a case study
Front gardens are often purely functional. Pull up into the driveway, park the car, put the bins out, ... you… Read more.
How To Attract Insects To Your Garden
This blog was almost called “How To Attract Beneficial Insects To Your Garden”, but when we started to think about… Read more.
Working to a deadline (… and not just a normal one either!)
If you run a business, you'll know what it's like to get that warm fuzzy feeling inside when the hard… Read more.
Using gabions for retaining walls – a case study
Many of the gardens we design involve gradients to a lesser or greater degree. If the gradient is relatively steep,… Read more.
An update on our recent work
We know those of you who read our newsletter regularly love seeing what we've been up to recently... so here's… Read more.
How to cope with… hot, dry areas of the garden
Hot, dry areas of the garden can be quite a challenge for the gardener, particularly if the soil is very… Read more.
No more garden flooding! Drainage case study update
Back in January, we blogged about garden drainage and specifically mentioned two projects where drainage was a key 'challenge' (and… Read more.
How to cope with… a long narrow garden
Long, narrow gardens have several drawbacks, particularly if they are very narrow: the patio can seem very cramped for space… Read more.
Reflections On Chelsea 2014
This was my first visit to Chelsea for 4 years - and so I was on the search for any… Read more.
How To Cope With Rooty, Shady Areas Under Trees & Large Conifers
Let’s face it, there is shade, and there is gloom. It's all very well people suggesting long lists of shade… Read more.