Rose cloud pruning: The Asthall Technique
When it comes to following rules, I’m pretty much, Dutch. Unspoken or rules carved in stone, there’s an efficiency in rule following, so we clog…
Lemon Thyme Madeleines: Recipe
They stand upright, mound or creep. Thymus vulgaris, longstanding winner of the ‘smallest evergreen shrub in the garden’ contest, is a plant I wouldn’t do…
All weather gardening: The new black
If the term wasn’t already nabbed, I’d refer to the gardening du jour as ‘Guerilla’ gardening. We’re seemingly fighting with the elements to keep the…
Touch stone: on form 2018
Henry Moore once said that he found the principles of form and rhythm from the study of natural objects. Pebbles, rocks, twigs, landscapes even, showed him…
The Spirit of the Chelsea Flower Show: 2018 Review
It’s been a while. All things Oxonian have been pleasantly ensconced in a deep slumber. Until now, that is. Armed with a new cozy jacket,…
Ode to a remarkable tree: Fagus Sylvatica
It was the news we dreaded more than any other. Across various test planes, ‘ratio of residual to decayed wood do not satisfy the Mattheck…
An orchard in the making: How do you like them apples?
I like them firm and fruity1. That’s the standard. By means of this impressively cultivated titbit of scientific criteria, we have finally managed to select…
Fifty Shades of Pink: Favourite pink flowering perennials
Aghast I tell you, aghast. According to scientists, pink doesn’t exist! My favourite flower colour is apparently nothing but a cunning construct of our eyes and…
There’s something about Lia: The New Almanac
With successful titles such as ‘The Half Hour Allotment’, ‘Gardening SOS‘, and ‘The Speedy Vegetable Garden‘ to her name, there is no denying that Lia Leendertz…
The Hepatica effect: RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2016
As much as I love RHS Chelsea and look forward to seeing the incredibly hard work rightfully rewarded on medal day, I simply loathe the televised medal awarding…
Petal, Leaf, Seed: Book review
They think I have (finally) lost my marbles. To the surprise of my neighbouring allotmenteers, my plot looks rather overgrown and unruly. Bolted mustard leaf, towering coriander soon…
Beauty in decay: Plants that die nicely
When I first heard his prairie-ness Piet Oudolf say ‘I love plants that are dead’, I thought that the good man had sniffed one too many…