Category Archives: Uncategorised

The Benefits Of Epsom Salts

Nearly every modern gardening guide has a reference to Epsom Salts. So here is the growing-guides definitive guide to the benefits of Epsom Salts. What Are Epsom Salts? Epsom salts are a compound of magnesium sulfate not really a salt at all, but a naturally occurring mineral compound named after a spring found just outside Epsom in Surrey UK. The Benefits Of Epsom Salts There are many benefits from using Epsom Salts in the garden, but before we get into that lets explore exactly what Epsom Salts are. As stated earlier they are a compound of magnesium and sulfate. Both… → Read More

Growing Amaranth

My friend has given me about a dozen Amaranth plants and I don’t have a clue how to grow them. So as I am researching them anyway I thought I’d write a post on growing Amaranth. What Is Amaranth? Amaranth is a plant similar to spinach or quinoa. It originates in South America but will survive in the UK in summer time. The common name for amaranth is Love Lies Bleeding, and amaranth means everlasting in Greek. Growing Amaranth Amaranth will grow easily in the UK in well drained soil after all frosts have finished. Sow seeds in late May… → Read More

The Easiest Way To Grow Sweetcorn In The UK

The Easiest way to grow Sweetcorn in the UK. That sounds like a definitive statement, that’s because it is. I have tried many different ways to grow sweetcorn and this is by far my most successful. How To Grow Sweetcorn When I started growing vegetables I was advised by many “experts” not to waste my time with sweetcorn as it needed longer, hotter summers than we get in the UK. I spent my formative years as a greengrocer and throughout late Summer and early Autumn I used to sell British grown sweetcorn, Which tasted incredibly sweet so as soon as… → Read More

Cinnamon And Its Benefits In The Garden

Cinnamon And It’s Benefits In The Garden Cinnamon is a spice that has been used since the days of ancient Egypt, Its health benefits are widely known. What is not so widely known is the use of cinnamon and its benefits in the garden. What Is Cinnamon? Famed for its medicinal properties for thousands of years, cinnamon is made from the inner bark of trees of the genus Cinnamomum. The bark is removed by cutting the stems of the tree, the inner bark is then extracted and the woody parts removed. As it dries the strips curl into rolls, these… → Read More

The Great Tomato Experiment

I posted earlier on in the year about air pruning and I said I would update later. Well this is later so here’s the update. I’m calling this the great tomato experiment because, frankly I don’t get a lot of excitement in my life. I’m only joking but if I’m honest I do derive a lot of pleasure growing my own produce and I also enjoy experimenting with new ideas and seeing if I can improve on my growing techniques. So let me set the scene. The Great Tomato Experiment Firstly let me explain what I intend to do. I… → Read More

What To Do In The January Veg Garden

In my part of the United Kingdom January is either wet and mild or cold and frosty. It is currently cold, frosty, and extremely windy. Not really conducive to vegetable gardening. But here is the growing-guide what to do in the January Veg Garden. What to do in the January Fruit garden As long as the ground isn’t frozen, January is the perfect time to plant bare rooted fruit trees. Be sure to add a strong stake to prevent wind damage. This month is also the perfect time to Prune apple/pear trees. The trees are dormant at this time of… → Read More

Late December Update

As the year draws to a close and most peoples thoughts turn to christmas I thought I’d give you a Late December Update on how my allotment is doing. Late December Update I went to my allotment for the first time in about a fortnight to bring home the christmas dinner vegetables. The first thing I ever do on arriving at the plot is have a good look round and see what’s going on. Sprouts I grew Bedfordshire fillbasket this year and they’ve certainly lived up to their name, I filled a 500gram pot with just the sprouts from one… → Read More

8 Hacks For Easy Gardening

Follow my blog with Bloglovin Life is hard enough so anything that makes things just that little bit easier has to be a good thing. So here are 8 hacks for easy gardening. 8 Hacks For Easy Gardening 1. Banana Skin Fertilizer If you have fruit that’s not ripening, maybe green tomatoes or figs and you don’t have any tomato food, (I usually use comfrey plant food). This is a quick and easy hack for making a great plant food. All you need is an empty jar and a banana skin Just place the banana skin in the jar and… → Read More

The Top 15 Tips For Successfully Growing Vegetables

Follow my blog with Bloglovin There seems to be some sort of elitist attitude amongst some gardeners. They feel every new gardener should struggle and learn through their failures.Well not any more, here are the top 15 tips for successfully growing vegetables that I wished someone had shown me when I started. Basics So you have a plot of land to cultivate as a vegetable garden. The first thing to do is clear the weeds, then decide what to plant where. I work according to the 4 crop rotation system that has been tried and tested for 100s of years…. → Read More

Do Tomato Plants Benefit From Garden Lime and Epsom Salts

Do Tomato Plants Benefit From Garden Lime and Epsom Salts? Well I don’t know so it’s time to do some research to see what effect, if any adding these products to the soil when planting tomatoes has. What Is Garden Lime? Garden Lime or Ground Limestone with the active ingredient Calcium Carbonate is used primarily for vegetable crops to balance the soils PH levels. The PH levels indicate how Acid or Alkaline the soil is and can be determined by means of a simple test kit available at most garden centres. Too far to either end of the Acid/ Alkili… → Read More