Blog

Gardening blogs for the whole family

Gardening is a great bonding opportunityImage source: Shutterstock What better way to get your kids excited and interested in the garden than inviting them to get their hands dirty?To help you pique their interest in all things green-fingered we've ploughed the internet for some great ideas to get…

Garden design tricks that make a big statement

Garden lighting can transform an ordinary garden into something extraordinaryImage: welcomia If you're dreaming up big plans for your garden in the New Year and you're looking for clever ways to create dramatic impact, we can help. We asked our favourite British garden designers for their top tips…

Trees for small gardens

Deciding what small tree to squeeze into a modern pint-pot garden can be a real problem. A look at a tree nursery list will have you salivating but if space is challenged, stop right there. Drool away by all means but do not buy anything on impulse.Never ever buy a tree without paying close…

Katsura tree and clematis repens

Katsura tree and clematis repens – an updateLeaves turning from green to pinkKatsura TreeTwo katsura trees 20″ tall arrived last August. I potted them up in 50% ericaceous and 50% multi-purpose compost and kept them in the shade in the greenhouse to give the roots a chance to…

Customer trials – update from Joy Gough

We recently introduced you to some of the members of our customer trials team, who are busy working away in their gardens growing the seeds and plants we sent them earlier in the year. We’ve had a few updates and thought it was high time we shared them with you.Joy Gough – 11th June…

Top tips to attract wildlife to your garden

A few changes to your garden can make it a paradise for wildlifeImage: Coatesy The best way to attract more wildlife to your garden is to provide a habitat complete with food and forage sources, shelter for a wide variety of creatures, and an accessible water source. We asked some of our favourite…

The Chelsea Roundup

After all the buzz of setting up, last minute polishing and- for some- the clinking of champagne glasses, Chelsea Flower Show exhibitors can now sit back and rest… well almost! Let’s hope the plants can last another day; the unprecedented hot weather this week has given many exhibitors…

How to store home grown vegetables

Make the most of your home grown veg by storing it correctlyImage source: Shutterstock There is plenty to harvest from the vegetable plot, and if you have a glut it might not be possible to eat them all at once. To enjoy vegetables throughout autumn and winter it's vital to store them correctly.…

Houseplant Watering Guide

Image: ShutterstockTo water or not to water? That is the question asked by many a gardener, their watering can hovering over a stubbornly mute Aspidistra which refuses to reveal whether it's thirsty or not! 'When did I last water it?' you ask yourself. 'Last week? Last month? .... Last year?' At…

Living Green: Growing Your Own Vegetables

We all know how tasty fresh vegetables are in meals and salads. However, no matter how well you seem to time your visits to the grocery store, finding the freshest of produce is mostly by sheer luck. Growing your own vegetables gives you a break from grocery store trips while ensuring that you…

Thompson & Morgan scoops top award

Thompson & Morgan scoops top award – another win at RHS ChelseaPaul Hansord and Michael Perry with the winning plantThompson & Morgan is thrilled to announce that its ‘Plant of the Year’ entry has yet again been placed in the top three at this year’s RHS Chelsea…

Growing with kids: Mr Men and Little Miss seeds

Tomatoes are one of the easiest things to grow with childrenImage source: dogwooddays Children love watching plants grow - from that miraculous moment when a tiny seed's first leaves emerge from the ground - to enjoying the flowers and fruits that appear later in the season. Professional garden…

How to encourage butterflies into your garden

Whatever size your garden is, there are lots of flowers you can plant to encourage butterflies.Encouraging butterflies into your gardenThe recent ‘State of Nature’ report showed that common garden butterfly populations have declined by 24% in the last 10 years. In the last century, 4…

Wisteria masterclass: best expert content

Wisteria flowers are highly scented and look fantastic trailing en masseImage: Wisteria floribunda Domino' from Thompson & Morgan Find everything you need to grow fabulous wisteria here. From troubleshooting flowering issues to keeping these vigorous climbers under control with correct pruning…

10 professional gardeners show how it's done

There's more to pro gardening than just secateursImage: shutterstock Looking for a bit of gardening inspiration? It's always nice to know that the hints and tips your favourite garden bloggers pass on are backed up by some verifiable gardening know how. We've scoured the web to bring you the…

Richard Mulcahy

Guest blogger Richard Mulcahy has a shady plot in Co. Antrim and writes here about his allotment and growing early rhubarb.Shady plotsIn the winter months, I get a chance to think and reflect upon my plot. Leaning on the allotment fence today, I thought back two years to when I first got the…

Gardening without the graft

Gardening is, without question, one of the most active and rewarding hobbies. To get the most out of your garden it is best to plan all year round and create your own gardening calendar to keep you on track. You have to think about which flowers and vegetables you are going to grow, when is the…

August Flowers in Bloom

Rachel Davidson-Foster – a house called “Brambles”

Guest blogger Rachel Davidson-Foster’s post on her ongoing quest for the perfect garden.Was buying a house called “Brambles” an omen?I hope you will forgive me the women’s-magazine cliché that begins my story; 6 years ago I’m pregnant with my second child searching for…

High value, low cost plants Cerinthe major ‘Purpurascens’

Of all the garden plants which give high value for a small financial outlay, one of my favourites has to be Cerinthe major ‘Purpurascens’. For the price of a packet of seeds, you are unlikely ever to be without this plant as it readily self-sows, although not so much that it seems if…

Raspberry ‘Ruby Beauty’™ – knocking out traditional varieties

Raspberry ‘Ruby Beauty’™ is an innovative concept that allows you to grow raspberries on your patio. This space saving raspberry retains its sweet flavour, which we’ve come to expect from modern varieties, but you no longer need a big garden to accommodate rows of towering…

Whiffery in the borders

Whiffery in the bordersMy children get sick of me rushing off into the undergrowth with a cry of “What’s that smell?” as I try to track down the source of beautiful perfumes drifting from nearby plantings.In my current incarnation as a cutting garden gardener, I’m always on…

From Rake To Bake.

Welcome to my new monthly Baking Blog. Each month will feature an in-season fruit or vegetable dish to make with a little bit of grow-your-own information on the side. January is perfect for making Parsnip Scones! The humble parsnip, a mainstay of the Sunday Roast has been cultivated since the…

We Love Chillies!

Dearest reader, Harrison (left), William (right). How do you do? Indeed, well. . . ! We are William and Harrison Scowsill, (28, 27). Perhaps like us, you also ogle and dream of acquiring interesting and rare varieties of plants and seeds from all corners of the globe whilst enjoying the catharsis…

All’s growing well in the garden

By the end of May, all the bedding plants were put in the borders and watered in for a few nights. Last weekend after some heavy rain I went around them all with a small 2 pronged claw and loosened the soil. This will let air in around the roots and create dry soil mulch, trapping some of the…

Grow your own – it’s not too late

Grow your own – it’s not too late!Sow petunias under glass nowSpring may be late this year, but there is still plenty of time to grow your own. In fact, waiting and sowing later when the soil and weather conditions are better means that your seeds will germinate more successfully than…

Yacón – makes sugar-free sweetener!

Yacón (Smallanthus sonchifolius) aka Peruvian ground apple, Bolivian sunrootYacon – makes sugar-free sweetener!Sweet-tasting tuber makes ‘no-sugar’ syrup suitable for diabeticsHere’s an interesting tuber with the texture of water chestnuts and a sweet taste of pear with a…

Drought-proofing my garden

The recent dry spell has really made me think about the plants I am growing. The drought has taken its toll on a favourite tree in my garden. In truth, it has been many years since it performed at its best. This year, I'll be lucky if there are any leaves left come autumn! I'm blaming my thin,…

Guest blogger – Stephanie Donaldson

Guest blogger Stephanie Donaldson’s post on tender plants.It’s time to go undercover…The weather forecasters have been issuing dire warnings all week about the arrival of winter temperatures, so yesterday I decided I could delay no longer -  it was time to bring the tender plants…

Petunia masterclass: best expert content

This climbing petunia has been trained up an obelisk to create a spectacular focal point Image: Petunia 'Tidal Wave Improved' from T&MHere you'll find the best expert content on raising petunia seeds or growing petunia plug plants. We've scoured the web to bring you insights from the experts…

My garden is thriving

Due to the wet winter and mild spell in April my garden is thriving! The perennials and shrubs are looking so advanced in my borders and the lupins are trying to flower already. What is most unusual for this time of year; I have delphiniums in bud. Not that I am complaining!Due to the amount of…

Wild Ferments!

Wild Ferments!Most of us tend to view the world of microbes with some suspicion, convinced that these bugs can do us harm or make us unwell, in fact there is a whole world of beneficial organisms out there that can help us unlock additional nourishment from our food, and at the same time populate…

Cucumbers masterclass: best expert content

Cucumbers are prolific in the right conditionsImage: Cucumber Carmen' F1 Hybrid Grafted from Thompson & Morgan Here's a collection of the best independent content to help you grow your own crunchy cucumbers. These videos, articles and Instagram posts feature everything from sowing these popular…

Fuchsias – The Big Bloomers

At Thompson & Morgan, we have been selling plants for over 20 years now, including thousands, if not millions, of fuchsias! Our customers love a good fuchsia; from the small-flowered, table top style to the glorious trailing varieties. But, for now, we’re talking about the ‘big…

Pinching out Fuchsias

Let’s start at the beginning – your fuchsia plugs will be with you in the next few weeks and you will want to grow the best plants that you can whether they are for your patio or to enter in a local show! In my blogs I will be concentrating on how to grow fuchsias to get the maximum…

Begonias masterclass: best expert content

Try Funky Pink' begonias for masses of large, unusually-shaped, double flowersImage: Begonia 'Funky Pink' from Thompson & MorganHere you'll find the best begonia-related articles, videos, and Instagram stories from across the web - in fact, everything you need to know to help you grow your own…