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Gardening Competitions

Summer is the prime time for your plants as they will be looking their very best. Beautiful blooms of Buddleja Buzz™, turbo-charged trailing fuchsias and shimmering metallic Begonia ‘Garden Angels’ will be catching everyone’s eyes. Our gardening competitions give you the…

Indoor Plants: The Natural Air Purifiers (We Need To Know More About)

While many people are not aware of it, the fact is that indoor plants act as nature's very own air purifiers. Many scientists have now suggested that it is very important to use air-purifying plants in both your home as well as your office to help detoxify the atmosphere in the space where you live…

Tomato chutney recipe

Tomato chutneyThe Marmalade Teapot Print Recipe Pin Recipe Ingredients 1 kg tomatoes 2 onions 2 cloves garlic 250 g soft light brown sugar 300 ml cider vinegar tsp ground ginger tsp paprika 2 tsp mustard seeds Notes Tomatoes are delicious, easy to grow, and packed with antioxidants. Gluts of…

Amaranthus – the jungle plant

Love lies Bleeding originates in Jamaica, where it is also eaten.  I might throw some leaves into a green risotto and see what happens.  What it has done for me though is to bring a jungle effect into my garden.  Pink monkey tails and greenery gently waving in the breeze.I sowed my amaranthus seeds…

Gardening Adventure – Gardening Beginner!

Gardening Adventure – Gardening Beginner!My beginner’s garden is still very much that. I still don’t seem to know what I am doing but I think it’s coming together. Though I do know that I am not dedicating enough time to it. Still, I spent a sunny day back in April (that…

What to plant in 2014

What to plant in 2014 – Thompson & Morgan’s New Year’s Honours ListWith Christmas over and a new year beginning, Thompson & Morgan is looking forward to a bumper year in gardens up and down the country. So what are the hot tips for 2014 in the plant world?TomTato™In…

It's a Jungle Out There

We all love creatures great and small, right. I would far rather employ the birds and bees than use chemical bug control and so we go to great lengths to entice them into our garden. But then there is the small matter of our six cats to consider. And so we constructed the Catio: By encasing the…

Steve Woodward – tales from the allotment

Surveying the damage after the first frost of 2012It’s mid October and the wife wanted me to go to the allotment this morning to get a few veg for a Sunday roast dinner, there are still a good few plants growing down there although the weather is now turning decidedly chilly! A fine row of…

Top ten wildflowers

Ox-eye daisies are easy to grow and very popular with pollinatorsImage: Ox-Eye Daisy from Thompson & Morgan Wildflowers are a low-maintenance and long-lasting addition to any garden. Often planted as annual or perennial meadows, they make a wildlife-friendly alternative to lawns or a quick and…

Edible Flowers – useful in any garden

Edible flowers can make a useful and delightful addition to any garden – whether big, small and practical or pretty – they can help boost any garden in question. Edible flowers can be used in a variety of ways and grow easily and quickly for a fast harvest.I decided to use an old tin…

Buddleja – the new patio plant?

Purple Leaf Blackthorn shares her Suffolk garden, on a rural windswept site, with chatty cats, free-range chickens and ducks as well as a rich local fauna of birds, rabbits, rats, moorhens and deer.  With a focus on diversity, scent and colour – foliage or flower, whilst competing with the…

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch – join in and do your bit!

RSPB Big Garden BirdwatchRSPB Big Garden Birdwatch – join in and do your bit!The annual RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch is taking place this weekend, Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th January, to monitor bird species visiting Britain’s parks and gardens.It’s really easy to join in –…

Thompson & Morgan Announces RHS Chelsea Flower Show Entries

Following our success at RHS Chelsea Flower Show last year, we are proud to present our entries for Plant of the Year 2019. Clematis Kokonoe', Nepeta Neptune' and Ajuga Princess Nadia' Clematis 'Kokonoe' - Uniquely changing flower shape; flowers open as single blooms and develop into flamboyant…

Fun Houseplants for Children (& Grown Ups!)

Image: ShutterstockFrom meat-eating plant monsters like the Venus Fly Trap to collectible cacti, there's a houseplant out there to spark the interest of every child plus a host of creative ways to display them which will engage their imaginations. Houseplants can be a way for children to express…

ÔÇÿBehind the Genes'

It's a very exciting time of year. RHS Chelsea Flower Show preparations are in full swing and the countdown is on. This year, Thompson & Morgan is teaming up with Sparsholt College who are creating a 'Behind the Genes' show garden which is diving into the science behind plant breeding and…

Cauliflower – the comeback

Is the cauliflower, the most under-appreciated member of the brassica family, making a comeback?After a number of sightings in the national press recently, we thought we’d cast a spotlight on this often overlooked – and overcooked – traditional British vegetable.In The Times…

The Road to Chelsea

A few weeks ago I was asked if would help out with taking the plants to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show that Thompson & Morgan would be using on various stands in the Grand Pavilion - having never been before, I readily agreed - what a chance to go and see a bit of 'behind the scenes' at the…

Expert gardening tips for beginners

Gardening is a lifelong learning curve based on shared knowledge, trial and error. Image source: Rawpixel. com If you're just getting into gardening and could do with some help and advice to set you on your way, we've got just what you need: handy tips from gardeners from across the blogosphere.…

How To Grow Potatoes

Potatoes are one of the most popular vegetables to grow in your garden. You can grow potatoes either in the ground or you can grow them in potato bags or containers and it really couldn’t be easier with our expert advice on how to grow potatoes.How to Plant Potatoes in the Ground?Potato…

Top tips for healthy houseplants

Add some greenery to your home with houseplantsImage: Thejoyofplants. co. uk Have you always thought how nice it would be to liven up your home with a selection of stunning houseplants? If you don't know which plants to choose or how to keep them alive, we've got just the information you need to…

Arthur Davies at the Suffolk Show

Arthur Davies at the Suffolk Show – last season for veteran vegetable exhibitorArthur with Camilla, Duchess of CornwallThompson & Morgan’s vegetable ‘show man’, Arthur Davies, will stage his last impressive vegetable display at the Suffolk Show in Ipswich on 29th and…

How to Grow Tomatoes

You can’t deny the flavour of fresh home-grown tomato straight from the vine. Their taste is far superior to the bland tomatoes offered in the supermarkets making them perfect for tomato soup and they’re really easy to grow.Growing tomatoes from seedGrowing tomato plants from seed is a…

Gardening to be taught in schools

Gardening is set to be taught primary and secondary schools as part of the National Curriculum from September 2014, according to news reports.Gardening to be part of National CurriculumFor many years now campaigns have been running to get children into gardening and growing their own food –…

Onions are not shallot

Onions are grown by a large number of gardeners and used in multiple culinary dishes. It really is surprising that so many people grow onions but don’t grow and have never tried growing shallots. Both onions and shallots are easy to grow and they make the perfect beginner crop for new…

Some like it hot

A summer heatwave is ideal for chilliesImage source: Nic Wilson It's been a hot year in the greenhouse and the chillies have enjoyed every sweltering second. Sown in early January, they developed into sturdy seedlings by March and were ready to go out in the greenhouse by late May. I chose fewer…

How to prune wisteria

Did you know that august is the perfect time to give your wisteria a summer prune?Wisteria is the quintessential climber for the English cottage garden. A well-grown wisteria is an absolute joy in May and June when the beautiful, scented pendants of flowers drape from the branches in a breathtaking…

Thompson & Morgan Takes Third With Agapanthus ÔÇÿFireworks'

Agapanthus Fireworks We're so pleased to announce that its Plant of the Year entry Agapanthus 'Fireworks' has been placed third today at RHS Chelsea Flower Show. It was one of six plants that we heard this morning were on the final shortlist of 20 entrants. Agapanthus 'Fireworks' is a world first…

What's new in the garden?

Are you stepping out of your comfort zone this year to try something new?Image source: Tom Gowanlock Are you looking for fresh inspiration? It's easy to get stuck in the trap of repeating successful plants, flowers and crops year after year, rather than trying new things. We caught up with a few…

The history of the petunia

Surfinia petunias are a popular choice for hanging basketsImage: Petunia 'Surfinia Star Burgundy' from Thompson & Morgan There's always a plant that, like Marmite, you love or loathe, and through the ages the petunia has often divided opinion. In fact, during the 1500s people believed that…

Thompson & Morgan donates plants to local schools

Left: Children from Chelmondiston Primary School holding plants donated by Thompson & Morgan. Right: Children from Thomas Wolsey Ormiston Academy with a trolley of donated plants. Photo credits: Thompson & Morgan Last week we donated over 1,500 plants to two local schools. The PTA of…

Begonia trial - new obsession?

Begonia Apricot Shades Improved' F1 Hybrid adds colour & dimension to every part of your gardenImage: Thompson & Morgan As part of a regular series, award-winning gardener Jean Willis explains her latest obsession with begonias and shares an honest account of the recent successes and…

National Gardening Week 15th-21st April 2013

National Gardening Week starts next Monday and focuses on growing wildflowers…Support wildlife by growing wildflowersWildlife in gardens has been on the decline for the last 50 years, mostly because of a reduction of wildflowers in the countryside.The aim of this year’s National…

Holly and Ivy – what is there to know?

Holly trees can be self-fertile, male or female; so some bushes may need a partner to ensure they can pollinate and produce berries. This is not usually a problem in home gardens though, as Holly trees are quite common in other gardens as well as in the wild, so there should always be a pollinator…

From Rake To Bake - Leek Muffins

Welcome to February's 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. February is perfect for making Leek Muffins. Have you ever wondered why Welsh fans carry inflatable leeks to Rugby or Football matches?…

How To Live Happily Ever After With Your Indoor Plants

Gone are the days when plants were restricted to balconies or gardens. In modern decor, they are being given a place in the drawing-room, the kitchen, and even the bedroom. Apart from adding to the beauty of your indoor spaces, plants also purify the air and make the environment healthy. They…

Easy gardening tips from the experts

Make the most of these tried and tested tips from experienced gardeners. Image source: welcomia A great way to get the most from your garden is to follow the advice and guidance of generous gardeners who've already been there and done it. Here we bring you some top growing tips from expert…

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