The 3 Growbags - Three sisters share their gardening highs and lows at home and abroad

Six gardening trends for 2020

17 January 2020January 18, 2020the3growbags2 Comments

I know that in terms of clothes fashion (trousers from Lands’ End, jumpers from Woolovers: job done), I am a big disappointment to my older and younger sisters who are both secretly wannabe Kardashians, but trust me when it comes to gardening trends I am dynamite compared with either of them. So what are my predictions for what we gardeners should be turning our attention to in 2020?1. Seaside plants. I don’t want to sound too apocalyptic but we do now need to prepare for climate Armageddon, and seek out plant species that can survive in hostile environments. Eryngiums...

Geranium palmatum AGM – Canary Island Geranium

17 January 2020January 17, 2020the3growbagsLeave a comment

This handsome evergreen perennial gives me pleasure pretty much all year round; I can be walking down the path on a grey winter’s day, and my eye will be caught by its fresh green foliage. It’s quite unlike any other: apart from its sister plant Geranium maderense which is even more arresting in appearance, but only hardy in very mild and sheltered areas. So, in early summer the plant will be a mass of purplish pink flowers held high on stout stems above the beautiful, deeply divided leaves. These flowers last well and will give a good display throughout the...

Sowing seeds and gorgeous scents… Grow-How Tips for January

10 January 2020January 11, 2020the3growbags4 Comments

Mid-January in the UK and I don’t know about you, but I find it a little less tempting to venture into the garden. But there are lots of tasks like early seed-sowing, scrubbing down patios and paths, and planning for winter scent etc. that will take our minds off the chill and put a gloss on our halos…… Sowing the Earlies I know that you might be itching to start the new gardening year off, but please don’t be in too much of a hurry to sow bedding or veg plants, or buy tiny plugs of these things. They...

Why it’s time to plant a tree

3 January 2020January 4, 2020the3growbags4 Comments

Let’s celebrate the New Year by planting a tree! Or lots, if you have the space and right environment for them. Human beings have already wiped 40% of the world’s trees off the face of the earth. In summer 2019, research led by experts at ETH Zurich (one of the world’s most prestigious universities in science and technology) revealed there is 1.7 billion hectares of treeless land across the world on which more than 1 trillion native tree saplings would naturally grow. If planted, those trees would successfully offset two-thirds of all carbon emissions from human activities. ‘The best...