Have you noticed how sometimes a plant in a pot can set the tone for a whole area in your garden? Drama, charm, colour, fragrance? A perfectly-placed plant in a container can lend the perfect je-ne-sais-quoi that you’re after. But what to choose? We have some ideas for you, but OF COURSE we disagree about what’s hot in […]
Silene armeria Sweet William Catchfly bunch pink Annuals come and go don’t they, but this little gem has stuck with us and I am so glad because it makes a big contribution to the garden scene and especially to our containers where it seems particularly happy to grow. I bought my original plant several years […]
Summer’s in full swing now – excellent! Here we are at the longest day, with wonderfully light evenings to relax in after a hard day’s labour in the garden. And there is still plenty to be getting on with including sharpening tools, potting on tender plants and feeding them for fab flowers……. Sharp Practice I […]
Have you got gaps? Have you finally concluded your favourite perennial must have shuffled off during the winter? Are your sunny spots now shady spots beneath spreading trees, or perhaps you realise that between your small and tall plants – there is no mid storey. You have a small window of opportunity to save your summer garden – what are you going […]
red-leaved rose AKA Rosa rubrifolia Seldom do you grow a rose primarily for its foliage but today’s pick of the week is precisely one of those. Anyone who is familiar with this charming species will agree that its beauty lies in the overall picture: purple-tinged, glaucous (from the Latin glaucus meaning bluish-grey) leaves, reddish-blue new shoots and stems, […]
Now it’s June, the mad rush of spring gardening is abating – a little. We might even dare to take some time to sit in the garden and just enjoy it occasionally! There are still jobs to be done though, like dividing the irises, thinning fruit and protecting our newly-planted out flowers and veg……. Looking […]
For all of us, a perfect day in the garden will be the sum of many little tasks, revelations and modest triumphs that together make our collective hobby so satisfying. But with such contrasting tastes and locations (and, in Caroline’s case, skill levels …) what really constitutes a perfect day in the garden for us […]
plantain lily ‘Devon Green’ The very first hosta I bought, many years ago, was the blue leafed ‘Halcyon’, so I was interested to discover that ‘Devon Green’ was a sport (a naturally occurring mutation) of this favourite of mine. Like its parent, it is very resistant to slugs. It was introduced by Roger and Ann […]
We had a great time at the final day of RHS Chelsea yesterday! Loved the colour and the ‘real gardens for real people’ vibe. Gone was the weighty ‘message-heavy’ proliferation of stinging nettles; in were tinkling streams and heart-stopping colour and texture combinations. Obviously we three had our own opinions on the particular highlights and […]
Visiting RHS Chelsea Flower Show this week has given me ALL SORTS of ideas for this crop of garden tips! From how to present your garden plants in their best possible light, to looking after newly-planted trees, there’s plenty to keep us busy… All tied up The Show Gardens and the Great Pavilion were stuffed […]
Hi-Viz vests are reaching saturation point on Chelsea embankment as organisers cock the starting pistol on the Greatest Flower Show in the World aka Chelsea. The RHS’s overall theme of ‘Your space, your story’ leaves the field wide open for garden designers to go all ways – and they’re not missing the opportunity, so buckle […]
Japanese wisteria (syn. Wisteria floribunda ‘Macrobotrys’) May is an extraordinary month. Each time I set foot in the garden I notice something new that has just come out, so it’s hard to pick out a favourite at this time of the year; they are all special, but my choice today is hard to beat for drama and impact. It you don’t have a suitable house wall, or if you just fancy a small specimen tree, this method […]
Reviewed by Elaine Fraser-Gausden, the3Growbags.com In this fascinating book, Mark Lane explores how our gardens will look in the future, and the technologies being developed that are already being used in many areas of horticulture. His journey into horticulture is relevant in that the themes of accessibility, inclusivity and flexibility are strong messages throughout. From […]
I don’t think there is another month when a keen gardener is busier than in May! I can’t walk along the garden path without finding at least three more jobs to do. I’m loving all the busy-ness as well, of course, including making free plants, re-potting some shrubs and tending to the summer bedding beauties………. Easy […]
Lots of lovely plants in your garden ? Great! But how are you going to help them give you your best summer flowering ev…er? We 3Growbags have a few ideas to share with you (be prepared for some dramatic differences according to location and attitude). I reckon that looking after the plants in your garden […]
This draw has now closed. Many thanks to those who entered. We’ll be emailing the winner today (20 May 2025). Keep an eye out for our next giveaway coming soon!
fringe cups This lovely hardy perennial is a tried and tested old favourite, yet as spring gets into its stride, I am once again reminded of the contribution it makes to our garden at this time of the year. Always a welcome sight, the upright spires of creamy white flowers, bell-shaped and tinged with pink, […]
Hard to beat the first days of May for the sheer exuberant beauty and promise of the new season! But while we wander around revelling in all the new shooting growth and fresh leaves, there are jobs to be done – some potting, some pruning, some sowing, some dead heading………. Pampering the plugs All the […]
A late Easter can be a joyous thing, especially if it’s preceded by a fortnight of gorgeous weather! All the spring flowers are leaping up and we each have our favourites to enchant us while we munch Hot Cross Buns and shameful amounts of chocolate.. Ah, spring is such a lovely time of year – […]
Canary Islands wallflower Almost every gardener must be familiar with, and love Erysimum ‘Bowles Mauve’, and many enthusiastic adjectives have been used to describe this wallflower over the years: but subtle is not one of them, neither for its colour nor its habit, whereas I have been watching and waiting for my beautiful E scoparium since […]
We 3Growbags were in Bristol last weekend designing a new garden for Caroline’s daughter. It gave me ALL SORTS of ideas for this week’s tips column: plant supports, hardening off tender plants and how to grow rosemary amongst other things… Hardening off Have you got a load of trays of tender veg and flower seedlings […]
This week we three are picking out the vegetables that we think are really worth the effort of growing. Elaine, as a great all-round gardener, is speaking from personal experience, Laura finds vegetable-growing a bit too mundane, but still has opinions on what is most rewarding for her long-suffering husband to grow. And Caroline – […]
or dog’s tooth violet ‘Pagoda’ ‘Pagoda’ is one of the most delightful of spring woodland flowers and it definitely ranks high up on my list of favourites for this time of year. The good news is that you don’t need a woodland to grow it – obviously. All you need is a shady spot under […]
Spring is gathering pace and it’s most welcome! But so are the gardening jobs and it’s time for plenty of hustle and bustle. This week we must turn our attention to pruning certain shrubs, optimising the summer perennials and successional sowing amongst other things… Giving shrubs a spring clean There are a lot of ways that […]
This week we are all primed for action! Not for planting things though, but digging things out! Are there plants or features in your garden that need a severe culling before you achieve that dream? We 3Growbags have certainly got a few and are ready to harden our hearts and wield that machete…… First up […]
THIS DRAW HAS NOW CLOSED. But so please keeping following up for more to come
Burkwood osmanthus The genus Osmanthus belongs in the olive family (Oleaceae) whose members also include lilac, forsythia and jasmine; and the epithet refers to the nurserymen and brothers Arthur and Albert Burkwood who, in the first half of the twentieth century bred improved varieties of certain of their favourite shrubs. One of the parents of O x burkwoodii is O. delavayi; as you […]
Things must be stirring now, even in the coldest gardens! Shoots popping up all over the place, birds starting to sing like they really mean it, some genuine warmth in the sunshine – lovely! But we must get BUSY now – reinvigorating the borders, controlling the mint and getting the cannas going for starters… Prepping your summer […]
We’re all about hellebores this week! We have our favourites of course, but in amongst the hundreds of varieties now available, we have also found some horrors (though of course we don’t always agree on which ones!)…. Did you know the latest fad is to have freckles tattooed over your nose? I hated mine when I was young but freckles […]
Variegated greater periwinkle – This beautiful variegated form used to be called ‘Elegantissima’, which is a rather more imaginative name for a plant that is a far cry from the thuggish plain-leaved original. Some gardeners might still find it a little over-enthusiastic but I find it relatively easy to keep in check. It’s often described […]
Wonderful! It’s March. It’s seed-sowing time! It’s time to get started on all sorts of flower and veg seeds. Sowing your own will save you a FORTUNE on plant-buying and give you a bucketful of satisfaction and joy into the bargain. Let’s also take some crazy-simple cuttings, sort out the dogwoods, and tidy the ferns too… Feeling […]
Whoo hoo it’s nearly time to get cracking on your sweet pea journey! There must be a reason why sweet peas beat roses in a recent poll on the UK’s favourite flower. Personally I think it’s because there is a degree of skill needed to grow them, (which would also explain why Caroline has varying success […]
or Cornelian cherry The common name of this cornus I found rather confusing until I learnt that Cornel is another name for dogwood, and I am guessing that the cherry part of the name refers to the gorgeous glossy red, edible fruits it bears in the summer. Native to Southern Europe and Turkey, Cornus mas has been naturalised here for […]
Nothing gets the Growbags’ juices flowing like an early preview of all the new horticultural innovations coming our way this year. So an invitation to the annual Garden Press Event even flushed Caroline out of her Highland hideaway and down to Islington this week (although she nearly got sent straight back to Scotland when she […]
Not sure about you, but I’m beginning to long for some brighter, warmer, drier spring days! Caroline in the far north has had cold but lovely sunny weather, surely there is something better on the horizon for us in the south? Still, there are tasks to be getting on with in the meantime, such as putting […]