Rhubarb is much more than the poor relation of the veg patch. This generous plant provides one of our earliest crops, serving the table from spring to early summer.
Our foul summer has had a dire effect on all our insects, apart from midges and clegs of course. And our gorgeous butterflies are no exception.
Kale is one of our tastiest and most versatile brassicas and many, though not all, varieties withstand whatever a Scottish winter throws at them. But a few kales are less robust so should be enjoyed in autumn and early winter.
Lilies are a joy in early summer and this is a good time to plant or replant bulbs. They do well in pots and containers and I mostly choose to grow them this way so I can easily move them around. I’m then able to select a prominent place while enjoying the wondrous display, find a discreet spot when the show is over or provide protection over the winter.
Hedges are a sustainable asset in any garden. Last week, I looked at the benefits of living hedges and turn here to ‘dead’ ones. Having been promoting this idea in talks and articles for nigh on quarter of a century, I’m delighted it’s now becoming mainstream.
Hedges are one of the garden’s most environmentally-friendly parts and have a place in anyone’s patch. I’ll look at more traditional living hedges here and explore other options next week. Living hedges can and do play an important part in the garden, but like everything else also have one or two disadvantages.
Look no further than Snakeshead fritillaries for spring bulbs with a difference. The strange and beautiful flowers of Fritillaria meleagris have enthralled us for centuries as the name itself shows.
It’s official: this has been the wettest summer ever in parts of Scotland. I certainly can’t remember getting less from the kitchen garden for many a year or sitting outside so seldom. A cool, damp spring keenly followed by a super soggy summer have been devastating in the garden. And to add to the mix, overnight temperatures were very low for early July, challenging newly planted tender summer plants.
31/8/24 Reducing food waste_2 ‘Don’t compost cooked food.’ I can’t remember how often I’ve said that to people. Plate scrapings soon stink and every undesirable neighbour round about will rush to your compost bin. But there’s a way round nearly everything and Bokashi ‘composting’ is the answer here.
Reducing our food waste is an easy and useful way of helping to combat the disastrous effects of climate change. Over the next 2 weeks, I’ll explore how we can cut the mountain of food waste we Scots produce every year.
