Purple Wellies

As we head into the autumn, our thoughts turn to tree planting. For small gardens careful consideration is needed. Consider the height and spread, which season of interest will it look good in, whether it is deciduous or evergreen, all the while selecting for the conditions and aspect of the site. I’ve picked out my top 5 choices.

This year the Horsell Second Thursday Club are encouraging everyone in the village to brighten up their front gardens with colourful plants, whether they be big or small spaces, so let’s give passers-by something to slow them in their tracks as they walk past. There are no hard and fast rules, but the aim is to try to encourage as many people as possible to grow some ‘colour’ in their front garden. The last year has been a real rollercoaster ride for us all and ‘Floral Horsell’ will give us the opportunity to all get gardening together as a community to make Horsell front gardens a rainbow of colour.

Spring hails the start of the gardening year for many, with warmer temperatures and some rays of sunshine peeping through. The spring woodlanders are pushing up through the soil and starting their short-lived flowering season before the tree canopies unfurl. For many, classics such as daffodils, tulips and the ephemeral cherry blossom will grace us with their presence now, but there are some more unusual candidates which are so often overlooked, yet make perfectly good garden plants.
 

If you’re looking to create some garden containers to lift the spirits this winter, and I’m sure there are a lot of us that need a pick me up as the days darken, then don’t just stick to the traditional pansies in a six-pack you find in every garden centre. Be a little bit adventurous with your choice of plant.

The beating of a butterfly’s wings, it brings a smile to the face and suggests that perhaps all is right in the world. Quite possibly, as their presence is a key indicator of a healthy ecosystem. What about their shadier cousins, the moths? With over 2,500 species in the UK they far outnumber the butterfly’s, and have just as important a role to play. Just a handful have given these, often less colourful species, a bad reputation by nibbling holes in your favourite cardigan or frantically flapping their wings around the light fitting when it manages to find its way in through the only open window. Both act as plant pollinators...