Summer category < back
Gardens to visit in London
21st Jul:
When you think of going to visit a garden you probably imagine driving out of London to some stately home with its huge grounds and it being a ‘day trip’, this need not be the case.
There are many gardens to see in London and here are a few that we think are worth a visit:
One that has caught my eye is the Roof Top garden at Queen Elizabeth Hall on the Southbank, this has been done in partnership with the Eden Project from Cornwall and is being grown and maintained by the Grounded Ecotherapy group at the housing charity Providence Row together with other community groups. It opened in April and will be there for visits until the 4th September. You can visit it between 10am and 11pm so it could be the perfect place to go after work to wind down.
This garden has stunning views over the river and is the perfect place to escape to during the summer. The Roof Garden has lush lawns, fruit trees, a wild flower area (to attract insects and provide nectar for the bee hives on the Royal Festival Halls roof), patchwork of vegetable plots, pergolas, sweet scented climbers to list a few aspects of it.
This summer there is so much going on at the Southbank, beaches, food festivals, huts and so much more, it’s well worth a visit.
Some smaller gardens to visit in London are:
Chelsea Physic Garden
The Kyoto Japanese garden in Holland Park
Charlton House Peace Garden
Fulham Palace
Chiswick House Gardens
Some bigger and possibly more well known gardens to visit are:
Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew
Kensington Palace Gardens
Hampton Court Palace
Eltham Palace
Syon House and Gardens
Mowing Tips
28th Jun:
Firstly and most importantly choose the correct lawn mower for your lawn. Cylinder mowers are only really suitable for perfectly flat lawns with finer grass types. Consider whether you want stripes (in which case best results come with some sort of roller) whether there are hard to reach or sloping areas (use a lighter fly-mow) or if you need the mower to collect cuttings too.
Make sure your mower is serviced regularly and that the blades are as sharp as possible which will ensure a better cut. Do not cut your lawn too low.
Whenever you fill your mower with petrol, never do this on the actual grass as petrol burns grass.
Don’t cut your lawn too short (min 1 inch). Cutting your lawn too short can encourage lawn diseases, moss and weed growth. Also never cut more than a third of the height at any one time. If you do, it can cause scalping which can take 2-3 mowing cycles to recover.
Also try to remove any clippings from the lawn as this can encourage thatch which means moss will thrive.
Cut your lawn frequently as this encourages it to grow thicker which keeps out the weeds.
Don’t mow the lawn when it is wet as this can cause the soil to be compacted which suffocates the roots and causes bald patches.
Keep your edges nice and neat by using either a half moon edging tool or even installing an edging product such as EverEdge.
If conditions are very dry and the lawn is looking brown, try to keep off the lawn as much as possible as the grass will be dry and brittle and liable to break. Do not cut shorter than 2 inches and do not cut again until there is a sign of growth.
When watering, don’t overwater by watering every day. In the summer every 2-3 days should be enough. Water the lawn early in the morning or during the later part of the day when evaporation is at its lowest. An irrigation system is always a good idea.
Watering deeply will encourage deep root growth.
Aerate your lawn, using a fork on the smaller lawns and specialist machines (that can be hired) on the larger lawns.
Once this is done, scarifiy your grass, again using a hand rake on smaller areas and machines on the larger lawns. These jobs can be done in either order.
Next is the grass seed. On a small lawn scatter it by hand thinly. Careful not to be too generous at the start and run out before all the area is covered. Then using a stiff brush gently ‘encourage’ the seed down the holes as much as possible.
Next apply a top dressing, which is a mixture of compost and wash sand which helps improve drainage and fertility of the soil. Using a soft rake, gently spread the topdressing into the grass.
Feed your lawn regularly with an appropriate lawn fertiliser. This will make it greener and thicker, and helps return nutrients to the soil.
Ways to use your harvest
28th Jun:
6 pink or yellow grapefruit
300ml vodka
Small bunch basil
200g caster sugar
Using a vegetable peeler remove the zest from 3 of the grapefruit and put the zest in a jar. Pour over the vodka and leave to infuse for at least 24 hours.
Cut all the grapefruit in half and juice – if making ahead of time, freeze the juice until it’s needed.
Pick the leaves from the basil and add the stalks to a small saucepan with the sugar and 200ml of water. Gently heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved, then cool, strain and chill until needed.
Put half the basil leaves in a jug, pour over the vodka, 300ml of basil stock syrup and the pink grapefruit juice and stir.
Fill 6 glasses with ice, the remaining basil and a little pink grapefruit zest (use the stuff from the vodka), and fill with cocktail mix.
Bean salad – you will be asked for this recipe if you serve it to friends, it’s how we got it!
There is so much in this recipe that you might or could have grown in your garden, if you’re missing anything this year make a note for your planting plan for next year.
200g trimmed French beans
1 small red onion, chopped
1 tablespoon capers
1 tablespoon tarragon leaves, chopped
3 tablespoons chopped chervil
¼ cup garden cress
Vinaigrette
1 small garlic clove, crushed
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
Salt and pepper
To make the vinaigrette, put the mustard, garlic and vinegar in a mixing bowl or food processor and slowly add the olive oil until you get a thick dressing, season to taste.
Blanch the beans in boiling salted water for 4 minutes. Refresh and drain.
Mix the beans with the vinaigrette and the rest of the ingredients, apart from the garden cress.
Pile the beans on a serving plate and garnish with cress.
When serving warm, mix the vinaigrette with the warm beans and the rest of the ingredients just before serving.
This pretty punch is a German summer favourite and just the thing if you’re entertaining a crowd on a hot summer evening. Serves about 16.
1kg strawberries, hulled and halved
80g caster sugar
1 lemon, unwaxed if possible
1 bottle crisp white wine, chilled
1 bottle sparkling wine, chilled
Lemon balm or lemon verbena, to garnish
Put the strawberries in a bowl and sprinkle on the sugar. If you don’t have an unwaxed lemon, wash the lemon well in warm water. Peel off thin strips of the zest with a sharp knife or vegetable peeler. Finely chop one peeled lemon zest strip and add the lemon juice and chopped zest to the strawberry bowl. Refrigerate for a couple of hours.
Pour off the strawberry juice into a bowl and put to one side. Tip the strawberries into a large jug, pour over enough of the wine to cover and refrigerate again for another two hours.
Shortly before serving, add the strawberry juice, the remaining wine and the sparkling wine. Serve either in a punch bowl decorated with the remaining strips of lemon, or pour into glasses and serve with lemon zest strips and sprigs of lemon balm or verbena.
If you don’t want to use your herbs and vegetables now do remember that you can dry and/or freeze them at home.
Feature in SW Magazine
21st Jun:
This month we have an article in Londons SW Magazine talking about top tips for your garden in July, looking at seating, planting, material choice, lighting and garden features. To see this article on line or receive a hard copy of the magazine go to www. http://sw.greatbritishlife.co.uk/
Enjoy the fruits of your labour
26th May:
Pear, plums, fig, medlar, cherry and peach can all thrive in a London garden. You need to consider what size your tree will grow to in order to choose the right tree for your sized garden. A good way to use a small space is to train a tree along a wall or fence. As well as giving decorative cover the wall/fence soaks up the heat of the sun and helps ripen the fruit.
In addition to size, you need to consider when the tree fruits. Different types of trees fruit at different times of the year, early ripening trees tend not to do so well but varieties that ripen later can produce well and can even give you fruit to store over the winter.
If growing a harvest is not your goal and the trees are more about decoration, simply chose the tree that you prefer the look of.
Planting your tree
Ideally you need to place your tree in a sunny sheltered position of the garden, this will encourage the fruit to ripen, if it is purely for decorative means the tree can go anywhere in your garden.
To protect your fruit tree we suggest you apply a grease band at about 45cm above the soil level to both the tree trunk and the steak supporting your tree. This will help especially with moths which will eat the fruit (and your clothes as many Londoners have been finding over the last couple of years!).
In order for your tree to flourish its important to prune at the appropriate time and if you have one of the decorative styles, for example a pleached tree its important to keep it well trained.
Pleaching is a technique used to train trees into raised hedges. They can be cleverly used to create some effective screening, allowing you more privacy in your garden. Read more about this technique here.
Espalier is an ancient style of controlling the plant by pruning and tying so the branches grow in flat planes. As well as for decoration this can also be good for a garden with limited space. Read more about this technique here.
Fan trained trees consist of a short clear stem of about 18 inches and a set of branches above this arranged to form a fan shape. The shape is brought about by pruning and training. This can be an excellent way to grow fruit trees that need warmth and can be placed on a south facing wall.
Growing your own salad and herbs
17th May:
Now is a perfect time to think about growing your own herbs and salads.
There are so many different ways to plant your herbs and vegetables from pots, window boxes, canvas growing bags to substantial vegetable beds, one new and stylish way is a living wall styled planter, this can be installed inside and outside. For more information please do contact us.
Tender vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers and chilli will be fine now to plant outside; we have hopefully seen the last of the frost. If you still have your plants under cover remove the covers during the day but cover new, tender plants up at night in case they get crushed by the rain (if we have any).
Now is the time to sow Beetroot, Cabbage, Carrots, Lettuce and Peas or any other vegetables you want to see on your table during the summer.
To ensure you have salad all summer long we suggest you sow salad vegetables and radish every four weeks; this should give you a healthy continuous crop all summer long.
To make sure you get the most out of your herbs remove flowers, this intensifies the flavour of the leaves.
You can also grow plants that will help you enjoy summer drinking as well as eating.
Try growing a Borage plant, the flowers are edible and taste of cucumber which can be added to your salad or alternatively freeze the flowers in ice cubes and use them in your Pimms or Gin as a substitute for cucumber. They are tough plants and grow well and though a little old fashioned they are underrated.
If you enjoy a fresh mint tea after a meal out, why not grown you own mint for dinking at home, also try lemon balm as an alternative, both make delicious fresh teas.
If you would like any further ideas or help on creating your edible garden please contact us.
New products in our showroom
21st Jan:
With the beginning of a new year, we are thrilled to tell you about the arrival of a brand new range of products in our showroom!
A host of new plant pot ranges and rattan furniture grace our showroom, with the imminent arrival of an exciting range of fake plants and trees.
A leading supplier of rattan furniture will be offering readymade as well as a bespoke ranges, from L-shaped sofas to day loungers. Our new range of fake plants and trees will give your garden, window boxes and front of house that lush, green and healthy look all year round. Appealing to individual tastes, styles and sizes of gardens, our new range of garden pots should not be missed!
With a wider range of products, we offer you greater choice to make the most of your outside space this Spring and Summer.
Come in and take a look for yourself.
August/September Gardening Tips
19th Aug:
August is starting to draw to a close and now is the time to start thinking about what you will need to do over the coming months to prepare you garden for next year. But enough of the depressing talk, summer is not over yet and hopefully we will still have a couple of months of good weather with which to enjoy our gardens. Below are a few tips and tasks that should be carried out over the next few weeks to enhance your enjoyment and prolong the flowering period.
1. Watering is still very important at the moment especially if we get some more warm, dry periods. Make sure you water during the coolest times of the day and water thoroughly and deeply.
2. Perennials, Annuals and other flowering plants. Spend as much time as you can deadheading as this should mean they will continue to flower longer into the summer season. Any spring flowering perennials can be divided and moved now as well but you must sure you water them well after.
3. Any summer flowering shrubs that have finished flowering can now be pruned and shaped.
4. Keep watering the lawn well and start to think about raising the height of the cut towards the end of september. Also if we do have another hot spell don’t cut the grass so short as longer grass offers more shade to the roots and so won’t dry out so fast.
5. Keep on top of the weeds and try to remove them early before they can go to seed again. Weeds will deprive you plants of nutrients and water.
Enjoy the rest of your summer and if we can be of any help don’t hesitate to get in contact with us.
