Gardening tools that will last a lifetime if treated rightA bad day’s gardening is often the result of shoddy tools, so invest well in your implementsSat Nov 30 2024 - 05:00
Gardening Q&A: My young hedge looks tatty - what have I done?Unfortunately in recent years, this flowering hedge has fallen victim to a widespread fungal disease commonly known as escallonia leaf spot that causes it to lose its leavesSat Nov 23 2024 - 05:00
Five life lessons my garden taught me: Nature often has a quiet but not unkind laugh at our expenseTo watch a flower unfurl is to simultaneously be reminded of the fact that life is both worthwhile and fleetingSat Nov 23 2024 - 05:00
What is the best choice of hedging for my garden?Soil type and general weather conditions matter when it comes to choosing a garden hedgeSat Nov 16 2024 - 05:00
Caught in a landslide, gored to death, expelled from Japan: the fates of plant-hunters who pursued rare specimensHistorian Thomas Pakenham details the remarkable individuals who risked life and limb in pursuit of new speciesSat Nov 16 2024 - 05:00
How to pack up your plants when moving onPlanning to move house and garden? Create a list of what to take with you and prepare well in advanceSat Nov 09 2024 - 05:00
Which house plants are best for students?It’s a good idea to start with a selection of stalwarts that will tolerate less-than-ideal growing conditionsSat Nov 09 2024 - 05:00
Should we hire a garden designer?Fionnuala Fallon: Great garden designers and landscape architects are like artists, marrying together practical, environmental and aesthetic elementsSat Nov 02 2024 - 05:00
Why bare-root planting is always a good idea for your gardenWhether you’re searching for budget-friendly options or simply trying to plant without excavating big chunks of your garden, this approach makes senseSat Nov 02 2024 - 05:00
Can I leave spuds in the ground and dig them up when I need them?Fionnuala Fallon: Only maincrop potato varieties, such as Golden Wonder, are suitable for storing over winterSat Oct 26 2024 - 05:00
Frost can feel cruel but it’s not all bad news in the gardenThe cold acts as a natural curb on the spread of plant pests and diseases. Slugs are less active and fungal spores will be less likely to spreadSat Oct 26 2024 - 05:00
Autumn leaf displays have not been as vibrant this year. There’s a good reason for thatDeciduous trees and shrubs are paragons of good planning and preparednessSun Oct 20 2024 - 05:00
‘Can I collect seeds from sweet peas to grow again?’Fionnuala Fallon: Homegrown sweet pea is one of the great joys of the summer gardenSat Oct 19 2024 - 05:00
Tulips, erythroniums and trilliums: aristocratic bulbs for planting seasonAs planting season begins in earnest, consider looking beyond the obvious for spring-flowering bulbsSun Oct 13 2024 - 05:00
We have a problem with squirrels in our garden. What can we do to keep them at bay?Fionnuala Fallon: As charming as their arboreal acrobatics might be to watch, grey squirrels can be a real problem in Irish gardensSat Oct 12 2024 - 05:00
How can I create my own pocket forest?Fionnuala Fallon: Autumn is an excellent time to collect the ripe seed of most treesSat Oct 05 2024 - 05:00
Organic market gardener Charles Dowding: ‘So many people are intimidated or confused by the advice available’With 45 years as an organic market gardener under his belt, Charles Dowding has a feast of knowledge to share in his new book CompostSat Oct 05 2024 - 05:00
The best ornamental grasses for gardens: the ones to pick and how to grow them The long-lasting feathers of ornamental grasses are one of their greatest charmsSun Sept 29 2024 - 05:00
‘My 15-year-old tree is displaying blighting. How can I save it’‘It has been displaying a blighting appearance for the past few years’Sat Sept 28 2024 - 05:00
After a washout summer, the boxes of spring-flowering bulbs will soon start to arriveThe long, autumunal shadows herald the season of mucky fingers, hard physical work and great joySun Sept 22 2024 - 05:00
‘Something ate my potatoes underground. What could have done this?A cat might be the best form of defence against the likely rodent culpritsSat Sept 21 2024 - 05:00
I moved my plant to a bigger pot and now the leaves are falling off. What can I do?Since I repotted it into a bigger pot, its bottom leaves have started to droop and fall offSat Sept 14 2024 - 05:15
Autumn comes bearing gifts for the gardenThe days may be shorter and darker, but there are still vivid pleasures to be found in the garden, from roses to doughty hawthorn and hollySat Sept 14 2024 - 05:00
How do I get rid of ant nests in my polytunnel?There are simple things you can do to discourage them without resorting to harmful and often ineffective insecticidesSat Sept 07 2024 - 05:00
A wealth of late-blooming plants are bright stars of the autumn gardenWhat the daisy family, Asteraceae, have in common is daisy-shaped flowers and ability to feed bees, butterflies, hoverflies and many other pollinating insectsSat Sept 07 2024 - 05:00
‘Good looks aren’t enough for potatoes. They’ve got to taste delicious.’Raymond Higgins grows champion-level potatoes from his allotments near Blarney in CorkSun Sept 01 2024 - 05:00
I want to go with peat-free gardening: how can I do it?Fionnuala Fallon: Use of peat is gradually being phased out due to EU targets to mitigate climate change, support biodiversity, and protect wetlandsSat Aug 31 2024 - 05:00
Forever flowers: the handful of biennials on my must-grow listCanterbury bells, Sweet William, foxgloves and wallflowers are among my favourite flowersSat Aug 24 2024 - 05:00
Is my compost doomed after all this rain? After returning from a week away, the freshly composted areas were thriving with tiny nettle plantsSat Aug 24 2024 - 05:00
Order spring-flowering bulbs now to get your pick of the bunchIf you have a polytunnel or glasshouse, August is also the month to sow seeds of a variety of delicious crops to keep it well stocked over winterSat Aug 17 2024 - 05:00
How do I get rid of coltsfoot without using weedkiller?I am avoiding chemical weedkillers for environmental reasonsSat Aug 17 2024 - 05:00
Irish wildflowers: Growing your own mini-meadow isn’t always easy but the results are magicalA home for native wildflowers isn’t always easy to cultivate, but careful planning makes for fun and magical resultsSat Aug 10 2024 - 05:00
My garden is being wrecked by a fox: what to do?Fionnuala Fallon Q&A: Much to my dismay the soil was dug up in my raised bed in various spots and the blocking material was torn. Every night, the same thingSat Aug 10 2024 - 05:00
I think I might have vine weevils: Should I be worried?This is a common pest in many Irish gardens but can be managedSat Aug 03 2024 - 05:00
How to cope with a slope: Challenges of the Irish gardenHelping plants thrive in uneven conditions can be tricky but there are solutionsSat Aug 03 2024 - 05:00
How to edit your garden: the one big skill all great gardeners shareCreating a beautiful garden means constantly reappraising and reassessing with a view to the futureSat Jul 27 2024 - 05:00
What quick-cropping fruit and vegetables can I plant in the coming weeks?Have the wet spring and summer disrupted your gardening plans? You’re in good companySat Jul 27 2024 - 05:00
My plants have aphids. How do I get rid of them?Fionnuala Fallon: Their numbers are best controlled by leaving them alone for their natural predators to consumeSat Jul 20 2024 - 05:00
Edible flowers: how to grow them and how to use them to bring flavour, colour, fragrance, and texture to foodEdible, organically grown flowers offer goodness for the body as well as a spectacle for the eyesSat Jul 20 2024 - 05:00
My bearded irises did not flower: what am I doing wrong?Fionnuala Fallon: If it’s any consolation, my own young plants also flowered very poorly this yearSat Jul 13 2024 - 05:00
Trees with fragrant blossoms perfect to grow in Irish gardensA rich perfume is an intoxicating draw for wildlife and humans alikeSat Jul 13 2024 - 05:00
Our friend has warned us against planting a hawthorn boundary hedge. What can we use instead?Your gardening questions answered: We were planning on using native hawthorn as a boundary hedge around our country gardenSat Jul 06 2024 - 05:00
This is the otherworldly flower that got me hooked on gardening. But here’s the reality of growing themFionnuala Fallon: Truth is, nothing comes close to them in terms of the size, stature and brilliance of their flowers as well, of course as their magical range of coloursSat Jul 06 2024 - 05:00
Where do we start with sowing a traditional lawn around our new-build house?Your gardening questions answered: Creating a garden from scratch gives you a great opportunitySat Jun 29 2024 - 05:00
Revisiting Fieldman: Seasonal extracts and exquisite illustrations bring 1940s natural world magically to lifeRepublishing of Larry de Lacy’s newspaper columns offers rich trawl through history for nature loversSat Jun 29 2024 - 05:00
Your gardening questions answered: How can I save my rose plant?Fionnuala Fallon: Roses are greedy, thirsty plants that need deep, fertile, humus-rich, moist and free-draining soil to flourishSat Jun 22 2024 - 00:01
This week is a turning point for Irish gardeners. Here’s whyStill have young plants and sturdy seedlings in trays and liners? Then make haste and start plantingFri Jun 21 2024 - 05:00
My anemone is out of control. How do I get rid of it?Your gardening questions answered: Flower can become a thug if allowed to spread uncheckedSun Jun 16 2024 - 05:00
What every Irish garden needs: exceptional but hardy and resilient plantsFionnuala Fallon: Every garden requires its fair share of plants with let’s-just-get-on-with-it attitudeSat Jun 15 2024 - 05:00
My acer looks dead. How can I help it?Your gardening questions answered: These trees need sheltered, lightly shaded spot with protection from cold windsSun Jun 09 2024 - 05:00
