3 Easy Plants To Get You Started With Gardening This Spring

Posted on 11/02/2026 by Boris Clair

With this endless dreary winter dragging on, you could be forgiven for looking forward to brighter, warmer days in the garden as spring and summer are just around the corner (no, really).

Plus, if you’ve been meaning to get into gardening, there’s no better time than the present to plan ahead and look forwarding to planting seeds under a bright, warm sun.

It’s coming, we promise.

However,if you are feeling a little intimidated by the idea of gardening, it can be hard to know where to start. With this in mind, we’ve chosen 5 starter plants for those taking the green-fingered leap this year.

Three beginner-friendly plants

Lavender

According to the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS): “Lavender is best planted in April or May as the soil naturally warms up and when many fresh plants become available in garden centres.

“Lavender should never be planted in winter when young plants are vulnerable to rotting in cold, wet soils.”

They give the following planting advice:

Lavender is easy to plant and takes just a few minutes. If your soil is heavy, plant on a 20-30cm (8in-1ft) mound, ridge or in a raised bed where the roots will not sit in wet soil.

Plant the lavender as soon as possible after buying
Space plants about 90cm (3ft) apart if growing in groups
If planting a hedge, space plants 30cm (1ft) apart or 45cm (18in) for larger cultivars
After planting, water regularly, especially in dry weather, for the first season

Then, let it flourish in your garden. You can prune it if you’d like to or just leave it for birds to feed on. It should grow back every year.

Pheasant’s tail grass

This stunning ornamental grass can add a visually-striking touch to your garden with very little upkeep required.

BBC Gardener’s World says: “This evergreen perennial grass provides year-round colour and structure with bold, low clumps of light-reflecting leaves. Its slender foliage emerges green, but matures to yellow, orange and red over time, reaching a peak in intensity in winter.”

Choose a sunny but lightly shaded spot to plant your tall grass and put the grasses around 45-60cm apart.

Catmint

If you are a big fan of seeing cats roam around your garden, you may want to keep inviting them back with a Catmint plant for them to chew on and rub their heads against.

Plant this in spring, in a shaded spot and ensure that if you’re potting the plant, that the soil a high-quality mix and there is plenty of drainage in the spot.

As for ongoing care, The Old Farmer’s Alamanac says: “Watering is only needed during the first growing season or in prolonged dry spells. Catmints are drought-tolerant once established.”

MUCH needed in this country!

Happy planting!

UK Gardeners Urged To Keep These 5 Weeds Alive In Autumn

Posted on 12/09/2025 by Boris Clair

Autumn is a great month for gardeners for many reasons. Not only are your fruits and veggies at their bountiful best, but according to experts, ’tis the season to do less.

Leaving unraked leaves on your lawn, for instance, can provide a comfortable place for struggling wildlife, while keeping ivy unpruned can provide a rare late-blooming food source for birds and pollinators.

And according to Chris Bonnett, the founder of GardeningExpress.co.uk, autumn is a good time to ignore certain animal-friendly weeds too.

“Weeds don’t always have to be bad news – some of them can actually be very valuable for your local wildlife,” he said.

“You don’t have to let your garden become overrun, but if you’ve got space, leaving a patch of weeds to grow can make a huge difference to the biodiversity in your garden,” Bonnet added – weeds such as:

1) Dandelions

Sure, these are usually associated with early spring nectar. But per the gardening expert, “Their fluffy seed heads are a valuable food source for birds such as goldfinches and sparrows”.

That’s why leaving a few to go to seed can be so valuable for struggling wildlife.

2) Nettles

Though they might sting us, they provide food for butterfly species like the red admiral and tortoiseshell.

“When temperatures start to drop, nettle patches also provide shelter for insects preparing to overwinter,” Bonnett added.

3) Thistles

Despite its reputation as a weed, the Wildlife Trusts points out that the seeds of the thistle offer food to birds like goldfinches, even after their flowers stop providing nectar for butterflies like the small copper.

Bonnett agrees: “As their flowering season comes to an end and their seed heads are ripening, they offer a feast for flocks of goldfinches and other birds.”

4) Dock

Not only can these provide welcome relief for any accidental stings (seeing as nettles have their place in your winter garden), but they deliver both food and shelter too.

“Dock’s large, broad leaves create sheltered microhabitats and their leaves are a vital food source for the larvae of insects like the green dock beetle,” Bonnett said.

“In late summer and early autumn, its seeds provide a reliable food source for seed-eating birds.”

5) Broadleaf plantain

You might notice this growing in the cracks of pavements and on your borders.

“Its broad leaves provide food for small mammals like rabbits, as well as insects such as bees, hoverflies and certain caterpillars,” Bonnett said.

“The dense rosettes also offer shelter for insects and other small creatures, making it a valuable plant for biodiversity.”

UK Gardeners Urged To Pee In Watering Cans For 2 Surprising Benefits

Posted on 07/07/2025 by Boris Clair

The UK’s recent heatwave has ended (for now), meaning watering and mowing rules have gone back to normal for gardeners.

Still, a bowl of water left in your garden remains useful for animals like hedgehogs, and though this week is safer than last for trimming your grass, you might want to keep your cut shreds on the lawn.

And according to author and former garden manager for various Royal Horticultural Society and National Trust sites, Simon Akeroyd, apparently, we should be peeing in our watering cans too.

“Sorry if this horrifies you,” a recent Instagram Reel of his read, “But the key to successfully growing plants is natural fertiliser.”

Why pay for specially-made products, the gardener argued, when “you have free access to the best natural stuff out there” – pee?

How could pee possibly help plants grow?

Calling your very own liquid gold the “best plant food” out there, Akeroyd shared that wee is “high in the three main plant nutrients needed for healthy plant growth – nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.

“It’s particularly high in nitrogen,” he continued.

Nitrogen is key to plant health as it provides the building blocks of their DNA (though too much isn’t great for them either – nitrogen created by sewage can throw off the ecosystems of waterways, leading to too much algae).

That may be why Akeroyd recommends diluting your free plant feed “at a rate of about ten parts water to one part wee.”

Once placed in a watering can, t can be used to treat plants “once a week,” he added.

The expert isn’t alone – a 2017 paper published in Environmental Science and Technology reads, “Human urine contains significant amounts of N (nitrogen) and P (phosphorus); therefore, it has been successfully used as fertiliser in different crops.”

“Humans have been collecting urine and using it for fertiliser for a long, long time, but then in the west that really stopped with the invention of [the] sewage system,” Dr Krista Wigginton, who researched the topic, told The Guardian.

“We are just trying now to figure out with this infrastructure system that we have, how do we pull back and think differently about what goes into this sewage system and capture some of those valuable products before [they] get mixed and diluted with everything else?”

Does pee get rid of foxes?

Some people report that male human pee, and especially the first one of the day, can repel foxes by interrupting their scent markers.

“Once the fox’s scent has been masked, they will feel more vulnerable and leave your garden altogether. This is a free, effective, if not a bit strange way to get rid of foxes without killing them,” Shield Pest Control wrote.

As Black Foxes UK said, there’s no empirical evidence to prove this definitely works yet.

But hey – if you’re using it to feed your plants anyway, it might be a welcome side-effect.

UK Gardeners Urged To Put Garlic In Plant Water ‘Til October

Posted on 10/06/2025 by Boris Clair

Though slugs are rarely welcome in a gardener’s backyard, the Royal Horticultural Society have not classified them as “pests” for years now.

That’s partly because less than a quarter of the species in the UK actually eat your plants, while all of the maligned molluscs provide a food source for the UK’s shrinking bird population.

For these reasons, British gardeners have been discouraged from using pellets to deter the critters.

Other methods, like placing a halved orange or melon skin in your garden or conducting torchlit searches at night, can remove them from vulnerable saplings without killing all of them off indiscriminately.

And, as BBC Gardeners’ World writes, a bulb of garlic can help too.

Garlic water can repel slugs

According to the publication, “A home-made garlic spray can be effective in deterring slugs and snails from your plants” if applied regularly.

Allicin, a compound in garlic, both helps to repel and, sometimes, kill slugs and snails, botanist James Wong wrote for The Guardian.

For that reason, he says, you should only apply it to the most vulnerable plants (young seedlings and tender-stemmed plants count).

To make the garlic water concentrate, Gardeners’ World writes, boil one bulb of garlic per litre of water (they did two bulbs and two litres) until they’re soft.

James Wong, meanwhile, recommends blending a bulb of garlic with 1L of water, letting the liquid sit for ten minutes before straining “for the chemical reaction that creates allicin to complete.”

James uses his blitzed, rather than cooked, garlic water as-is, but Gardeners’ World dilutes two tablespoons of their boiled concentrate per 5L of water.

Whichever method you choose, you can spray it on affected plants “just as night begins to fall.”

How much should I apply, and how often?

For targeted slug and snail management, you should apply it “liberally.”

Gardeners’ World says you should spray or water with it once a week or after rain.

Specialist growers Sienna Hosta agree: they say we should water our plants with the stuff once weekly from February ’til October, when slugs are more active.

We should reapply it more often after heavy rainfall.

Monty Don Urges UK Gardeners To Do 1 Job First Thing In The Morning This June

Posted on 04/06/2025 by Boris Clair

Gardeners will be glad to hear that our unusually dry, hot spring is set to give way to rain (even if nobody else is).

Now, it seems, we might all be able to focus a little more on the ordinary course of gardening.

And for legend Monty Don, that means getting our veggies out of the “hungry gap” of growth and into the ground, ready to fruit in a couple of months.

Tomatoes, in particular, need help this month, he said, advising us to do one growth-promoting job “first thing in the morning” to boost our yield.

You should remove side shoots

On his site, Don shared that we should “Regularly pinch out side-shoots on tomatoes” in June.

“It is best – and easiest – to do this first thing in the morning when the plant is turgid and they will snap off easily in your fingers.”

Though the side shoots of tomatoes do bear fruit, they “reduce the overall harvest” by taking energy away from branches that would otherwise carry far more tomatoes.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) agreed, writing that the rule particularly applies to Cordon tomatoes.

They advised us to remove side shoots every time we water the plant, though they might not be as full and easy to move as they are in the morning.

“If they’re not removed, the side-shoots grow rapidly, forming a mass of long, scrambling, leafy stems that are difficult to support, produce few fruits and take up a lot of space,” the RHS add.

This should not be done with bush tomatoes, whose side shoots produce plentiful fruit.

Are there any other ways to boost growth?

Yes – strangely enough, tapping your tomato plants might increase self-pollination and improve your plant’s bounty.

The plants have unusually heavy and sticky pollen, which usually requires either pollinators or wind (bees or breeze) to transfer.

That can be a problem if they’re in a still, bug-free greenhouse – but tapping the flowers even a little, or shaking the plant, can go a long way.

UK Gardeners Urged To Take A Cotton Bud To Their Lawn

Posted on 03/05/2025 by Boris Clair

As the warmer spring rolls around, gardeners might be gearing up to mow their lawns.

But Timothy Greene at icanlawn.com has said that it might be a little too early for some lawns; and cutting them now can even cause some significant damage.

“People might be keen to get their gardens sorted in time for spring but mowing your lawn when the grass is too short can cause damage and stop it growing back properly,” he said.

There’s actually a specific height at which it’s safe to cut your lawn ― and you can find it by taking a cotton bud to your lawn, Greene says.

How?

“The ideal height for grass to be before you cut is around 5cm to 7cm, which is around the same height as a cotton earbud,” the lawn expert revealed.

“This height means the grass is growing well and is safe to cut. But you should also make sure there’s no frost and the lawn isn’t wet either,” he says.

It’s important to make sure that you have your lawnmower on its highest setting when lopping your lawn, Greene says. This will ensure you don’t accidentally harm your lawn by cutting its grass too short.

If your grass never manages to reach the cotton bud height, Greene warns, you could have an underlying problem in your lawn.

“Lawns have had to deal with frost, heavy rain, and other challenges over the winter so there might be areas that need extra care. Whether that’s a feed to battle any diseases or new seeds sowed to cover patches,” Greene said.

What’s the best time to cut my lawn?

Aside from waiting until your grass is tall enough to cut, you should also keep an eye out on the weather, Greene warns.

Mowing your lawn after a frosty night could weaken the grass, he suggests.

“Mid-March is a good time to give your grass its first cut of the year but of course, weather conditions vary so keep an eye on your local forecast to get the right grass-cutting conditions,” Greene explains.

“Your grass’ growth will have stopped over winter but generally kickstarts again when temperatures are around 10C,” he adds.

“You should also make sure your mower’s blades are not too dull as this could cause damage to your grass. And in turn, make sure your lawn is clear from debris so that it doesn’t cause damage to your mower.”

Once you’ve gotten your grass high enough, and the weather warm enough, to get strumming, you should keep a schedule, Greene says.

“After the first mow of the year, you should aim to cut your grass weekly. But do keep an eye on the weather as it can be unpredictable.”

Ah, the joys of a British garden…

This Humane, Chemical-Free Slug Repellant is Probably Already In Your Kitchen

Posted on 09/04/2025 by Boris Clair

There are no two ways about it: some slugs can be disastrous for your garden. Between eating your veggies, boring holes in your hydrangeas, and even tunnelling into your tubers (yes, really), the legless leaf-lovers have historically been the enemy of the common British gardener.

Of course, we now know that slugs have their part to play in the ecosystem (even if you wish they didn’t play it so close to your radishes). They’re a vital food source for Britain’s rapidly-decreasing bird population; they do a great job at composting; and they help the overall biodiversity and ecological balance of your lawn (never a bad thing).

Cruelty-free hacks to remove slugs from your garden include putting a scooped-out melon in your yard overnight for the critters before removing the beast-filled rinds the next morning.

And while we love that hack, it seems there’s another, easier trick to keep your veggies slug-free – and it also helps with everything from scaring off birds to keeping deer away and even creating sunboxes.

Simple aluminium foil, it turns out, is the gardener’s best friend. So we thought we’d share some of its many uses:

1) It makes a great pest control

Herbicides can be harsher on your garden’s health than they are to the pests you want to target. “If you’ve got children, if you’ve got pets, you shouldn’t be using chemicals. But what’s worse is if you are using chemicals, you’re killing our pollinators, which we need for food production. I am very much against any chemicals and herbicides being used,” gardening expert Arthur Parkinson told HuffPost UK.

Thankfully, adding a bit of foil to your plants won’t kill off any all-important pollinators – it’ll just inhibit some slugs and other unwanted garden guests. “Reflective mulches repel invading insect populations,” the University of California shared.

And when it comes to slugs, the foil uses roughly the same logic as copper tape – “the metal causes a reaction with their mucusy bodies that they really don’t like,” Metro said.

Simply place some sheets of foil around the base of your plants for pest-repelling magic.

2) Tinfoil can create helpful sunboxes

If you’re worried your plants aren’t getting enough light, a little foil can go a long way. “Using aluminium foil can help you double the sun your indoor plants receive,” House Digest revealed.

This is because “its reflective properties will work as a mirror and reflect the light from the window to every niche and cranny of your indoor plants,” meaning you won’t have to turn your potted plants around as often to ensure every side gets as much light.

And they’re not just for indoor plants – “they also work to grow any seedlings indoors and help new plants from the nursery grow straighter and stronger.”

You can either assemble a tinfoil-lined box yourself using foil, tape, and cardboard.

3) Tinfoil can scare off birds and deer

Though it’s not really a good idea to scare off birds if they’re not causing a problem, under severe conditions, you can banish any unwanted birds by wrapping foil on or around your most-pecked plants. “Birds don’t like the feel of the foil under their beaks and will stay away,” Northwest says.

The trick also works for peckish deer, who HowStuffWorks says hate the shiny stuff. They advise wrapping foil around the stem of any deer-demolished plants: “The foil should at least be as high as your waist because deer are very adept (at) feeding on plants that are shorter than they are. This foil force field can also deter other pesky nibblers like mice and rabbits,” they say.

Well, I’m off to the kitchen…

UK Gardeners Advised To Do These 6 Tasks In March

Posted on 28/02/2025 by Boris Clair

When I texted my partner, “You won’t believe what I’ve just seen!” this morning, I think he figured I’d witnessed a crime.

Nope ― it’s just that my 7:45 return from the gym was bathed in real, blue-skied sunlight. That felt unthinkable even two weeks ago.

This sign of life sounds the first death knell for February, to which I say, good riddance. Spring is on its way; intrepid blossoms take their first floral gasps of above-0° air, and the garden begins to return to its verdant glory.

Of course, all this comes with a downside (or upside, depending on your perspective). Don your dormant gloves, gardeners ― we’re back to work!

Here are the tasks experts advise finishing in March:

1) Plant and sow

Now’s the time to plant everything from summer-flowering bulbs to new roses to shrubs, climbers, and wildflower seeds.

You can also sow onions and shallots, alongside other hardy veg like cabbage, lettuce, early potatoes, broad beans, radish, and cauliflower.

2) Prune roses

For the most bountiful display in spring and summer, it’s important to prune roses and climbers early on in the month ― dogwoods and willows will benefit from a harsher cut-back now too.

3) Weed, even if the weeds don’t look all that damaging

We’ve written before about how tackling perennial weeds before summer hits is key, even if they don’t look like they’re doing much harm.

They’ve growing thick, hard-to-remove roots at the moment; lift them and their roots from the ground as soon as you can to save yourself a horticultural headache later.

4) Get ahead of slug infestations

Slugs and snails seem to wake up the second your prized veggies do (funny, that).

Try biological controls or alternatives to keep their numbers in check ahead of spring.

5) Check for aphids too

Tender new stems don’t stand much of a chance against swarms of spring aphids. Manually remove them before the problem goes out of control.

6) Deadhead spring flowers

We were all excited when the first daffodils puffed their yellow chests up, but it’s important to deadhead those who have since wilted.

That’ll ensure an equally resplendent show next year, especially if you feed the bulbs with tomato feed.

Ready To Get Back To Gardening? Here Are 3 Bulbs You Can Plant In February

Posted on 13/02/2025 by Boris Clair

If you have spent your winter days cosy indoors, not thinking about your beloved garden, now is the time to get back out there. While the temperatures are still low, the days are gradually getting brighter for longer and before we know it, spring will be with us.

What better way to prepare for the gorgeous days ahead than to plant some blooms to bring our gardens back to life?

Just think, we are mere weeks away from sitting outside with drinks, snacks and the sounds of nature surroudning us. Bliss.

The bulbs you should plant in February

Lilies

Often showstoppers in domestic gardens, lilies are surprisingly easy to grow and you can actually get started with them this month. Faith in Nature recommends: “Pop them 15-20cm into the ground now and enjoy their dramatic, highly-scented flowers come summer.

“They prefer to be in a sunny area of the garden, and like their soil well-drained. If the ground in your garden is water-logged, they can be grown in pots – which is also good news if you’re a patio gardener.”

Plus, butterflies and bees love them.

Chrysanthemum plants

These bold, bright plants effortlessly add texture and colour to gardens and this month, you can get started with planting them for stunning summer blooms.

Gardener’s World recommends: “Pot on rooted cuttings and small plants bought from garden centres into individual 10cm pots and pot on again when their roots have filled their growing space.

“Plant out after all risk of frost has passed, into moist but well-drained soil in a sheltered, sunny spot. Dig plenty of organic matter into the planting hole or apply a general purpose fertiliser. Provide support straight away.”

Galtonias (summer hyacinths)

Galtonia, also known as summer hyacinths, are a stunning way to punctuate any colourful garden. These flower later in the summer season, bringing some much-needed life to gardens that are starting to wind down ahead of cooler months.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) recommends planting bulbs 10-15cm deep (at 30-60cm intervals) in late winter or early spring.

Ah, it’s so good to be back, isn’t it?

This Common Mistake May Be Ruining Your Poinsettia Before Christmas

Posted on 11/12/2024 by Boris Clair

Poinsettias weren’t always a common Christmas flower in the UK ― but flower company Bloom & Wild say they became that way thanks to their festive colour and star-like shape.

So if you’ve got one in your home, chances are you’re trying your hardest to keep it fresh throughout the festive season.

Thankfully, David Denyer, an expert florist at Eflorist, told HuffPost UK that there are some surefire ways to accidentally kill your festive plant before it’d otherwise fade ― including some “people often overlook.”

What could cause an early plant death?

“Pests are a big issue that people often overlook. Aphids, whiteflies, and mealybugs are drawn to the fragile leaves of poinsettias,” David told us.

“If the leaves appear curled or feel sticky, it’s often a clear indication of a pest problem,” he added.

You can protect other surrounding plants by removing the affected plant from their area and treating it with insecticide or neem oil.

“Another comment problem is people often believe that yellowing leaves are solely due to overwatering, but in many cases, it could also indicate low light or a lack of nutrients,” David continues.

Poinsettias do need a bit of extra care in terms of nutrients, especially after they’ve been moved from one place to another or after Christmas. A slow-release fertiliser can make a difference in terms of overall health.”

How should I take care of poinsettia?

Even if you’re not worried about murdering your flower entirely, David has some tips for keeping it at its best.

Most of us over-water our poinsettia, he points out: “You have to focus on not letting the plant sit in water,” he stresses.

It’s an easy trap to fall into because people often water their poinsettias frequently, but they don’t check if the soil has good drainage. The plant’s survival is more about the quality of the watering routine than the quantity.”

Misting the leaves with water is a much better option than drenching the leaves ― you shouldn’t leave droplets on the bracts or they’ll “develop unsightly spots,” David warns.

You might want to move your plant from that spot by your window too, the flower expert says.

“Poinsettias are incredibly sensitive to changes, particularly temperature fluctuations. Avoid placing them near places where drafts or sudden warm air from vents can affect them,” he told HuffPost UK.

“The changes in temperature can be subtle but enough to cause them to shed their leaves.”

And “While they enjoy bright, indirect light, some people make the mistake of giving them too much direct sunlight, which causes the leaves to burn.”

Looks like I have a plant pot to move…