UK’s garden centres hope sunshine and Chelsea flower show will help them rebound from the rain

A cold, damp spring depressed plant sales in the UK, but help is at hand from the ‘Glastonbury festival of the gardening world’

The sixth-wettest April on record has not been kind to Britain’s gardens or its 1,600 garden centres.

So far this year, with most of the key selling season over, garden centre sales are up just 2% on last year and down 11% on 2022, after the sodden spring depressed sales of shrubs, trees, bedding plants and seeds.

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* This article was originally published here

* This article was originally published here

UK’s garden centres hope sunshine and Chelsea flower show will help them rebound from the rain

A cold, damp spring depressed plant sales in the UK, but help is at hand from the ‘Glastonbury festival of the gardening world’

The sixth-wettest April on record has not been kind to Britain’s gardens or its 1,600 garden centres.

So far this year, with most of the key selling season over, garden centre sales are up just 2% on last year and down 11% on 2022, after the sodden spring depressed sales of shrubs, trees, bedding plants and seeds.

Continue reading...

* This article was originally published here

How to grow your best tomato

Whether your garden is in its first year or 50th, here’s how to get a bumper crop of homegrown tomatoes.

* This article was originally published here

No dining table? You can still throw a grown-up dinner party.

Entertaining experts agree: You don’t need a table — and certainly not a dining room — to host a memorable evening. Here’s what they recommend.

* This article was originally published here

How to embrace Japan’s micro-seasons in your own garden

Observing fleeting seasonal changes goes hand in hand with gardening – and bring about a profound sense of calm

In Japan, people eat, sleep and wear the seasons, from elegant kimono motifs to petal-shaped sweets and festivals dedicated to nature’s spectacular displays. Unlike its western equivalent, Japan’s ancient agricultural calendar is governed not solely by the waxing and waning of the moon and the sun’s position in the sky, but also by the blooming of seasonal flowers and other small changes in nature against the wider backdrop of the seasons.

According to the traditional Japanese almanac, the year is divided into four major seasons, 24 sekki (solar terms), and 72 kō, or micro-seasons. Each kō lasts only five days and is associated with specific seasonal rituals, foods, flowers and festivals.

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* This article was originally published here

The city made him hide his boat — so he had it painted on his fence

“I’ll do what they want, but I’m not going to do it their way” — one resident’s cheeky response to a city ordinance has made his fence a viral sensation.

* This article was originally published here

Think you want a dog? Take our quiz to find out if you’re ready.

Money, time, activity level, space — what really matters when it comes to dog ownership?

* This article was originally published here