Many may have tried growing garlic at the allotment, but wild garlic is to be found now, from March to June, in shady spots commonly across England and Wales. Easily identifiable by its distinct aroma, you are sure to know when you are about to stumble across this edible treat.

To maximise the use of this wild crop the young leaves can be utilised raw in salads (best to be picked whilst the plant is still flowering). These leaves tend to have an intense, garlic smell but are mild in flavour. Why not try as an alternative to chives? The pretty white flowers of the garlic are also edible, and are attractive in a salad.

The bulbs can also be eaten; dug up and enjoyed as a milder version of the shop bought garlic cloves. Remember to check before you eat any wild plant as it may not be what you think, and could even be poisonous.

With local governments reluctant to release any land for new allotment sites, the 100000 people in the UK who are currently on waiting lists may finally get a chance at growing their own veg.

The National Trust in collaboration with Landshare, who match land to prospective growers, has announced the release of land for up to 1000 allotments on some of its properties and country estates.

Landshare was the brain child of TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall who has achieved notoriety for his “Chicken Out” campaign and the famous “River Cottage” TV programme. He has recently been advocating for more people to grow their own veg and has been putting pressure on local and national government to help make more land available.

The National Trust is releasing land at 40 different locations that will be available from around 2012 and will feature small plots and large community areas. The scheme has the backing of celebrities and the general public alike.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall stated:

“I’m completely thrilled with this fantastic pledge from the National Trust to offer 1,000 growing spaces to Landshare. This pledge alone has the potential to make a difference to many thousands of people – not just those who grow, but those with whom they share their wonderful produce. These kinds of initiatives offer immeasurable benefits to communities across a whole host of areas – from good health, to helping minimise our impact on the environment, to simply bringing people together”

Native Americans used to practice companion planting called the “three sisters”. The Iroquois women used this technique to grow their 3 most important crops: Beans, squash and maize.

They produced mounds of soil a stride apart. On the top of each mound several maize seeds were planted, and then 2 weeks later a bean seed was added. After the maize and beans had germinated a squash seed was planted at the base of the mound.

As the maize grew, the bean would use it for support (whilst adding nitrogen into the soil for the maize and squash), and to provide shade for the squash to spread across the ground (suppressing the weeds).

All 3 crops grew together benefiting from their friendly relationship and producing good crops of excellent quality.

If you don’t have an allotment or any space in your garden to grow your own vegetables there is a viable option.

Certain types of vegetables can be grown extremely effectively in growbags or containers. It is however important to get as large a container as possible with lots of drain holes. The container should be preferably placed in a spot that is within easy reach that enjoys sunny periods throughout the day but is not in direct sunlight or shade.

If you only have a sunny spot, there are however certain types of specific plant that can be grown, like chillies, peppers or tomatoes (which can be grown really successfully in a growbag).

In a sunny/shady spot you can grow all types of veg like, potatoes, carrots, parsnips, onions, beetroot and garlic. You do however need to take into consideration the root formation of the type of veg you grow, because some veg need more room for their root systems than others.

If you have a plot of land on which you have decided to grow fruit and vegetables, one of the first things you will need to do is assess your soil. Soil types vary across the country, even across a plot!

To get the best out of the soil, it is important to identify what type you are dealing with. Soil texture may fall into the following categories: Clay, silt or sand. These are categorised by the size of the grains of the soil, and their corresponding nutrient levels.

Clay soil is made of fine particles, which clump together, and become heavy and often waterlogged. There are few air spaces and poor drainage in clay soil. It can be hard for plants to force their roots into this soil, but it can be rich in nutrients. Organic matter can be added to improve the texture.

Sandy soil has a gritty texture. This means that water drains quickly through it, leaving it dry with little water for plants. As a consequence, sandy soil can be poor in nutrients, and needs organic matter to add the nutrients required.

Silty soil falls somewhere between clay and sand, with fine particles, rich in nutrients but free draining.

If you start hanging round the garden centres or listening to gardeners, you’re bound to hear the terms ‘potting up’ or ‘potting on’, but what the heck are they talking about?

Potting up, also called potting off, just means Read the rest of this entry »

Some people love the idea of being able to sit out in their garden and feed their pond fish.  However, if your pond is well set up and managed, it should be self-supporting.  The fish will be able to feed on tiny water life such as water snail eggs and mosquito larvae.  Indeed, if they didn’t eat these, then they’d overgrow to an unmanageable amount. Read the rest of this entry »

If you cannot be bothered to mow your lawn, here’s a new way to do it!

Well, if you’re planning any gardening over the Easter weekend, it doesn’t look good.  It seems that the weather forecast is showing showers for Friday, Saturday and Sunday leaving just the Monday to do any light gardening.

If you have a greenhouse, then you might be lucky enough to be able to follow Read the rest of this entry »

Some people grudgingly put up with gardening because they want a pretty garden and somewhere to play with the kids and the dog.  Some people truly resent gardening enough that they will hire a gardener to mow the lawn and keep the weeds down.  Some people hate gardening so much that they gravel or patio the entire area and don’t even want to be bothered keeping plant pots on it.

But the people I really hate are Read the rest of this entry »