Gardening Posts Archives | Thompson & Morgan Blog

How to choose the best bare root roses

by Thompson & Morgan | Nov 12, 2025 | Gardening Posts, Roses | 0 Comments

Image: Rose ‘Raspberry Cupcake’ (Hybrid Tea) from Thompson & Morgan

Late autumn to early spring is the UK’s bare root season, and it’s the best time to buy and plant roses. Lifted from the field while dormant, bare root roses are a cost-effective way to fill your garden with scent and colour.

This year, our horticultural team has introduced a wide choice of new and special varieties to T&M’s bare root rose collection. Whether you’re looking for a bush, climbing, hybrid tea or floribunda rose, learn more about the new and exciting bare root varieties that you can snap up now, ahead of container season…

Browse our full range of bare root roses for inspiration.

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

Featured Gardener: Mandy Bradshaw

by Thompson & Morgan | Nov 10, 2025 | Featured Gardener, Gardening Posts | 0 Comments

Close-up bouquet of fiery orange and red dahlias.

Image courtesy of ©thechattygardener.com

Mandy (@thechattygardener) wanted to be a journalist from the age of seven, but had no idea that her ambition would blossom into a career in garden writing and photography. Ten years after launching her inspirational blog, this award-winning journalist still spends as much time as possible outdoors.

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

Featured Gardener: Kate Smith

by Thompson & Morgan | Oct 13, 2025 | Featured Gardener, Gardening Posts | 0 Comments

Smiling gardener holding an armful of pastel snapdragons against a brick wall and green door.

Image courtesy of Kate Smith

When Kate Smith from @homegrown_blooms experimented with a few Halloween pumpkin seeds, she had no idea that it would snowball into a thriving veg patch filled with tomatoes, potatoes, sprouts and lettuce. But it was when she started sowing flower seeds that something really clicked – the colours, the movement, the way they cheer you up in a matter of minutes… Find out why growing flowers is where the magic happens for Kate.

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

Featured Gardener: Sammy Stringer

by Thompson & Morgan | Sep 8, 2025 | Featured Gardener, Gardening Posts | 0 Comments

Close up of Samantha Stringer holding a pink dahlia

Image courtesy of Sammy Stringer

When Sammy (@insammysgarden_) bought her first home in 2019, she had zero gardening experience. Fast forward a few years and she’s transformed her corner-plot garden into a cottage-style haven filled with dahlias, foxgloves, and pollinator-friendly plants – and even picked up medals at RHS and BBC Gardeners’ World Live shows. Discover how she went from beginner to award winner, and why her next challenge is creating a 100% pink paradise at home…

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

7 plants to brighten up your balcony this winter

by Thompson & Morgan | Sep 5, 2025 | Gardening Posts, Winter gardening | 1 Comment

Winter heathers add splashes of colour to containers over winter
Image: Shutterstock

What better way to brighten up the dark and gloomy months of winter than by planting a balcony full of colourful winter-flowering shrubs and bedding plants?

Here are seven of our favourites, all of which are suitable for planting in patio pots and containers. Winter may be upon us but, with this little collection, your balcony will be a beacon of loveliness to brighten even the gloomiest of grey days. For more ideas on bringing a splash of colour into your home and garden, browse the information and advice over at our winter flowers hub page.

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

Grow your own onion sets and save money

by Kris Collins | Sep 2, 2025 | Gardening Posts, Vegetables | 0 Comments

Grow your own onions to help save money
Image: Onion ‘Sturon’ (Spring Planting) from Thompson & Morgan

There’s never been a better time to plant your own onion sets. Easy-to-grow and full of flavour, home-grown onions are often bigger than those in the shops and they store exceptionally well too. Best of all, they’re great value for money.

Depending on the time of year, you’ll need to choose from autumn-planting or spring-planting onion sets. Here’s a quick summary of each…

Kris Collins

Kris Collins works as Thompson & Morgan’s quality control manager, making sure customers new and old are kept up to date on the latest plant developments and company news via a wide range of media sources. He trained in London’s Royal Parks and has spent more than a decade writing for UK gardening publications before joining the team at Thompson & Morgan.

Featured Gardener: Christina Carpenter

by Thompson & Morgan | Aug 11, 2025 | Featured Gardener, Gardening Posts | 0 Comments

woman kneeling next to a planter of flowering bulbs

Image courtesy of Christina Carpenter

When Christina Carpenter moved into her Devonshire home two years ago, the garden was a complete blank canvas. Since then, Christina (also known as @lady_green_fingers) has transformed it into a vibrant, wildlife-friendly space bursting with flowers, homegrown veg, and unique upcycled projects. Discover how she created a tranquil haven for herself and the occasional hedgehog…

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

How to choose the best pots for container gardening

by Mandy Bradshaw | Jul 23, 2025 | Gardening Posts, Gardening Tips, Windowsill Grower | 0 Comments

There are many ways to create a garden, and you don’t need acres of space, tonnes of soil or a green lawn to do it. A few carefully chosen pots, troughs, planters, windowboxes and raised beds will quickly transform a bland space into a mini oasis or a productive veg patch. And, if you live in a rental property, you can take them all with you when you leave.

Browse our full range of containers and plant pots for more inspiration.

Mandy Bradshaw

Cotswold-based, Garden Media Guild member, Mandy Bradshaw is also known as the Chatty Gardener. Passionate about gardening and writing, her beginnings are in football reporting for her primary school, and Mesembryanthemum planting with her mother. Winner of the ‘Garden Journalist of the Year’ in the 2018 Property Press Awards, she writes for not only her own blog but also newspapers, magazines and other sites.

Finalist in Garden Media Guild Awards for 2022 – Category ‘Blog or Vlog of the Year’

thechattygardener.com/

Gardening Grant Helps Community Garden Thrive

by Thompson & Morgan | Jul 21, 2025 | Gardening News, Gardening Posts | 0 Comments

Image courtesy of MindSpace Stamford

To celebrate our 170th birthday, we created the Grow Your Garden Grant – a £250 voucher to support a UK charity, community group, school or gardening club with their growing goals. This year’s winner, MindSpace Stamford, used the grant to support their Wellbeing Garden – a peaceful space where gardening helps nurture community connection and mental wellbeing.

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

Featured Gardener: Michelle Washington-Jenkins

by Thompson & Morgan | Jul 7, 2025 | Featured Gardener, Gardening Posts | 0 Comments

Woman holding a large bouquet of purple flowers in a polytunnel.

Image courtesy of Michelle Washington-Jenkins

After a career in dance and co-founding a talent agency, Michelle Washington-Jenkins stepped back to raise her three children – and unearthed a passion for gardening. Today, she’s a trained horticulturist, professional flower grower and the digital creator known as @floriansbotanical, sharing her love of seasonal blooms from her beautiful Victorian walled garden in Hampshire. Discover how Michelle built a flower-filled life from scratch – and why her greenhouse is the beating heart of both her growing and creativity.

Thompson & Morgan

The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.

Thompson & Morgan Gardening Blog

How to choose the best bare root roses

Featured Gardener: Mandy Bradshaw

Featured Gardener: Kate Smith

Featured Gardener: Sammy Stringer

7 plants to brighten up your balcony this winter

Grow your own onion sets and save money

Featured Gardener: Christina Carpenter

How to choose the best pots for container gardening

Gardening Grant Helps Community Garden Thrive

Featured Gardener: Michelle Washington-Jenkins

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