Thompson & Morgan Gardening Blog

Our gardening blog covers a wide variety of topics, including fruit, vegetable and tree stories. Read some of the top gardening stories right here.

Propagation, planting out and cultivation posts from writers that know their subjects well.

Watch out plants – No hiding place!

by | Jan 10, 2017 | , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Christmas? Well thank goodness that’s over! So used to being outdoors am I (virtuous, smug) that being confined to quarters made me as sleepy as a dormouse. I reckon I was spending 14 hours a day either in or on the bed! Buoyed up by the prospect of increased day length (1 minute per day, yippee!) I have taken to mooching around the garden, peering at the earth for signs of life. And I haven’t been disappointed: crocus, snowdrops, narcissi; pulmonaria, cyclamen, Lords and Ladies; hellebores, scuttelaria integrifolia (Blue Helmet, cross between mint and salvia – look it up, it’s a thug but great for shade), sedum; and at eye level Clematis Freckles, little darling it is!

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Cleaning up garden tools for the winter

by | Jan 6, 2017 | , , | 2 Comments

Cleaning Garden tools for winter

    garden tools needing a clean

    A good garden tool isn’t just for Christmas ….

    A cliché, but true. Proper tool maintainance, from the humble trowel to the mighty cultivator, will extend their useful life considerably. Regular cleaning, oiling, sharpening and generally looking after them will also make your life a lot easier. Some tools may only need an annual service whilst others will benefit from being cleaned after each use.

    I have to admit that I’m no angel all the time when it comes to this, and I’m sure there have been times when we’ve all left a pair of secateurs outside or put dirty spades and forks away in the shed. When was the last time you sharpened your shears properly and gave your Dutch hoe some TLC?

    As it’s now that time of year when a lot of the garden has been put to bed and tools are away for the winter. The lawn mower has gone into hibernation in the shed or garage like a bear settling down for the winter and even the hedge cutter can find a roost and be hung up until it’s needed again.
    But before all that happens, I need to be kind to my tools so that I can use them when I need to come spring!

    First of all, anything with a blade I will give a good clean. I’ll use a strong detergent, water as hot as I can bear a scrubbing brush and one of those sponges with a scourer on one side. It’s so easy to let a build up of rubbish, gunk, sap etc accumulate, especially on secateurs and loppers; scrape off the worst of it using another blade (I use the knife on my trusty Multitool) and then give them a good scrub. Once they’re all clean and dried, sharpen them using a file or whetstone if you have one, they’re cheap to buy anyway and well worth getting one. You’ll get a much keener edge on the blade, which will make pruning later on much easier and you’ll also get a cleaner cut, which will reduce the chances of disease getting in! One I’ve sharpened the blade, checked it and put a plaster on my thumb where I found out it was VERY sharp, I put a drop of oil on the hinge and any other parts that move and I also then spray the blades with WD40.

    digging spade, raking leaves, trowel and fork

    Next on my list are the hand tools; the trowels, spades, rakes and hoes etc. These are usually the ones that take the hardest beating each year, and so also end up looking the worst of all.
    A good scrape of the worst of the built up dirt followed by a wire brush to really give them a thorough clean and then the detergent and scourer again to finish them off. Once the metal parts have all dried I wipe them over with an oily rag or again a light spray with WD40

    I have heard a tip from a friend who has a bucket of sharp sand in his shed, which has been mixed with motor oil, when he comes in with used tools, he plunges them in and out of the bucket, the sand helps to clean the tools and the oil preserves against rust. I haven’t tried this I admit, it sounds like a good idea, but knowing me, I’d stub my toe on the bucket or kick it over!

    Although much rarer these days, some of my tools have wooden handles, these handle can dry out and potentially split, or become weak and break under strain. A clean, light sanding and then a liberal dose of teak oil keeps the wood in good condition and also helps to keep it more flexible too.

    I know a lot of people recommend and use linseed oil on their gardening tools, to preserve blades, prevent rust and on wooden handles etc. I am perhaps overly cautious though and don’t really want to have anything that could potentially burst into flames if I forget to do something like clear up properly. I’ll stick with WD40 and teak oil, thank you very much!

    I’m not a mechanic by any means but I do carry out a few simpler tasks on any garden machinery I own. For major things I always use a professional as it’s just not worth doing a “bodge” job on any piece of machinery that could go wrong and be expensive to replace!

    Cleaning is probably the most important part, especially on your lawn mower, the build up inside the deck of old grass, mud, leaves and goodness knows what else can lead to rust holes on a metal deck, or an inefficient grass collection, the blades catching in internal debris can be harmful too.

    cleaning lawn mower

    If you have a petrol mower, tip it back in the direction recommended by the manufacturer, if you don’t then trust me, the oil can go everywhere, and this can REALLY mess things up later on. I usually use an old paint scraper to get rid of the worst, then it’s back to brushes and hot soapy water to give it a thorough scrub. Whilst you’re waiting for it to dry off, take the blade off if you can (wearing gloves of course) and test the cutting edges. Sharpen using a file, balance it and put it back. If in doubt, take it somewhere that can sharpen mower blades and balance them properly. If a rotary mower blade isn’t balanced then the vibrations it will cause when in use will seriously harm the machine, not to mention it being absolutely awful to use too!

    Check the oil regularly of course, and clean out air filters, or replace them, this goes for all petrol machinery throughout the year. It’s a similar routine for tillers and any other large, driven machinery. As a matter of course, before I start any machine, I always check the spark plug lead is intact and that it’s firmly seated onto the plug itself, this is from past experience and prevents some head scratching as to why the machine won’t start!

    The internal workings of some of my electrical equipment I honestly leave well alone. I’m nowhere near qualified to take my hedge trimmer apart, so I don’t. I really good clean and brush down, Good old WD40 on all the moving parts and check all the wires and plugs for damage is about all I can do.
    Obviously make sure your storage area is clean and dry too, no point cleaning everything up & putting it away only to find the more rust has accumulated over the winter!

    These are definitely “chores” every year, but I’ve found that it’s well worth it, keep your favourite tools clean and tidy and you’ll have as much pride in them as you will your garden!

    Obviously more hints and tips are more than welcome from everyone!

Looking Forward to 2017

by | Jan 3, 2017 | , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Petunia 'Night Sky and Bidens 'Firelight' mixed
Time moves on so quickly and 2017 will be the 5th year that I have been trialling plants for Thompson & Morgan in my multi-award winning seaside garden! Back in 2013, the first items I received were a Cox’s orange Pippin Apple Tree and a Plum Gage, Reine Claude. Back then we were sent whatever was chosen by the company and I feared that I would not be able to use then in my exposed coastal garden. Now, they are both established and have started to produce small amounts of fruit, always difficult here on the coast, with the wind blowing across the garden!

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“Kalettes” the Ghosts of Christmas past?

by | Dec 22, 2016 | , | 0 Comments

Are “Kalettes” the Ghosts of Christmas past that are now making a welcome return?


Not that we at Thompson & Morgan are keen to say “I told you so”, but the recent resurgence of Kale as a superfood and now the amazing new development of “kalettes” is somewhat old news to us.

Back in 2009 we offered Brassica ‘Petit Posy Mix’ to our customers and said:

“Petit Posy™ is similar in appearance to both Brussels sprouts and kale but the flavour and nutritional content is very similar to spring greens – perfect for fussy eaters who don’t enjoy sprouts!
The loose buttons are easy to pick off the stems and are perfect for adding to stir fries, serving steamed or microwaved and make very nutritious winter greens”

kalettes brassica petit posy mix

Also known as “kale sprouts” or even “flower sprouts” these easy to grow brassicas could well be an alternative to brussels sprouts during the festive season, they could also supplement winter veg over the whole of the season due to their very long cropping season. Extremely hardy ‘Petit Posy’ will stand throughout the winter to ensure you have access to tasty fresh vegetables whenever you need them that have a milder taste than traditional Brussels and so may well appeal more to younger members of the family too.

Available to buy from seed with 20 seeds per pack, the price has barely changed in nearly 7 years too, making our very own “kalettes” superb value for money!

Find out how to grow kalettes and more delicious leafy greens at our brassica hub page.

Deck the halls with ….romanesco?

by | Dec 20, 2016 | | 2 Comments


Grow your own dramatically different Christmas veg.

Let’s face it; like Brussels sprouts, brassicas like broccoli and cabbage, have had a bit of a bum rap over the years. However, they have recently been enjoying some really good press and are even looking quite cool in the vegetable ‘it crowd’, trending heavily and inventively in culinary circles, restaurants and in those classic Christmas gift favourites, the celebrity chef cook book.

So why not give these colourful and super nutritious vegetables a place at your Christmas dinner table this year? In festive magazines and online, you’ll find numerous interesting and tasty recipes to present them at their best. And then you can grow some yourself ready for next Christmas!

Cauliflower has had a bit of a rebrand in the last year or so; no longer the bland horror of school dinners, but now appearing on menus sliced, seasoned with chilli, garlic and cumin and served as a ‘steak’; or grated, sautéed and used instead of rice as part of one of the low-carb diets that are doing the rounds.

Broccoli too has a new friend in the Instagram fitness sensation, Joe Wicks, aka The Body Coach. His speedy, tasty and nutritious recipes often include ‘midget trees’ – broccoli florets – and indeed a 25% increase in tenderstem broccoli has been attributed in part to the online nutrition coach’s Lean in 15 recipe programme.

But the real star in the brassica family has to be broccoli’s handsome Italian cousin, the stunning romanesco. With its whirling, almost alien-looking spirals, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this vivid green marvel is some kind of genetically engineered vegetable. In fact, romanesco has been around since the 16th century and predates broccoli and cauliflower. Sometimes referred to as caulibroc or broccoflower, the flavour of cooked romanesco sits somewhere between cauliflower and broccoli, but with an added tasty ‘nuttiness’. Needless to say, it’s full of good stuff: super-rich in antioxidants, vitamin C, fibre – you name it. The thing is, due to its fabulous pointed, whorled spears, romanesco doesn’t travel terribly well. Supermarkets find it difficult to store and package. You might find them on a nice farmers’ market stall, but the best way to get your hands on these fabulous green natural marvels, is to grow your own.

So if you’re ready to up your brassica game at home, take a look at the wide range of varieties available from Thompson & Morgan. Whether you choose to grow broccoli, cauliflower or romanesco, you’ll find brassicas are easy to grow.

Here are some top tips for growing brassicas from Thompson & Morgan’s Veg Guru, Colin Randell:

  • Grow your cauliflower, broccoli and romanesco in soil that’s been well prepared.
  • Keep well watered especially during dry spells.
  • Brassicas enjoy a fortnightly liquid feed, particularly a seaweed feed, if possible.
  • If feeding or watering is erratic, this may mean head development is not as good.
  • Pick cauliflower and romanesco heads when young – you can keep a watchful eye on how they are developing by peeling back the protective leaves.
  • Many gardeners use protective garden fleece, especially when growing small cauliflower and romanesco.

Head over to our brassicas hub page to find all of our best brassica guides and variety recommendations in one easy place. To grow your own visually stunning and super tasty romanesco, click here. Seeds are available for £2.29 for 125 seeds. And to check out Thompson & Morgan’s full brassica range, go to www.thompson-morgan.com/brassicas

Katy’s Autumn Garden Update

by | Dec 20, 2016 | , , , | 0 Comments

A quick update from the garden after the growing season.

So now the colder months begin and the long, darker nights draw in I am reflecting back on the last growing year at certain successes and trials in the garden and allotment sites. One of the big successes has been the runner beans. I planted 3 different Thompson & Morgan varieties – all with different coloured flowers. I planted these down at the allotment mixed up so that when they grew it created not only tasty beans but also a lovely mix of different coloured blooms on the plants too, winding up the canes. These were perfect simply chopped up and boiled for evening meals in pastas or grated for seasonal, fresh salads. I simply kept picking them every few days and they kept on growing right into end September/October which was fantastic. A real crowd pleaser both for ease of growing and for taste value too.

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Top picks and predictions for 2017

by | Dec 14, 2016 | | 0 Comments

Master plant breeder, Charles Valin, head of Thompson & Morgan’s award-winning plant breeding programme, gives his top picks for 2017. Charles’ plant breeding accomplishments include the world’s first white bidens, the first properly dwarf buddleia, the first intensely scented trailing violas and the first ever bright blue verbascum.

strawberry just add cream, lily corsage and petunia mini rosebud romantic

1. Strawberry ‘Just add Cream’.
I’ve got high hopes for this fabulous new strawberry variety bred by us here at T&M. I’m confident that the exceptional flavour and aroma will make it the new favourite of chefs and gardeners alike.

2. Lily ‘Corsage’.
This stunning lily dates from 1961, but is still among the most elegant Asiatic Hybrids ever created. Each soft pink flower has delicate spots and a subtle eyeliner edge. It is also pollen-less, so there is no danger of staining if you use it as a cut flower and it is safe for cats.

3. Petunia ‘Mini Rosebud Romantic’.
Like a miniature version of the classic double petunia, this lovely variety is ideal if you don’t like dead heading petunias due to their stickiness – this one is absolutely non-stick!

coreopsis sunkiss, dianthus dynasty and alstromeria Sndian summer

4. Coreopsis ‘Sunkiss’.
The brightest yellow flowers and largest central blotching of any C. grandiflora type to date. This is a breakthrough in seed-raised coreopsis, allowing it to be better priced compared to traditional cutting-raised young plants. Combines well with other plants.

5. Dianthus ‘Dynasty’.
A double-flowered, more elegant version of the classic Sweet William, ‘Dynasty’ is perennial and perfect for cottage gardens. It has a lovely fragrance too and makes a fabulous cut flower.

6. Alstroemeria ‘Indian Summer’.
This variety has been around for a while, but I think it’s still the best performing Alstroemeria for the garden. The contrasting bronze foliage and never-ending blooms are hard to beat!

coronilla citrina, wasabi rocket, pepper padron and scabious kudos

7. Coronilla valentina subsp. glauca ‘Citrina’.
This plant is a gardeners’ dream: it has nice glaucous blue evergreen foliage, flowers for nine+ months of the year and its strong Narcissus fragrance wafts quite a distance even on the dullest of winter days.

8. Wasabi Rocket.
This popular salad green has even more of a kick than the traditional rocket and it’s much easier to grow than the real Japanese Wasabi plant in our climate. Just what sushi lovers have been waiting for!

9. Pepper Padron.
I have personally tried this one in Spain. It is served gilled as tapas and has become a sort of edible version of Russian roulette: they are so tasty and mild, so you tuck in confidently, thinking they’ll all be the same, but roughly 1 in 10 of them is devilishly hot! This is bound to be a favourite with chilli fans.

10. Scabious Kudos.
In my opinion, this is the best performing Scabious around; it just flowers and flowers and flowers. It performs equally well in the garden and in containers. Kudos is also a Mecca for bees and butterflies which we all need to attract to our gardens.

A Winter’s Tale

by | Dec 14, 2016 | , , , , , | 11 Comments

a winters tale

Winter has arrived in my garden. It is later than expected, but just as unwelcome. Much too cold to mess about outside, but I am still thinking about my plot – winter is the perfect time to look back at the last season, and forward to the next.

What has worked? What hasn’t? A quick look through this year’s empty seed packets is revealing. Some of the seedlings made no appearance at all (although I live in hope that the perennial ones I scatter in the borders might take off at any time in years to come). I can see I need to be more selective about some of the seeds I grow, and more realistic about what will fit into my garden. And I must pay more attention to successive sowing, rather than trying to grow everything at once. (Note to self – a calendar kept in the greenhouse may help with that).

The new seed catalogues are here to provide me with inspiration. I choose a different annual colour scheme when choosing what to grow each year.

julias winter garden

2016 was orange and black – Sweet Pea ‘Prince of Orange’, Calendula ‘Porcupine’, Escholtzia californica and Nasturtium ‘Alaska’ looked well with drifts of black opium poppies, cornflowers and hollyhocks.

For next year I’m thinking of crimson and lime green – Amaranthus caudatus ‘Pony Tails’, Nasturtium ‘Crimson Emperor’, Antirrhinum ‘Black Prince’, Cosmos ‘Pied Piper Red’ with Nicotiana langsdorffii, Zinnia ‘Envy’, Bells of Ireland and Smyrnium perfoliatum. The self-seeding black opium poppies will make a welcome addition too.

beautiful flowers

And what about veg? I grow lots of my favourite perennial artichokes and asparagus, but have little success with annuals other than sweet corn and runner beans.

raised bed

Next year I will treat myself to a few varieties of plug plants, rather than leave the veg beds wanting. I like the idea of leeks, sweet peppers, aubergines and some grafted tomatoes – all will be given a better start to life than I can provide.

Throughout winter I will venture out to feed the birds and take a wander down to my greenhouse, so it will be good to have something growing there. I usually manage to succeed with grasses sown over winter, so I’ll try some different varieties of my favourite genus, Carex, to grow alongside some sweet peas I started in October.

sweet peas

Last week I squeezed in a large pot of young Echium pininana plants to protect them from the frost, along with cuttings of some potted up unusual hebes and buddlieas from gardening friends. I shall look forward to checking up on all of these throughout the coming months.

How to make an evergreen Christmas garland

by | Dec 13, 2016 | , , | 0 Comments

Evergreen christmas garland

Use evergreen foliage to create a natural Christmas ornament
Image: Jane Scorer

Creating a beautiful Christmas garland for a staircase depends more on having access to a plentiful supply of foliage, than it does upon creative abilities. Before you contemplate making your own garland, have a walk around the garden and note what greenery is available. You will need enough evergreens to generously cover at least double the length of the space to be covered.

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Amanda’s December Gardening Update

by | Dec 7, 2016 | | 5 Comments

Season Greetings Gardeners,

I hope you are all well and getting into the festive spirit. I can’t quite believe another year has gone by, it seems only a few weeks ago that I was out sieving compost for the new seasons seeds. This year has definitely been a strange one for me, I have come to love and appreciate my garden and greenhouses even more than before. I have to agree with the experts, gardening is really good for the soul.

As I write this, I am eating a pumpkin and sultana scone. One of the supermarkets were selling pumpkins for 10p each as it was after Halloween and nobody wanted them anymore. I was really shocked and saddened at the waste of food and the farmers time. After all there is more to a pumpkin than making soup and lanterns. My scone recipe came from a very old Gardeners’ World Magazine, and even though they sound a bit different, they are delicious, can be stored for a week in a tub, or frozen and taken out on a cold December day. I also have stashed away in the freezer a fruits of the forest and plum crumble which is so refreshing after a Sunday lunch. Whilst digging about in the freezer I came across a couple of bags of soft fruits from my blueberries, pink blueberry and gooseberry. I plan to make muffins with the blueberries and a double cream fool with the gooseberries, as well as finding the tomato soup and pasta sauce Mum and I made back in the summer.

Pumpkin & fruit scones and the last of Amanda's aubergines & chillies

Pumpkin & fruit scones and the last of Amanda’s aubergines & chillies

As many of you may know, I’m still banned from messing about in the mud due to having chemotherapy. I’m about three quarters of the way through the sessions and I still have to have an operation to remove my tumour in the new year, so I might be banned for some time. The problem is I want to be out in the garden. I want to feel the cold air on my skin as I dig over the borders in preparation for next year. I want to be out scrubbing the glass of the greenhouses to get rid of pests and diseases. I want to plant onions and garlic and early salads, but for now, I just have to ask Mark to do it. He has just finished cleaning the large greenhouse of the final aubergines and chilli plants. We had fruit off them unit the final week in November, our longest season yet, but a sudden sharp frost and falling temperatures put paid to that. My poor greenhouse now holds a collection of canes and empty pots. I’m still tempted to buy some garlic bulbs and onions though and put them in the greenhouse borders as they can be set any time up until March. I’m sure Mark wouldn’t mind popping out and checking on them once a week. He has found an alternative use for the greenhouse for winter and now regularly hangs the sock airer and small clothes horse there to get the heat from the winter sun to dry the clothes.

The small greenhouse though, is still being quite productive. There are a couple of small pots of mint growing on the shelves, and last year’s T&M gift to me of white Christmas hyacinths have just come back into bud after been stored all summer in their dry compost. These have now been brought into the house and kept in the spare bedroom which is cooler than the rest of the bungalow, so it should help them establish in time for Christmas. Though saying that all three of our pink Christmas cacti are in full flower on our bathroom windowsill.

Chillies and aubergines in Amanda's greenhouse

Chillies and aubergines in Amanda’s greenhouse

In the greenhouse border the begonia is still flowering. I am a bit worried as I need it to die back before any more frost hits, so that I can store the tubers. I’ve had these Apricot Shades tubers for a few years and they are very reliable. I have a squash that it still trying to grow and produce fruits, although none of them were big enough to eat when it was meant to be in season. Its not a T&M plant. The roots have come out of the soil and it looks like a snake coiling across the border. The fruits are no bigger than a cherry at the moment. Part of me wants to dig it up, part of me is like a child waiting to see what will happen and reluctant to pull it out. The Money tree bark is thickening up, and the leaves are looking good still, it doesn’t drop its leaves, but they can sometimes fade when light levels drop. Finally in the border, the Aloe Vera’s are multiplying like mad.

I had an idea that I would give Aloe Vera’s as Christmas gifts to some of my friends and family, so I was. chuffed to find in a recent magazine I could send off for a free plant holder macramé kit. The kit states there is enough cord and beads to make three holders. Only it turns out, I am rubbish at macramé! It’s probably due to the side effects of the chemo which causes numbness and tingling in my fingers, but I really could not get the knots to tie together. I tried a few times on different days, before giving in. So Mum says she’s going to give it ago. Poor Mum, hope she knows what she’s letting herself in for.

Both her and I have had success with gardening this year, she came second in the Johnston in Bloom village competition, and I won a Halls Cold Frame, with my picture of cosmos flowers in the T&M bloggers Cosmos Carnival photo category. I was so excited to win the cold frame that I made Mark build it in the living room so I could see how it looked. It’s currently being stored back in its box, but come spring we have the ideal place for it next to the bench, where my young plants and seedlings can acclimatise to the spring air.

Amanda's coldframe and Amanda with her mum

Amanda’s coldframe and Amanda with her mum

I have new plans for what I call the grassy knoll in the garden. We have an area between the front lawn the and the back lawn that is not much more than a wide strip of grass. On one side is the street and our boundary wall and on the other a bank that slopes steeply to the side path and bungalow wall. The bank is planted with an acer, fuchsias, rosemary, honeysuckle, a mother-in-law’s tongue and aquilegia. The grass itself is tough and and is covered with clover and thistle. At the top of the knoll is a lovely pampas grass, and we have added various shrubs along the boundary edges to make it more colourful and more private. However, what I really want to do is make it more interesting. I don’t know if my plan will work, but come the spring, and hopefully I am better, I want to grow a variety of grasses and then make a curvy path with them so that it links with the secret tunnel In the privet hedge that separates the front from the back. I hope then to encourage more wildlife to hide within the fronds. Things like beetles and bugs and gnats that the local bats can eat in the summer. In my head I have an image of tall grasses with a twisty path and insects buzzing, I tried to draw it on paper, but as I found out, I’m rubbish at drawing too!

I really have enjoyed writing my blogs this year, it’s brought me closer to T&M and to the other bloggers and readers too. There have been times when I have been so unwell that I have wanted to cry in frustration, then I have looked out of my bedroom window at my greenhouses and said to myself I will get better. I haven’t finished my garden yet. I really hope that in the next few months I can finally kick off my cancer, pick up my pots and get gardening once again.

Until next year, have Wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Love from Amanda xx

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