Stephanie's Garden Blog

Spring cleaning has a 1950s housewife image. Not many people open up their houses and clean them from top to bottom in March any more. But a garden spring clean will make a big difference to your gardening later on in the year.

Growing in raised planters is a real boom area in gardening right now and it's little wonder when you realise just how easy it can be and how many delicious vegetables you can cram into such a small space. Let's take a look at how one of our attractive Manger Raised Planters - all 8ft of it - can transform a barren patio into a vegetable oasis.

Work is continuing as normal in the kitchen garden despite the coronavirus. We do have the benefit of being quite isolated here and now is certainly a good time to be out in the garden and growing more of your own food.

It has been a lovely spring like week in the kitchen garden with lots of sunshine and it is really starting to feel that the warmer days are on the way.

The new metal raised beds that have been located in the peak roof fruit cage have now all been filled with new soil and the autumn raspberries and blueberries have been replanted in their new homes.

Planning is key to a successful vegetable garden and we take a lot into consideration when planning the Kitchen Garden planting each year. Incorporating new products, trialing new varieties while still observing crop rotation can make it a bit tricky, but the design looks great and we can't wait to bring it to life!

It has been an exciting week in the kitchen garden, we have installed the new superior raised metal beds in the fruit cage. These are to be the new home of the autumn raspberries and the blueberries.

The kitchen garden is quiet at the moment, sprouting broccoli and young cabbages are a few of the vegetables growing but in the greenhouse, it is a different matter. A variety of seedlings are beginning to shoot.now. Cucumbers are taking off in the heated propagator, alongside the chillies and peppers.

Last week began clearing up after Storm Ciara. We were lucky here as we had minimal storm damage. Just lots of small branches and twigs down, and plenty of pine cones under foot!