Landscape Juice

How to deter cats from your garden

Are you sick and tired of cats coming into your garden and fouling your borders, gravel and possibly even worse, your child's sand pit?

Not everyone loves cats and cat owners don't understand if others don't share their love of felines.

There is a natural deterrent you can plant which cats are said not to like.

Coleus Canina is said to give off an unpleasant odour which cats find unpleasant.

Coleus Canina - or Plectranthus caninus, to give it its Latin name - is an herb of the mint family Lamiaceae and is native to east Africa and southern Asia.

These plants root easily from cuttings or layering. They like full sun. Coleus Canina can be grown in the shade but will send out shoots to search for sun.

sara - Simple Accident Reporting App

Millions are injured at work every year – 600,000 in the UK alone – and the cost to businesses is immense.

The Health & Safety Simple Accident Reporting App – sara – is near miss and accident reporting tool for businesses. Available on iPhone and soon to be released for Android and Blackberry.

The makers say it’s simple and quick to use and "in just a few minutes you can complete a report, attach photographs of the incident and even record voice notes. Then simply press send to submit for investigation and follow-up."

Website: sara - Simple Accident Reporting App

Moscow Flower Show organisers to visit Chelsea

Did you know that Moscow has a flower show?

Well it does and the Moscow Flower Show organisers will attend this year's Chelsea Flower Show to learn and share their experience from the event at the Royal Hospital Chelsea 21-25 May.

The Russian delegation will be following the footsteps of the Dowager Empress of Russia who visited the first show in 1913, will attend the event on Monday 20 May.

Karina Lazareva, the President of the Moscow Flower Show and Chelsea 2006 Gold Medalist said:" Moscow Flower Show which takes place in the iconic Gorky Park 16 - 23 June follows the tradition of Chelsea Flower Show in strive to attract the leading Russian and international gardening specialists.

Many garden designers will be exhibiting at Gorky Park site.

The international judging panel will chaired by James Alexander Sinclair.

Chemical flowers created in a glass beaker

What do you think of these rather peculiar flowers?

These colourful flower-like sculptures aren't made by mother nature but by chemists in a lab. They are just microns across.

By manipulating chemical gradients in a beaker of fluid, Wim Noorduin, from the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, found that he can control the growth behaviour of these crystals to create precisely tailored structures.

"For at least 200 years, people have been intrigued by how complex shapes could have evolved in nature. This work helps to demonstrate what’s possible just through environmental, chemical changes," says Noorduin.

The precipitation of the crystals depends on a reaction of compounds that are diffusing through a liquid solution. The crystals grow toward or away from certain chemical gradients as the pH of the reaction shifts back and forth. The conditions of the reaction dictate whether the structure resembles broad, radiating leaves, a thin stem, or a rosette of petals.

Read the full story of how these crystal flowers were made.

Chelsea Fringe: Flowerbeds installation 18 & 19 May

Saturday 18 May, 2.30 – 4.30pm

The Flowerbeds installation

Vienna-based artists Anita Duller and Hannah Stippl create paintings in a multi-layer technique with stencils and used pattern rollers on paper, canvas or walls, encouraging a spirit of spontaneity. Through their work The Flowerbeds create unexpected findings and surprising interpretations in both paintings and horticultural installations.

Watch the artists at work creating a one-off, large scale painting inspired by the Geffrye’s gardens and join in a free workshop to create a garden-themed mural using similar techniques.

Sunday 19 May, 12 – 4.30pm

The Flowerbeds installation

Watch artists Anita Duller and Hannah Stippl create a one-off, large-scale artwork inspired by the Geffrye’s gardens, using a multi-layer technique with stencils and used pattern rollers on canvas. Through their work The Flowerbeds create unexpected findings and surprising interpretations in both paintings and horticultural installations.

For full details of what time the installations start and how to find them, click here.

Paving Expert reviews The Natural Stone Show 2013

He's not known for shyness and the man behind the Paving Expert, Tony McCormack, doesn't duck and dive with his review of the 2013 Stone Show.

Tony's opening paragraph doesn't fill the reader, and potential stone enthusiast, with much hope:

"Why do I keep going to these shows? When was the last time I went to a show or exhibition and came away feeling that it had been a valuable use of my time? I'm not completely sure, but it's a good while, and the day spent at The Natural Stone Show in that London's ExCel centre today is not going to buck that trend."

Tony claims the show is half what it used to be with a number of key suppliers and manufacturers missing from the event.

He praised Natural Paving for making an effort with their stand but didn't lay any good words at the hearth of Welsh Slate, whom he slated for bringing roofing materials instead of slate paving to the show.

Frosts Landscape boys take on Tough Mudder

While the rest of us were relaxing over the recent Bank Holiday weekend, Paul Judkins and Richard Butler from the Grounds Maintenance division of Frosts Landscapes, managed to complete the Tough Mudder course.

Tough Mudder events are hardcore 10-12 mile obstacle courses designed by Special Forces to test your all around strength, stamina, determination, and camaraderie.

Tough Mudder has already challenged half a million inspiring participants worldwide.

Paul, Richard and their friends managed to raise over £1000 between them for the Help for Heroes charity, which provides combat stress recovery programmes, adaptive sports programmes, benefits counselling and employment services that aid in our soldiers’ transition to civilian life.

Congratulations to Paul, Richard and friends.

Mobile phone app to help monitor UK’s native ladybirds

For many insects 2012 was a challenging year and ladybirds were no exception.

Harlequin ladybirds, and most native species were reported to the UK Ladybird Survey in lower numbers than previous years except for the mildew-feeding orange ladybird for which the number of records remained stable.

The aim is to help monitor the impact of the invasive Harlequin ladybird on the UK’s native ladybird species.

Tens of thousands of people have already contributed to an on-line UK ladybird survey, which hopes to discover whether the UK’s native Ladybird species will bounce back in 2013, as well as gaining further insights into the invasion process over the years to come.

Get a £1,000 garden makeover with MyBuilder.com

Image: Jon is a stroke victim and has 456 votes

For whatever reason some people get behind with their garden.

Whether it's a family bereavement, illness, starting a new family or pressures of work, weeds can take over and it's sometimes impossible to remember where one left the lawn.

MyBuilder.com is running a competition to help one lucky garden owner with a £1,000 makover to help bring a garden back to life...or just find that mislaid lawn.

Homeowners are asked to post a picture of their garden and tell their story. A public vote will decide which twelve gardens are the most deserving.

MyBuilder Chief Executive Ryan Notz will judge the most deserving to receive the garden makeover.

"At MyBuilder, we’re passionate about helping homeowners find the right tradesman,” says Ryan. “It’s upsetting when we come across homeowners who don’t have the means to hire a tradesman, so we feel it’s our duty to help out when we can. The hardest part is choosing a winner, which is why we've enlisted the public to help out."

Entries close on May 29th, voting stops on June 3rd and the finalist will be announced shortly afterwards.

Enter the MyBuilder.com competition here

English Heritage adds fuel to the cheap labour debate

English Heritage were at the centre of a frenzied debate last night after the organisation advertised for a gardener at one of its properties, Brodsworth Hall, with a salary of just £12,704 a year.

It is another embarrassing indictment of our industry, especially as the row erupted on the day the Horticulture Matters report was handed to Parliament.

The ideal candidate is preferred to possess "a relevant level 2 or 3 qualification in addition to several years experience" and "be familiar with a wide range of horticultural machinery and hand tools and would ideally possess some industry recognised qualifications for their use (e.g. NPTC/Lantra certificates for Tractor Driving)."