Landscape Juice

Develop a garden design from a single 'thought'

Did you know, even if you never commit it to paper but you build a garden, you are by definition, a garden designer?

If you can see the finished result in your minds eye and, by instinct, scale the garden to flow within the space I would say, you are a talented individual.

The Garden Network is two months old and growing

I have just joined a new community that is still very young but, could be on the cusp of changing the landscaping and horticulture professions for ever.

I remember when the only way you could raise your profile in the horticulture industry was to join BALI. The trouble was, if they didn't like you, regardless of whether you were a good egg or not, you could not get in.

Then the APL came along shouting that they were going to change things and become an equal to BALI. The shouting stopped and things returned to normal.

What does a gardener charge?

This is a very common query on Landscape Juice - What does a gardener charge per hour or how much should I pay a gardener?

A lot depends on who you are employing, what their level of experience and competence is and what qualifications they have - I would put experience and competence way above qualifications as a prerequisite.

Someone fresh out of horticulture college may be a brilliant academic and they may know their Latin plant names but it's often the case that they lack practical skills.

Creating a gardening 'to do' list

Going out in the garden this morning, I bet that a great majority of you will wander around with a a steaming mug of something, wellies on with a great anticipation and enthusiasm that is all engulfing.

A tour of your patch will be completed and all of the plants which are showing signs of development will be inspected and admired individually bringing a warm glow and an excitement that is barely containable.

The problem is, when the tour is done, the mental 'to do' list will have changed and suddenly that feeling of excitement and anticipation will have turned to anxiety and stress.

French horticulture student looking for UK work placement - encore

I have had another enquiry from a French Horticultural student who is looking for a UK work placement.

pass on these details to you. There is a PDF with further details available.

Dear Sir/Madam

I am looking for a work placement in the horticultural and landscaping sector for the coming summer and am writing to enquire if I could work in your company.

I am a first-year student at the INH (National Institute of Horticulture) in Angers, France, following a 5-year degree course in horticulture, plant sciences. As an integral part of our course, we have to undertake a practical and manual work placement abroad at the end of our first year. It should last one month at least and could start in the very beginning of July/ end of June.

How to apply selective weedkillers using a knapsack sprayer

Lawns are starting to move and with them, so will the weeds. If you have weeds in your lawn you will need to consider treating them before they become too dominant and suppress the progress of the desired grass.

Bear in mind, the lawn has only one real opportunity for recovery and development and this year is going to be a little more condensed because of the inclement late weather.

Some time ago, I put together a series of posts on calibration of knapsack sprayers and sterilisation which you may well find of use.

Spiking your lawn will bring long term results

Have you ever been into a photographic shop and bought a new camera and gone on to add a few filters, a handy storage bag and maybe a tripod or perhaps some editing software and then find, these accessories go on to lay in the cupboard for years and never used? The same can be said for ride on tractor accessories.

Economic 'lagging' indicators are catches up with the landscape industry

I see that some 'shakers and thinkers' - Unfortunately, the story has been moved - source Hort Week - in the landscaping world are starting, yes just starting, to acknowledge that the landscaping industry is contracting and that there may be some trouble ahead for some firms.

Goodness knows what some of them have been thinking and shaking for the last eighteen months? The time for this thinking is not now but actually back when times were booming.

The time to plan for a rainy day is when the curve is rising and not, as BALI implies it just has started to address, when sliding down the slippery slope.

The greatest test from Mother Nature

I could not let this post from Richard Loader pass with out linking to it. We are going through a tough Spring for sure and the 'irrational exuberance' that seemed to engulf the world climate change commentators has subsided - thank heavens.

Richard has posted a great picture of Fritillaria meleagris trapped in the snow. Never the less, the Fritillaria still manages to stand erect and graceful in her magnificent splendour.

£5 million leonardslee gardens for sale

How would you like to own a rockery, created by James Pulham, the Edwardian landscape gardener,
or, perhaps the treasured collection of ‘Loderi’ Rhododendrons which were planted by Sir Edmund Loder?

This may be your chance to own one of the most unique Grade I listed gardens, one of only 163, in England because Leonardslee, the home of the Loder family since 1889 has come on the market.

The sale is being handled by Savills