Author: Steve Ott

Steve Ott is editor of Kitchen Garden magazine and started his career as a professional grower, producing everything from cut flowers to vegetables. He has been growing fruit and veg all his life and spends most of his spare time in his garden in the East Midlands. He loves to experiment with crops and varieties he has never grown before and when he isn’t gardening is to be found out in the countryside bird watching and walking his dog Ted.
Longford Castle and the estate’s formal gardens in Wiltshire, home to the charity’s patron, the Countess of Radnor and her family (Credit: The Longford Estate)

PLANTING HOPE AT LONGFORD CASTLE

Diary Dates, News
Stunning private estate to welcome visitors this June in support of national charity Horatio’s Garden Longford Castle, the private ancestral seat of the Radnor family for over 300 years, built byElizabeth I chief lady-in-waiting, will be opening its spectacular gardens to the public onSunday 6th June from 2pm – 5pm in support of national charity, Horatio’s Garden. The charity’s patron,…
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Heligan Gardens wild week

Heligan Wild Week

News
World Record Breaking Insect Hotel Planned For Cornwall Survival Skills; Foraging; Assault Courses; even Wild Feasting.  It’s all happening at The Lost Gardens of Heligan this May Half Term, Saturday 29 May until Sunday 6 June when the Heligan team invite visitors to rediscover their Wild Side, restore their survival skills and enjoy a week of much needed outdoor play…
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Seed Week 2021

Celebrate seed week – january 18-22

Diary Dates
From 18th to 22nd of January, seed savers and gardeners from across the country will celebrateSeed Week, an annual online event highlighting the essential work of organic and agro-ecologicalseed producers and sellers selecting and growing the finest seed across the UK and Ireland. Lockdown seed boomEmpty supermarket shelves during lockdown in the UK and Ireland last year inspired a wave…
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Making an insect hotel

Go greener for 2021

News
After a testing year which has only been made bearable for many of us by turning to nature, isn’t the new year a brilliant time to repay this debt and make some green resolutions, asks the RSPB? Most new year pledges focus on altering our lives in a way which just doesn’t work for us and it’s easy to give…
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Bug hotel in garden

make a home for wildlife this winter

News
The colder months can be harsh on wildlife, with many finding their watering holes have frozen over or their cosy dry home is feeling damp. Thankfully, with just a few easy steps you can help create safe places for wildlife to tuck themselves away and hibernate for winter, or to rest until they’ve found just the right moment to catch…
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Gardening can be a great way to maintain mental health

Garden therapy AIDS recoverY from mental illness

News
Support the Bethlem Garden in The Big Give (1 – 8 December) and double your donation The Bethlem Royal Hospital Therapy Garden is taking part in this year’s Big Give with every pound donated being doubled. The Bethlem Royal Hospital Therapy Garden uses the power of gardening to help patients recover from severe mental illness. The world’s oldest psychiatric hospital,…
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Garden Robin

make your garden a haven for robins

News
There are a number of simple steps that you can take to make your garden welcoming to robins before the weather begins to turn too cold… During a cold winter up to half our garden birds can be lost to cold and hunger. Robins are particularly susceptible as they remain faithful to their gardens no matter what the weather.  Putting…
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Plastic-Free Gardening

Book Guides Gardeners Through Plastics Maze

News
“Plastic-free Gardening” by Fiona Thackeray – The perfect Christmas Gift for green gardeners Tackling the use of plastics in gardens is a thorny issue but now a new book plots a path through the confusion, highlighting progress, revealing where problems lie and giving gardeners guidance and a wealth of practical ideas on how to reduce reliance on un-recyclable materials. ‘Plastic-free…
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Come and meet some of the wildlife that inhabits Heligan

THE HELIGAN NIGHT GARDEN

Diary Dates
Come and see a Traditional Lantern Experience 4, 5, 6, 11, 12 & 13 December – 5.30pm to 7.30pm18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29 & 30 December – 5.30pm to 8.30pm2 & 3 January 2021 – 5.30pm to 8.30pm This Winter we invite you to explore The Heligan Night Garden, a traditional Lantern Experience set amidst the…
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Restoration of unique ‘Capability’ Brown garden given lifeline after grant from Government’s Culture Recovery Fund

Restoration of unique ‘Capability’ Brown garden given lifeline

News
The National Trust’s Berrington Hall in Herefordshire has been awarded £269,000 from the £1.57bn Culture Recovery Fund for HeritageMoney will help restore the only surviving ‘Capability’ Brown curved walled gardenSpecialist conservation work starts this week and will continue until March 2021 A grant from the Government’s £1.57bn Culture Recovery Fund for Heritage has thrown a lifeline to a project to…
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