Leading plantsman Graham Rice chooses his favourite sweetpeas that offer scented delight to your garden and hand-picked bouquets
Our design sourcebook highlights a selection of the most stylish metal garden benches
DESIGN SOURCEBOOK
Here's our choice of the most beautiful metal seating for your garden
PRETTY AS A PICTURE
Garden bench
3-seater, £495 (cushions extra)
Susie Watson
While the Chelsea Flower Show is busy celebrating a magnificent 100 years, its more alternative younger cousin, the Chelsea Fringe, is gearing up for its second year.
If you are in London for the Chelsea Flower Show, it's well worth popping along to some of the Fringe events. From community and guerilla gardening projects, to art installations and pop-up restaurants in inspiring venues, just about anything goes for the Chelsea Fringe, as long as it asks us to reconsider our ideas on what gardens and landscapes, flowers and plants can be about. There are over 200 events taking place in and around London – PLUS - if you're not in London look out for a selection of events taking place at regional locations.
A few highlights:
If you're going to the Chelsea Flower Show, visit the Gardens Illustrated stand and sign up to our special subscription offer. Save 40% on the shop price* and choose from either Piet Oudolf's latest book or a Haws copper watering can as your free gift.
Subscribe to GARDENS ILLUSTRATED at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show (21-25 May). You'll save 40% on the shop price* and you can choose a FREE gift as part of your subscription package. Choose from either:
With summer finally in our sights, head gardener Fergus Garrett suggests the gorgeous poppy Papaver commutatum 'Ladybird' for adding depth of colour. Plus other favourite plants choices for May.
Papaver commutatum 'Ladybird'
This year make sure your planting gives something to pollinating insects. Here, gardener Julia Wylie, who specialises in naturalistic planting schemes, designs a Tuscan-inspired flower feast for a container.
Tuscan holiday
Busy, long-lasting and often sweetly scented, the erysimum can brighten your garden, bridging the months from spring through to summer. Read about the legend behind their name and expert Val Bourne's pick of the best to grow
The best wallflowers to grow for spring display
Our Design Sourcebook picks out nine of the best lawnmowers to get your grass looking perfect - whatever the size of your lawn
You could consider cutting the lawn a chore but if you have the right kit for the job then there's no reason for it not to be enjoyable. Here's some 2013 mower recommendations that we like the look of .
MOWING BY HAND
Discover the tranquil beauty and rich autumn colours of Kyoto and its surrounding garden attractions
Come with us to Japan next autumn, when colours blaze across the forested hills surrounding the city of Kyoto.
Fergus Garrett, head gardener at Great Dixter, selects his favourite plants for the March garden. Here we highlight Pulmonaria 'Diana Clare'.
A first-class clump-forming lungwort with glittering long basal leaves 25cm long and covered in a silver wash. The leaf midrib and leaf edges remain a contrasting green. Produces clusters of shallowly lobed funnel-shaped flowers held in purple brown calyxes on elongated stems, which are decorated with small silver spotted stem leaves. The flowers open rosy purple and change colour to violet and violet blue. The whole plant is covered in bristly hairs. Benefits from a haircut after flowering.
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Your guide to the best courses available in garden design and horticulture
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An extensive guide to the best horticultural specialists.
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Sweeping plains, majestic mountains, stunning vistas and miles of unspoilt coastline...
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Set your New Year budget with help from the right bank account
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If you have ever thought that greenhouses are as alike as peas in a pod, then think again.
