Latest From Gardens Illustrated
The wait is over: Take a first look at RHS Chelsea Flower Show’s 2025 gardens
Discover the first images of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show gardens at the 2025 show, from Monty Don's dog garden to Tom Massey and Je Ahn's AI garden
Watch a tour around Monty Don's RHS Chelsea Flower Show dog garden with Jamie Butterworth
Discover this year's RHS and BBC Radio 2 Dog Garden designed by Monty Don and Jamie Butterworth
David Austin Roses has unveiled a new rose and it's the first time the company has bred one like it
David Austin roses have launched a highly anticipated new rose at the Chelsea Flower Show. Find out more
Chelsea designers keep making naturescapes instead of gardens, and people don’t like it
Are ‘naturescapes’ dominating the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and, if so, why? We ask designers, commentators and judges to weigh in on the debate
How not to fail at the Chelsea Flower Show: the difference between winning a dreaded Bronze medal or Best in Show
What are the show garden judges thinking and what makes the difference between a Gold and Bronze medal? Here’s our guide to getting it right at Chelsea
Does AI belong in gardens? It won't replace our love and care for plants, but it may help in new ways
Like it or not, AI technology is now woven into every part of our lives. So, asks designer Tom Massey, is it time to put it to work in our gardens?
Illustration: Rosanna Morris
Gardens Illustrated 's Editor's choice
Chelsea 2025 | Tickets, information, dates and what's on
Everything you need to know about RHS Chelsea Flower Show tickets and more for 2025
Watch Nigel Slater's exclusive tour around his own small garden and discover why he wouldn't want a bigger one
While Nigel Slater might occasionally dream of a larger garden, the joy he feels cocooned in his tiny basement courtyard has convinced him size isn’t everything.
Illustration: Paul Wearing, Portrait: John Campbell
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A Year in the Edible Garden – Your essential guide to growing and enjoying fresh produce
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Latest garden features and design ideas
Winners of the Sustainable Product of the Year Awards 2025 announced at Chelsea Flower Show
Discover the winners of the coveted RHS Chelsea Sustainable Garden Product of the Year and Sustainable Garden Product of the Year 2025
Always wanted a vintage parasol? This brand sells them at a fraction of the usual price.
Vintage parasols are a whimsical choice for days in the garden and on the beach - but they can be expensive. This brand sells them at a fantastic price.
Gardening events and shows in 2025
All the big names in one place. Here's our guide to the gardening calendar's biggest and best gardening events for the year ahead
Discover the amazing botanical drawings and intricate tree-bark baskets of artist Nick McMillen
Artist Nick McMillen is inspired by plants and trees in various ways to make his extraordinary drawings and basketry
How to screen your garden from overlooking neighbours: our designer guide to creating a private sanctuary
Designer Charlotte Harris shows how to screen your garden from the neighbours or block out eyesores
Tips on creating a dog-friendly garden, with expert advice from the RHS
Design ideas for a dog-friendly garden from experts at the RHS and Battersea - the dogs and cats home
Lawnmower men versus wild women: the latest battle of the sexes is over the grass in your garden
The latest seemingly harmless social media trend of perfect lawns could actually be damaging wildlife
The eleven best RHS Chelsea Flower Show Gardens, from Tom Stuart Smith to Sarah Price
Ahead of Chelsea Flower Show, writer Annie Gatti picks the eleven best RHS Chelsea Flower Show Garden since 2000
Put down the plant feed: turns out fertilisers lead to less blooms and butterflies in your garden
A new study suggests links between fertilisers and a decline in wildflowers and pollinators. So why, asks Jo Kirby, are we still using them in our gardens?
Love peonies? Try these lesser-known, big-bloomed beauties that flower for ages and won’t flop over
Known for their large, showy, goblet-shaped blooms, these small shrubs provide welcome structure in the garden long after their spectacular spring flowering
Best garden plants for now
Clematis montana aren't always rampant: if you're looking for a small climber, then these less vigorous varieties could be what you need
Although known as vigorous plants, Clematis montana can be also be medium sized or even compact. Here are some recommended varieties from the National Collection at the garden of National Collection holder, Val Le Neville-Parry.
The jewel-like Corydalis is perfect for dainty colour in the garden: here's how to care for and plant it plus the best types to grow
This varied genus of mostly diminutive species offers delicate, tubular flowers and graceful fern-like foliage.
Here's how your new solar panel setup could be more affordable than you thought – with instant savings
There’s an easier way to generate your own clean energy
Benton irises: how to choose and grow them
Designer Dan Pearson has long loved the beautiful irises bred by the artist Cedric Morris, and recommends some of the best currently available.
What is the Chelsea Chop – and what plants should you try it on?
Plant experts Matthew Biggs and John Hoyland explain what the Chelsea chop is, how to do it, and which plants to try it on.
The best elderflowers to grow and harvest for cordial (which also look really good in the garden)
Elders are easy-to-grow shrubs and small trees, best known for the cordial and wine made from their starry flowers and berries, but with newer cultivars now offering excellent ornamental qualities for the garden too
Houseplants
Here's a houseplant you definitely won't kill: how to to care for and propagate sansevieria, or snake plant
Sansevieria, or the snake plant, is an almost indestructible houseplant that is creeping out of the shadows to take centre stage. Illustration Patrick Morgan
How to propagate houseplants - an easy and cheap guide to growing your houseplant collection
Expert house growers Maddie and Alice Bailey explain how to propagate your houseplants using stem cuttings
How to repot your plants - watch our guide to repotting houseplants to make sure your indoor plants are happy
Our simple and easy-to-follow guide on how and when to repot your houseplants from experts Alice and Maddie Bailey from Forest London
Gardens Illustrated 's Podcasts
Recipes
HOME COOKED RECIPES WITH NATURAL INGREDIENTS
Make this lovely hedgerow drink using elderflower that you can forage now
Beth Al Rikabi shares her recipe for the quintessential summer cordial flavoured with freshly foraged elderflower
Dandelion flower honey
Beth Al Rikabi shares her recipe for dandelion flower honey, a sweet syrup that can be spread on toast, drizzled on pancakes or stirred into a summer gin fizz cocktail
Home made Pesto using any green leaves
Home made pesto is delicious stirred through pasta for a quick meal and this easy recipe takes just 10 minutes to make and can be made using any green leaves, such as Swiss card, kale or rocket. Photograph Andrew Montgomery
You can make pesto out of goose grass and nettles and it's delicious: here's how to do it
Beth Al Rikabi shares her recipe for a tasty and nutritious pesto, using cleavers and nettles foraged from the garden
Container Gardening
pots of style for your garden
Bring spring colour to the garden with the vibrant pot design from expert garden maker James Horner
James Horner, garden maker at Benton End, the one-time home of the artist and plantsman Cedric Morris, suggests this arrangements in a basket to celebrate spring
An easy way to bring colour and style to your spring garden with this vibrant flower pot recipe
James Horner, garden maker at Benton End, the one-time home of the artist and plantsman Cedric Morris, suggests this colourful arrangement to celebrate spring
Spring beauty in a pot: a stunning plant pot design you can plant up at home from designer Jo Thompson
Award-winning designer Jo Thompson's container-planting series continues with this early spring flower combination using Narcissus and Scilla. Words Jo Thompson, photographs Jason Ingram
A succulent pot houseplant display for winter
Find out how to create this stylish houseplant display using unusual succulents.
Created by head gardener Benjamin William Pope. Photographs Andrew Montgomery
Inspiring Gardens
THE BEST OF THE WORLD'S OUTDOOR SPACES
I’ve been collecting trees and shrubs for 50 years and these are the best for stunning spring blossom
For more than 50 years, Maurice Foster has been amassing
a collection of woody plants in his garden at White House Farm, which has grown into a precious horticultural resource
Fresh shoots: the new generation of plant nurseries injecting fresh hope into British gardens
Several specialist nurseries have recently closed, but there is hope that a host of enthusiastic newcomers can bring renewed life and vision to the industry.
You have to see this amazing new garden around a romantic castle on the shores of Loch Ness
Designer Tom Stuart-Smith has created two exciting new gardens around a romantic castle on the shores of Loch Ness.
This season in the garden
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GARDENING NOW
You need to cut your lawn before May arrives: here's the reason why No Mow May is so important
No Mow May encourages gardeners to leave their mowers in the shed and transform their lawns into havens of biodiversity. Illustration Lesley Buckingham
May flowers to plant
As the days and soil gets warmer, expert plantsman Keith Wiley’s choice include colour, from a bright-orange lily to a crimson rose, offset by the delicacy of a soft-pink viburnum.
What vegetables and other plants to sow and plant in May for a bountiful crop for the year
Head gardener Benjamin Pope and kitchen gardener Aaron Bertelsen explain what you need to sow and plant out into the ground during the month of May
May gardening jobs: what to do in the garden in May
Kitchen gardener Aaron Bertelsen and head gardener Benjamin Pope pick the jobs you should be doing in the garden this month.
Gardens to visit
which gardens to visit and where
Visit these stunning spots in May for peak garden enjoyment in the UK and beyond
Plantsman Keith Wiley recommends the best gardens to visit in May to see their plants in full bloom
The best places to see a beautiful blue carpet of bluebells in a wood or garden near you
Wandering in a bluebell wood is a magical experience. Here are our recommendations for where to see bluebells – and other spring delights.
A festival for tulips? Here are the festivals around the world celebrating the arrival of the beautiful spring flower
Discover some of the best tulip festivals to visit for a colourful start to spring. From Amsterdam to London, find a festival near you.
Garden design
THE BEST OF THE WORLD'S OUTDOOR SPACES
Ashamed of your front garden? Fix it up fast with our expert guide and real garden inspiration
Designer Charlotte Harris offers inspiration and advice on making the most of the small awkward space outside your front door
Limited space? You probably still have room for a tree - discover the best trees for small gardens
Many people worry that a tree will overpower a small garden, but as garden designer Sarah Price shows, the key is finding the right place and the right tree
You can have a sustainable garden that's also beautiful - here's how to design stylish ecological gardens
Charlotte Harris explains how to design gardens that are ecological and beautiful in her expert guide to sustainable garden design
Discover the biodiverse, brilliant and beautiful garden that features on Monty Don's British Gardens this week
The garden of designer Nigel Dunnett, who worked on the planting at the Olympic Park, is brimming with a harmonious and joyful mix of naturalistic and biodiverse planting.
How to design a garden on a slope: inspiration for your sloping garden
Creating a garden on a sloping site brings a host of challenges, but, says designer Charlotte Harris, with careful planning it is also an opportunity to make a really interesting space.
Here's what companion planting means and why it can help plants thrive
Ever wondered how companion planting might help your vegetables and deter pests? Here expert grower Matthew Biggs breaks down the companion planting myths and explains how the system works
Gardening Advice
WHAT TO DO AND HOW TO DO IT
How to build a natural swimming pond in your garden
Discover tips on how to build a natural swimming pool or pond in your garden, from expert designer Will Tomson
Wondering what no-dig gardening is? Let the expert explain
Generations of gardeners have been told that digging is the best way to prepare soil for planting – but that’s a myth, according to grower Charles Dowding, who practises no dig gardening. Charles explains what no dig is and how it works
A guide to pruning roses
Discover how to prune all types of roses including shrub, climbing and rambling roses in our guide from plant expert John Hoyland. Photographs by Gavin Kingcome.
Gardening Kit
OUR PICK OF THE BEST GARDENING TOOLS AND ACCESSORIES
Peek inside the private gardens of some of the UK’s top designers
This beautifully photographed book on designers’ own gardens is a fascinating insight into some well-known designers’ working practices, says Charlie Harpur
Can't make it to Chelsea? Here are the exhibitors you can shop online.
If you can't make it to London, don't despair. We've pulled out some of our favourite retailers from the RHS Chelsea Flower Show to shop online.
Work out what type of soil you have with these great soil testers for the garden
We discover the best soil pH testers for the soil in your garden, from digital and analogue probes to pH strip testing kits
I got a hori hori knife – and became a gardening ninja: here's what they are and why you need one
A hori hori is a knife many gardeners swear by. But what exactly is it and why is it so great? Veronica Peerless tests Niwaki's hori hori knife and explains what happened.
The best peony plant supports and cages for perfectly poised peonies in 2025
Peonies are beautiful, but often top heavy, and prone to drooping. Avoid your peonies sagging by using peony supports which will keep the flowers up and visible for as long as possible
Reviewed: best flower subscription and delivery services for 2025
Don't just surprise them with ONE bunch of flowers. Why not show how much you love them all year long?