garden
Gifts for the Gardener IN MY ARTICLE LAST DECEMBER I SUGGESTED MY TOP 5 GIFTS FOR GARDENERS, BUT IT HASN’T BEEN DIFFICULT TO THINK OF A FEW MORE INVALUABLE ITEMS THAT GARDENERS WILL ENJOY
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hristmas seems to come around more and more quickly as the years go by and it can be difficult to think about what to give your loved ones when it only feels like a couple of months since last Christmas! Luckily those who are keen gardeners will always need new tools, books, plants and decorations.
Tools Winter is a time for tree pruning, removing all of the dead, damaged and diseased branches and pruning to develop a well balanced and productive crown. When we are out and about demonstrating good pruning practices many of our customers are envious of the long reach pruning saw that we use. It is great for
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taking out medium sized branches from a safe position on the ground and standing well back from the falling branches. We invested in a professional-standard telescopic Silky Saw because we do a lot of pruning work and it is well worth spending that bit extra for a quality tool that will stand the test of time, but at around 300 euros it is worth looking at other brands for less expensive alternatives if you will only use the saw occasionally. A good pair of long-reach loppers and a handheld pruning saw also make up the kit for tree pruning. We recommend using hand tools for most pruning work because they are more precise and controllable than a chainsaw which is designed for tree felling and chopping up fallen wood.
Books This year I received a copy of Arthur Parkinson’s ‘The Flower Yard’ for my birthday. Arthur was a student of mine when he first left school and started his gardening career on the National Diploma in Horticulture which I ran at Nottingham Trent University for over 10 years. Arthur went on to train at Kew gardens and later developed an inspirational rooftop garden at the Emma Bridgewater pottery. (His first book ‘The Pottery Gardener’ describes this). He has more recently worked with Sarah Raven and has created quite a name for himself as a flamboyant florist and his work was exhibited at Chelsea this year. Although ‘The Flower Yard’ mainly looks
