Cherry Pollination Groups: Why Two Trees Fail
Cherry pollination groups explained simply: which cherries pollinate each other, why two trees can still give no fruit, and the easy self-fertile fix.
Open guideFruit trees, soft fruit, and berry growing guides for UK gardens.
UK seasons Plain advice Free to read
Chilean Guava: Victoria's Favourite Berry
How to grow Chilean guava (Ugni molinae) in the UK: a sheltered spot, lime-free soil or a big pot, and sweet strawberry-scented berries in autumn.
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When to Stop Picking Rhubarb and Why
When to stop picking rhubarb in the UK: finish by the end of June so the crown can build up strength for next spring, plus how to pick it properly.
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Strawberry Runners: Free Plants by September
How to grow new strawberry plants from runners. Peg them into pots in July, cut them free once rooted and plant out by mid-September for fruit next June.
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Cape Gooseberry Growing: Husk to Harvest
How to grow cape gooseberry (physalis) in the UK: sow in February or March, plant out after frost in lean soil, and pick when the husk turns papery brown.
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Biennial Bearing: Why Fruit Trees Skip a Year
Apple tree cropping heavily one year and barely the next? That's biennial bearing. Here's why it happens and how to break the cycle by thinning.
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Fruit Tree Rootstocks: Choose the Right Size
Fruit tree rootstocks decide how big a tree grows and how soon it crops. Apple, pear, plum and cherry rootstocks compared for UK gardens.
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Autumn Raspberries: Grow and Harvest Guide
Grow autumn raspberries the easy way: cut every cane down in February, skip the wires and pick sweet fruit from August until the first frosts.
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How to Grow Damsons: The Tough Little Plum
How to grow damsons in UK gardens: the best varieties, rootstocks, planting, summer pruning to dodge silver leaf, common problems and harvesting.
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How to Grow Greengages in the UK
Grow greengages in the UK: the best gage varieties, a warm wall, safe summer pruning, and how to tell when these sweet plums are perfectly ripe.
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How to Grow Lingonberries in the UK
How to grow lingonberries in the UK: acid compost, pots, rainwater, the best varieties, two crops a year and what to make with the berries.
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How to Grow Tayberries in the UK
How to grow tayberries in a UK garden: where to plant, training on wires, the yearly prune-out, picking when ripe and thornless versus prickly types.
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Best Cherry Tree Varieties for UK Gardens
The best cherry tree varieties for UK gardens: self-fertile sweet cherries like Stella, sour Morello for shady walls, and the right rootstock.
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Growing Almonds in the UK: Can You Get a Crop?
Can you grow almonds in the UK? Yes, with a warm wall and frost cover. The best varieties, pollination, peach leaf curl, pruning and harvesting the nuts.
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Best Plum Tree Varieties for UK Gardens
The best plum tree varieties for UK gardens, from self-fertile Victoria to sweet gages and cooking plums, with picking months and picks for small spaces.
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Best Pear Tree Varieties for UK Gardens
The best pear varieties for UK gardens, from reliable Conference to buttery Comice, with easy pollination pairs, picking months and picks for small spaces.
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Best Blackcurrant Varieties for UK Gardens
The best blackcurrant varieties for UK gardens: compact Ben Sarek, big bud resistant Ben Hope, sweet Big Ben and late Ben Tirran, and how to pick yours.
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Perennial Veg: Plant Once, Pick for Years
Meet 14 perennial vegetables for UK gardens, from asparagus and rhubarb to sea kale and sorrel, that come back every year for less work.
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How to Grow Apricot Trees in the UK
Grow your own apricots in the UK: fan-train on a warm south-facing wall, protect the early blossom from frost, prune in summer and pick in July and August.
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How to Grow Peach Trees in the UK
Grow juicy peaches in the UK on a sunny wall or in a pot. Picking a variety, fan training, beating leaf curl, hand pollinating, pruning and picking.
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How to Grow White Currants in the UK
Grow white currants in the UK: the best varieties, planting bare-root bushes in winter, easy pruning, netting against birds and picking in July.
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Forcing Rhubarb, Chicory and Seakale
How to force rhubarb, chicory and seakale in the dark for early, tender winter and spring crops, plus quick ways to give potatoes and salads a head start.
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Growing Nut Trees in the UK
Grow hazelnuts, walnuts and sweet chestnuts in the UK: which tree suits your garden, how to plant it, when to expect nuts and how to beat squirrels.
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Grow Melons in a Greenhouse UK Guide
How to grow sweet melons in a UK greenhouse: the best varieties, when to sow, training up strings, hand pollinating and knowing when to pick.
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Best Apple Varieties for UK Gardens
Choose the best apple varieties for UK gardens: reliable eating, cooking and dual-purpose apples, pollination partners, storage and picks for the north.
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How to Grow Goji Berry in the UK
How to grow goji berries in a UK garden or pot: the best varieties, where to plant, easy spring pruning, picking and drying your own berries.
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How to Grow Honeyberry in the UK
How to grow honeyberry in the UK: why you need two varieties, how to plant and prune, when to pick and how to keep the birds off your crop.
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How to Grow Kiwi Fruit in the UK
How to grow kiwi fruit in the UK: fuzzy kiwi or easy kiwi berries, getting the male and female right, training on a wall and picking.
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How to Grow Medlar Trees in the UK
How to grow a medlar tree in the UK: choosing a variety, planting, easy pruning, and how to blet the fruit for jelly, cheese and gin.
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Growing Citrus Trees in the UK
Grow lemon, orange and kumquat trees in pots in the UK. The best citrus to choose, where to keep them each season, plus feeding, watering and fixes.
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Unusual Crops to Grow in the UK
Fancy something different? Twenty unusual crops for UK gardens, from oca and yacon to cape gooseberries and shiso, with easy sowing and picking tips.
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How to Grow Crab Apple Trees UK
Grow a crab apple for spring blossom, bright autumn fruit, happy birds and homemade jelly. Best varieties, planting, pruning and simple care.
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How to Grow Blueberries in the UK
Grow blueberries in the UK with ease: pick a good variety, use ericaceous compost and rainwater, then prune, feed and pick from July.
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How to Freeze Garden Produce
How to freeze your garden fruit and veg so it tastes fresh months later, with blanching times, the open-tray trick, syrup packs and storage tips.
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How to Grow Cherry Trees in the UK
Grow a cherry tree in the UK: picking a size that fits, whether you need two trees, planting, summer pruning and keeping the birds off your cherries.
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Grow Redcurrants and Blackcurrants
How to grow redcurrants and blackcurrants in the UK, with easy varieties, planting tips, the different ways to prune them, and keeping birds off.
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Grow Fruit in Pots and Containers
How to grow fruit in pots in the UK: the easiest fruits to start with, the right pot and compost, watering, feeding, winter care and a monthly calendar.
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How to Grow Grape Vines in the UK
How to grow grape vines in a UK garden or greenhouse: easy outdoor varieties, planting, training on wires, winter and summer pruning, and picking.
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How to Grow Rhubarb in the UK
How to grow rhubarb in the UK, from planting crowns and the first-year wait to pulling stems, forcing early pink rhubarb and dividing old plants.
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How to Grow Apple Trees in the UK
Grow your own apples in the UK: pick the right rootstock and a pollination partner, then plant, prune, thin and harvest with confidence.
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How to Preserve Fruit and Vegetables
Too much from the garden? Easy ways to keep fruit and veg for months, from freezing and bottling to drying, salting and fruit leather, done safely.
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How to Grow Fig Trees in the UK
Grow your own figs in the UK with this friendly guide. Pick a warm, sunny spot, keep the roots snug, water well, and ripen fruit on a wall or in a pot.
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How to Grow Plum Trees in the UK
How to grow plum trees, damsons and gages in the UK: picking a rootstock and variety, planting, summer pruning, thinning fruit and harvesting.
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How to Grow Fruit Trees in the UK
How to grow apple, pear, plum, cherry and fig trees in UK gardens, with simple advice on rootstocks, planting, pruning and the easiest varieties.
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How to Grow Blackberries in the UK
How to grow blackberries in UK gardens: thornless and thorned varieties, planting, training canes on wires, pruning after picking and easy new plants.
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How to Store Apples and Pears at Home
How to store home-grown apples and pears so they last into spring: when to pick, which varieties keep, the right spot and how to ripen pears.
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What to Harvest This Month UK
What's ready to pick this month? A friendly month-by-month UK harvest calendar for veg, fruit and herbs, with easy signs that each crop is ready.
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How to Grow Strawberries in the UK
Grow juicy strawberries in UK beds or pots: the best varieties, when to plant, feeding, beating the birds and making free new plants from runners.
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How to Grow Gooseberries in the UK
How to grow gooseberries in a UK garden: easy varieties, planting, simple winter pruning, cordons for small spaces, sawfly and mildew, and picking.
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How to Make Jam from Garden Fruit
Turn your garden fruit into proper homemade jam. Easy recipes for six fruits, how to tell when it's set, and how to get jars clean and sealed.
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Dwarf Fruit Trees for Small Gardens
Grow apples, pears, cherries and plums in a small garden or pot. Which dwarf trees to buy, how big they get and how to keep them cropping.
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How to Grow Pear Trees in the UK
Grow pear trees in a UK garden with easy advice on rootstocks, varieties, planting, pollination partners, pruning and picking pears at just the right time.
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How to Train Fruit Trees: Espalier
Grow apples and pears flat against a wall or fence. A friendly UK guide to espalier, fan, cordon and step-over trees, wires and pruning.
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How to Grow Raspberries in the UK
How to grow raspberries in the UK, with easy summer and autumn varieties, planting, simple supports, the right way to prune, and keeping birds off.
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