UK Gardening offers gardening information, help and ideas for the beginner gardener, including weekly gardening tips and some of the basics of gardening.

Seeds to plant now:

Indoor or in a heated greenhouse

Cress

Lettuce

Ornamental pepper

Outside

Ageratum

Alpine poppy

Alyssum

Antwerp hollyhock, Fig-leaved hollyhock, Hollyhock

Aubretia, Rock cress, Aubrieta, Aubrietia

Bristly hollyhock

Brussels sprout

Cabbage

Carrot

Cauliflower

Common hollyhock

Cress

Floss flower, Ageratum

Hollyhock

Larkspur

Lettuce

Normandy sorrel

Onion

Radish

Spinach

Spring onion

Swiss chard, Ruby chard, Rhubard chard

Turnip

Outside under cover

Cauliflower

Lettuce

Shows and events:

Updated 29/07/2021
Following the UK Government lifting of restrictions in England on 19th July with some restrictions still continuing in Wales and Scotland, some show organisers have been able to confirm that their events are going to go ahead. Others have found that the uncertainty of rising (and falling) infection rates and the length of time it takes to organise an event makes it too unpreditable to proceed so have cancelled their event for this year.

I have checked the 2021 events listed below and have added comments where necessary.

I'll try to keep this list up to date as the situation changes. Regards Nick.

17/05/2021 - 26/09/2021

04/08/2021 - 04/08/2021

04/08/2021 - 08/08/2021

06/08/2021 - 07/08/2021

07/08/2021 - 08/08/2021

09/08/2021 - 15/08/2021

13/08/2021 - 14/08/2021

13/08/2021 - 15/08/2021

14/08/2021 - 22/08/2021

15/08/2021 - 15/08/2021

19/08/2021 - 22/08/2021

21/08/2021 - 22/08/2021

26/08/2021 - 29/08/2021

27/08/2021 - 29/08/2021

27/08/2021 - 30/08/2021

28/08/2021 - 30/07/2021

29/08/2021 - 30/08/2021

02/09/2021 - 05/09/2021

03/09/2021 - 05/09/2021

04/09/2021 - 04/09/2021

06/09/2021 - 06/09/2021

07/09/2021 - 08/09/2021

07/09/2021 - 12/09/2021

12/09/2021 - 12/09/2021

14/09/2021 - 16/09/2021

15/09/2021 - 19/09/2021

17/09/2021 - 19/09/2021

21/09/2021 - 26/09/2021

24/09/2021 - 26/09/2021

17/10/2021 - 17/10/2021

22/04/2022 - 24/04/2022

30/04/2022 - 08/05/2022

01/05/2022 - 02/05/2022

15/05/2022 - 15/05/2022

25/06/2022 - 26/06/2022

All event details have been entered as accurately as possible, but please check with the event organisers before travelling to avoid disappointment.

Welcome to the UKGardening Internet site.

The UKGardening web site has been running since 1998. The idea behind the site has always been to provide what we think will be interesting and useful information for the novice gardener.

Jobs to do in the garden this week.

Remove weak growth from autumn fruiting raspberries.
Grass will need less frequent mowing in prolonged dry weather. If very dry, remove the grass collecting box and let the cuttings stay on the ground to conserve soil moisture.
Continue to collect and store seeds from plants, for sowing next year. Store any collected seed in paper envelopes or bags, then put them in an air-tight container.
Propagate hibiscus, lavender and rhododendron plants by taking semi-ripe cuttings.
Propagate celamatis, honeysuckle and wisteria plants by layering.
Collect and dispose of wind-fall fruit. Leaving them on the ground encourages pests and can damage your lawn.
Take cuttings of shrubs: senecio, lavender, sage, rosemary, fuchsia, hebe, daphne, cistus, choisya and azalea.
Prune wisteria by shortening the whippy lateral shoots to about six buds from the main stems.
Prepare the garden now if you are going on holiday. Water all shrubs well, including roses and climbers, then lay 2-3in thick mulch on top of the soil around their roots to keep the roots cool.
If the your grass has grown long while you have been on holiday, give it a cut with the blade set quite high and then lower a few days later, this reduces the chance of the grass going into shock and allowing weeds to get established
If you are going on holiday either get a neighbour to water your house plants, hanging baskets and patio planters, alternatively put all of your plants including house plants on the patio or lawn, put the lawn sprinkler between them and connect the hose to an outside tap using a water timer (set the timer to come on twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening - 10 minutes each time should be sufficient). Test the settings before you go away.
Feed tomato plants fornightly with a liquid fertiliser (this must be diluted in water to prevent burning the plants)
Tie tomato stems to canes or stakes to prevent the weight of the fruit breaking the plant.
Pond fish will eat more in the summer, feed them little and often, once or twice a day. If the food has not been eaten within 15 minutes, remove and dispose of the excess.
Ensure that soil in hanging baskets and patio planters is kept moist. Remove fading and dead flower heads from plants, this will encourage new flowers. Feed hanging baskets and planters weekly with liquid fertiliser if a slow release fertiliser was not added when planting the basket.
Move houseplants outside for some summer sunshine.
Continually nip out side shoots from upright (cordon) tomato plants. These reduce the amount of food available to fruit baring branches. If growing plants in the greenhouse, nip out the growing tip after the plant has produced 4-5 fruiting trusses, reduce this to 3-4 if growing tomatoes outside. See here, for more information: https://youtu.be/zFBgCBaFSnk
Regularly water trees and shrubs that were planted last autumn and winter. Their roots won't have had a chance to fully develop yet.
Cut grass weekly, long grass takes more nutrients out of the soil. It is also harder to cut and may leave yellow patches in the lawn.
Lift, divide and replant chives.

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