Latest From Gardens Illustrated
8 super quick and easy cheats to make your garden look good in time for this weekend
Have friends coming over or got an outdoor event planned? Here are a few simple ideas to swiftly spruce up your garden
Fantasising about a greenhouse? Here’s why you need one and what you should know before you buy one
A glasshouse or greenhouse can offer a beautiful garden retreat as well as a place to grow undercover and turbo boost your gardening abilities
7 garden design rules you can totally break, and the one you never should
Leading garden designers tell us which tenets of design they love to ignore, the common demands they try to talk clients out of
Matthew Wilson: Was this a Chelsea Flower Show to remember? If you don't mind the gaps
From dry gappy gardens to a packed Pavilion, Matthew Wilson gives his final verdict on this year's show
Nine garden design ideas to steal from this year's Chelsea Flower Show, including pink walls and upturned plant supports - plus one that won't cost you a penny
The Gardens Illustrated team pick nine take-home design ideas that caught their eye at the Chelsea Flower Show 2025.
Double whammy shock at Chelsea Flower Show as Japanese garden is first to ever win People's Choice and Best in Show
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show People's Choice Award has been announced, with the public sharing their views on their favourite garden
Gardens Illustrated 's Editor's choice
Discover the designer of the RHS Chelsea Garden of the Year who grew up in the shadow of the A-bomb and pledged his life to creating gardens
Kazuyuki Ishihara on Chelsea Flower Show nerves, and how coming from a city synonymous with war shaped his love of peaceful nature.
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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Save over 45% on the shop price when you join as a member to Gardens Illustrated today
Discover a year of homegrown goodness with Gardens Illustrated’s Special Edition
A Year in the Edible Garden – Your essential guide to growing and enjoying fresh produce
Gardens Illustrated events
Latest garden features and design ideas
Want a stunning summer border? Here are four beautiful flower combinations with lots of wow-factor that you can plant in your garden
Four plant combinations to add colour and drama to your summer borders with inspiration from Malverleys head gardener Mat Reese
The Newt: a garden for all seasons
Discover the Somerset estate that offers history, horticulture, culinary excellence, education and much more
War of the roses: which new book about the history, lore and love of roses is better?
Two new books examine the place of the rose in art and literature, and in our own personal psyches – and both leave the reader with plenty to enjoy, says Matt Collins
RHS Plant of the Year 2025 announced at Chelsea Flower Show
The coveted plant of the year has been chosen by judges at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025 this year
Monty Don's dog garden might be a Chelsea hit - but our readers say dog-friendly gardens aren't realistic in the real world
Can you have a beautiful garden and a dog? Our readers are conflicted.
Nine garden design ideas to steal from this year's Chelsea Flower Show, including pink walls and upturned plant supports - plus one that won't cost you a penny
The Gardens Illustrated team pick nine take-home design ideas that caught their eye at the Chelsea Flower Show 2025.
Eight inspiring water features from Chelsea Flower Show to use in your own garden including a showstopping cold water bathtub
We take a closer look at eight beautiful and practical water features spotted at this year's RHS Chelsea Flower Show
12 inspiring seating ideas at Chelsea Flower Show, from roadwork blocks to flat-pack hanging chairs
Each year Chelsea Flower Show gardens showcase beautiful furniture. Here are some of our favourite pieces - including options you can buy.
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
Meet gardener Carmen Sheridan – ‘Visiting other gardens, events and plant fairs is like mulch for your brain’
Cultural gardener Carmen cares for the Children’s and Community Garden at Wakehurst, Kew, running therapeutic and educational horticulture groups
Best garden plants for now
June flowers to plant
As late spring turns to early summer, Keith Wiley and Andrea Brunsendorf pick the flowers that will look best in June
Slug-proof veg: the ultimate list of 17 vegetables that slugs and snails won’t eat
Struggling with slugs eating your crops? Here are 17 varieties of veg that they won't touch.
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
Sad that your alliums aren't going to last the summer? Get these great varieties to keep those purple globes flowering for longer
Loved for their showy spheres, alliums have long been stalwarts of late spring, but now new introductions are extending the party through summer. Our summer-flowering allium grow guide explains the best varieties to grow, how to care for them and where to plant.
No Mow May is over, but what now? Here's how to mow in June
The Plantlife campaign No Mow May has ended, but how do you protect all the wildlife that has got used to your long grass?
These 60 great flowers will bring brilliant colour in early summer to your garden plus they are the expert's favourites
As temperatures continue to rise, momentum gathers in the garden and sun-lovers show their hand. From nodding woodlanders to audacious perennials, here are 60 early summer flowers chosen by experts
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
Here's what I plant and sow in the garden in June - two experts explain what to get in the soil this month
Head gardener Benjamin Pope explains what you should be planting in June.
11 key jobs to get done in your vegetable and flower garden this month - as chosen by two expert gardeners
Vegetable gardener Aaron Bertelsen and head gardener Benjamin Pope explain exactly what you need to get done in the garden in June
No Mow May is over, but what now? Here's how to mow in June
The Plantlife campaign No Mow May has ended, but how do you protect all the wildlife that has got used to your long grass?
How to grow alliums and when to plant them
Equally at home in a cottage garden or urban courtyard, stunning in pots and borders, the globe-like flowers of ornamental onions add a welcome dash of early summer drama. Nurseryman John Hoyland is your guide to how to grow alliums, when to plant them, and recommends his favourite varieties.
Gardens to visit
which gardens to visit and where
Be inspired by these beautiful gardens to visit that will look their best in June
Gardeners Tom Brown and Asa Gregers-Warg recommend the best gardens to visit in June to see plants in full flower
The best hotels with gardens in the UK: stay at these places for a luxury garden experience
From majestic estates to romantic country cottages, Sorrel Everton chooses her favourite hotels with gardens, including B&Bs and self-catering getaways
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
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.
Want to stop your veg from being munched? Planting these flowers nearby could save it from bugs and slugs
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
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.
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.
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?