Potpourri Magazine

If you love gardening, our magazine will inspire you. It's a real magazine, not just a newsletter, and it's packed full of interesting articles written by professional gardening journalists. It's totally free and arrives once a month by email. Here is a selection of recent articles.

Modern heroes of horticulture - Guy Grieve

Modern heroes of horticulture - Guy Grieve
Guy Grieve is an adventurer whose journey has led him into the world of horticulture via Alaska, the Caribbean and the Isle of Mull.  His exploits are well documented in...
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Gardeners' notes - what to do in July

Gardeners' notes - what to do in July
Clean greenhouse glass It’s a job often carried out over winter but greenhouses located around and near trees often become coated in a sticky sap excreted by aphids living on...
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Wildlife in the garden - helix lucorum

Wildlife in the garden - helix lucorum
Snails aren’t eveyone's cup of tea when it comes to a creature to be welcomed into the garden, but their role in the environment shouldn’t be underestimated.  As consumers of...
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Gardeners' notes - what to do in June!

Gardeners' notes - what to do in June!
Gardeners are great optimists and will already be starting to think about next year.  For us that means sowing biennial seeds to provide flowers for the spring and early summer. ...
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Modern heroes of horticulture - Alan Down

Modern heroes of horticulture - Alan Down
Alan Down’s life in horticulture is not only an example of hard work and dedication but also one of pure passion.  Currently President of the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA), Alan’s...
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Plant profile - delphinium

Plant profile - delphinium
What traditional cottage border isn’t complete without the addition of towering delphiniums, their flowers a magnet for bees, insects, and humans alike.  Their statuesque stems rise up in early summer...
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Exceptional trees - birch

Exceptional trees - birch
We’ve always been fans of birch trees at Genus HQ and on moving here over a decade ago we immediately planted several, including the beautiful white stemmed Betula utilis var....
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Plant folklore - black poplar

Plant folklore - black poplar
The black poplar, Populus nigra, has been an iconic tree in Britain's woodlands and wetland areas for centuries.  Believed to be one of the few species native to the UK...
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The plants around us - biofuels

The plants around us - biofuels
It might seem strange but the use of plants within the global fuel industry could become an important sector within horticulture.  Bio-fuels, an alternative to the fossil fuel that we...
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Body, soul and gardening - the joy of gardening with others

Body, soul and gardening - the joy of gardening with others
Much as I love gardening alone, there’s something particularly good for the soul about gardening with others.  It’s great to be with like-minded people who share your horticultural passion.  And...
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Wildlife in the garden - Otters

Wildlife in the garden - Otters
Twenty years ago we would never have thought that otters (Lutra lutra) could be an occasional, if not common, visitor to gardens in the UK.  Once on the decline due...
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Modern heroes of horticulture - Mike Palmer

Modern heroes of horticulture - Mike Palmer
Mike Palmer has become a familiar face to keen gardeners in recent years.  His live ‘Sunday Morning Stroll’, something he started on Instagram during lockdown, has garnered a loyal following...
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Gardeners' notes - what to do in May

Gardeners' notes - what to do in May
Lawn care With soil temperatures now reliably into double figures, it's a good time to carry out any renovation work on your lawn.  Rake out any moss and scatter fresh...
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Exceptional trees - General Sherman Sequoiadendron giganteum

Exceptional trees - General Sherman Sequoiadendron giganteum
There surely can be nothing more impressive than seeing trees that are champions in their genus.  Huge trees, tall trees, wide trees, or very, very old trees.  Estimated at over...
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Plant folklore - Hawthorn Crataegous monogyna

Plant folklore - Hawthorn Crataegous monogyna
The thorny shrub known as hawthorn is commonly spotted in hedgerows especially around May when its blossom fills the air with a pungent scent of galvanised rubber or spicy almond. ...
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The plants around us - linoleum

The plants around us - linoleum
Next time you walk into a room at home consider the plants that have been utilised to give you the life you enjoy.  Cotton curtains, cardboard packaging, and plant-based shampoos. ...
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Q&A with Dutch designer, Carien Van Boxtel

Q&A with Dutch designer, Carien Van Boxtel
How did you get into horticulture? I’ve been gardening and cutting flowers since I was four, as both my parents and grandparents were keen gardeners.  We had vegetables from our...
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Body, soul and gardening - soil makes you happy

Body, soul and gardening - soil makes you happy
Whilst wearing gardening gloves protects your hands, in the right circumstances and for those who are generally healthy, it might be beneficial to get your hands dirty occasionally.  Research into...
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Garden trends - coast-inspired gardens

Garden trends - coast-inspired gardens
Resilience is a buzz word in garden design with designers looking to environments such as the coast, where plants are exposed to the extremes of weather, for planting inspiration.  The...
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Shrub of the month - Exochorda

Shrub of the month - Exochorda
Also known as pearl bush, this is an excellent shrub for an uplifting display of early blossom.  In early April to May, this otherwise unassuming shrub is belle of the...
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How to ... take softwood cuttings

How to ... take softwood cuttings
Growing plants from softwood cuttings is an excellent way of bulking up your garden cheaply and duplicating favourite plants in your own or a friend’s garden -a cutting also makes...
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