-
DIG IN
What’s new, what’s growing and what’s going on this month
-
March plants
In the first of a new monthly series, Lowther Castle’s head gardener Andrea Brunsendorf chooses the ten plants for March that bring her joy
-
KITTED OUT
Get growing this season with our selection of tools and equipment for early spring
-
The working year at Sissinghurst
In 1930, the writer Vita Sackville-West and her diplomat husband Harold Nicolson bought an old farm in Kent and set about creating a garden that has become one of the best loved and most visited in the world. In this new series, Sissinghurst’s head gardener Troy Scott Smith takes us through what he and his team are doing, and enjoying, each season
-
SPRING TASKS
March can be unpredictable and cruel. At one moment, the flooding of sap-swelling buds and unfurling leaves feels like spring, and in the next a blanket of snow carried on searing cold winds from the near continent can cover the garden like a duvet, plunging it back into winter. Flexibility is key. I have several tasks ‘on the go’ at any one time and freely switch between them if required to do so by a change in the weather.
-
GOLDEN WONDERS
Our new columnist Nigel Slater on the amazement he still feels at the arrival of flowering bulbs in spring
-
WITHOUT WATER
Jo Wakelin has transformed a dry, rural paddock into an exciting new water-resilient garden with no irrigation and plants from all over the world
-
WILL TOMSON
As director at Sheffield-based design studio Creative Cultivation, Will designs and creates sustainably built wildlife gardens and natural swimming ponds
-
BERGENIA
Elephant’s ears are low-maintenance, easy-going evergreen perennials that will brighten up the early spring garden with their colourful booms
-
VÉRONIQUE MURE
The French botanist who is championing naturalistic gardening, on the importance of preserving ecosystems and ensuring plants have a living soil
-
DOWN THE GARDEN PATH
Journeys both physical and metaphorical are at the heart of Jackie and John Copping’s Essex garden
-
Seasonal flair
Try your hand at these three fresh designs with flowers and foliage to celebrate the arrival of spring
-
Bowls of beauty
Magnolias are the show stoppers of early spring and there is nowhere better to see them than Borde Hill in West Sussex
-
Green power
Three new rooftop gardens designed by Andy Sturgeon have transformed one of London’s most iconic buildings
-
Growing for gold
Drawing on a long heritage of daffodil breeding in Northern Ireland, Esker Farm Daffodils now finds its bulbs are in demand from Narcissus obsessives from around the world
-
Design
News, garden design insight and sourcebook
-
NARROW ESCAPE
A small, shaded, city garden has been transformed into a verdant urban oasis filled with trees, climbers and perennials
-
Mini greenhouses
Extend the season without losing garden space with these small glasshouses
-
FRESH PICKS
We asked expert plantspeople, designers and gardeners which brand new and recently introduced plants they are excited about growing this year
-
DOWNTOOLS
Book reviews, Q&A, the crossword and Alice Vincent
-
'Geoff Hamilton will always be my gardening pin-up'
Actress Caroline Quentin is a keen gardener and artist, and has combined her two loves in her book, Drawn to the Garden. Here, she talks about her literary loves and what gardening means to her
-
Find so much more online…
Head to gardensillustrated.com for more exclusive content on gorgeous gardens and the best seasonal plants. You’ll also find the latest horticultural news and details of upcoming events – plus podcasts, offers and competitions, and a wealth of inspiration
-
FINDING TIME
In the last of her regular columns, Alice Vincent reflects on what she’s discovered over the course of documenting her gardening year, and why it’s now time to move on