Veronica Peerless

1 week ago | gardensillustrated.com | Veronica Peerless

Forget digging, hoeing, weeding, feeding, crop rotation and pest control: veg growers are now embracing ways of growing food that is inspired by nature. Not only is this a more sustainable and resilient way of growing, it can also be significantly less work. “I’ve found life is far easier and more enjoyable when working with rather than fighting nature,” says regenerative grower, Joshua Sparkes. “In my experience, nature has an answer for most problems and it is up to us to trust the process.

2 weeks ago | gardensillustrated.com | Veronica Peerless

Tell us about the new book and why you wrote it In September 2021, the wheels had come off my life. During Covid we’d had to close our garden school, Mrs Frost had been really poorly and was in hospital for 11,12 weeks and I was juggling that with four kids at home. There were times when Monty couldn’t film, so I had to record ‘Hello, welcome to Gardeners’ World’ in the morning, then run off to the hospital at lunchtime. And then our youngest daughter was ill.

3 weeks ago | gardensillustrated.com | Alys Hurn |Veronica Peerless

How much would you pay for a plant you really covet? In recent years, some plants have fetched draw-dropping prices online and at auction and some always sell at very high prices. Often rare with unique or collectable qualities that have taken years or even decades to breed and perfect, these prized plants sell for thousands, sometimes millions, of pounds. The value is often driven up by collectors who can go to extraordinary lengths to own a desired species, and this can fuel black market trading.

3 weeks ago | gardensillustrated.com | Veronica Peerless

The RHS has said that it is delaying plans to make its flower shows, including the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, peat-free by the end of 2025. It has cited a "legislative black hole" for this change in direction. In August 2022 the Government announced the ban on sales of retail peat at the end of 2024, and in March 2023 it made an announcement on a peat ban for commercial growers at the end of 2026, with some exemptions. However the 2024 ban did not come into force due to a change of Government.

3 weeks ago | gardensillustrated.com | Veronica Peerless

In David Domoney's new book, Plants with Superpowers: 75 Remarkable Plants for your Garden and Home, David shares an incredible array of plants with extraordinary capabilities. After considerable research into myths, legends, and scientific papers, David illustrates that the natural world has truly gifted plants with superpowers.