What fruit and veg can complete beginners grow? Katie says: Simply grab a bag and grow potatoes! All you need is enough room outside for a bag. You can use a specific potato-growing bag, or an old compost bag with the sides rolled halfway down and some drainage holes. Put compost in the bottom and place around three seed potatoes in the bag, covering them with soil a few inches deep. Every time green leaves appear, cover them again with compost. Repeat until the bag is full (half-full if using an old compost bag). Keep watered and once the foliage has turned yellow and started to die, you can harvest your spuds. Simple!
NICE ’N’ EASY Sow runner or broad beans into the ground from early spring – 5cm deep, 15cm apart – with canes for support.
I don’t have a lot of time to garden. What can I grow outside that’s low maintenance? Katie says: Go for perennials – plants that come back every year after giving you a wonderful display in summer. The lowest maintenance ones include hardy geraniums, which will reliably flower for several months and give good ground cover, while erysimum ‘Bowles’s’ mauve will flower for extensive periods and hold their shape during winter. Rudbeckia and verbena bonariensis are happy left to their own devices. Hostas produce pretty flowers and are great for shade, while lavender loves a sunny spot and free-draining soil. Early spring is a good time to get them going – make a hole, plant, firm them into the soil and keep watered, especially for the first few weeks. Remove dead stems in winter From top: hardy or next spring along with geraniums, erysimum ‘Bowles’ mauve’, any old foliage. rudbeckia, verbena bonariensis, hostas and lavender
B L AC K B OA R D P OT S You’ll need: terracotta pots and saucers, newspaper, blackboard paint, flat-edged paintbrush, chalk, herbs
1 Ensure the terracotta pot and saucers are completely clean and dry. Spread out newspaper to work on. Dip the brush into the blackboard paint, making sure it’s not overloaded. Using the flat side of the brush, paint carefully around the pot underneath the top lip. Paint the rest of the bottom of the pot and leave to dry. 2 Give the pot a second and third coat if necessary. The more coats you do, the less streaky the pot will look. 3 Paint the saucer and leave to dry. Repeat as necessary. 4 Decide which herbs to plant then write their names in chalk on the front of each pot.
Good to grow For loads more garden inspiration, whatever your space, visit tes.co/gardengenius 56
For more inventive garden tips, visit tescoliving.com/home-and-garden
WORDS AVIVA ATTIAS MAKES AND STYLING EMMA MORTON-TURNER PHOTOGRAPHY ANT DUNCAN ILLUSTRATIONS RICHARD WILSMORE
GREEN FINGERS