Andrew Staib

February- The Set-Up Month February is an important month to really set up your garden.  With Covid keeping us at home, our gardens can give us the expansiveness, connection and hope we desperately need. Andrew Staib from Glorious Gardens Designs takes a look at plants that will light up your garden. February can be an up and down month. Sometimes clear days have us running out to turn over the soil and dig in some compost, other days have us sheltering indoors looking out of a rainy window. If you are one of those gardeners who don’t start visiting their [...]

8 Sussex Garden Gems Arundel Castle and Gardens Beginning life in 1067, many of Arundel Castles original features such as the Norman keep and medieval gatehouse still survive to this day. The seat of the Dukes of Norfolk for over 850 years, Arundel castle has witnessed almost 1000 years of British history. Arundel Castle is very educational, especially for children, who can learn about the history of the castle throughout the years and wider British history through activities, talks and shows. Furthermore, Arundel Castle possesses beautiful award-winning tropical and English gardens. From the beautifully smelling rose garden to the abundant [...]

Building a Natural Pond Benefits Nearly 70% of ponds have been lost from the UK countryside, meaning garden ponds are more important than ever for supporting Britain’s fragile ecosystems. Ponds support almost two-thirds of our native plant and animal species providing food, water, breeding grounds, habitats and shelter. Furthermore, a well-designed and positioned pond can significantly improve the aesthetics of your garden, whilst also providing you with an area of tranquillity and peace. In addition to this, wildlife ponds are also vital for teaching the younger generations about the importance of local plants and animals. Ponds make for stunning feature [...]

Garden Design Ideas for this Autumn Autumn redesign Autumn is the perfect time to redesign any areas of your garden that you desire in preparation for spring and summer. Does your garden feel lopsided? Are there too many focal points? Does anything stick out like a sore thumb? Now is the best time to ask yourself these questions. Think big. Be ruthless. Whether it’s the new decking you’ve always wanted, a complete reshape of a path, or bringing in feature trees to create a canopy, now is the time of the year to plan, redesign and make changes to your [...]

Bulbs for October Autumn bulbs bring our gardens joy and colour in an unlikely season. There are many different and beautiful varieties to consider for your garden. Autumn Crocus Crocuses are one of the best-known bulbs for autumn time. They bloom through the autumn leaves to bless your garden with colour. Try unusual species such as the purple Greek Crocus goulimyi and the stunning blue marbled Crocus cancellatus, which can be planted amongst silver birch stems for perfect colour complementation, to add some character and colour to your garden. You must plant autumn crocuses in May or June for them to flower in October. [...]

Bird Boxes  Why do we need bird boxes? Bird boxes are becoming increasingly important in our woodlands, as deforestation is causing rapid loss of suitable nesting sites. Loss of habitats can have devastating impacts on breeding birds, particularly those who nest in the same site year on year. Birds who nest in the same site are also at risk if they choose to nest in old buildings, as these sites disappear upon building repairs. For example, swifts often nest in spaces under the eaves of old houses and churches, this allows the bird to drop into flight straight from the [...]

Chilworth Manor- A Musical Space The intense care for Chilworth Manor that Head Gardener John McRae has is evident in his smiling eyes. He loves this garden where he has worked for 13 years and though he has shown countless people around the grounds in the past, he is full of freshly delivered information and excitement for upcoming challenges. He takes me across the lawns and down to the ponds. “A monastery stood where the house is now, and it is recorded in the Doomsday book. These were their dew ponds where they kept their fish stocks.” We move to [...]

The Wild Heart Of West Sussex Twenty years ago Isabella Tree and Sir Charlie Burrell threw up their hands up in despair at their 3,500 acre farm’s lack of profitability, no matter how much hard work and innovation they sunk into it. After selling all their farm machinery, they were in limbo until they became inspired by various rewilding projects that were taking place, especially in Holland.  Could they do the same at Knepp? Give over all their agricultural land, which had been intensively farmed in the family for centuries, to natural processes? Internal fences came down and there began [...]

Ridgeview When Simon watched the 25 year old Chardonnay grape vines being pulled out of the ground recently he couldn’t help feeling emotional. These were the first vines his parents had planted two and half decades ago when they began their adventure into viticulture as a retirement project. Since then, Ridgeview has grown to become one of the most prestigious wineries in the UK, having one numerous international awards for its sparking wine ranges. “After 25 years the vines have reached the end of their productive life. It is a pity to see them go but exciting to plant new [...]

Rewilding your garden- 8 easy steps Firstly, what is rewilding? Rewilding is returning outdoor spaces to a natural state where nature can evolve without the intense involvement of humans. It allows original ecosystems to reassert themselves thereby supporting damaged natural systems to heal and threatened species to recover their populations. The scale of rewinding is normally whole valleys being returned to forest or bog lands being left to replenish after years of vegetative extraction. But we can rewild our little bit of the earth that we have inherited! Here are 8 ways to go about it: 1) Not so Tidy [...]