Grochar

1. GroChar by Carbon Gold -When plants decompose or are burned they release excess carbon into the atmosphere. We collect plant matter char it in a closed kiln and capture its carbon as biochar. Fo you to bury and lock into the earth, removing it from the atmosphere where it does harm and putting it in the soil where it does good. Biochar builds soil structure and helps roots take up more of the nutrients they need to grow. Ingredients: Biochar – from certified sustainable sources Mycorrhizal Fungi – to maximise nutrient uptake Wormcasts – full of beneficial bacteria Seaweed – rich in trace minerals for plant health and disease resistance.
Buy £9.99

2. Grochar All Purpose Biochar Compost by Carbon Gold
Buy : £8.99

3. GroChar Seed Compost by Carbon Gold
Buy £4.99

Biochar at Harrod Horticultural

GroChar BioChar Concentrated Soil Enhancer 1kg – £6.95
The carbon-rich biochar in Soil Association approved GroChar BioChar Concentrated Soil Enhancer helps keep carbon in the soil for up to 50 years with only one application required – ever!The GroChar biochar’s effectiveness is further enhanced by the seaweed wormcast and mycorrhizal fungi ingredients which provide an attractive home for beneficial micro-organisms and stabilise nutrients in the soil so root growth and plant development are accelerated. This completely natural soil improver is made by turning waste plant material into charcoal through clean technology placing carbon in the soil and not into the atmosphere. Use GroChar BioChar Concentrated Soil Enhancer as a soil improver compost additive or apply directly under trees or vegetable transplants.

New products at GreenFingers

Carbon Gold BioChar Complex | GroChar Soil Enhancer 1kg £8.99
This concentrated Biochar Soil Improver is a 100% organic and effective soil enhancer which is ideal for propagation use. A great way of beating the summer drought Biochar is proven to reduce the need for watering by holding water in the upper layers of the soil where your plants can reach it. The revolutionary formula increases the productivity of most soils. It provides all you need for stronger healthier plants and crops with long term benefits for your soil.Take a look at the extra image to see for yourself the benefits of using Biochar. The raspberry canes on the right hand side were planted using the Biochar complex and as you can see they were not only taller but visually healthier and more likely to produce a strong harvest. While this product cuts out the need for costly and environmentally damaging fertilisers and also reduces the need for irrigation.Click to view our potting department. Check out the video below for more information.

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Easy Gardener-weedblock 3ft. x 50ft. Landmaster Biodegradable Paper Mulch 30702
Made from recycled paper contains no chemicals and is OMRI Listed. Ideal seasonal solution for use in annual beds and gardens. The thick absorbent paper blocks weeds and helps conserve moisture. Can be tilled back into the soil at season end putting nutrients back where they are needed. Eco-friendly seasonal weed control. Conserves soil moisture – lets air in. OMRI Listed – USDA organic standards – Approved for organic food production. Natural Color. 3 x 50 . Length: 3. Width: 36. Height: 3

Slug Gone – Organic Natural Pure Wool Pelletts Slug Repellant (20 Litre Bag)Slug Gone Slug Pellets
This is a really exciting alternative to normal slug pellets.

What are slug gone pellets made from?
They are made from the fleece of sheep.

How does this work?
Wool fibres have very fine scales with small barbs on the tip called cuticle cells. These cause wool fibres to felt and matt together. Wool fibres are very hygroscopic and this plus the sand and grit already in the compound and the potassium salts from the sweat glands of the sheep absorb some of the slime from the slug’s foot to cause irritation, resulting in the slug finding easier feeding methods.

‘Slug Gone’ wool pellets are composed of 100% natural materials including phosphorous, nitrogen and potassium. As soon as water is added the fibres swell to form a barrier or insulation blanket. When slugs climb onto the fibres it irritates the foot and causes it to seek easier feeding elsewhere.

‘Slug Gone’ wool pellets are ideal for organic gardening and can be used in pots, flower beds, borders, allotments, herb gardens, nurseries, garden centres, green houses and vegetable plots.

How do you use these slug gone pellets?
To Use: Clean the area around the plant and place the pellets to fill the surface of the pot, or in a 6″ circle around the plant. Make sure all the pellets are touching. Water well and soon the pellets will swell and bind together to form both a prtotective and insulating blanket.

Contains: Nitrogen 3.6% Phosphorus 0.4% Potassiu8m 3.1%
These elements are slow released as the pellets biodegrade, taking up to 12 months

Is it safe?
This product is entirely safe for children, pets and wildlife. Not only do the pellets keep Slugs and Snails at bay, the pellets are also a good mix and balance for growing plants, fruit and vegetables.

And there’s more…
The pellets hold twice their own weight in water so they act as an excellent mulch, a weed suppressant, a soil conditioner and slow release fertiliser! Slug Gone is 100% natural, ideal for organic gardening and is safe for children, animals and garden wildlife.

Costs?
Slug Gone – Organic Natural Pure Wool Pelletts Slug Repellant (20 Litre Bag) – Price: £21.99
At Amazon – Slug Gone – Organic Natural Pure Wool Pelletts Slug Repellant (20 Litre Bag)

Did you know you can eat some flowers? Of course cauliflowers might be the first that springs to mind!
This list at T&M lists edible flowers and offers notes on them – Edible Flowers list at
Thompson & Morgan

Of course artichokes are the flower of the plant that you eat the petals and heart of.

I know you can eat nasturtium flowers and leaves and treat the seeds as capers and pickle them!
Courgette flowers can be battered and deep fried for an interesting treat!

Capers are also a flower bud!
Elderflowers are used to make a sparkling drink!

I know you can eat chive flowers – I just like to leave them for the bees.

Some I know about are:
wild garlic, primrose and borage, ramsons, courgette flowers, saffron crocus (for stamens),
Some I didn’t know – rose petals for jam apparently!)
orange Day lilies (hemerocallis sp)

You can make rose petal sugar by adding rose petals to sugar.
You can do the same with lavender. Lavender can be used as a flavouring in biscuits too. I’ve also seen this last week on one of the food programs (royal dinner thing) that something was flavoured with gorse flowers.

If you fancy a book on the subject of edible flowers then Amazon have several!

Although not using the flowers you can make spearmint sugar by adding spearmint leaves to a jar of sugar.

Wiki has a list of edible flowers too

This book looks a fun book for anyone with a small garden.”Patio Produce” is about growing delicious, wholesome fruit and vegetables in the smallest spaces.

Patio Produce: How to Cultivate a Lot of Home-grown Vegetables from the Smallest Possible Space
The book gets good reviews and is worth a look if you have a small yard!

My own hints on growing in small spaces is firstly to think vertically. You might only have a small floor space but if you have walls then you have the opportunity to grow on them too! And I don’t just mean by using canes to train beans up.

You could fix guttering lengths to the walls, each at a slight angle so they drain into the next one down. Fill this with compost and grow micro-salads, salad leaves that don’t need to grow really hugely before you harvest them.

Fix shelves to the wall and grow in pots! Make sure that the material you use for shelves won’t rot and sag ending up dropping all your seeds on the floor. If you can find plastic shelving them that’s perfect as it won’t rot.

Recycle old pan stands by using them to grow in pots on them.

Most of us stay indoors. Some might go out and fetch in the compost bin that’s decided to roll around outside. For most of us though staying in and curling up with a good book is a good idea.
If we start browsing on amazon then we’ll spot the Growbag Pots (Set Of 3)
that we’ve had our eye on for a while and perhaps even add them to our shopping basket.

It’s tempting to look at books too – Growing Tomato – books at Amazon and add a new one to the collection. Sometimes it’s nice to reread your existing gardening books. Sometimes things spring out that you’ve not noticed before – perhaps you read that comfrey doesn’t mind a boggy spot in the garden and decide you’ve found the perfect place for it.

In this weather it can be frustrating if you’ve got things to plant out. Just remember the weather is cold and wet and plants don’t like it anymore than we do either.

I’ve been reading through ‘Tomatoes for Everyone. including Ring Culture and growing on straw bales by Frank W. Allerton’ that I bought from a second hand shop for a tiny sum of money. It’s a fascinating book – some of which strikes me as quite bizarre. We’d never think of using formaldehyde to sterilise soil but it’s described in this book.

The book also mentions straw bales for growing tomatoes on and suggests a liner under them to allow the bottom inch to sit in any water that comes out from watering them. I shall have to put my straw bales on a sheet of plastic out on my plot to help them stay damp. I don’t dig them a trench to sit in but will instead look at fastening the corners of the plastic to make a trough around them! See what you can think of from reading!

Garden Innovations Growpot is what you need to make a growbag better!
A growbag used for growing tomatoes has a few issues – one is whether there’s enough soil for the roots (Something most gardeners worry about as growbags don’t come with a weight on!) and whether you’re watering them enough.

Garden Innovations Growpot – Pack of 3 is a pack of 3 growpots.

This is a pack of 3 growbag growpots. They have been designed to help ensure your tomatoes have a good water supply, and because they add extra soil to the growbag you get better plants. You can water more accurately using these and it’s easier to apply the liquid tomato feed when you water the growpot.
They have a special cutting ring for a quick and easy fit into growbags – this is a unique feature to the growpots and makes them so easy to fit into a growbag. You don’t need a knife or to spend ages cutting round anything to get the right size hole.

The pots have an outer trough that holds four pints of water or feed which then gradually seeps into the compost taking a constant supply.
This is perfect for ensuring your tomatoes have a steady supply and is great for the hot sunny days when you might need to water several times a day.

If your tomatoes have had blossom end rot – where the end of the tomato goes black, then you’ll know just how important watering is. One of the contributory factors to this problem with tomatoes is inconsistent watering. Using a grow pot ensures the plant gets the water it needs. It also reduces your stress levels when you’re away from home during scorching hot days worrying about your tomatoes!
You’ll need one pack for each growbag – as you can grow three tomato plants in each growbag. Whilst this may seem like a big investment (They work out about £3 each) you’ll discover that the extra crop you get from your tomatoes year after year soon pays for itself.

After all if your tomatoes dry out then the crop can be ruined – so this small outlay prevents crop loss ensuring your time and effort is well spent.

You’ll love growing tomatoes again once you’ve got these on your growbags! They’ll ensure safe and easy watering from now on which means you’ll have more tomatoes than ever!

Should last for years as they are good quality plastic. Just wash and put away at the end of the season until next year. A fantastic addition to your greenhouse!

The Fiskars Weed Puller is the easy way of getting dandelions and other tap root weeds out of your lawn.

Fiskars Weed Puller

Great invention for removing weeds, such as dandelions, from garden without resorting
to chemicals
Deep-reaching stainless steel claws
Leverage point from ground level
Ergonomically designed to ensure comfortable working posture
Ejection system for clean and efficient result

How big is the fiskars weed removal tool? Dimensions: 998 x 300 x 95 mm
It weighs 920 g

Removing dandelions from your lawn is tedious. You can do it with a knife and cut out the plants. This involves crouching down and that’s hard work especially if you’ve got a lot of dandelions to get rid of. This tool takes away the backache of removing weeds.

You stay stood up for the weed removal process. Position the tool – just surround the centre of the weed with the lopper-like teeth at the end of the pole. You then just press your foot down on the pedal, and angle the pole towards you and pull.The weed then comes out without the need to pull any straps/levers. You have to angle the pole when you lift it out of the soil/grass otherwise the teeth don’t grasp the weed.

To eject the weed from the tool’s teeth you just slide the orange cuff in the middle of the pole downwards – it glides very, very smoothly – and the weed is expelled. Done!

You should fill the gaps in the lawn with a mix of sand and compost and grass seed. You can go round and do this after. This helps any gaps fill in and encourages more grass to grow. The gaps aren’t very big left by this tool which means you don’t need huge sacks of compost or sand to fill in the holes. By adding sand to the mix you ensure the seed can drain well and this should encourage good growth.

The task of removing dandelions is now simple and easy. And the best bit is all your friends and family will want to have a go to test it out – just make sure they are trying it on your lawn and they’ll do the work for you. This really does remove the back breaking choreness of getting a good looking lawn.
The circumference of the fiskar tool’s teeth is about 7″ (18 cm) so the puller can cover the heart of most weeds and it does get most of the root up. This reduces the return rate of weeds and if you reseed the holes then the grass can then compete better to keep the weeds away for good.

Whilst regular mowing is considered a good way of removing most annual weeds (They can’t compete with keep growing every time they’re cut, unlike grass in your lawn which loves being cut to encourage it to grow more healthily) it won’t touch dandelion weeds. This is why they’re the worst! They should also be removed to prevent the yellow heads turning white and creating clouds of seeds that just continue the problem.

The fiskar dandelion weeder is a great tool that every gardener should have to help keep their lawn looking good.

Whilst the tool isn’t cheap it does take the backbreaking work out of removing weeds from the lawn, and it is a chemical free method so if you’re after an organic garden then this is a must have. Avoiding weed killers is also a good idea if you have pets or children as you don’t have to worry about their safety with this tool at all.

Buy it now – Fiskars Weed Puller
Watch the video now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c84_oPBy7pU

How to keep cats out of the garden.

Cat repellers

Some people swear by a water pistol but you have to sit patiently and wait for the cats to appear. An empty washing up bottle filled with water can do the job too.

Pepper can work. Not always and you’d have to reapply it after it rains.
Pick the right size gravel – one that’s too big for the cats to move easily.
Ask neighbours to put bells on collars to help the birds work out when the cats are about.
Try putting small sticks at regular intervals on the soil where they like to go and it might keep them off.
Net or screen off areas.
You could offer to dig your neighbours flower bed to give their cat somewhere to go. You don’t have to tell the neighbour that’s why you’re offering.
Lemon scented things might work.
Jeyes fluid might work around the edge of your garden.
Coleus Canina can be grown and cats don’t like the smell apparently.

Fiskars Weed Puller – Fiskars Weed Puller

Great invention for removing weeds, such as dandelions, from garden without resorting to chemicals
Deep-reaching stainless steel claws
Leverage point from ground level
Ergonomically designed to ensure comfortable working posture
Ejection system for clean and efficient result

Dimensions: 998 x 300 x 95 mm
Weight: 920 g

RRP: £39.99
Amazon Price: £27.95 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK