Potpourri Magazine

If you love gardening, our magazine will inspire you. It's a real magazine, not just a newsletter, and it's packed full of interesting articles written by professional gardening journalists. It's totally free and arrives once a month by email. Here is a selection of recent articles.

Body soul and gardening - the golden hour

Body soul and gardening - the golden hour
Like so many people, I’ve been appreciating my garden more than ever over recent weeks, but my favourite moment has to be first thing in the morning, before anyone is...
Read More
Body, soul and gardening - water to soothe the senses

Body, soul and gardening - water to soothe the senses
As the weather heats up, having cooling water in the garden is all the more appealing.  It creates a calming focal point, adding gentle sound, movement and sparkling light to...
Read More
Our podcast pick - Talking Heads

Our podcast pick - Talking Heads
This lively and informative gardening podcast - which recently celebrated 10,000 downloads - makes for comforting and informative listening while you’re doing your gardening or cooking.  Fellow head gardeners Saul...
Read More
Book review - The Modern Cottage Garden by Greg Loades

Book review - The Modern Cottage Garden by Greg Loades
In his new book, Greg explores a fusion between the ever-popular cottage garden of roses and foxgloves and the prairie-style planting of designers like Piet Outdolf, with swathes of grasses...
Read More
Garden trends - vertical gardening

Garden trends - vertical gardening
The trend for green or ‘living walls’ continues in popularity, in both domestic and commercial situations, as the technology advances and more specialist companies are set up.  These walls are...
Read More
Technology in the garden - Vegebag

Technology in the garden - Vegebag
If you’re looking for extra growing space, either in a small garden or because you’ve already packed your garden to the rafters and want to squeeze in some salad leaves,...
Read More
Gardening tip - deadheading roses

Gardening tip - deadheading roses
Keep deadheading your roses religiously for a succession of blooms.  Removing heads instantly smartens up the plant and can keep repeat-flowering roses going for months.  Remove the flowers as you...
Read More
The unexpected gardener - Dame Judi Dench

The unexpected gardener - Dame Judi Dench
As if being a brilliant actress and generally classy woman isn’t enough, Judi is also passionate about nature.  She is often seen at RHS Chelsea and has a peachy-coloured David...
Read More
Seasonal produce - what to do with courgettes

Seasonal produce - what to do with courgettes
Courgettes are hungry plants but easy to grow and versatile.  Aside from ratatouille, they’re great raw and are easy to grate into salads with a bit of lemon and oil.  Alternatively,...
Read More
Father's Day fun - building a bug hotel with the kids

Father's Day fun - building a bug hotel with the kids
As crafty projects go, this is pretty relaxed as you don’t need any tools or particular material, just twigs, wood and old pots lying around the garden – in fact...
Read More
Gardening tip - the Chelsea chop

Gardening tip - the Chelsea chop
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show may not have happened this year but we can still think of it while we prune back our late flowering herbaceous plants to avoid them...
Read More
Garden trends - Shabby chic and recycled materials

Garden trends - Shabby chic and recycled materials
The world of garden design is seeing a growing shift away from sleek minimalism towards gardens with character and texture, with greater use of recycled materials reflecting growing environmental awareness....
Read More
Technology in the garden - birdsong identification apps

Technology in the garden - birdsong identification apps
Listening to birdsong is one of the great pleasures of being in our gardens more.  And while all birdsong is a delight, getting to know particular bird song brings even...
Read More
Our blog pick - Ann Marie Powell's My Real Garden

Our blog pick - Ann Marie Powell's My Real Garden
The award-winning and charismatic celebrity garden designer, presenter and writer, is media friendly and has appeared on various Youtube videos sharing her extensive knowledge and experience of garden design and...
Read More
Gardening heroine - Rachel de Thame

Gardening heroine - Rachel de Thame
The gardener and TV presenter of BBC2’s Gardener’s World is also a familiar face in the coverage of RHS shows – though we won’t have had the chance to see...
Read More
Body, soul and gardening - Grow your own immune boosting system

Body, soul and gardening - Grow your own immune boosting system
Eating your own homegrown fruit and vegetables is one of the best ways of keeping your immune system strong and healthy – so important at the moment.  In particular, eating...
Read More
Seasonal produce - rhubarb upside down cake

Seasonal produce - rhubarb upside down cake
A delicious tart fruit, stewed rhubarb, flavoured with sugar and ginger, is fab cold with yoghurt or hot in crumbles.  And it’s harvested from early spring when there are few...
Read More
Competition - Gardening in the Era of Lockdown

Competition - Gardening in the Era of Lockdown
Last month in our Potpourri magazine we ran a competition: write 200 words on the theme of Gardening in the Era of Lockdown and win a £100 Genus gift voucher. ...
Read More
Gardening tip - heal your lawn

Gardening tip - heal your lawn
If you you’ve noticed any bald patches in your lawn, there’s still time to reseed them.  Rough up the area with a rake adding a bit of sharp sand for...
Read More
The Unexpected Gardener - Helen Mirren

The Unexpected Gardener - Helen Mirren
The Oscar-winning actress is a great believer in the power of gardening and has mentioned its benefits in various interviews over the years. She recently spoke about how it soothes...
Read More
Seasonal veg - nettle soup

Seasonal veg - nettle soup
The next time you weed a bed of nettles, crop them instead, well the tips anyway – they’re a surprisingly tasty, free and vitamin-packed fresh vegetable.  They’re also excellent for...
Read More