Gardeners are an optimistic bunch, never put off by failures, always trying again, and always looking to the future. Small but barely noticeable signs at Genus HQ have made us...
As you read this, galanthomania is sweeping the country and keen snowdrop fans, or galanthophiles, are dropping to their knees to inspect the delicate petals of some of the rarer...
Every six months we renovate our mulched tree circles in the orchard at Genus HQ. Weeds are removed, the edges clipped with our trusty French Bahco shears, and a top...
Winter gardens concentrate the mind. It’s the detail that counts. Whether peering at the delicate formation of a snowdrops perianth, the frosted hairs on brittle seed heads, or the last...
Stepping out the back door of Genus HQ last week we were slapped in the face by wind and cold driving rain. As devotees of performance gardenwear we weren’t going to let...
A day in the fruit cage beckoned this week. The blackcurrants have responded well to a complete cut back and renovation that we gave them in late 2019. A wealth...
It’s that time of year again and the search for Christmas gifts at full throttle. Gardeners past enjoyed a now familiar set of innovative products bought as special gifts. During...
With the Genus borders planted up with tulips and wallflowers we were finally able to get on with mulching. This has been an annual operation since we moved here over ten years...
The first thing you learn when using ‘black’ plants in the garden is that they’re rarely black; dark reds, purples, and sometimes dark blues are usually the norm. Despite this,...
‘Hands up who likes blackfly’? No, we don’t either. They often appear suddenly in the garden and can cause several problems that need to be dealt with.The bean aphid Aphis...
We love Aeonium ‘Zwartcop’. It’s a tender branching succulent that can grow up to 1.2 metres high and is a perfect specimen to have as an architectural centrepiece in pots...
Good weather last week enabled us to get several hundred tulips planted in the borders at Genus HQ. This week we overplanted the tulips with the wallflowers that were sown...
We’re planting several hundred tulips this week. Hooray!! They arrived several weeks ago but we’ve been trying to make space in the beds to plant them. We’ve gone for some...
Ornamental grasses are extremely popular with gardeners in the UK. With their height, movement, and colour they easily earn their place in any garden. Last week could well have been...
Some days at Genus HQ have to be more about the infrastructure than the plants, so this week we put aside a day to complete a few practical tasks that...
It’s getting colder, the leaves are falling fast and it’s time to tidy up dead and tatty growth and prepare for winter. Protect slightly tender herbaceous plants like penstemon or Verbena bonariensis...
Ordering spring bulbs is an exciting job. An evening in with the fire lit, a cat on your lap, and bulb catalogues spread all around. Perfect!! But it’s not until...
It’s at this time of year that we realise the garden here at Genus HQ, whilst still retaining colour in the flower borders, is lacking colour elsewhere, particularly in the...
New french doors at Genus HQ have replaced a window and necessitated the removal of a grape vine that was originally trained over it. Groundworks had disturbed the roots, grapes...
The north facing wall of the cottage at Genus HQ has a number of climbers but in autumn the ‘orange peel’ clematis ‘Bill MacKenzie’ shines a light into this shadier...
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The Genus Garden - Musings From Joff, Our Head Gardener
