SHARE YOUR CREATIONS

Here are some of the great potting ideas we've seen out and about at the florists in town! 

Don't forget to 

Tweet is @The_RHS

or use the hashtag #ngw

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN TERRARIUM

"Sometimes you simply want to enjoy the benefits of a garden without having to mow, prune, and fertilize."

Terrariums are popular thanks to their fuss-free maintenance, beauty, and minimal space requirements, meaning they’re also good options for those who want to garden but lack the outdoor space.

Before making a terrarium, consider where it will live in your home. For most plants, you’ll want a spot that receives indirect sunlight because the glass container will magnify the sun’s rays. (You also don’t want to put it where there’s no sunshine, such as in the basement.) A good rule of thumb is to let a plant’s nursery tag be your guide. It will tell you, for example, that boxwood basil prefers some sunshine while a miniature fern would be hap- pier in a shadier locale.

Once you’ve found the proper place, you’ll need the following supplies to make a terrarium: • Glass container

• Rocks (polished pebbles, sea glass, marbles, etc.) • Sphagnum or sheet moss • Soil

• Plants that won’t overgrow (good choices include boxwood, croton, Joseph’s coat, pineapple verbena and twiggy spikemoss for sun-loving plants and gnome ivy, golden club moss, Irish or Scottish club moss and miniature ferns for shade-loving plants.)

• Basic tools (spoons or a funnel for placing soil, long tweezers for putting materials into the vessel, scissors for clipping greenery, and paper towels or cotton swabs for cleaning the glass.)

STEP 1. 

Choose a glass container. It can be anything from a clean, reused pickle jar to a vintage vase. Just make sure the container is clear and not coloured glass, which could hinder growth.

For beginners, it’s best to use a vessel with an opening wide enough to accommodate the width your hand so that you can easily place and move materials as needed.

STEP 2. 

Place a handful of rocks at the bottom of the container. This layer helps to shape the terrain while aiding drain- age and aeration. Vary the layer’s thick- ness by the size of the container. The smaller the vessel, the thinner the rock layer; you’ll want to leave enough “head space” at the top of the terrarium when you’re finished that the setup doesn’t look cramped. 

Step 3. 

Scoop the soil into a funnel and fill the container with several inches of it. The greenery you’ll be planting will determine the type of soil you use. For moss, use a peat moss mixture, which is less likely to mold. For other plants, non-moisture-control potting mix should work. If a plant’s nursery tag indicates that it needs a specific type of soil, use that.

Keep in mind that this layer doesn’t have to be perfectly flat. Hills and valleys give the landscape character. Again, don’t fill the container too high with soil, since you’ll want to have enough “head space” for the greenery to grow.

Step 4. 

Step 5. Plant your plants. If you’re using moss that you snagged from nature, make sure to first give it a blast of pesticide to debug it. Use scissors to trim it into shape and place it into the container. Make sure to press it down firmly to prevent air pockets. For other plants, plant them as you would in your outdoor garden. Loosen the root ball, place in a shallow layer of soil, add soil around it, and pat down.

Give the plant some water to help prevent transplant shock, keeping in mind that the container doesn’t have drainage holes like a potted plant would. The rocks layer will aid with drainage.

And there you have it! Your very own Terrarium. 

We would love to see your creations, so don't forget to; 

Tweet us at @The_RHS

or use the hashtag #ngw on Instagram

OUTSIDE / IN

The tagline last year was ‘Start Something Beautiful.’ The RHS ran projects throughout the week as well as providing resources and guides around this theme and encouraging others to contribute ideas, hold events or exhibitions and run activities.

This years theme and ‘tag line’ is Outside / In, encouranging people to bring a bit of that green space inside. We aiming at a younger audience this year to get them involved and suggest some green finger tips, simple crafty ideas for those just starting out and or anyone with limited garden space and a busy lifestyle to condend with.

We are putitng together a couple of collectable mini mags with crafty and easy ideas you can use to bring that green from outside, in, aswell as there being organised plant sales and workshops around the country.

(See local garden centre/florist for more information).

As well as all that, this year we will be holding mini contests on our social media, to find the best crafty ideas and creations!

WELCOME!

With the theme of 2015's National Gardening Week being Outside / In we are going to using this blog as a platform to share easy and crafty ideas for you to get involved with.

What is National Gardening week and why is it important? 

National Gardening Week was launched three years ago by the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society) and since then has grown into the country’s biggest celebration of gardening. Thousands of people, gardens, charities, retailers, culture and heritage organisations and groups get involved and you can too. Last year, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of RHS Britain in Bloom, the UK’s largest volunteering project, we made the week all about communities. So whether you’re were a complete novice or a green-fingered expert you could get involved and enjoy gardening and the green spaces, neighbourhoods and communities that benefit from it.


The same goes for this years theme; we want to include all ages, professions, novice's and beginners and this year we are focusing on crafty and innovative ideas for peoples with busy lifestyles. So if you've always liked the idea of having plants in your home or growing your plants but thought you didn't have the space, fear not! This blog will be full of ideas, tutorials and even a chance for you too show off your gardening skills.