The Gardener Magazine

The Gardener is a monthly, national magazine dedicated to inspiring gardeners, providing practical advice and showing step-by-step garden projects. Our monthly features include garden design, in-depth plant features, growing vegetables and herbs, water gardening, garden wildlife and pets, specialist plant articles and much more. We have an extensive database on our website that is growing daily.

WELCOME

Dirt DIARIES

Lavender lovelies • Highly aromatic tooth-leaved lavenders with their pale lavender-blue flower spikes topped by purple or mauve flower bracts have a proverbial ‘finger (or is it a root?) in any pie’ relevant to human existence!

OUR CHELSEA GOLDS • We are very excited to announce that the Cape flora exhibit at the 2024 RHS Chelsea Flower Show has been awarded not only a Gold Medal but two other awards: The Best Exhibit in the Grand Pavilion and New Design Award for Leon Kluge’s masterful representation of our Cape floral kingdom.

THE GROOTBOS FOUNDATION

BRAHMAN HILLS, KWAZULU-NATAL

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Nurturing NATURE • The Story of Kraal Garden’s Transformation

Plant List

What makes a garden sustainable?

COLOURFUL Cold Weather WINNERS!

SO MANY FACES and so many choices… • Whoever associated a Cotyledon orbiculata (pig’s ear) with the ear of a pig obviously did not know about all the varieties and cultivars this species in the genus Cotyledon has.

Dried Seedheads & Pods

AGRIMONY

Pretty and functional

Yummy sweet potatoes for your good health

Vegetable Soups and dumplings

What to do in July

What to do in August

BOTANICAL TALES • Dig deeper into the fascinating world of plants

Heroines of HORTICULTURE

Floating gardens

HANGING BASKET planting kit

LOBULARIA ‘Easy Breezy’

DIASCIA ‘Diamond’

Seasonal Stars for a Vibrant Garden • As the cold season ends, the blooms of annuals planted now will be at their best. Here are some to look out for in your local garden centre or nursery in seedling form.

IN THE GARDEN WITH TANYA

TIGRIDIA

GET THE ladies in! • At this time of year, early-flowering shrubs vie with each other to get the most attention. We say: Trust those with female names for frills and butterflies. They go the extra mile to flower their hearts out.

GREG’S TOP TIPS

FIRE AND Feathers! • On a dreary winter’s day, a screen of fiery and feathery leaves puts up a fight against dullness!

Winter houseplant tips

DOPAMINE Décor • The latest trend to hit the décor scene is called dopamine décor.

Make a Leopold Bench • This easy DIY can be done with minimal tools.

LUNAR Gardening Guide • This mid·year month is mostly a dormant phase, but lunar gardenersstill follow the moon cycle to time specific maintenance chores or activities to prepare their gardens for the growing season ahead. "Harvest" days are good to clear annuals, remove old perennials and unwanted trees. The first week before Dark Moon is ideal to do this, or after Full Moon. The days marked semi-fertile and fertile at mid-month are best for sowing seed varieties under cover. Note the "root" days to plant late spring flowering bulbs.

PINEBERRY

The Gardener Magazine

LUNAR Gardening Guide • Pruning of delicate perennials is advised only after the last frost, and lunar gardeners prefer harder pruning on the waxing moon - after Dark and before Full. These days are marked as "trim to increase" on the best days guide below. Only prune well established shrubs on the waning moon, after Full, and ra ther avoid "very barren" days, especially in the last quarter as new growth and flowering is likely to be...