Garden Answers

Garden Answers is a vibrant and inspiring gardening magazine filled with ingenious design ideas and exciting plant combinations guaranteed to make your garden beautiful.

Meet the Contributors • “This month in the garden I’ll be…”

Welcome

CAPTIVATING IN COLD WEATHER • Crisp, frozen remains of summer’s glory take on a new lease of life and lift the spirits in the garden on a frosty morning

Be inspired by… • Plants, books, events & buys for the month

Wish list • Sparkling variegated evergreens become unassuming stars of the garden whether enjoyed outside or added to give some festive finesse to indoor decorations

GROW YOUR OWN CHRISTMAS • This year, let Christmas take root. With a little planning and a touch of soil, the most joyful gifts grow right outside your door, says Olga Grieves

Deck the halls with FESTIVE HOUSEPLANTS • From poinsettias and paperwhites to Christmas cactus, these festive houseplants lift spirits through the darkest days — and with the right care, many will reward you well into the new year, explains Louise Curley

The art of WINTER MAKING • Four easy, beautiful projects using natural finds and garden trimmings – simple, mindful makes that celebrate the textures, colours and quiet creativity of the season

Marvellous MAHONIA • Bringing drama, fragrance and useful nectar, mahonias are the unsung architectural stars of the winter garden, says Sue Fisher

December • Look after lawns and Christmas houseplants, plant a berrying shrub and create some homemade gifts

PLANT A BERRYING SHRUB • Create colour and interest in the winter garden with a colourful rainbow of berries

GROW YOUR OWN XMAS PRESENTS

CARE FOR CHRISTMAS HOUSEPLANTS • Give them a little TLC to make a festive flourish on tables or windowsills

Space-stretching ideas to MAKE YOUR GARDEN SEEM BIGGER • Looking upwards is a great way to make the most of your garden space – remember that it’s yours as far up as you can go!

A YEAR IN THE SUN • Each year, Adrian Thomas updates Garden Answers on the progress and lessons learned in his acre of suburban garden in West Sussex, where he grows fruit, veg and flowers and welcomes wildlife

A balanced approach • Gardening with wildlife in mind is key in this walled garden, which includes a wide variety of plants to benefit pollinators in every season

Taste of the tropics • Behind an ordinary suburban house in Lincolnshire lies a veritable jungle of flamboyant and fiery plants, gathered over many years by tropical plant enthusiasts Jenny and Rodger Grasham

A glorious finale • It’s a busy but beautiful time as the last of the leaves finally fall in this famous arboretum

Gift yourself or a friend the joy of gardening

Welcome to my lovely plot • December is the time to enjoy the chance to take it easy, knowing the garden is busy preparing itself for the spring show

SELF-FERTILE APPLE TREE • Planting an apple tree in a lawn will be a boon for wildlife and just one tree can produce a crop if you choose the right type

Ask the Experts • Our experts will help you get the best from your garden

Q&A • Why did only two sunflowers germinate? Do I leave figs on my tree? Read on…

LUSCIOUS LAWNS • With a few easy tweaks – from mowing smarter to welcoming wildflowers – your patch of green can be a planet-friendly mini ecosystem

Over to you! • WRITE TO US AT Garden Answers, Bauer Media, Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA EMAIL gardenanswers@bauermedia.co.uk

Garden Answers

What do you get when you cross Christmas with a magazine?

Rustic Illuminated Hyacinth Baskets • These fragrant beauties will be scent-sational over the festive...