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Dig It – June Tips from the Secret Gardener
See the Secret Garden makeover. From paving to pollinator pots and bare earth to butterfly blooms.
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Dig it – April Tips from the Secret Gardener
Discover how to make your garden more moth-friendly by providing night-time nectar.
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Dig it – March Tips from the Secret Gardener
Get your peat-free garden started by growing your own plants from seed.
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Dig It – February Tips from the Secret Gardener
Snowdrops are one of the earliest spring bulbs to bloom, providing a useful source of nectar for bees and butterflies such as the Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell and Brimstone.
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Dig it – January Tips from the Secret Gardener
It is resolution time again so why not choose to help butterflies and moths in your garden this year? Here are five suggestions for activities to engage your brain and body.
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Dig It – December Tips from the Secret Gardener.
How flowery is your garden looking now? There are still a few butterflies around such as the Red Admiral, so it’s useful to note if you have any nectar plants available for them.
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Dig it – November tips from the Secret Gardener
Rowan provides fuel for pollinating insects and is an important foodplant for several caterpillars
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Dig it – September Tips from the Secret Gardener
Heleniums bring both colour and a food source for pollinators to your flowerbeds in autumn.
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Dig It – June Tips from the Secret Gardener
This month the Secret Gardener investigates the best plants to provide caterpillar food and flying-fuel for both day and night flying moths.
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Dig It – April Tips from the Secret Gardener
The Secret Gardener's star plant which has been flowering without stopping, since it was planted couple of years ago, is the Perennial Wallflower Erysimum ‘Bowles Mauve’.
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Dig It – March Tips from the Secret Gardener
When buying potted plants, we should consider four significant environmental issues: pesticides, biosecurity, peat, and plastic.
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Hedge your bets for Brimstones
As February gets into its stride, the signs of the fast approaching spring are becoming more and more evident.
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Dig It - January Tips From The Secret Gardener
January is an easy month to help butterflies and moths in the garden. Many species will be taking shelter until temperatures start to rise so leave leaf litter and postpone pruning to protect eggs, caterpillars and crysalises.
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Dig It – December Tips from the Secret Gardener
The Secret Gardener investigates which species just one lichen-covered branch could be supporting and reminds you to be careful when bringing twigs inside.
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Dig It - September Tips From The Secret Gardener
Michaelmas-daisies are one of the stars of the autumn flowerbed, providing nectar for butterflies – such as the Red Admiral - when other plants are starting to fade.
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Dig It - August Tips From The Secret Gardener
As you are pottering around deadheading pay attention to which flowers are the most popular nectar sources.
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Dig It – May Tips from the Secret Gardener
Let an area of grass grow long or sow an area with a mix of wildflowers and grasses to provide food and shelter for butterflies, moths and other wildlife.
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Dig It – April Tips from the Secret Gardener
The Verbena family includes useful nectar plants for butterflies and other pollinators.
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Dig It - March Tips from the Secret Gardener
All of us can contribute to improving the area around our homes for wildlife - whether rural or urban - and one way is by sowing wildflower seed.
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Dig It – February tips from the Secret Gardener
Being a committed wildlife gardener means compromising a little on the tidiness of your garden to protect the overwintering sites of insects and other creatures.
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Dig it – December Tips from the Secret Gardener
Holly is one of the plants most strongly associated with Christmas, but it is also a useful resource for butterflies and moths.
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Dig it – November's tips from the Secret Gardener
Heather is an attractive, evergreen shrub that can bring colour to your garden all year-round. It's also a useful nectar source for butterflies and moths and the foodplant of several caterpillars.
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Dig It – October’s Tips from the Secret Gardener
Create a bulb lasagne for butterflies by layering bulbs in a container. Follow the Secret Gardeners recommendations and your plants will flower in succession from February to July.
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Dig It – September Tips from the Secret Gardener
Seed harvesting is a cost effective way of preserving and increasing your stock of plants. Any surplus can be shared or swapped with friends or family.
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Dig It – August tips from the Secret Gardener
The Secret Gardener takes a look at what's available in garden centres this month for some last-minute, low maintenance, butterfly-friendly gardening.
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Dig It – June Tips from the Secret Gardener
Despite their exotic looks, Hawk-moths and their caterpillars don't have particularly fancy tastes. Most of their food plants are commonly found in gardens.
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Dig It – April Tips from the Secret Gardener
You might not associate a garden rockery with butterflies and moths but actually the hot and dry microhabitat, with well-drained soil, can offer conditions suitable for some great nectar plants.
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Dig It – March tips from the Secret Gardener
The large, flat, flower heads, which give Umbellifers their name (think umberella), sit atop tall stems, providing excellent perches for butterflies and moths in need of nectar.
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Dig It – February Tips from the Secret Gardener
Plant the right pollinator-friendly seeds now and you could also benefit. The Secret gardener introduces some plants that provide nectar for butterflies and moths and are also suitable to cut for flower arranging.