This and That

Sorry it has been a while since I last did a blog but the weeks have flown and the diary has been fairly hectic.

I recently received an email from a group of profesionals who arrange garden tours around Italy. If you are thinking of planning a visit to see Italy's wonderful gardens or thinking of taking a group you might be interested in what they have to offer. Clalys will arrange accommodation, transport in Italy and entry fees and their tours include some of the most wonderful gardens including Mortella Garden, the Campania Region Garden Tour and Sorrento and Capri (with a visit to some really beautiful villas and gardens). They also offer tours in other parts of Europe. Log onto their website for more information: www.clalys.com/en/index.html

The lovely gardens at the Caserta Royal Palace are pictured above courtesy of Clalys.

Several of our readers are carrying out a trial of some new loppers for Wilkinsons, so look out for their feedback in the coming weeks. We will also be taking a look at gardeners' aches and pains, which we all get after a summer of gardening, and some remedies and helpful hints to prevent strains and injury.

Coming up also some recipes using roses! Yes that is not a misprint, Atul Kochhar will be telling us how to use his latest ingredient, Roses, to make recipes with a culinary twist, while PlantforLife's Chris Collins, will be explaining how to care for our roses.

The weather during July and August did not produce the continued heat-wave we were all expecting and certainly there has been no shortage of water! So no worries about drought then this year. What the autumn will turn out to be like is certainly in the lap of the Gods, but perhaps we may get an Indian Summer and be able to stay out and enjoy our gardens just that bit longer.

I was sad to learn from the current issue of Gardening Which? (September 2009) that Gardener and author Susie White, who runs Chesters Walled Garden in Northumberland, is having to close the garden in May 2010. Reckless visited Chesters last year and we were most impressed with this beautiful organic garden. Hopefully, Susie can find a new home for her National Collections of thyme, sanguisorba and origanum and that she finds fresh inspiration from a new challenge. Our best wishes to her anyway.

Also in the September edition you will find new spring bulbs to whet your apetite and also a feature on what's the best way to create a lawn? Turf v seed.