Fourteen years ago, almost to the day, I sat at my computer to write an article for this magazine about sustainability in the garden. I confess I had not looked at it, or even remembered I had written it, until preparing for this piece. But the topic of sustainability in our gardens could not be hotter. So, I looked back and re-read it to see what had changed in the past decade and a half. The depressing truth is that the answer is - not much. A lot of talk, some minor action and we are still gardening as though our resources are limitless.
Fourteen years ago, my tone was slightly defensive about climate change, knowing that perhaps 20 per cent of the readership either did not believe such a thing existed or regarded it as a climatic blip. That at least has changed completely. Only the hardwired deniers still challenge man-made climate change and only the foolish refuse to engage with it. It is the single biggest challenge that mankind has ever faced and we can either go into our gardens to escape it - which is doomed to failure because all our gardens are right on the front line of climate change-or accept that all of us who garden can do more than most to make a real difference.
Oil still dominates the whole issue. All of us who garden take it for granted that our plants are delivered by vehicles to garden centres, grown with heat, potted in plastic, labelled with plastic - I could go on. Our green gardens are built on a lake of black oil.
But a real change for the better in the past 14 years has been the rise and availability of good battery-powered garden machinery with a corresponding decrease in petrol usage and noise. At Longmeadow, we now use battery-operated hedge cutters, strimmers, mowers, chainsaws, blowers and drills as a matter of course. We have petrol long grass cutters and rotavators but these are 20 years old and used less and less.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 2021-Ausgabe von Gardeners World.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 2021-Ausgabe von Gardeners World.
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A new plot for tasty crops
Taking on a new allotment needn't be hard work. By simply following a few easy tips you can have bumper crops in no time, just like Alessandro Vitale
We love July
July is an island floating between the joy of June and the slightly fatigued month of August. It's a grown-up month: the year has shrugged off its adolescent exuberances, the weather is (hopefully) warm enough for ice cream to be one of your five a day, the sea should be swimmable without (too much) danger of hypothermia and thoughts will be of holiday shenanigans and family barbecues. School's out this month, the next tranche of glorious summer colour is washing across our borders and it's my birthday. Lots of reasons to give three rousing cheers for July!
YOUR PRUNING MONTH
Now, at the height of summer, Frances Tophill shows how to boost your plants' health and productivity with a timely cut
Hassle-free harvests
Flowers are out in abundance this month and for Jack Wallington, many of these blooms make delicious, low-effort pickings
Bite-sized bounties
Glorious doorstep harvests can easily turn into gluts, so let Rukmini Iyer's recipes help you savour every last bit
Upcycled outdoor living
Create unique and stylish garden features for minimal cost using reclaimed materials and simple DIY skills. Helen Riches shares four step-by-step projects and more inspiring eco tips
Secrets of a COLOURFUL GARDEN
Buildings and landscapes can play a vital role in supercharging your space, as Nick Bailey demonstrates
Greening up a city balcony
Looking for sustainable, small-space gardening ideas? Take inspiration from Oliver Hymans' transformed balcony garden in north-east London - now a lush, green haven for humans and wildlife
The dry and mighty garden
As we adapt our gardens to a more volatile climate, Alan Titchmarsh reveals how to create a drought-tolerant plot and picks his top plant performers
Nature knows best
Carol Klein explains how to choose plants for specific growing conditions, based on what has naturally adapted to thrive there