How to grow dahlia cultivars

Dahlias breed unpredictable colours, but their seeds flower in their first year – and the tubers liven up soups and salads

With many supermarket dahlia tubers, you are taking a leap of faith that the image on the packet matches the contents. My Lidl purchases this spring have turned out a tad more acid-coloured than the picture suggests (but they are enjoying this summer and flowering their socks off).

One way to get round this, if you’ve grown dahlias this year, is to save some of the seed to grow next year. The mantra with dahlias is to endlessly deadhead to keep them flowering. It’s easy enough to spot the spent flower buds, which are pointy, from the unopened ones, which are blunt. So from the end of this month, you could leave a few spent heads to set to seed.

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Gardening tips: plant hardy geraniums

Get ready to combat cranefly larvae and listen to Melissa Harrison’s nature podcast

Plant this Hardy geraniums are gutsy ground cover plants that stand up to all kinds of abuse, including periods of drought, while blooming all summer long. Cultivar ‘Ann Folkard’, with its magenta and black flowers, and ‘Rozanne’, with violet blooms, are hard to beat. Height and spread: 60cm x 60cm.

Control this Beating back a cloud of craneflies (aka daddy longlegs) tapping at your windows is a pain, but the greater damage is done by their larvae, which develop under the surface of lawns and can cause brown patches. Now is the time to act: Nemasys Natural Leatherjacket Killer, is a biological control that’s watered on to the lawn in September.

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From loo rolls to fashion: how to spend your cash more ethically

Coronavirus has made us all think about where our money is going. Here are everyday things you can do to make a difference

Even before the coronavirus crisis hit, many of us were starting to think harder about how we spent our money. Now, with incomes squeezed for some and the pandemic putting the spotlight on the most vulnerable sections of society, there is even more cause to consider where your cash is going.

Here we look at some simple switches you can make and the retailers that use your money for good, or run their operations in a sustainable way. From teabags to toilet roll, via a move to a greener energy firm, we have focused on everyday spending. The list is not exhaustive but you may find there are some small changes you can make that will help your money make a positive impact.

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From loo rolls to fashion: how to spend your cash more ethically

Coronavirus has made us all think about where our money is going. Here are everyday things you can do to make a difference

Even before the coronavirus crisis hit, many of us were starting to think harder about how we spent our money. Now, with incomes squeezed for some and the pandemic putting the spotlight on the most vulnerable sections of society, there is even more cause to consider where your cash is going.

Here we look at some simple switches you can make and the retailers that use your money for good, or run their operations in a sustainable way. From teabags to toilet roll, via a move to a greener energy firm, we have focused on everyday spending. The list is not exhaustive but you may find there are some small changes you can make that will help your money make a positive impact.

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What happens to my joint mortgage if I separate from my partner? Nottingham Estate Agents

Around a quarter of new mortgage approvals are now based on a couple’s joint earnings so financial issues involving a relationship break-up are extremely common. Relationship break-ups are sadly a fact of life. They can be messy and if the couple breaking up are living together, and co-signatories to a mortgage, the messiness can increase […]

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What renters looking for a new property need to know Nottingham Estate Agents

Renters searching for a new home are allowed to visit properties to view them but must ensure their viewings are conducted as safely as possible. Although the the rental market was re-opened by the Government in May, some renters might be nervous about viewing properties and about letting people in to look around their current […]

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Grand Designs host Kevin McCloud’s housing firm at risk of insolvency

Hundreds have invested between £100 and £150,000 in eco-friendly HAB Housing

The Grand Designs presenter, Kevin McCloud, could be facing a fresh crisis after it emerged that his flagship housing company may be at risk of being forced into insolvency.

Were that to happen, it would deal a heavy blow to the hundreds of small shareholders who invested between £100 and £150,000 each in the eco-friendly homes business, and who have already had to contend with plenty of bad news.

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