How to grow buddleja – and keep it blooming into autumn | Alys Fowler

There are many varieties and colours beyond the feral bush of our cities and railway lines

The ubiquitous butterfly bush, Buddleja davidii, so fond of the cracks in our concrete world, is familiar to all, particularly those that flutter. There is, however, a world beyond the feral bush of our cities and railway lines: those with deeply scented flower spikes in pinks, deep purples, bicolours and purest whites; those that tower as tall shrubs; and those that are happy to stay small enough to live in a pot on a patio.

The place to go and see them is in the national collection at Longstock Gardens in Hampshire. If you are passing, it is well worth dropping in to peruse the many colour variations. They are laid out in a rather splendid walled garden and there will be something in flower right into October, thanks to dedicated deadheading. If you are thinking that buddleia’s pretty spires are long gone by now, then that is the secret: when roughly half the flower spike starts to brown, remove it and this will spur the plant into producing more. Once the seed starts to set, the plant considers its job done for the summer and concentrates on producing as many babies as it can for you to weed out. If you can keep on top of deadheading, you’ll have flowers well into early autumn.

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The ultimate property jargon buster Nottingham Estate Agents

The property world is full of words and expressions that may be unfamiliar to anyone who is not regularly buying, selling, letting or renting a home. This updated guide from OnTheMarket will help to shed light on what they all mean. Absent landlord A landlord described as “absent” is one who cannot be contacted. If […]

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What to plant now: 'As a home gardener it is the time to sow your seeds'

With spring almost here, and seeds and seedlings back in supply, it’s the ideal time to get busy in the garden

Farming is the utmost expression of optimism – nature charges ahead despite all the goings on of the human world, and you better keep up. There are really no alternatives. It is a time of manic activity around our farm.

While the growing season in our part of the New South Wales northern rivers region ticks on throughout the entire year, interspersed with green manure rotation, there’s a key indicator we need to start seeding our spring and summer crops. That sign comes from wild native raspberries (Rubus rosifolius). Now, the first canes are establishing on last year’s dieback wood, heralding their humble blossoms. The ground temperature is warming up, and daylight hours are long enough to sustain new growth.

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What to plant now: 'As a home gardener it is the time to sow your seeds'

With spring almost here, and seeds and seedlings back in supply, it’s the ideal time to get busy in the garden

Farming is the utmost expression of optimism – nature charges ahead despite all the goings on of the human world, and you better keep up. There are really no alternatives. It is a time of manic activity around our farm.

While the growing season in our part of the New South Wales northern rivers region ticks on throughout the entire year, interspersed with green manure rotation, there’s a key indicator we need to start seeding our spring and summer crops. That sign comes from wild native raspberries (Rubus rosifolius). Now, the first canes are establishing on last year’s dieback wood, heralding their humble blossoms. The ground temperature is warming up, and daylight hours are long enough to sustain new growth.

Continue reading...

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Inside the five most viewed homes of the summer

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Sit comfortably for this chair debate | Letter

Mary Searle-Chatterjee says it would require a colossal cultural shift in the west to move away from chairs, so better design is the most we can hope for

Sara Hendren’s excellent article (The tyranny of chairs: why we need better design, The long read, 25 August) discusses the health problems produced by chairs. These have spread throughout the world due to the prestige of the west. Imperial officials viewed squatting, and other forms of sitting at ground level, as a mark of inferiority. Many in the west still see it as a sign of backwardness. Sadly in Asia too, sitting on chairs is often seen as a sign of modernity.

In Singapore, in private, people often squat on chairs. In public, people use chairs in the western way. In India, a doctor told me that he found an increase in leg and foot problems among middle-class women who had switched from squatting to standing, or sitting, in their new western-style kitchens. Studies have also found squatting for childbirth leads to easier deliveries.

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Stamp duty holiday sparks home-moving frenzy

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