Care Guides
Care guides by Rupert Foxton-Smythe
426 guides
Feeding and Watering House Plants
A healthy plant bought from a shop or nursery should be self-sufficient for at least three months.
Cleaning Houseplants and House Plant Pests
Cleaning houseplants regularly is important as plant foliage in the home collects dust just as the furniture does and, apart from making the plants look dirty, it impairs leaf functions and…
Best Manure for Light Sandy Soil
What would be the best manures to apply to a light sandy soil in order to make it more moisture-retentive?
Wild Roses
The wild roses and their hybrids teach us that the genus has beauties to offer unseen by those who know only the conventional bedding roses.
Tall and Slim Containers for Floral Arrangements
So long as they stand firmly, tall slim containers are ideal for holding market flowers, those which have been mass-produced and are uniform in shape, size and length.
Containers and Vases for Flower Arrangements
Vases for flowers have been made in England since the middle of the eighteenth century when some of the first Wedgwood ‘bough pots’ made their appearance and the Leeds factory produced wall brackets.
Best Plants for Rock Gardens
Advice on Planting Rock Gardens Nurserymen usually grow rock plants in small pots and as they can be moved from these without root disturbance they can be planted at practically any time of year.
Designing the Rock Garden
‘What is a rock garden?’ People certainly have different ideas – some of them rather odd.
Caring for Gladioli
The gladiolus (correct plural gladioli in Britain, gladiolus in North America and elsewhere), is named from the bud-tip that breaks through the foliage and resembles the short broad blade of the…
Different Types of Roses
Dwarf Polyanthas This is a group of roses of dwarf habit all of which produce compact clusters of small flowers throughout the season.
Summer Flowering Bulbs
Those who are finding that the herbaceous border is occupying too much of their spare time, for these are days when but few of us can afford a gardener, would do well to consider planting a border of…
Planting and Aftercare of Roses
Rose planting differs little from the planting of shrubs and the season is the same as that for deciduous shrubs, namely from autumn to spring. This is for plants lifted from the open ground.