Grow Your Gardening Skills With a Gardening Course This Summer!

I’ve been running the London Vegetable Garden blog since 2009, with the express aim of not only chronicling my own organic odyssey, but hopefully demonstrating along the way that growing your own is simple, easy to pick up and most of all, enjoyable!

However, if you’re still feeling nervous or unsure about gardening, but really want to give it a go, there is a wide range of different courses available, suitable for budding gardeners of all ages and abilities. 

UK

There are literally hundreds of gardening courses in the UK, designed for all people of all ages and abilities, as well as for all interests!  Whether you’re interesting in learning the traditional art of rural hedgelaying, ‘garden skills with a design edge’, or even something as exotic as a course on mushroom growing, there literally is something for everyone! 

What I really love about these gardening courses is that there is so much to enjoy!  I’ve long championed the ability to grow your own plants and vegetables no matter where you live or what your space; however these gardening courses in the UK allow you to explore the pleasures of gardening in fun and natural environments and ‘give it a go’!

London

For those of you based in the Capital, there are many gardening courses in London that you can do, from flower arranging courses to the fascinating ‘introduction to Japanese architecture, gardens and tea culture.  Again, these gardening courses in London allow you to explore an element of gardening that interests you, from practical skills, to wider social and cultural courses about gardening.

Learning Online

And if you are not based in London, or near any of the courses listed above, then the wide range of online gardening courses offered through the ‘lovemycourse’ website allows you to take in and enjoy a wide range of gardening courses, all from the comfort of your own home.

The range of online gardening courses available range from diplomas in gardening and horticulture to interior plant care: from Japanese garden design and bonsai courses to garden landscaping courses.  There truly is a fantastic range of online gardening courses available to suit the needs, interests and abilities of any budding amateur gardener!

So if you’re keen to brush up on your knowledge of the garden and learn new skills, or even if you’re afraid of getting started and fancy having a go in a fun environment first, a gardening course could be the perfect way to help you enjoy your garden even more this summer.

Good luck!!

Watering: Plants That Are Irrigated, Not Irritated!

As any gardener knows, ensuring your plants and vegetables get sufficient water is vital, especially during the summer months.  But did you know, it’s equally important to ensure that plants aren’t over-watered, or left in water-clogged soil and drowned: something that the wet confines of my Peak District vegetable garden knows only too well!

Maybe you’re going on holiday this summer too: what happens if you don’t have a friendly neighbour to hand to help you water your plants?  Well, plant watering and irrigation solutions can help vegetable gardeners to ensure plants get well watered, as well as ensuring that plants are watered constantly rather than drowned.

Greenhouse watering is especially important, given the hot temperatures that vegetable plants are exposed to inside.  A range of different watering and irrigation systems exist to help you water vegetables in your greenhouse, including drip and spray kits, as well as timer systems, ensuring that your plants are watered automatically when you are not around to do it yourself.  Click on this link to take a look at some suitable products.

On the London Vegetable Garden blog, I have been a long-term champion of ‘growing your own’ indoors.  However, busy lifestyles, coupled with hot summer days, can often dry out small pots of plants on windowsills very quickly.  In this instance, I would recommend looking at a product such as these self-watering trays, mats and systems.

Finally, I love anything that is natural, organic and great for the environment: and although not a particularly ‘high-tech’ solution, harvesting natural rainwater remains one of the best ways to keep your plants watered and happy!  A water butt should be a staple in any environmentally-friendly garden.

If you have enjoyed reading about the variety of garden watering systems in this blog post, why not look to see how these handy pieces of kit can keep your plants happy and irrigated rather than sad and irritated!