#gardening

In a colourful, well-groomed attempt to attract tourism, the Alona community council organised Cyprus’ first ever village garden competition on August 9. Residents were invited to showcase their private gardens in ...

The hot dry summer weather to come should minimise any weeds at this time of the year, but those that do appear should quickly be removed before they set seed ...

Halfway through the year already and the gardens are looking very summery, although not quite dried out yet by the burning summer sun. After the spring season here with gentle ...

Newcomers to the island may ask ‘What goes on in our gardens here in May?’ There are many different flowers in bloom including roses, which always seem to be around, ...

This is the month when we see great changes in the garden. There are swathes of bright yellow in the countryside, a foretaste of the sunny weather to come. Not ...

I am always pleased when February comes along, even though it is usually a cold wet month, as it means that spring is not far away with all the excitements ...

January is one of those months when you are not quite sure what the weather will be doing. We could have sunny or cloudy, rainy days (according to those who ...

It’s always a problem figuring out what to give gardeners for Christmas. I know that I receive lots of gardening gloves, all very useful but not very imaginative. As ...

I don’t suppose that Cyprus is any different to other places for weather variations except that we know we will have wall to wall sunshine for a great deal ...

I have always been fascinated by plant names. Some are Greek and some are Latin, whilst some only have common names. Most plants have two names, one is the family ...

By Olivia Skordi September is recognised as the month of Alzheimer’s, with September 21 dedicated as an awareness day of Alzheimer’s disease, targeting communities to raise awareness and educate ...

By Patricia Jordan Probably the most popular summer climber here is bougainvillea, which trails over walls, hedges and even up trees as the mass of bright-coloured papery bracts shield the ...

June sees temperatures rising rapidly and plants will probably need some extra watering, which will keep you busy until at least the end of October. It goes without saying that ...

May already and after the cold wet winter it is a pleasure to feel the warmth of the sun again. The plants are enjoying it all too and roses are ...

April sees new growth and flowers in bloom I love those old British sayings about the weather – ‘March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers’ and ‘a windy March ...

Plants must be carefully selected due to our different seasons When I went to horticultural college over 40 years ago now, my aim was to grow my own shrubs and plants ...

Protect yourself in the garden with gloves A recent report in the UK advised that gardeners there should not use glass greenhouses. I would suggest that this not such a ...

Bulbs, seedlings and more are already coming to life I make the same New Year’s resolution every year, that I will not buy any plants that I do not ...

There is still a lot going on in the garden this month. Unlike more northerly parts of Europe where winter has set in and gardens can be covered with frost ...

November an ideal month to make sure all well before Christmas fever sets in November is a good month for getting things done in the garden before everyone becomes caught ...

By Patricia Jordan I collect seeds all year round, often sharing them with my gardening friends. The early flowering annuals like poppies and cerinthe have many seeds. Poppies shed their ...

However there is always something to admire Gardeners are weather watchers. For them it can be too cold, too hot, too wet or too dry and there is always something ...

By Patricia Jordan The Royal Horticultural Society in the UK suggests slugs and snails should no longer be classed as pests, despite the fact that the organisation has the most ...

By Patricia Jordan February already and what lot of rain we have had since the start of the year! It’s all good for the dams, aquifers and wells, but ...