The view from your side of the fence
HOT TOPICWild about rewilding
I quite agree with Flo (GardenersWorld. com/premium), encouraging us to be less controlling in our gardens. We have half an acre in total, with a small patch near the house that I tend a lot. The rest, apart from a small veg plot, is allowed to do what it likes. It’s full of trees, shrubs, bulbs, flowers, a pond and much more. We have chairs all over so we can sit and listen. We even have a bird hide. I have sat and watched foxes play – heaven on Earth.
It’s not work-free, but we don’t worry about the odd weed either. It’s our calm in a busy world.
Di, by email
A safe haven for hedgehogs
I was delighted to read in your Wildlife Review (February issue) that urban hedgehog sightings have risen by 2.7 percentage points since 2022. Meet the gorgeous Teddy (below) who was rescued and released in my safe and semi-wild garden last year. I co-run a Hedgehog Haven FB group that offers hog-related advice and support to residents in Wymondham, South Norfolk, and my garden is a regular release site. So many people love these iconic creatures, and it is good to read that our efforts to help them are paying off nationally.
I’m hoping to spot Teddy out and about with hoglets at dusk this year!
Annette James, Norfolk
‘Sow’ 2016
A while ago you asked to see our results from the seeds you gave away with your lovely magazine. Last year I was sorting out my seed stash and found these heritage tomatoes, given away with Gardeners’ World Magazine – the dates on the back indicated they were from 2016.
Thinking that I might get one or two plants if I was lucky, I sowed the entire packet into a small pot – and the whole lot germinated! I ended up giving away loads of plants and still had eight on my allotment and another four in my greenhouse. They weren’t prolific fruiters but had a lovely taste, and when blight hit the outdoor plants, I harvested the green fruits and made a big batch of green tomato chutney.
So there you go – don’t believe every ‘sow by’ date on a seed packet – sometimes Mother Nature doesn’t read them!
Jane Dartnall, by email
Still growing strong
I am a 93-year-old gardener and have been thinking about all the benefits gardening brings. For older people I think there are obvious upsides: exercise outside, interest or perhaps passion, and still learning, but there is another one. By now my past is much longer than my future, but I don’t want to live
