Test your skills

Get to know its type, texture and pH and your plants will live their best lives!

HAVE you ever taken a close look at your soil? I mean, a really close look? And if not, why not? Soil, compost, dirt, earth – whatever you want to call it, it’s often overlooked, and yet it’s one of t

How much attention do you pay to the soil – its chemical health and nutrient status – in your horse’s field? Emily Bevan finds out why your soil should look like chocolate cake rather than brownie

On a summer’s day, your garden is full of activity, with hoverflies, butterflies and bees flying from flower to flower. But that is only one slice of the action on your plot. In the ground beneath you

Nick Hamilton explains why getting to know your garden’s sun, soil and shade situation will better help plants thrive

Spread a bulky mulch on top of the soil surface around the base of young apple trees to condition the soil, hold in moisture and suppress weeds. This will all help the tree to establish well. Use well