THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Here is a note form our Facebook page about the wonderful evergreen shrub Escallonia. Not only is it immensely easy …
From Bee Magnet To Babe Magnet
Yep, lovely Modern Minters, we are going to make this call – right now, in 2017, if you have a garden that helps the bees then that makes you sexy. But how does that work? Can you really become a babe magnet just by encouraging bees to your garden? Yes. Yes you can. As you probably know, we need bees. They pollinate our tastiest food – think tomatoes, strawberries, apples… and there is a growing body of evidence that suggests bee pollinated food is healthier, tastier (because it has a better sugar to acid ratio) and keeps longer, meaning you …
Harlow Beekeepers
Last Thursday night I was invited to give a talk ‘Planting for Pollinators’ at Harlow Bees, a beekeeping group who help promote the craft of keeping bees in Harlow. It was an interesting evening exploring how two complementary crafts – beekeeping and gardening – co-exist in there similar aims of helping bees (and other pollinators.) Below are some notes answering questions the group asked me from the talk: 1. The Best Plants For Bees helenium sedum oregano borage veronicastrum teucrium calamint eupatorium centaurea lavender This research comes from the work done by Rosi Rollings at Rosybee. She has been asking …
Wild Farming at Village Farm
Awhile back the internet and its web of click throughs led us to discover a relatively new farm right on the tip of the South Devon coast. We read a little about it, bookmarked the website to revisit, then promptly forgot it. Then this interview with the farmer, Rebecca Hosking, appeared on the BBC – Wild Farming. A brilliant 20 minutes of radio where Rebecca explains why they farm the way they do and what they hope to achieve, namely turning a neglected piece of land that would fail to inspire if farmed conventionally into a wildlife rich, productive habitat …