Checking out hobbit houses, making greenhouses, growing veg in straw bales… just some of the fascinating features in the latest KG!
Hobbiton and horticulture
KG writer Martin Fish and his wife Jill’s antipodean adventure took them to an unusual garden. Martin reports: “Back in 2017 I was delighted to be invited as one of the international judges at the New Zealand Flower & Garden Show in Auckland. On the morning of judging we were put into panels of three and allocated the gardens we were judging and to my surprise one of them was a hobbit’s garden. As a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and the subsequent The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films, I couldn’t wait to see what they had created.
“The recreation of the hobbit hole and surrounding garden was amazing, and all three judges agreed on a well-deserved Gold. The attention to detail was some of the best I’ve ever seen and when I had the pleasure of presenting the team with their award, they said that if ever I was passing by the Hobbiton movie set, I should feel free to pop in!
“Twelve months later while visiting family in New Zealand, I decided to take them up on their offer and Jill and I spent a wonderful day in the beautiful countryside, exploring Hobbiton, home of the hobbits.”
The disabled gardener
Andrew Oldham uses his disability to inspire his garden and explains how you can too. “My disability started a new life and a new way of thinking,” he said. “After my accident I first started to grow herbs on windowsills, then flowers in pots by the front door. I selected places I could sit comfortably with planters at a level I could work at. That’s the key for growing your own; no matter whether you’re disabled or not, make a space that’s suitable for you.”
Out on bales
Regular KG contributor Benedict Vanheems shows how you can use straw bales to grow all manner of crops, with amazing results.
Plus we have the latest winner of our Passionate Plotter 2019 competition, tips on how to grow on-trend vegetable samphire and lots of fun and frolics with the Three Mudketeers – editor Steve, deputy editor Emma and staff writer Tony. There are giveaways to be won, savings to be made on plants so you can grow delicious fruit in your garden, top tomato tips – and lots more besides. So make sure you get your copy today – or better still, subscribe. That’ll give you savings on your magazine plus exclusive access to the Mudketeers’ website which contains great offers, news and more from the KG crew.
