Grower’s digest, December

Perfect planters for a modern garden

Terracotta pots have their place in a traditional French garden – nothing says southern, sun-kissed elegance amid (or housing) the lavender quite like a hand-crafted Anduze vase from the Gard. However, if your budget won’t stretch or you prefer to give a your garden or patio an angular modern edge, try this rectangular planter in anthracite grey (above) from De La Maison. The colour sets off greenery nicely, especially spiky plants
such as ornamental grasses or yucca.
www.delamaison.fr

Read up for thriving indoor plants
For indoor gardeners keen to read up on latest trends and tips for buying and keeping houseplants, two 2017 publications are worthy of attention: Living with Plants by the doyenne of unusual house plants, Sophie Lee (£15 from www.geo-fleur.com) and How to Not Kill Your Plants by Nik Southern – a beginner’s guide published by Hodder & Stoughton, £16.99.

A space-age igloo for your garden

You need not be an ice-dwelling eskimo to construct an cool igloo in your garden – in fact it doesn’t even need to be snowing. Just add one of these simple pop-ups in a quiet corner of your jardin and you have a stylish year-round conservatory, play area for children, greenhouse or gazebo.

Convertible, robust and mobile, it is weatherproof and rust resistant, 100% recyclable, can be used all year round and is easily set up without tools in two hours.

If you prefer, you can use the igloo as a mosquito guard for summer evenings, by buying a separate net to cover the frame.

Measuring 360cm diameter and 220cm high, it also has two zipper screened vents to ensure optimal airflow. It is anchored with supplied sandbags. RRP €899.
www.truffaut.com

New application aids biodynamic gardening

Biodynamic agriculture is an ecological, ethical approach to farming which includes various esoteric concepts drawn from the ideas of Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925).

On a smaller scale, gardening can be approached in a similar way, and a free new app, Lune et Jardin,(available in English too as Moon and Garden) works according to the premise that it’s better to refrain from gardening when the moon is at its farthest (apogée) or closest (périgée) to the Earth.

The app, available on iOS and Android, tells you via reminders what to do and when in your garden (sowing, repotting and harvesting, etc) according to the lunar calendar. Its creators, JOCS, say that over 200,000 gardeners already use it.