Anyone got any views on a good gardening magazine?

I currently subscribe to the gardening Which magazine but also receive
the BBC Gardeners world (a present) However i still find I buy the
Amateur Gardening magazine as it's so topical being weekly.

The BBC one does have some good articles but a lot of adverts and as
expected a big push for gardening programmes. Some of the letters and
questions can be a bit fundamental but occasionally especially in the
plant features you do g in depth article and good photographs of the
plants.

The GW magazine is much better than it used to be but i still find their
reviews not really practical. One this month was a review of
hedgetrimmers and they said that they were testing them on conifer and
also hawthorn. Well sorry but any hedgetrimmer that has to go through my
8 foot high hawthorn hedge would have to be a lot stronger than the
under a hundred pound ones selected as best buys in their review.
Currently i have a 24 inch Viking electric one with a dual sided bladed
and even that can struggle at times when growth is prolific .

My friend gets Gardens Illustrated a very 'beautiful' magazine with some
lovely photos and articles by real experts but also the adverts and
lifestyle is way beyond my resources

So i still go and buy the down to earth AG as it has lots of timely
tips, sometimes good ideas and reviews which actually do seem realistic
in their summaries, I like Peter Seabrooks old fashioned views most of
the time, I enjoy Anne Swithinbanks advice from her own garden , you
often get free packets of seeds, whether or not they may be useful to
you (latest was cut and come again lettuce, lychnis and foxgloves. Their
letters can be a bit basic but then you have to start somewhere. I like
Toby Bucklands column as well.

So what do people like? I don't try the grow your own lot as they seem
quite pricey and all the same .

Janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

Anyone got any views on a good gardening magazine?

pruned

Janet

Like you I get GW and AG though not Which? magazine. I also like the
RHS "The Garden" mag. I have a gift subscription to something called
"Homes and Gardens" which is more of a style thing than practical
instructions and gets donated to the dentist fairly quickly.

I've picked up the occasional issue of other magazines but never see
any reason to change my current selection.

Of them all, I suppose Amateur Gardening is the one I prefer for
timely hints and tips and The Garden for a good read. I'll probably
cancel Gardeners World at the end of the current subscription.

Cheers
Jake

I don't subscribe to any in particular magazine, just a flick thro in the
newsagents makes my mind up which one to have.
I don't want many of the free seeds that are given away, not because my
garden is beautiful enough its just more work that I can do with at the
moment. Is there any organisation who could use seeds if they were sent
them.

kate

In article , Jake
writes
I'll probably
cancel Gardeners World at the end of the current subscription.



Well my sub was a gift so i am not paying
I thought the special offers would be good at the time I got the first
one, if you read the blurb there appears to be lots of bargains for
those who subscribe but actually when it's boiled down to it either I
can get the plants cheaper,, there's a set of three of which i only want
1, the P&P is often expensive or I am just not interested. I do believe
you get a special place to have your sandwiches at the GW Plant Fair but
on the whole I don't think i would sub on my own.
Having written about AG I decided to bite the bullet and take out a
year's sub on it, no special gifts etc. offered but 30% discount and
sometimes the seeds are useful. This week they even had a review of
chicken arks that made me feel almost amenable to getting a couple of
chickens if only exbattery !

I share the sub for Gardening Which with someone so it's not as
expensive as it could be.


--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

In article , Kate
Morgan writes
I don't subscribe to any in particular magazine, just a flick thro in
the newsagents makes my mind up which one to have.
I don't want many of the free seeds that are given away, not because my
garden is beautiful enough its just more work that I can do with at the
moment. Is there any organisation who could use seeds if they were sent
them.

kate


Offer them here Kate, someone will always take them for the price of a
stamp or the HPS if there's one local to you often sell surplus seeds as
do many gardening clubs or maybe a local school?
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

In article , Sacha
writes
We don't take any of the mags (except The Garden) but I haven't come
across Garden News.


That's the one that looks like a newspaper Sacha. I quite like it but
for some reason find it difficult to read comfortably. Carol Klein
writes articles for it and it has a column by Medwyn for vegetables plus
reports from around the country about the weather and growing
conditions. I expect you do, but i don't feel that you get a lot in it
though the quality of reporting is good.
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

I don't subscribe to any in particular magazine, just a flick thro in the
newsagents makes my mind up which one to have.
I don't want many of the free seeds that are given away, not because my
garden is beautiful enough its just more work that I can do with at the
moment. Is there any organisation who could use seeds if they were sent
them.

kate


Offer them here Kate, someone will always take them for the price of a
stamp or the HPS if there's one local to you often sell surplus seeds as
do many gardening clubs or maybe a local school?
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

Good idea Janet, I will offer them on Freecycle, lots of gardeners there :-)

kate

"Janet Tweedy" wrote in message
...


Anyone got any views on a good gardening magazine?

I currently subscribe to the gardening Which magazine but also receive
the BBC Gardeners world (a present) However i still find I buy the
Amateur Gardening magazine as it's so topical being weekly.

The BBC one does have some good articles but a lot of adverts and as
expected a big push for gardening programmes. Some of the letters and
questions can be a bit fundamental but occasionally especially in the
plant features you do g in depth article and good photographs of the
plants.

The GW magazine is much better than it used to be but i still find their
reviews not really practical. One this month was a review of hedgetrimmers
and they said that they were testing them on conifer and also hawthorn.
Well sorry but any hedgetrimmer that has to go through my 8 foot high
hawthorn hedge would have to be a lot stronger than the under a hundred
pound ones selected as best buys in their review. Currently i have a 24
inch Viking electric one with a dual sided bladed and even that can
struggle at times when growth is prolific .

My friend gets Gardens Illustrated a very 'beautiful' magazine with some
lovely photos and articles by real experts but also the adverts and
lifestyle is way beyond my resources

So i still go and buy the down to earth AG as it has lots of timely tips,
sometimes good ideas and reviews which actually do seem realistic in their
summaries, I like Peter Seabrooks old fashioned views most of the time, I
enjoy Anne Swithinbanks advice from her own garden , you often get free
packets of seeds, whether or not they may be useful to you (latest was cut
and come again lettuce, lychnis and foxgloves. Their letters can be a bit
basic but then you have to start somewhere. I like Toby Bucklands column
as well.

So what do people like? I don't try the grow your own lot as they seem
quite pricey and all the same .

I agree on the GYO mag. I bought it for just over a year, and found that
the articles were beginning to be repeated in only slightly different forms.
My plot partner gets GW, so I get to read that. Might try AG following
your recommendation.

--
Kathy

"Kate Morgan" wrote in message
...


.. Is there any organisation who could use seeds if they were sent
them.

Kate, try offering them to a local nursery/playschool/primary school. They
may try and rope you in as their volunteer garden TA though :-}

--
Kathy

.. Is there any organisation who could use seeds if they were sent
them.

Kate, try offering them to a local nursery/playschool/primary school. They
may try and rope you in as their volunteer garden TA though :-}

Indeed they might but it wouldn't get them far, Last time I showed an
interest in joining a gardening group near here they were not at all
interested until they knew which house we had just bought, too late then,
pity that matter`s to some people. Of course I realise that it may be
something to do with me ! just thought I would add that before anyone else
does :-)

kate

In article , Kate
Morgan writes
Indeed they might but it wouldn't get them far, Last time I showed an
interest in joining a gardening group near here they were not at all
interested until they knew which house we had just bought, too late
then, pity that matter`s to some people. Of course I realise that it
may be something to do with me ! just thought I would add that before
anyone else does :-)

kate



A gardening group isn't usually the same as a gardening club, Usually
the group is an offset of another organisation such as U3A or something
but generally gardening clubs especially local ones are really friendly
and I am not sure how they would know where you live anyway apart from
it being on your membership form?

Janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

"Janet" wrote in message
...
In article , Kate
Morgan writes
Indeed they might but it wouldn't get them far, Last time I showed an
interest in joining a gardening group near here they were not at all
interested until they knew which house we had just bought, too late
then, pity that matter`s to some people. Of course I realise that it
may be something to do with me ! just thought I would add that before
anyone else does :-)

kate



A gardening group isn't usually the same as a gardening club, Usually
the group is an offset of another organisation such as U3A or something
but generally gardening clubs especially local ones are really friendly
and I am not sure how they would know where you live anyway apart from
it being on your membership form?

I agree.

Gardening groups (as in keen gardeners willing to volunteer their labour
on someone elses land) often require public liability insurance and for
that reason it's normal(IME) for there to be some minimal security/ID
vetting of volunteers; such as establishing residence address, telephone
number and an emergency contact in case of accident.

Janet B

I am wrong, I should have said gardening club.
kate

In article , Kate
Morgan writes
I am wrong, I should have said gardening club.
kate



Still not with you there Kate, sorry, but how would the members know
where you live? Unless you joined and then the Membership secretary went
round telling everyone?

In our Club it's very friendly, though as you say I have been to more
parochial Clubs where, once a new member tells people that they have
moved into the district and further, into the 'big house' certain
members fall over themselves to be friendly.

However I would say that that was the same in most walks of life? It's
just the more elitist members who would do that, steer clear of them!

There must be another gardening Club locally which you could join. Do
think about trying again as it's often the place where you can meet
people who are happy to recommend plants that do well locally, where you
can get help and advice and often spare plants for free!

Janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Amersham Gardening Association
http://www.amersham-gardening.net

snip
There must be another gardening Club locally which you could join. Do
think about trying again as it's often the place where you can meet
people who are happy to recommend plants that do well locally, where you
can get help and advice and often spare plants for free!

Janet

It is a small village and a bit cliquish, I do not have the time or
inclination to bother with peeps who are - as the young say - up themselves,
never mind, I will as you suggest look at neighbouring village clubs :-)

kate

"Kate Morgan" wrote in message
.. .

snip
There must be another gardening Club locally which you could join. Do
think about trying again as it's often the place where you can meet
people who are happy to recommend plants that do well locally, where you
can get help and advice and often spare plants for free!

Janet

It is a small village and a bit cliquish, I do not have the time or
inclination to bother with peeps who are - as the young say - up
themselves, never mind, I will as you suggest look at neighbouring village
clubs :-)

kate

"cliquish""????? ;-)

We know all about those in this newsgroup don't we?

Mike


--

....................................

Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive.

....................................

snip
It is a small village and a bit cliquish, I do not have the time or
inclination to bother with peeps who are - as the young say - up
themselves, never mind, I will as you suggest look at neighbouring village
clubs :-)

kate

"cliquish""????? ;-)

We know all about those in this newsgroup don't we?

Mike

No Mike we don't, I was not talking about this news group as well you know.
kate