NEW YEAR, NEW GARDEN
NEW YEAR, NEW GARDEN
At Nicholsons, we want to make lockdown useful! We have made it our mission to help and inspire you to plan and prepare the garden of your dreams to enjoy over Summer.
Our offering
Our Plant Centre remains open for outdoor plant sales
Fully stocked 23-acre plant nursery
Free horticultural expert advice
Inspirational blogs
Design ideas
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LATEST BLOG
Understanding Soil pH: Recommendations for Soil Types
Soil pH levels vary from region to region – and even from garden to garden – with different plants thriving in preferred soil types. While you can (to some extent) modify pH levels in your soil, finding the plants best suited to flourish in your garden makes testing your soil a worthwhile investment before planting or designing a new garden.
In this week’s blog, Libby Reeves (horticultural expert at Nicholsons), explains what you need to know about soil pH, along with her recommended selection of trees best suited to different soil types and soil pH. Libby outlines how understanding your soil is crucial to nurturing a healthy plant: the right plant in the right place is key.
Recent Blogs
Understanding Soil pH: Recommendations for Soil Types
By Libby Reeves One of the first questions I always ask clients that come to Nicholsons for advice is, ‘What is your soil like?’ The soil is essential to anchor the roots and hold the plant upright. It is vital as a water source and is the supply tank for nutrients that will keep the plant healthy and Read more »
Futuristic Garden Design for a Changing Climate
By Francesca Lawes According to forecasted climate projections, average temperatures in the UK could rise by 2-6°C over the next century, a fact that could dramatically change the face of what is currently perceived as the typical English country garden. Rolling lawns and billowing herbaceous borders may be cast aside and replaced by palms and eucalyptus in a Read more »
UK Vintage Climbers
By Will Beament Climbing plants are wonderful for softening harsh surfaces or fences and are often under-utilised in garden designs. They are particularly useful if you are limited on border space but have some vertical surfaces that are in need of inspiration. Many climbers are well suited to growing in containers and can be used to brighten up Read more »
Spring Gardening Jobs
By Steve Malsher Well, who can believe that we are in March already and that Meteorological spring has landed across the UK? 'Horticultural spring' is another matter though, and is determined by when certain spring plants that appear in your garden (daffodils, crocuses etc.). Unlike Meteorological spring (which always starts on the 1st March), Horticultural spring takes eight weeks Read more »
Preserving Plant Health in Cold Weather
By Libby Reeves The weather seems to have taken a turn for the better as I sit in beautiful sunshine, not wearing a coat for the first time this year, with a smile on my face. The daffodils are popping, the snowdrops are in full bloom, the early flowering trees are budding up ready to flower and it Read more »
My Favourite Palette for a Terrace Herbaceous Border
By Ruby Simpson The key to a successful plant palette – one that delivers interest in all seasons but has high impact in the summer, when you will be spending most time in the garden – is planning. If you buy one or two plants each time you pop to the local garden centre without any idea of Read more »
Plant of the Week
Osmanthus × burkwoodii
Burkwood osmanthus makes for a beautiful hedge, or a stand-alone shrub. An evergreen plant that doesn’t get too tall and is noted for its clusters of small white flowers that are deliciously scented. It can reach up to 2 to 3 metres but is easily kept at lower heights, and the dark green foliage is a perfect backdrop for other plants.
A jasmine-like fragrance fills the air when it flowers in Spring, from April to May. Therefore, it is ideal to plant near the house, next to a path or patio, to enjoy its aroma when in flower. Trim the plant or hedge after flowering to increase the flowering for the following year.
Osmanthus × burkwoodii is happiest in full sun or partial shade and will grow in any soil type but must be fertile and well-drained. It is mostly hardy, but may not withstand cold, open areas which could damage the leaves.
Nicholsons is accredited by the following official organisations:
Approved contractors of the Safe-contractor scheme, Nicholsons are also accredited with CHAS and Arboricultural Association. The Company are also members of BALI and recently won awards as Cherwell Employer of the year 2016, Cherwell Established Business of the Year 2014, as well as being finalists in the Oxfordshire Business of the Year awards in 2013 (Energy and Environment Award).
