Planning a Mediterranean garden around shade, soil and water
A successful garden in Mediterranean Spain begins with the site rather than a shopping list. Summer sun, drying wind, alkaline soil and limits on irrigation decide what will thrive
Read articlesGeranium bronze: recognising damage on pelargoniums
The small brown butterfly hovering around a pot of pelargoniums may be the geranium bronze, Cacyreus marshalli . Its wings are patterned with cream-brown lines and each hindwing ha
Read articlesSilk floss trees: the thorned trunks and pink autumn flowers
A mature silk floss tree can look improbable on a Mediterranean street. Its trunk broadens like a bottle and remains green on younger wood, with stout conical prickles across the s
Read articlesJacaranda in Spain: blue flowers, fine leaves and the right climate
Jacaranda avenues are remembered for colour, but the tree is worth identifying beyond its flowers. Jacaranda mimosifolia forms an open, irregular crown with finely divided leaves.
Read articlesA small pond for a hot, dry garden
A modest pond can bring dragonflies, birds and other wildlife into a Spanish garden, but it should be designed for heat and evaporation. Clear water is not the sole measure of succ
Read articlesMealybugs: identify the wax, honeydew and hidden colonies
Mealybugs are small sap-feeding insects which shelter where leaves meet stems, beneath foliage and around roots. A colony looks like separate oval insects dusted in white wax, ofte
Read articlesCompanion planting without the garden myths
Companion planting is most useful when it describes observable design choices: mixing crops, keeping flowers near vegetables, using space at different heights and avoiding a large
Read articlesGrowing camellias in Spain: create a cool, acidic root zone
Camellias are possible in Spain, but not in every Spanish garden. Their glossy evergreen leaves and winter or spring flowers need shelter from hot afternoon sun, drying wind and al
Read articlesGrowing an avocado from a stone: a plant project, not a fruit promise
An avocado stone can produce an attractive house or patio plant, but it is not a reliable shortcut to a named fruit tree. Seedlings are genetically variable and may take years to f
Read articlesCollecting and storing garden seed in Spain
Saving seed is a practical way to repeat annual flowers, share locally successful plants and observe how a garden changes. The essential skills are timing, labelling and dry storag
Read articlesPistachio trees in Spain: climate, pollination and patience
Pistachio orchards fit the dry appearance of inland Spain, but the crop is not a no-water tree for every hot garden. Pistacia vera needs a long warm season to ripen nuts, sufficien
Read articlesGround cover for a dry Spanish garden
Ground-cover plants can cool the soil, soften paths and occupy gaps where weeds would otherwise establish. They are not maintenance-free and they are not all substitutes for a lawn
Read articlesKaki and Persimon: understanding Valencia's autumn fruit
Orange kaki fruit can remain on nearly bare trees after the leaves colour and fall, making a Valencian orchard striking in late autumn. The species is Diospyros kaki . In everyday
Read articlesReading the spring wildflowers of southeast Spain
After winter rain, dry verges, olive groves and limestone slopes in southeast Spain can change within weeks. The display is not one continuous meadow. It is a mosaic governed by so
Read articlesPlanting a Mediterranean garden for butterflies
A butterfly garden needs more than flowers. Adults require nectar, warmth and shelter, while caterpillars need the right food plant. A garden which supplies both life stages and av
Read articlesWaterlilies in a small pond: light, depth and restrained growth
Waterlilies place their flowers and rounded pads on still water while the crown remains rooted below. In a small pond they provide shade and shelter, but the right cultivar and pla
Read articlesGrowing garlic through the mild Spanish winter
Garlic, Allium sativum , grows through the cool season and forms bulbs as days lengthen. In much of Mediterranean Spain, autumn planting gives cloves time to root before active spr
Read articlesPruning roses: make the cut fit the rose
Rose pruning is not one fixed recipe. A repeat-flowering shrub, a once-flowering climber and a newly planted bush produce flowers on different wood and need different treatment. Id
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