Outside in: how to get the most from your garden - from inside

Trees in our cities, towns and villages

More and more people live in cities. There is a constant shift in habitation from the countryside to cities and the world now has more urban dwellers than it does rural ones – compared to 3% in 1800 and 14% in 1900. We crossed the 50% mark in 2008.

Plants for Hedges in Ireland

Gardens and flooding: what can we do to help?

When rain hits the ground it has to go somewhere. If the ground is hard and impermeable it will flow away quickly. If the ground is permeable it will filter more slowly into the ground. In cities and suburbs a lot of ground is taken up with impermeable surfaces: roofs, roads, paths and car parks.

Plants for Walls: Green Houses

A green house can be a house which is, quite literally, green. Climbing plants on your home - or anywhere else in your garden for that matter - are very useful because they take up little space on the ground but provide masses of greenery elsewhere. One prized-up paving stone can provide enough space for a climber which can cover an entire building. Maintained correctly they cause no damage at all.