Spending It
Can You Dig It?
Desperate to transform your garden but just don't know how? Want to give your patio a makeover to attract more wildlife, but worried all you'll bring in is the neighbour's cat? Don't worry - you can learn all the tricks of the trade, and have a refreshing break at the same time, with a short course of garden therapy.
First stop for all things garden has to be the Royal Horticultural Society. It runs a wide variety of courses covering everything from prize peas to patio planting. And for the ambitious garden makeover, you won't do better than its three-day course on garden design that runs twice in 2005 at the RHS centre at Wisley in Surrey. 'Effective Designing of your Garden' is based on discussion and demonstrations, and covers the structure, form and colour harmonies of plants, as well as the use of water and hard landscaping to make your garden shine. After this you'll be itching to get back and transform your own plot.
If you prefer the wild look, however, head for the magnificent 13 acre gardens at Plas Tan y Bwlch in Snowdonia National Park where you can discover how to make wild creatures feel right at home in your garden. The five-day residential course provides an introduction to wildlife gardening by looking at three important natural habitats - meadows, wetlands and ponds, and woodlands and hedgerows - and shows how these can relate even to the smallest garden. It includes visits to meadows, woodland and wetland habitats and local wildlife gardens. You'll also build a moth trap, visit local bat roosts at dusk, and even make a small bog garden!
Get the experience:
Garden design at the Royal Horticultural Society: Tickets for the course on effective garden design costs £258. The courses run on 25th- 27th Feb and 18th - 20th November 2005 at Wisley in Surrey. For more information see the Royal Horticultural Society Events website.
Wildlife Gardening in Wales: Price from £202. The course runs on July 11th - 15th 2005 For more information visit the Plas Tan y Bwlch website.
If you prefer the wild look, however, head for the magnificent 13 acre gardens at Plas Tan y Bwlch in Snowdonia National Park where you can discover how to make wild creatures feel right at home in your garden. The five-day residential course provides an introduction to wildlife gardening by looking at three important natural habitats - meadows, wetlands and ponds, and woodlands and hedgerows - and shows how these can relate even to the smallest garden. It includes visits to meadows, woodland and wetland habitats and local wildlife gardens. You'll also build a moth trap, visit local bat roosts at dusk, and even make a small bog garden!
Get the experience:
Garden design at the Royal Horticultural Society: Tickets for the course on effective garden design costs £258. The courses run on 25th- 27th Feb and 18th - 20th November 2005 at Wisley in Surrey. For more information see the Royal Horticultural Society Events website.
Wildlife Gardening in Wales: Price from £202. The course runs on July 11th - 15th 2005 For more information visit the Plas Tan y Bwlch website.
