EDITOR'S WELCOME
Twenty one issues about gardening in Scotland, about the challenges and opportunities we face in our unique, and often diverse climate. Twenty one issues featuring your stunning garden spaces. Twenty one issues highlighting the work being done in community and charity gardens across the country. Twenty one issues featuring expert advice from our wonderful range of columnists based across Scotland. Twenty one issues, hopefully, inspiring you in your outdoor and indoor greenspace.
And to celebrate, we are giving you the chance to WIN a fabulous RHS bundle of a trowel, fork, pruner, holster, kneeler, and gloves from the iconic Burgon and Ball, worth almost £90. All you have to do is drop us an email with the title ‘Burgon and Ball’ by 10th December, to make sure we can pull a winning name, and get this gorgeous set delivered to you in time for Christmas.
Inside this issue, you can expect the usual range of quality coverage, sprinkled this time with a little Christmas magic as Lizzie Schofield, presenter on ‘Beechgrove’, shows us how to make a home-made wreath, Scott Smith dives into the lore behind holly, Dina Watt cooks up a storm with Brussel sprouts, and we give you the top tips for finding and roasting chestnuts on an open fire.
We’ve got your winter garden covered with colour splashes of dogwood and winter-flowering clematis, alongside Karen Stewart-Russell’s advice for heating your greenhouse in the cold season, Eli Appleby-Donald’s list of jobs which you could overtake this winter to get ahead of the game for next year, and Janice Clyne’s sea buckthorn adventures.
Kate Reynolds finishes her design series on tackling problem areas in your garden with some practical plans for gardening on a windy site, Lynn Hill explains what to expect from working with a professional garden designer, and Laura Frances investigates garden waste collection charges across Scotland.
All this, plus a cosy nosey round not one, but two, readers’ gardens which couldn’t be more different in size.
Snuggle up with this issue indoors if the weather prevents you from getting outside and read about the benefits of houseplants, Jordan Trainer’s top cactus picks, and be inspired to set yourself some new year gardening resolutions for 2024. Make sure that as, a reader, you are inside our private Facebook Group for readers so you can share your gardening hopes and questions for the year ahead.
We made it to the last three finalists in the Professional Publishers' Association 2023 Awards for 'Independent Magazine of the Year' and had the podcast nominated in as a finalist for 'Podcast of the Year' so that's a great accolade to end the year. Look out for a new look website coming in 2024, alongside some Scotland Grows workshops, and hopefully, a whole lot more bang for your buck inside the magazine.
On behalf of the extended team at Scotland Grows magazine, which is a collaborative labour of love from some utterly fabulous gardeners around the country, I would like to thank you for your support and encouragement which has got us to this milestone 21st issue.
Thank you for being part of our community.
M.T. O’Donnell
Editor
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Remember to check in to the Scotland Grows website where there are new fixes of gardening goodness uploaded every Friday!