When I was young I thought I would rather die than want to read this magazine, or watch the programme for that matter. Middle age has worked its miracle on me now and Gardeners' World seems like a good idea.
The magazine costs 2.70 per issue and is released monthly. However you can subscribe using a form in the magazine, which either gives you a discount or a free gift, e.g. an Alan Titchmarsh book in the March 2003 issue. Gardeners' World magazine has recently won the Magazine of the Year award for containing the best mix of practical advice, plant profiles, features and news.
I think this magazine is for both the relatively experienced and inexperienced gardener (count me in on the latter) and may even win a few reluctant gardeners
over with its glossy pages. Some articles are very technical or full of unpronounceable Latin names whereas others are for simple souls like me. There are articles about everything you can imagine garden design, different types of plants, garden equipment, vegetables, famous gardeners, indoor plants, history of plants, questions and answers, colour schemes, pond plants etc. etc.
There are always readers offers and competitions, for example free plants/seeds, cheap plants or ticket offers for gardening shows. The magazine is full of adverts, which can get a bit annoying, but on the other hand I have ordered a few innovative things great for present ideas. I bought this months edition specifically to find an advert so I can buy my other half the most romantic birthday present ever a wormery, to convert our kitchen waste to fertiliser. It features most of the well-known characters from the BBC Gardening shows, not just Gardeners World. The men will be happy with lovely Rachael de Thame, whilst some women (not me) will be happy with Tommy Walsh (can anyone explain his appeal to me?)
To give you an idea of a typical issue, I will describe the March 2003 edition in more detail.
Garden News guide to the latest news in gardening Your letters letters and photos about readers gardens. Tomorrows World future gardening developments Q&A questions and answers on all gardening matters 60 years of gardening how things were done way back then The new pecking order how to help the birds that visit your garden Readers offers plant offers, discount garden tickets offer and giveaways Greenhouse gardening an article giving greenhouse advice Small garden a feature on a wonderful small garden Websites the best gardening websites Pruning made easy an article on how to prune climbers Dig in an article on the best new potatoes Eastern delight featuring the best camellias Plant partners combining spring flowers for effect Oriental poppies a look at easy to grow varieties Pippas organic kitchen garden advice on organic gardens Your garden in March what to do in the garden this month
This is only about three quarters of the articles in Marchs edition, so as you can see there is a wide range of articles, none too long or taxing. The magazine is usually around 170 colourful pages long and is packed with information. Each month the articles are relevant to the gardening year, so in winter they will not be talking about mowing the lawn or growing strawberries and in summer they will not be talking about frost cover. The multitude of photos of are of very high quality, even if they do make your garden look quite dull and colourless.
Incidentally if you enjoy gardening or are a fan of the BBC garden celebrities, BBC Gardeners World Live show is at the NEC Birmingham on 11-15 June 2003. It is a great action packet show at which you can buy anything large or small related to gardening. The BBC gardeners do live shows and sign autographs and you can learn a lot. Tickets can be obtained by ringing 0870 902 01555 and more details can be found at www.bbcgardenersworldlive.co.uk
If you are not too ashamed of getting older and have even a mild interest in gardening, give this quality magazine a go. Also buy it to find presents for your gardening mad friends or relatives, or why not get them a gift subscription. I hope you enjoy the fruits of your labours.
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Good review, I can say I've never read a gardening magazine and by looking at the state of my garden you can tell as well. LOL. Andy.
Aspen 05.04.2003 02:10
Gardeners get younger every year. But GW's too glitzy and Chelsea-Show-ish for me. Go for the non-mainstream jobs, like Organic Gardening or Smallholder. And, sorry, but I can't help you on the subject of the appeal of Tommy. Rachael, on the other hand . . . Mike.
MadeinScotland 28.03.2003 11:26
Hey there, I only have a balcony and am thinking of getting an allotment - do you think this is a good idea?
kl
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