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I like to think of myself as a fairly laissez-faire food grower. I see the prescribed sowing windows as guidance mostly, and have been known to bung a healthy seedling in a bed alongside a different plant family even if it goes against my crop plan. But when sowing seeds, I am all about control. I’m a devoted … Read more

He coined the terms petal and pollen, helped to lay the foundations of modern biology and is widely regarded as the greatest English naturalist of the 17th century. But it was while he was a young college tutor at Cambridge in the 1650s that the botanist John Ray – also known as “the father of … Read more

When a leaflet about leasehold injustice landed on Cath Williams’ doorstep in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, nearly a decade ago, she barely gave it a second thought, tossing it straight into the bin. Had she given it more than a cursory glance, she’d have read about how residents on her new-build estate had found out the … Read more

The problemHouseplants need liquid fertiliser, but this can be expensive. Fish tank owners, meanwhile, produce litres of nutrient-rich water during water changes, which then gets poured away. Could it feed houseplants instead? The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. The hackWater from a freshwater aquarium … Read more

Whoever you’re celebrating this Father’s Day – your own dad or a father figure in your life – our bumper list of gift ideas should help you think beyond the norm (though we have included some sock options, because sometimes it’s OK to go classic). The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission … Read more

Every time I’ve moved into a place with a garden, I’ve arrived at the wrong time of year. There’s a huge privilege to gaining access to land that you can actually grow in, of course, so it’s a minor grumble, but we arrived at our last house in the dying days of a July heatwave, … Read more