business

If you came of age in the early 2000s, you have probably seen 500 Days of Summer, an indie romcom that romanticised Ikea showrooms as the perfect place for a date. It was thanks to this film that I jumped at the chance to sleep over in what is effectively an Ikea showroom. The caveat … Read more

Entomologists in England are expecting a surge in slugs coming out of hiding to munch the nation’s strawberry plants after weeks of sun followed by wetter weather has caused a bumper crop. The Royal Horticultural Society is bracing for a surge in inquiries from its 625,000 members, who write in with their garden gripes. Workers … Read more

The problemIndoor plants accumulate dust on their leaves, mineral deposits on their soil and a general staleness that comes from living in the same spot, in poorly ventilated air, for months at a time. The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. The hackSpending … Read more

On reading the latest column in your long-running series (Lawnmower hum: why the sound of the summer could cost you £5,000, 27 May), I noticed that the writer didn’t include the curse of the leaf blower in their list of antisocial garden tools. The noise is dreadful and can be life-altering. We bought one which turned out … Read more

Parakeets screech and planes rumble overhead, but my attention is on the plants at my feet: the tracery of herb robert, purple nibs of plantain, flailing bramble and bristly nettle. I’m sitting on a boulder in a clearing among hawthorn, privet and silver birch. It feels a quiet space, one you might stumble on in … Read more

From a flower-filled moat at the Tower of London to a rooftop community garden on the Old Kent Road, the work of the landscape designer, horticulturist and educator Nigel Dunnett, who has died aged 63 from cancer, showed how urban landscapes could be visually dramatic, ecologically rich and experientially uplifting. Dunnett’s deep plant knowledge, design … Read more

The children’s nursery rhyme I Can Sing a Rainbow swirls at the back of my mind as I wander the bright and beautiful rooms of art collector and author Ruth Evans’s north London home. Red and yellow and pink and green, purple and orange and blue – they’re all here. Evans has lived in this … Read more