BUSINESS

As any gardener knows, we share our outdoor spaces with a vast array of creatures. This is mostly a wonderful and necessary thing. The majority of beasts are beneficial and ought to receive the warmest of welcomes. And given the biodiversity crisis, we must reconsider who we regard as a “pest”. Having said that, there are organisms whose presence can imperil our … Read more

As regular readers of this column may have noticed, I am no taxonomist. I’ve never quite got on board with Latin names, but have gardened long enough to grudgingly accept that they are quite useful. For all that common names can be poetic (love-in-a-mist), intriguing (bladder wrack) or plain entertaining (goat’s beard), they can lack … Read more

We want to hear from people who’ve moved house only to discover the previous occupier has left behind something unexpected. Perhaps you have found an heirloom with an untold story? An unusual oddity? Or something so bizarre it defies all explanation. Share your experience Share your most memorable, weirdest and wildest discoveries in the form … Read more

El Capricho Park, Madrid El Capricho, on the outskirts of Madrid, is one of the city’s lesser-known parks. It was built in 1784 by the Duke and Duchess of Osuna, and visited by 18th-century artists such as Francisco de Goya. Its 17-hectare gardens were designed by Jean Baptiste Mulot, who also worked on the Petit … Read more

I’m not sure who Zainab Johnson’s been talking to, but she’ll have no problem finding vegan/plant-based food here in Edinburgh during the fringe (‘I spent a month sleeping in a cupboard’: comedians on the true cost of the Fringe, 27 July). We have thousands of restaurants, the vast majority offering plant-based alternatives.Siobhan McGovernEdinburgh I too … Read more

What’s the problem?My Hoya carnosa cutting, taken from my father’s treasured plant, bloomed once, in 2022, but has not flowered since. How can I encourage it? The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. DiagnosisHoyas, often known as wax plants, have a reputation for … Read more

The growing season is at its peak. There have been harvests already and more to come. The boughs of our plum tree bend towards the ground, heaving with fruit, and there are new cucumbers and courgettes swelling with each warm summer day. My season started late, and since the spring equinox I feel as if … Read more