WHENEVER folk talk about getting chickens, they’re mostly interested in getting fresh eggs. It’s rather an obvious reason. However, a gardener should look on a chicken run and coop as their own fertiliser factory.
You see, it’s easy to make garden compost – this is a good general feed for your soil, adding fertility – but it rather lacks oomph. The sort of oomph you get when you use well-rotted manure instead. Now, chickens can lay lots of eggs, but they also more regularly lay far more highly concentrated munitions-grade droppings.
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Learn from a top tipster
Here are my notes on the best veg for 2021, says Peter
What to plant for Peony perfection
The florists’ favourite offers high returns for very little in the way of care, and many add interest long after their flowering period. Louise Curley explores the different types
The heat is on…
Toby is keeping a close eye on a feisty horseradish – luckily, he knows how to keep this flavoursome firebrand in check
Re-use potting compost
Transform your used, dry potting compost into a nutritious feast for new crops and blooms – Bob shows you how
Tips and tricks for a New Year refresh
Sometimes a few simple updates are all it takes to revitalise the garden – and the good news is that January is an ideal time to make a start, so jump to it, says Hazel Sillver
Keep up with winter tasks
Ruth stays busy and preserves her first lemon crop!
The aphid eaters
Val discovers a lot of hoverfly activity on her kale plants
Keeping houseplants thriving
Keep your home greens in the pink this winter, says Ruth Hayes
Doing an environmental audit
Taking stock of how ‘green’ your garden is can reveal a great deal, says Tim Rumball
Best pruning for wisteria
Our old Wisteria sinensis took a hammering after a hard winter but has regrown valiantly. We need to do more training and pruning to fill the spaces where mature stems rotted at the base
SAVING LITTLE ITALY
THE ICONIC ETHNIC NEIGHBORHOOD HAS OUTLASTED ALL OF BALTIMORE’S OLD-WORLD ENCLAVES. NOW IT FACES ITS GREATEST CHALLENGE IN MORE THAN A CENTURY.
Classic Upland Guns
Baker Gun and Forging Company: Batavia Leader
California Coastal Road Trip
Like many people around the country, we have had little occasion to travel this year. With car shows and events like the Power Tour and Drag Week postponed and rescheduled due to the coronavirus, we’ve mostly been stuck at home. I recently had occasion to travel to Santa Rosa, California, for a photo shoot with Scott Birdsall, owner/builder of Old Smokey, the Cummins-powered Ford F1 that beat the diesel-engine record at the Pikes Peak International Hillclimb. Motor Trend’s William Walker was the shooter, with me serving as assistant and camera car driver. It seemed like as good excuse as any to make a trip out of it.
LITTLE ITALY
The lesser-known northeastern region of Friuli Venezia Giulia boasts unspoiled vistas and sail-friendly waters
SCALE MAKEOVER
A new scheme for a P-39
Mill Brass & Aluminum with a CNC Router
Add a new dimension to your woodworking skills.
Corsair K100
Reimagining a champion
During a pandemic, flexibility is key
The wheelhouse was scattered with guidebooks extolling the virtues and sites to behold in and around the Baltic — fjords in Sweden and Norway, Danish in Denmark, history-laden Poland, and enough lager to sink a barge in Germany.
Holiday Angels
It’s their busiest time of year
Oculus to kill off PC-only VR in 2021
Dead VR walking: Oculus says it will kill off the Oculus Rift S in 2021.