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Tomorrow’s Recording for a New Course on Gardening for Insects

Tomorrow’s Recording for a New Course on Gardening for Insects

Much excitement in the MyGardenSchool camp this evening, as the next few days we are recording not only using a new video format for our lessons, but also with one of the world’s experts on gardening for insects – Jan Miller. Jan has written many national and international articles on gardening for insects and how to attract them.   In 2005 she published ‘A Country Diary for North Wales’, which is a collection of some of these columns and articles (Jan is based in Wales). This was followed in 2010 by ‘Gardening for Butterflies, Bees and other beneficial insects’ – a gardening book which has received wide critical acclaim.

There will be two new gardening for insects courses on MyGardenSchool from Jan, one for Europe, and one for the US – as the plantlife and insect life is so vast in our respective continents.

We won’t give away all our secrets yet!  But we think the new format of this course, along with a really fascinating subject matter will definitely be one to look out for!

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Bees, Blog

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Amazon’s (.com)’s top 20 best-selling new & future releases in Gardening & Horticulture

Amazon’s (.com)’s top 20 best-selling new & future releases in Gardening & Horticulture

Want to Know what the Latest Hot New Book Releases in Gardening & Horticulture are?  These are the current best sellers, (based on new books and future releases, in Gardening and Horticulture section).  This is from amazon.com – so will have a bias to the US market.  We will look at other markets shortly!  But this is what you’re all buying right now our American gardening friends..(note the ebooks surfacing here)

 

1.

Free-Range Chicken Gardens: How to Create a Beautiful, Chicken-Friendly Yard

by Jessi Bloom, Kate Baldwin

5.0 out of 5 stars (1)

Release Date: January 23, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $19.95

Price: $13.48

You Save: $6.47 (32%)

28 used & new from $11.33

2.

The New Western Garden Book: The Ultimate Gardening Guide (Sunset Western Garden Book)

by Editors of Sunset Magazine

5.0 out of 5 stars (1)

Publication Date: February 7, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $34.95

Price: $21.79

You Save: $13.16 (38%)

31 used & new from $21.50

3.

Vegetable Container Gardening: 7 Easy Steps To Healthy Harvests from Small Spaces

Mary Verdant

5.0 out of 5 stars (2)

Release Date: January 31, 2012

Kindle Edition

Auto-delivered wirelessly

Kindle Price: $0.99

4.

How to Grow More Vegetables, Eighth Edition: (and Fruits, Nuts, Berries, Grains, and Other Crops) Than You Ever Thought Po…

by John Jeavons

2.0 out of 5 stars (1)

Release Date: February 7, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $19.99

Price: $13.31

You Save: $6.68 (33%)

37 used & new from $11.91

5.

French Dirt: The Story of a Garden in the South of France

Richard Goodman

4.1 out of 5 stars (18)

Release Date: February 10, 2012

Kindle Edition

Auto-delivered wirelessly

Kindle Price: $1.99

6.

Beautiful No-Mow Yards: 50 Amazing Lawn Alternatives

by Evelyn J. Hadden

Publication Date: March 6, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $24.95

Price: $16.47

You Save: $8.48 (34%)

7.

Grow Cook Eat: A Food Lover’s Guide to Vegetable Gardening, Including 50 Recipes, Plus Harvesting and Storage Tips

by Willi Galloway, Jim Henkins

5.0 out of 5 stars (4)

Release Date: January 17, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $29.95

Price: $19.77

You Save: $10.18 (34%)

23 used & new from $17.85

8.

The New Sunset Western Garden Book: The Ultimate Gardening Guide

by Editors of Sunset Magazine

Publication Date: February 7, 2012

Hardcover

List Price: $44.95

Price: $27.91

You Save: $17.04 (38%)

20 used & new from $27.91

9.

Easy Growing: Organic Herbs and Edible Flowers from Small Spaces

by Gayla Trail

5.0 out of 5 stars (1)

Release Date: February 7, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $19.99

Price: $12.98

You Save: $7.01 (35%)

45 used & new from $8.44

10.

Petal & Twig: Seasonal Bouquets with Blossoms, Branches, and Grasses from Your Garden

by Valerie Easton

5.0 out of 5 stars (5)

Release Date: January 31, 2012

Hardcover

List Price: $16.95

Price: $11.41

You Save: $5.54 (33%)

31 used & new from $9.94

11.

How to Survive a Natural Disaster – Book 5 – Planning a Garden for Survival

R M Wright

3.8 out of 5 stars (4)

Release Date: January 27, 2012

Kindle Edition

Auto-delivered wirelessly

Kindle Price: $0.99

12.

Grow Fruit Naturally: A Hands-On Guide to Luscious, Home-Grown Fruit

by Lee Reich

Publication Date: March 13, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $24.95

Price: $16.30

You Save: $8.65 (35%)

13.

Breaking Through Concrete: Building an Urban Farm Revival

by David Hanson, Edwin Marty, Michael Hanson, Mark Winne

Publication Date: January 30, 2012

Hardcover

List Price: $29.95

Price: $19.46

You Save: $10.49 (35%)

30 used & new from $14.94

14.

Tiny World Terrariums: A Step-by-Step Guide to Easily Contained Life

by Michelle Inciarrano, Katy Maslow

Publication Date: May 1, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $19.95

Price: $12.11

You Save: $7.84 (39%)

15.

Try These Great Gardening Ideas Even If You Don’t Have A Green Thumb

Chris Ferrer

Release Date: February 9, 2012

Kindle Edition

Auto-delivered wirelessly

Kindle Price: $0.99

16.

The Garden Source: Inspirational Design Ideas for Gardens and Landscapes

by Andrea Jones, James van Sweden

Release Date: February 14, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $39.95

Price: $26.10

You Save: $13.85 (35%)

15 used & new from $26.09

17.

The Gardener’s Guide to Cactus: The 100 Best Paddles, Barrels, Columns, and Globes

by Scott Calhoun

Release Date: January 31, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $24.95

Price: $15.96

You Save: $8.99 (36%)

47 used & new from $12.00

18.

Beginner’s Illustrated Guide to Gardening: Techniques to Help You Get Started

by Katie Elzer-Peters

5.0 out of 5 stars (1)

Publication Date: February 13, 2012

Paperback

List Price: $21.99

Price: $14.80

You Save: $7.19 (33%)

19 used & new from $14.44

19.

Grow Bonsai Trees from Seeds: Insider Secrets Revealed on the Bonsai plant, bonsai soil, indoor bonsai, bonsai pots, junip…

John Monroe

5.0 out of 5 stars (2)

Release Date: January 29, 2012

Kindle Edition

Auto-delivered wirelessly

Kindle Price: $3.97

20.

Organic Gardening II: Tips That Can Help You Obtain A Better Garden

Chris Ferrer

5.0 out of 5 stars (1)

Release Date: January 31, 2012

Kindle Edition

Auto-delivered wirelessly

Kindle Price: $0.99

Blog, Gardening Books, Gardening Courses

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What To Do When You’re Made Redundant

What To Do When You’re Made Redundant

Being made redundant is mostly an emotional roller coaster. But good things can really come of it.

Being made redundant is often nothing to do with you personally. But somehow it feels like it. You can actually be a star performer, hard- working, and all round highflier, yet somehow, suddenly, you’re out of a job. And your emotions are also on their own journey of confusion. Company morale goes though the floor, and suddenly you’re starting to worry about paying the mortgage, when you’ve always taken this for granted. You are not alone. It’s a harsh reality for millions of people around the world amid the worst economic recession in living memory.

But for some, redundancy can be a good thing, too. Believe it or not, a recession may actually be the best time to start a business. Many world-famous companies were launched during tough economic times – including Disney and Microsoft.

There are many examples of people who have made a positive career change as a result of redundancy. Garden designer, landscaper and founder of Fruitshare Sharon Hockenhull is one such example.

Sharon explains “I have been running my own garden design and landscaping business for the last five years. With a previous background in graphic design coupled with a passion for horticulture, it was only a matter of time before the two disciplines would come together. Making the transition was not easy (not entirely planned either), but arose from the nightmares of being made redundant when I was just 12 weeks pregnant with my first child. Looking back, it was the best thing that could have happened to me.   My website, fruitshare.net, is my little solution to help make the most out of the country’s forgotten fruits by allowing people to post their surpluses on to the site. It is a none-profit organisation and is purely born from a passion for growing fruit and not wanting to see perfectly good food going to waste.

Like many garden designers I came into it late after being made redundant in my mid forties. This gave me a chance to reassess how I wanted to live my life and thus I was able to move in a slightly different direction.”

Another example is Jane Thormley, of Windrush Designs. In Jane’s words “I had worked for twelve years as an architect with the BBC designing radio and television studios, a very high pressure job which I enjoyed. However being made redundant allowed me the time to reassess how I wanted to work in the future.

I have always enjoyed working in my garden and growing a wide range of plants so I decided to work in horticulture. I did several garden courses: the General, Advanced and Diplomas in order to get a good basic grounding and since 2009 have been working as a garden designer.”

Redundancy, either expected or otherwise, can be a nightmare – but it certainly isn’t such a disaster if you make the best of your new circumstances. The biggest threat to your survival is going a few months without your regular pay; fortunately this is something you can protect against, either by saving a little every week now, or taking out income protection insurance.

But what will you do if you’re made redundant – long term? That’s the question. Will you scuttle back to the job market with your updated CV? Or will you take your career into your own hands and explore the potential of more freedom, more flexibility and more profit?

If you have the brains and the motivation to lead your own career destiny, going self-employed after you’re made redundant is a no brainer…

See our latest student here at MyGardenSchool – looking to develop a career building treehouses! Explore your creativity and options and why not consider a career in garden design or horticulture.

To discover a new career in garden design or horticulture, or just for fun, try a four week online gardening course at MyGardenSchool, or take a look at the online Garden Design Diploma Course with Oxford College of Garden Design.

Blog, Gardening Courses, Gardening Education

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Ha – liking this Creature Comfort Vid on Gardening

Ha – liking this Creature Comfort Vid on Gardening

Some fabulous characters from Creature Comforts commenting on gardening.

Creature Comforts was originally a 1989 British humorous animated short film about how animals feel about living in a zoo, featuring the voices of the British public “spoken” by the animals. It was created by Nick Park and Aardman Animations. The film later became the basis of a series of television advertisements for the UK Electricity Board, and in 2003 a television series in the same style was released. An American version of the series was also made.

The original 5-minute film Creature Comforts was conceived and directed by Nick Park and produced by Aardman Animations featuring the voices of British non-actors in the same vein as the “man on the street” Vox Pop interviews. It was produced as part of a series called Lip Synch for Channel 4. The film won Nick Park the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1990.

The film shows various animals in a zoo being interviewed about their living conditions. These include turtles, a female gorilla, a family of polar bears, and a melancholic Mountain Lion who complains about the “lack of space” and the “grass with pollen that gives me hay fever every day!”

The dialogue was created by interviewing residents of a housing development, an old people’s home and a family that lived in a local shop (the polar bears). Clay animation was then created that attributed the answers to zoo animals. One of the most popular characters was the Mountain Lion. He was in fact a Brazilian student who lived in a hotel and was talking about his own situation.

Blog, Gardening Courses, Gardening Education

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Gardening Bucks Recession as a Growth Industry

Gardening Bucks Recession as a Growth Industry

There are some interesting facts going on in the horticulture, garden design and gardening markets at the moment which are suggesting that gardening in its broadest form is on the rise as one of our favourite hobbies (worldwide).  Perhaps it’s the economies, climate change, or a growth in awareness of our desire to nurture the planet.  Whatever it might be – here are some interesting thoughts:

Ashworth College (ashworthcollege.edu) (a big US university with a significant landscaping facility) – told us that jobs in landscaping industries had increased of 38% in the last year, despite the recession.  (or even because of?)

The Royal Horticultural Society Advisory Department (UK) experienced its busiest year in 2011, receiving more than 60000 enquiries from its members- a record breaker.

The team of RHS experts solved myriad enquiries which ranged from problems associated with pests and diseases to plant identification. Many of the queries pertained to the unpredictable temperatures throughout the year.

Chief Horticultural Advisor, Guy Barter said, ‘Last year was a record year for RHS Advisory. We had lots of enquiries from members about how the unusual weather would affect the growth and development of their plants.’

Blog, Februrary

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