Need for Seed

20/08/2023

New job opportunity! I am looking for someone to join me for flexible days/hours. With potential of a full time role next year.

Previous gardening experience is essential, as is a good sense of humour. Driving license not essential.

Candidates can send a CV to [email protected] or apply via Indeed:

https://uk.indeed.com/m/viewjob?jk=b25f66695b24a335&from=serp&prevUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fuk.indeed.com%2Fm%2Fjobs%3Fq%3Dgardener%26l%3Dct14%26from%3DsearchOnSerp%26sameQ%3D1

Thanks

Need for Seed

10/07/2023

It's National today.

A post to show appreciation to our little winged friends, not just honey bees but the 20,000 species world wide!

About 33% of the food we eat is thanks to these pollinators, and they play a huge role in balancing our ecosystems.

Contact us if you want more bees in your garden. More planting, less mowing, wildlife ponds and bee-hotels are just some ideas that can help.

07/07/2023

Botanical name - Atropa belladonna
Common name - Deadly nightshade

This is one of the words most toxic and deadly plants! This rather innocent looking perennial can be found in the UK and many parts of the temperate world, usually on arid uncultivated land.

All parts of plants are toxic, but the berries which are shiny black when ripe, are the hazard for humans and many animals too. The fruit is sweet which is the major risk, just 2 berries can be fatal for children 😯

The species name 'belladonna' means beautiful lady in Italian, in 16th century Italy some ladies would apply an eye drop made from the berries to dilate their pupils, this dusky, lustrous look was seen to be the height of beauty then, but it turned out not to be such a good idea!

26/06/2023

Botanical name - Gentiana verna

Common name - Spring Gentian

Location - Pindos National Park, Greece

This lovely low growing evergreen perennial has the most vivid blue flowers I have ever seen, its thrives chalky or limestone grasslands, withhin mountainous locations throughout Europe.

If you have a rockery or alpine bed I would strongly recommend contacting me, as I will be growing these from seed in the Autumn :D

16/06/2023

It's National Fudge Day!

Sorry, I'm not giving away fudge, just sharing a delicious looking Lilly with the perfect name for today.

Lillium 'Apricot Fudge'

14/06/2023

A mutated edible Fig tree :o never seen variegation like this on Ficus carica before!

I wonder if they would realise if I took this branch off, purely for examination purposes 🤣

13/06/2023

Do you have an unidentified plant in your garden? Send a picture in the comments and I will let you know what you have! Hopefully 😀

11/06/2023

Why the name Need for Seed? This name came from when I started collecting a variety of seeds in 2013, I created a 'seed bank' and my plan was to start selling seeds as a side hussle 😅

When I started the gardening business in 2016 I decided to keep the name!

It has nothing to do with gaming franchise, and on a number of occasions I've had to explain I'm not a donating anything 🤣

20/05/2023

20/05/2023

Woodcock Bee-orchid (Ophrys scolopax subsp. cornuta)

This is the first bee-orchid I have ever seen, I found it on the side of a path near Lake Ohrid, North Macedonia.

This plant is a close relative to the bee orchid found in England ( Ophrys apifera) but this is a different species found in the balkans, parts of southern Europe and Iran.

It is a fascinating plant that is an example of sexual deceptive pollination and floral mimicry, The labellum median lobe has a pattern that mimics the abdomen of a bee, therefore male bees & wasps attempt to mate with the flower, but are actually pollinating the flowers in the process, transferring polllen between the plants. The male bees recieve nothing in return whilst expending lots off energy in their attempt, the process is called pseudocopulation.