I have worked as a garden designer for 25 years and am a team member of the BBC gardening programme Down to Earth, where I provide live and pre-recorded phone-in advice for gardeners. I also travel to garden groups to record the Down to Earth programme in front of an audience. In addition, I write for newspapers, online platforms, and magazines, including contributing to the Expert Pages for Garden News Magazine. Two years ago, I worked as PR for Easton Walled Gardens, where I wrote about and promoted the historic garden renovation project based near Grantham, which is run by Lady Ursula.

At home, I have a one-acre garden in Leicestershire. I write about the fruit, vegetables, and flowers I grow at home on my blog at bramblegarden.com, on Twitter @kgimson, and on Instagram at karengimson1. I am a member of the Leicestershire and Rutland Gardens Trust and its Walled Garden Research Group. I am also a member of the Hardy Plant Society. I raise money for Rainbows Hospice for Children in Loughborough and give talks and slide shows to societies and garden groups in the East Midlands on the subject of garden design and gardening. I take part in trials for new seeds, garden products, books, and materials on the understanding that I am not paid to do so, and my opinions are my own. My writing is not sponsored by any company, and I do not speak for or on behalf of the BBC in any way.

In 2016, the only garden soil conditioner I used was PlantGrow. I trialled both the solid fertiliser and the liquid feed, and I found both very easy to use. I grew beetroot, French and climbing beans, kale, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, strawberries, blueberries, blackcurrants, and raspberries.

Additionally, I have apple, pear, plum, peach, and nectarine trees. Despite very challenging weather conditions, I found that the fruit and vegetables grew healthily and were able to withstand heavy rain, high temperatures, strong winds, and unseasonal hailstones. Because they grew strongly and steadily, they were better able to fight off pest and disease attacks. As an organic grower, I do not use any pesticides or sprays of any kind, so it is crucial for me to grow high-quality fruit, flowers, and vegetables that can ward off various pests and diseases.

In addition to food, I also grow sweet peas, cosmos, dahlias, asters, chrysanthemums, verbena, pinks, sweet williams, calendula, and sunflowers. I found that the sweet peas flowered for a much longer period than in previous years. I believe that using the PlantGrow fertiliser enabled the plants to cope with very high summer temperatures of 30°C. In a plot where I didn’t use PlantGrow, the sweet pea stems turned brown and died back earlier than those in the PlantGrow plot. Using the PlantGrow fertiliser, I noticed that the sweet pea stems stayed green and productive for several weeks longer than the control plot. As a result, there were more flowers and better quality blooms.

I realise this is not a scientific test of any kind, but in my opinion, the addition of PlantGrow fertiliser in my garden was beneficial, leading to better quality flowers, fruit, and vegetables and a longer cropping period, as the plants lasted longer than they usually would. Note: PlantGrow supplied my samples free of charge for my trials.

As stated above, I have not been paid to supply this feedback statement, and all opinions are my own. I have simply found the PlantGrow fertiliser to be easy and worthwhile to use. I am in favour of a product that is environmentally friendly and am very pleased to have achieved such excellent growing results without needing to resort to sprays and chemicals.

Karen Gimson