As more people across the UK discover the joy of gardening, whether planting their first container, refreshing a border, or nurturing a vegetable patch, understanding compost is one of the most important steps to grow healthy and thriving plants.

Ask anyone what flower they’d most like in their garden and the answer is almost always the same. Roses are the quintessential British flower with their attractive colour, the scent, the way they look climbing over a fence or tumbling out of a pot, there’s nothing quite like them.

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) and country clothing brand Schöffel Country has announced the 28 finalists for the 2026 Schöffel Countryside Awards.

Chester Zoo and Malagasy conservationists are carrying out the biggest ever butterfly survey in Madagascar – and they have high hopes of “uncovering what an extraordinary forest is hiding”.

Whether you’ve been nurturing houseplants for years or you’re thinking about buying your very first one, there has never been a better time to bring the beauty of the garden indoors.

Zookeepers at Chester Zoo have stepped in to help raise a newborn aardvark, bottle-feeding it warm milk every few hours to help it grow. The tiny arrival – only the second aardvark ever born at the zoo in its 94-year history – was born healthy, but mum Oni wasn’t producing enough milk to fully support the youngster.

Following extensive NFU campaigning and a public consultation, which the NFU submitted evidence to, the Sentencing Council has published new guidelines for courts to tackle hare coursing¹ offences.

RHS Garden Bridgewater has announced an extension to its popular Salford Free Tuesdays scheme, allowing Salford residents to continue enjoying free entry every Tuesday until 18 May 2027. The news comes as the garden prepares to celebrate its fifth birthday on 18 May, marking half a decade as a much-loved community hub where people and nature thrive together.

A former Lancashire quarry that once supplied materials to make bricks is set to be transformed into meadows, woodlands and other unique habitats to support the future of development across the North West.

Spring is the perfect time to refresh outdoor spaces with a burst of colour, and as part of the Make It Bloom campaign, British Garden Centres is encouraging gardeners of all abilities to get creative with vibrant spring planters. Whether brightening a doorstep, patio or garden, creating a professional‑looking display is simple with the right plants and a few easy steps.

Issues for zoo-housed elephants include limited space, inadequate social groupings, reduced survivorship, and health problems such as foot and joint disorders and obesity. Currently, there are over 500 elephants in over 140 zoos across 31 European countries, including 49 elephants across 10 zoos in the UK.

Yorkshire Wildlife Trust was founded in 1946 as Yorkshire Naturalists Trust to care for Askham Bog nature reserve, gifted to the Trust by confectioners and naturalists Sir Francis Terry and Arnold Rowntree. The charity is launching a new community fundraising pack to encourage the public to take meaningful and impactful action for wildlife across the county. There will also be a bumper year of events and activities, including a poetry competition, wildlife hero awards and a region-wide birthday celebration.