Garden Matthew Wilson's 5 Favourite Things

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3. My Old Gardening Books (Image 3 of 6)

Matthew says: 'I've got a lot of gardening books, including dozens of new ones, but it’s the older books that really fascinate me. Many of mine I was lucky enough to inherit but you can still find them in antiquarian book shops, junk shops, or online, and although some are quite expensive – my copy of Gertrude Jekyll’s Wall and Water Gardens is worth a few quid – others cost just a few pence. Some are full of practical and useful advice, but there are others that have got loads of mad stuff in it. For example, to get harmful caterpillars out of a fruit bush, the advice is to put quick lime under the bush, then get a double-barrelled shotgun and shoot the bush, making the caterpillars fall into the lime. And, to get birds away from your cabbages, leave a trail of corn that leads to a rock propped up on the stick. Tie string to the end of the stick and when the bird pecks its way to the rock, pull the string, making the rock fall onto the bird. I love old books for all this insane stuff - and the great practical advice.'

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