Gardening Words Explained

Plain-English meanings for the gardening words used on this site. On each plant page, the first time one of these words appears, you can tap it to come here.

Annual: A plant that grows, flowers, sets seed and dies all within one year.
Bare-root: Sold with no soil around the roots, usually in autumn and winter while the plant is resting. It is cheaper than a potted plant.
Biennial: A plant that takes two years to finish its life. It grows leaves and roots in year one, then flowers and sets seed in year two.
Blanch (in the garden): Keeping part of a plant out of the light so it stays pale and mild, for example by covering it or drawing soil up around it.
Blanch (in the kitchen): Dropping vegetables into boiling water for a short time, then cooling them quickly in iced water. It stops them spoiling in the freezer.
Bolt: When a plant runs to flower and seed too early, usually because of heat, drought or a cold snap. Leaves and roots turn bitter or woody.
Brassica: A member of the cabbage family, such as kale, broccoli, cauliflower, turnip and radish.
Cane: A long stem of raspberries or blackberries, or a bamboo stick used to support plants.
Chit: To sprout seed potatoes on a windowsill before planting, so they grow faster.
Cloche: A small cover, such as a bell jar or plastic tunnel, put over plants to protect them from cold.
Cold frame: A low, unheated box with a clear lid. It shelters plants from cold and wind.
Cordon: A fruit tree trained as a single upright or sloping stem, which saves space.
Crown: The base of a plant, where the stems meet the roots.
Curd: The white (or coloured) head of a cauliflower or similar plant.
Cure: To dry crops such as onions, garlic and squash for some days so the skin hardens and they store for longer.
Dormant: Resting, with no active growth. Most plants are dormant in winter.
Drill: A shallow groove in the soil that you sow seed into.
Earth up: To draw soil up around the base of a plant’s stem, using a hoe or spade.
Ericaceous: Acidic compost or soil, for plants such as blueberries that need it.
Espalier: A fruit tree trained flat against a wall or fence with horizontal branches in tiers.
F1: A hybrid variety bred for even, reliable crops. Seed saved from it will not grow into the same plant.
Fleece: A thin, light cover that protects plants from frost, wind and insect pests.
Force: To make a plant grow earlier than normal, for example by covering it to keep it warm or in the dark.
Glut: Too much of a crop ripening at once.
Graft: To join a piece of one plant onto the roots of another, as is done with most fruit trees.
Half-hardy: Can cope with cool weather but is damaged by frost. Plant it out only after the last frost.
Harden off: Getting young plants used to outdoor conditions over 1 to 2 weeks, by putting them outside for a little longer each day.
Hardy: Able to survive a normal UK winter outdoors, including frost.
Haulm: The stems and leaves of potatoes and beans that grow above the ground.
Heel in: To plant something temporarily in a trench of soil until you are ready to plant it in its final place.
Leggy: Tall, thin and weak, usually because of too little light.
Legume: A pea or bean family plant. Their roots add plant food (nitrogen) to the soil.
Loam: Good garden soil that is a balanced mix of sand, silt and clay.
Module: A small cell in a tray, used to start one seedling in each space.
Mulch: A layer of compost, bark, straw or similar spread over the soil. It keeps moisture in and weeds down.
Nitrogen: A plant food that encourages lush, leafy green growth.
Overwinter: To keep a plant alive through the winter, or to leave it growing outside over the winter.
Perennial: A plant that lives for several years and comes back each year.
pH: A measure of how acidic or alkaline soil is. Below 7 is acidic, above 7 is alkaline, and 7 is neutral.
Pinch out: To nip off a growing tip or small shoot with your finger and thumb.
Pollinator: An insect, such as a bee, or a nearby plant that carries pollen between flowers so fruit can form.
Polytunnel: A large tunnel covered in plastic, for growing plants in shelter.
Pot on: To move a plant into a bigger pot as it grows.
Prick out: To move tiny seedlings into their own pots or trays so they have more room.
Rootstock: The root part a fruit tree is grown on. It decides how big the tree will get.
Scape: The curly flower stem of garlic and some onions, which can be eaten.
Self-fertile: A fruit tree or bush that can produce fruit without a second plant nearby.
Side shoot: A new shoot that grows from where a leaf joins the main stem, for example on a tomato plant.
Spur: A short branch on a fruit tree that carries the flowers and fruit.
Strig: A cluster of berries on one stalk, as on redcurrants and blackcurrants.
Successional sowing: Sowing a small amount every few weeks, so crops ripen over a longer time instead of all at once.
Sucker: A shoot that grows up from the roots or the base of a plant, away from the main stem.
Tender: Easily killed by frost, so it needs to be grown indoors or planted out only once the weather is warm.
Thin out: To pull up some of the seedlings so the rest have room to grow.
Tilth: Fine, crumbly soil that is ideal for sowing seed.
Transplant: To move a young plant from one place to another.
Truss: A cluster of flowers or fruit on one stem, as on a tomato plant.
Tuber: A swollen underground part used for storage, such as a potato.

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