LAST summer, one of these columns concerned cats and gardening. To redress the balance, I’m now looking at dogs, and their associations with plants and gardening. A recent survey by the Pet Food Manufacturing Association found that 34% of households in the UK have dogs, whereas 28% have cats. As of 2021, ‘ruff-ly’ 12.5 million dogs are kept in the UK; this number increased significantly during the pandemic. So, what are the connections between dogs and horticulture? Actually, there are many – let’s look at some of them.
■ The dog’s-tooth violet () is one of our most beautiful spring plants. The white bulb is oblong and in its Latin name translates as ‘dog’s tooth’.
