It’s very hard to keep a nice lush looking garden when you have an elderly fluffy dog who likes nothing better than to spend hours having a potter. Mojai (fellow team member of The Amazing Blog) just loves to snuffle and truffle in and amongst the flower beds ‘marking his territory’ as he goes. Thus all my hard work primping and preening my postage stamp sized garden goes completely to waste... After a long conversation with a trusty friend (and dog owner), about Mojai peeing on and killing all members of plant life in the garden; she then enlightened me with her secret Dog Rocks.

Dog Rocks? How interesting, but how could some simple stones thrown into the dog’s water bowl really help my scorched grass and plants? Dog Rocks are 100% natural and are mined in Australia. The purpose of the rocks is to filter out impurities from the dog’s urine, such as tin, ammonia and nitrates, which are responsible for ‘burning’ the grass when the dog pees on it. Each pack has approximately 2/3 stones in it, and after giving the stones a little rinse, they are placed in the dog’s water bowl. The stones last up to 2 months, then they need to be replaced. Marvellously easy! Yes and they do make a difference, but at £10 a pack they’re a bit of a commitment. But if you’re a pet owner and like me you do battle to try and keep a green and fragrant garden – then these Dog Rocks are definitely for you. Available here.

Everyone at Amazing PR loves a pop-up, so far this summer we have frequented Tom’s Terrace at Somerset House for an (almost) too-hot-to-handle chilli martini...or three. Headed to Southbank for traditional Indian street food and deliciously spiked coconuts at Dishoom’s Chowpatty Beach Bar and hit up Basil’s Beach Bar at The Goring for a taste of genuine Mustique glamour, sans airfare...and weather for that matter. But all this eating and drinking has taken it out of us a bit (I know, woe is us) and we feel something a little more alternative is in order.

Enter the Urban Physic Garden, which has burst into bloom on a neglected patch of land in South East London. Thanks to the work of a collective of designers, urban growers and over 150 eager volunteers the garden is now flourishing with medicinal plants and healing herbs. Taking inspiration from the Chelsea Physic Garden - a centre for plant-based healing, research and experimentation for over 300 years - the Urban Physic Garden aims to inform and inspire on this fascinating subject.

This summer the Urban Physic Garden welcomes all budding botanists and medical mavericks to their festival of talks, workshops, film screenings and events. The garden provides a platform for artists, designers, gardeners and health practitioners from a diverse range of backgrounds and cultures to showcase their talents. It is a place for lively debate – an outside space where a range of people can come together to explore the role of plants in science, health, well-being and the environment.

There is a fascinating programme of events coming up over the rest of the summer: Free lunchtime talks in the on-site ‘Rambulance Cafe’ (whose kitchen is a decommissioned ambulance), walks around the garden with Professor Peter Houghton an expert in medicinal plants, private consultations with a medical herbalist and creative workshops that cater to all ages.