I would not presume to know more about gardening than anyone else!
Edited to add: when the empty house next door sells, I may advise them that there is honey fungus in a stretch on their side of the fence (and on my side) if I see them planting any kind of tree there.
I know I'm a bit of country yokel but I find it really strange that you have new neighbours whom you've seen and nodded at but haven't exchanged names yet. Once you say hello you soon get a feel for whether or not they want to be sociable neighbours.
If they don't then leave it and just remain on friendly but distant terms.
If they seem nice and friendly enough, perhaps you could say something along the lines of "I saw you were working in the garden and wondered if you would like a couple of spare plants" You can easily magic up something from division or self seeded stuff at this time of year.
From there a conversation might develop where you can give them some pointers, but it would be for them to take the lead and for you to only offer advice if it was either directly or indirectly asked for.
Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
If you see them out in the garden you could maybe start a conversation with something innocuous like "Nice weather for gardening isn't it?" I agree it's nice to say something positive, like "good to see it being looked after" if it had been neglected by the previous owner or while it was between owners. You'll soon get a feel for whether they'd prefer to be left alone and how much interest they have in the garden beyond just superficial tidiness.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
I think what @Hostafan1 has suggested is a lovely idea. Next Sunday there's a neighborhood Street party here and can't wait to strike up a conversation with both my neighbours. One has weeds to the roof of their shed and the other a more sterile space you couldn't find in a hospital. My only objection to the weeds' garden is the many legs up plastic chairs scattered around.
You are all right but I feel really mean watching them making mistakes and saying nothing. TBH, I've only actually seen them a couple of times. I wasn't even sure they'd moved in. Perfect neighbours😉
I think see what evolves on the chatting front. Can you converse from garden to garden? The first couple of times I spoke to my new neighbours was from behind hedging! It was a natural ice-breaker then to ask about the garden etc. People usually ‘fess-up quite quickly that they are novices/overwhelmed/keen/obsessed etc. If there’s a hint of “don’t know where to start” then you could make an offer to have a look etc? Worst case though they might think they are doing ok. Still worth offering though.
I am the same as @Topbird. I would say hello and exchange names quite quickly. My neighbours in Norfolk are very nice, we chat over the fence. One of them is a keen gardener.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
We have recently acquired new neighbours. The 1st I realised was the removal of the 'fence'. By the time I spoke to the owner she knew of concerns I had cos I'd been talking to the hired help. There is now a tall fence on the northside of my garden with foot high concrete gravel boards cos her land is higher than mine. The wildly out of control privet was also dug out so I now have a bit of a view. I haven't seen her since as a)they work full time & b)there's a high fence between us. She is going to grow veg.
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Edited to add: when the empty house next door sells, I may advise them that there is honey fungus in a stretch on their side of the fence (and on my side) if I see them planting any kind of tree there.
If they don't then leave it and just remain on friendly but distant terms.
If they seem nice and friendly enough, perhaps you could say something along the lines of "I saw you were working in the garden and wondered if you would like a couple of spare plants" You can easily magic up something from division or self seeded stuff at this time of year.
From there a conversation might develop where you can give them some pointers, but it would be for them to take the lead and for you to only offer advice if it was either directly or indirectly asked for.
Next Sunday there's a neighborhood Street party here and can't wait to strike up a conversation with both my neighbours. One has weeds to the roof of their shed and the other a more sterile space you couldn't find in a hospital. My only objection to the weeds' garden is the many legs up plastic chairs scattered around.
Luxembourg