Daintiness

no blueberries

I would blame the weather I have two  blueberry bushes identical age, size, treatment etc. one fruited, the other did not......my strawberries on the same plot - woeful and the raspberries - wonderful, picked another bowlful today....apples dreadful, tomatoes v. late, cucumbers fruiting well but late....and so it goes on. I do feel the weather has played a larger part than normal in the total success or failure of many crops this year.

Electric hedgecutters

Hi, I have just had to replace my hedge trimmer and went with a bigger brother of the Bosch range (AHS 6000). I am very happy with it. It is a much sturdier builtd than my former one. I bought mine from Homebase and you are able to pick them up in store and feel the weight at shoulder height etc. My new one is heavier than my old one but it gets through the work (hawthorn hedge) much quicker and easier. If you are worried about the weight, length of blade etc., I would take your old hedge trimmer along with you so you can compare the two without the guess work. Hope this helps.

Evergreen hedging query

Holly  is a good suggestion - prickly but not too prickly to cut, berries, wildlife friendly and it looks great. I have planted siome young plants and they have grown more quickly than I expected. I think planting a new hr=edg will be a lot easier than digging out the bamboo! 

CATS

Sterelitza (interesting name) If its a mess on the lawn I would tend to think it's a fox rather than a cat. Cats usually prefer flower beds where the soil is loose as they like to bury their poo. Look closely (and hold your nose) fox poo, at this time of the year usually has some berries in it or as a rule it tends to be more black. Ooh! the conversations I get involved in on this board!! Let us know....

evergreen perenial border

It looks lovely - well done. You could put in blue violas/pansies( in the spaces you are itching to fill up) Some small blue perennial campanulas would look lovely at the front ( Carol looked at some small ones a couple of weeks back on GW). What have you put in the wall planters?

Newts

They like it cool and damp and undisturbed - that's why they were under the builder's bag. If you have a shed you could put them under that and even leave the bulider's bag under it too. If you have a wild area or an untidy area (maybe where you have a compost bin) you could put them there. They will move on if they don't like it but they are useful in the garden. They hibernate under old paving stones in an undisturbed area of my garden.

raspberries??

Leave well alone and let the plants establish themselves. Don't prune at all except to remove any dead or damaged stems and hopefully you will have fruit next year.

evergreen perenial border

I would put in Nandina domestica 'Firepower' AGM - hasn't got blue flowers but has creamy flowers, foliage changes colour, upright growth, red berries in winter and is evergreen.

evergreen perenial border

All those I named are evergreen apart from Caryopteris

patio with circular bed

How about Heucheras - they come in a huge variety of colours so you can choose how much of range you go for - they flower in spring.Wouldn't need clipping either!

Cucumber or courgette?

Tree Tomato - any tips?

Is this spring worse than last year's?

Frogspawn 2013

Which? Compost reviews

Growing hyacinths in water

Cornus Kousa

Salt and Vinegar

Help - pricing toms

New Lawn - cracks

sand for plants?