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of room to grow and stand them outside on warm days, bringing them indoors when the temperatures drop. By late-June it's usually safe to leave them outside in a sheltered, south-facing, sunny position. When temperatures dip again at the end of summer

Fluctuating growth rates cause tomatoes to suddenly expand. This might happen after a period of drought followed by generous watering, or low temperatures followed by a sudden sunny spell. The split might then become infected, causing the tomatoes to rot.Tomatoes split open while...

Every family has their own Christmas traditions – the festive season just wouldn’t be the same without them. Some of ours have been going for as long as I can remember, passed on to successive generations to enjoy.Down come the boxes of carefully packed decorations from the loft ...

hours, say a shed, but near to a bright window or lamp. The beetles will fly up towards the light. Grow brassica crops under fleece or very fine mesh netting.shasta daisies, sweet peas, cauliflowers, many ornamentals and vegetablesspring, summer

Magnesium is needed to give leaves their green colour, so when there's a deficiency, yellow breaks through between the veins and around the leaf edges instead. Other colours, such as purple, brown or red, might also appear. Older leaves suffer first, and will die if they're not g...

The taste of fresh asparagusin May is worth waiting for. A perennial crop, established asparagus plants will provide an annual crop of tasty spears for up to 20 years.Choose the spot you will grow your asparagus carefully. Asparagus needs lots

Follow Monty Don's guide to planting onions, shallots and garlic, with tips on soil preparation, drainage and compost.springMore advice on growing alliumsRead Lila Das Gupta's blog on growing garlicHarvesting garlicPlanting out leeks

of thinning the seedlings releases the carrot's scent. Plant strong-smelling crops, such as garlic, onions, shallots and leeks adjacent to the carrots. Follow a strict crop rotation plan, avoiding growing carrots on the same site in consecutive years

Also know as American gooseberry mildew, this greyish-white powdery growth of the fungal disease Sphaerotheca mors-uvae appears on new shoots, which can become distorted and die off. The mildew also affects the upper leaf surfaces and stems of the plant, while the skin on affecte...

are drought-tolerant you’ll still need to water your pots at least a couple of times a week through the summer. They'll also benefit from a high-potash liquid feed once a week to promote good flower development.The benefit of growing agapanthus in pots