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Tomatoes will thrive in a greenhouse in midsummer with the right light, warmth, water and feed. But there's no point in ruining your hard work by watching the plant collapse under its own weight, when some simple staking will save the day. Nor do you want too many leaves when it'...

Greenhouse tomatoes are often planted in grow bags, but outdoor crops can also be grown in this way too. A good alternative to a specialist grow bag is to try planting in a 60 or 75 litre sack of multi-purpose compost. This will provide your plants with a larger rooting area and ...

Our towns and cities have become pocket-sized safari parks for insects, amphibians, small mammals and birds. In many parts of the UK, a number of amphibian species - such as frogs, toads and newts - are facing serious decline because of the loss of ponds in the wider countryside....

Autumn leaves are mainly broken down by the slow action of fungi rather than by bacteria that decompose other compost bin ingredients quickly, so it's best to compost them separately in a simple cage.The leaves of all deciduous trees make good leaf mould. Small thin leaves such a...

Carrots need space to develop fully so, once germinated, go over your rows of carrots and pick out the weakest-looking vegetable seedlings to leave a 2cm - 4cm space around remaining seedlings. If you're very careful in extracting the seedling from the row, you could try transpla...

Home-grown leeks are far superior to those bought in shops. They are very easy to grow from seed, and if you sow at intervals from February to June you can harvest from late August, through winter until the following February.Like most other vegetables, you will get a heavier cro...

If I had a shiny new pound for every person who has said to me, “Remember last year? We were all swanning around in shorts in March” I would be well on my way towards buying myself a very handsome dinner. This March, I look out of my window and there are flurries of snow whipping...

Soil typesYour soil type - sandy, loam or clay - determines which plant species you can grow. Knowing your soil type enables to you to choose the plants best suited to your garden. Soil type is identified the presence of clay, sand and silt. The ideal soil (loam) has equal amount...

Watch Monty Don's video demonstration of how to plant asparagus crowns, with advice on the soil preparation, aspect and aftercare.autumn or springMore advice on growing asparagusHow to plant asparagusPlant profile of asparagus officinalisBBC Gardeners' World blog on asparagus bee...

Follow Monty Don's video guide to planting courgette plants, which includes advice on planting depth and watering.summerMore on growing vegetablesMonty's video project on planting broccoliHow to plant sweetcornPlanting runner beansPlanting brassicasPlanting brassicasBrowse vegeta...