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What a great chance to check out what other plotters are doing nearby! Events will be going on all over the country as part of this annual allotments week so keep your eyes on the local press for details. Or check out the ever useful worldwide web

I can't say it's a surprise - I've been expecting the annual appearance of a whopping great marrow on one of my courgette plants. It happens every year, without fail. I try to be so thorough when I'm picking, delving under the leaves, harvesting

to shove under a leg of lamb on a chilly, wintery Sunday. And the annuals are just as valuable - bunches of fresh coriander for aromatic curries and spicy salsas; lovely delicate dill for herb butters; armfuls of parsley for just about anything

with them for moisture and nutrients. My plot is certainly far from perfect - it's a constant battle of removing perennial weeds and hoeing annuals in the worst affected areas. I try to weed on a 'little and often' basis; I concentrate on the worst beds

as the books say it should be.So what goes wrong with the compost on the plot? The answer is simple: lack of variety.The compost I make at work has grass clippings, weeds, herbaceous stems, annual plants, the odd barrowful of spent compost from pots