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Shade is probably one of the most challenging situations for plants to flourish in. Whether it's buildings, walls, fences, shrubs or trees, on the south side your plants bask in full sun but on the north side they'll be in cooler shade. Choosing

as required.For planting things that are going to live their life in a pot I always choose a loam-based John Innes No.3 compost. The loam gives it the guts to last, along with longer-lasting nutrients. There's no harm in mixing in some water-retaining gel

, and how little thought I've been giving my sense of smell in my garden. Now I need everyones' help to choose scents for every season... I'll start keeping a list of the best fragrant plants for gardens. Suggestions welcome!

Christmas is fast approaching, and perfume houses will soon be tempting us to buy fragrances for our nearest and dearest. No doubt they'll do a roaring trade, but to my mind natural perfume can't be beaten. Fragrant plants and flowers add another

starting point. When choosing new plants, bear wildlife in mind and look for those that will provide safe shelter and perching places. In addition, put up nest boxes wherever you have a suitable position - reasonably high up and out of direct, scorching sun

counties too. It's an example of how temperature influences so many plants in our gardens, often putting our traditional gardening seasons slightly out of sync when we get an unexpected warm spell.Of course, when it comes to camellias, all varieties

Last summer I discovered a twining, tender climber called Lophospermum, or lofos. I bought two varieties, 'Burgundy Falls' and 'Summer Cream' (both pictured left), as plug plants from a mail-order seed company. I grew my lofos under cover, in 7

It's been difficult to choose my 2009 weed of the year. Butercups and daisies continue to compete with grass in my lawn, as do those lovely rosettes of plantain. Then there are the dandelions. Oh dear, this isn't making my lawn sound very good is it

there are mixtures, as I'm often told these sell best. They're not for me. Their ‘kaleidoscope’ effect is a little brash and lacking in – how can I put this? -  style. I want to choose the colours and theme my pots to create more impact. Planting several pots

.Beefsteak tomato plants are as robust as any other greenhouse variety, taking up just as much space, but producing a fraction of the total yield you would expect. Yes, individual fruits are bigger, but in my book bigger isn't always better!Rather than producing