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compost in the bin to feed all the hungry plants. And wait for that horrible business of 'winter' to be over with.PSTo grow pumpkins you need a sheltered, sunny position and rich, moisture-retentive soil. Sow two seeds 2.5cm deep in a 5cm pot in late

of this Chelsea perfection in my own garden. But then it wouldn't be mine. I like my scruffy, battered, half-eaten plants. I like the fact that there are caterpillars available for the birds to feed their chicks with, though I could do without the pigeons

I might move house this year. It’s very early days, but the possibility of having a bigger garden is sending my plant-collecting gene into overdrive. I currently grow plants in my small, shady courtyard garden. But after four years of this, I long

hoped the clover would fix nitrogen in the soil, which would directly feed the chillies and encourage new leaves to grow. This seemed to work, and before long the plants were in full leaf and flower and attracting lots of hoverflies.I did get some

read more on the subject here). The theory is that the thiacloprid is absorbed via the roots into the plant's sap, pollen and nectar, and that anything that feeds from it can die. Thiacloprid is active for up to three months and imidacloprid can last

.We feed the plants with a little diluted comfrey solution during the growing season, and top-dress them with fresh compost (and gravel) in autumn. To prevent disease, we remove yellowing leaves as soon as we see them, and to promote further flowering we

- David's were all eaten by slugs, while Tamsin's disappeared overnight (probably also eaten by slugs). Despite all the attention I lavished on mine, including extra watering and a weekly nettle feed, just two of the six made it above 2m (2.24m and 2.35m

Last year I wrote about autumn tidying and the effect this can have on wildlife. I left my garden untouched over winter, leaving hibernating creatures snuggled under a duvet of fallen leaves and rotting stems. None of my plants died or were ravaged

, and - in extreme situations - lead to erosion. In the wild, plants quickly colonise exposed earth, protecting its structure and absorbing the nutrients that would otherwise be washed away. A green manure does the same thing; you just have control over what grows

will be reduced, while caterpillar food plants could die through lack of water, taking the caterpillars (and therefore butterflies) with them. The dry, hard ground will make life hard for robins and blackbirds looking for worms to feed themselves and their young