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small picture-winged fly, Rhagoletis meigenii (pictured above), in London's Battersea Park in June 2000. At the time this pretty little insect was thought to feed on the native Berberis vulgaris, but was believed to be extinct in Britain, having been

feed on pollen from the open flowers, and hopefully breed and lay eggs. Developing larvae then feed on aphids, acting as a form of natural pest control.When I experimented with the 'square foot vegetable plot' planting technique a couple of years ago, I

and climbers, making them appear more hedge-like. Maybe the gatekeeper caterpillars, which feed on grasses like other brown butterflies, prefer a more shaded aspect to feed in.Or it may simply be that gatekeepers spend more of their time perching up high

tortoiseshells this summer, but hardly anything special. It wasn't until I spent a few days in the Cotswolds recently that I spotted a red admiral feeding avidly on a white buddleja. Even then it was just one solitary butterfly, hardly the numbers you'd hope for

accurately, especially if they did appear to be edible. Would I really risk feeding them to my family?I've often watched top chef Antonio Carluccio share his passion for collecting and eating wild mushrooms. Across Europe this practice appears to be far more

feed my camellias with a liquid drench of iron sequestrene each spring. This helps prevent foliage becoming pale and yellow, providing the magnesium and other nutrients needed to keep their leaves deep green.Perhaps it's the feeding that has helped

starlings feeding on the lawn, not from any food I'd scattered, but simply pecking away searching for worms and grubs. And a blackbird whose youngster fledged from a nest in my ivy this week has also found the lawn a useful source of food.The drought during

, the 'magical material' - compost. "I never feed my plants, I feed the soil". Great advice.Well, with a list of jobs running to several pages by the end of Carol's programme, I certainly had a busy weekend planned. Her infectious enthusiasm rubbed off and I

to wildlife is enormous, especially at this time of year. It provides year-round shelter for a wide range of wild creatures, and in autumn its flowers and berries feed wildlife far later than most garden plants.Last year I spoke to Richard Reynolds, author

creatures are likely to use your pond:Frogs need ponds to breed and tadpoles will feed on the algae in the water. Create an area of plants where frogs can shelter, to provide valuable shade and cover from predators.FrogsBirds will visit ponds to drink