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taken off. Sadly, the weeds have flourished too. It's as if they're making up for lost time, putting all their energy into growth so they flower and set seed before it gets dry again. I suppose that's just one of the reasons why they're so successful

. Wind can scorch leaves as well as sun (and we’ve certainly had plenty of wind in Hampshire). Heavy rain and hail will also damage plants, peppering leaves and flowers with tiny shot marks.To make matters worse, water droplets on foliage can magnify

pots and flower beds, keep an eye out for slug and snail eggs, plus leatherjackets (the larvae of crane flies, pictured, left), chafer grubs and vine weevil larvae. Removing these pests now will save you time (and your crops) later, and the birds

about it, as usual. This year osteospermums have been something I've found especially hard to resist - who wouldn't, with those large, silken petal daisy flowers? I saw a wonderful variety recently - it was a sort of terracotta colour with cream

things including cotton, loofas, sensitive plants, bat flowers. It's an expensive business having a son who is a seriously keen gardener (oh yes, and hell bent on taking over the Eden project in a few years time!!) BUT it's lovely to be home, surrounded

at it too. Like every child (and indeed most adults too) they love the 'planting pretties' side of gardening. They're forever growing flowers for their plots (currently polyanthus and more polyanthus!). But they also seem to thrive on hard graft. Just a few

row, it rarely flowers well.The infection is said to have caused the hollyhock's declining popularity with florists. I can't help wondering, though, if the fact that few of us now have vases or hallways big enough for hollyhocks is also a factor

with trepidation as I'd assumed it would be tricky, but it's as easy as can be. The trick is to ensure the garlic is dry, but still has flexible stems - sometimes garlic plants can have very tough, rigid flower stalks that make plaiting them difficult. Start

with bell cloches for my courgette plants has paid off. Planted before my recent trip to the Canaries and Madeira, the plants are now covered with flowers, and this morning I spotted the first tiny courgettes forming. I can’t wait for the harvest.I’ll plant

to deep mud. They’re in a worse state than they get into in the depths of a wet winter, and it’s only the end of November. I’ve had to plant the last of my spring-flowering bulbs in containers, as I can’t plant them into the saturated soil. In an attempt