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there - the trees are blossoming like there's no tomorrow. My children and I gave my wife a small orchard for her birthday in 2000. It always looks gorgeous at this time of year, and gets better every season as the trees mature.We planted young, whippy trees - a

of the Disappearing Fruit'?My gardening resolution for 2012 is to actually eat one of my own peaches, so I need to think of a way to build some sort of netting screen around my small peach tree. This is easier said than done, as previous efforts trying to protect

Hang pheromone traps in fruit trees to control moth pests, such as codling moth larvae, which eat applesThin out congested fruit crops on peaches and nectarines, spacing fruits about 10cm apartWatch out for signs of powdery mildew or disease

Cover soil with cloches to warm it for early sowingsFinish winter pruning fruit trees and soft fruitsCut stems of autumn-fruiting raspberries to soil levelChit seed potatoes, standing them in trays in a light but frost-free positionPlant Jerusalem

Spread a thick layer of mulch (manure or compost) around fruit trees and bushesPlant fruit bushes, trees and canes into enriched soilPrune blackcurrants, cutting out a quarter of the oldest woody stems from mature plantsOrder blight-resistant seed

Prune out fruited canes on summer-cropping raspberriesPinch out tops of main shoots on outdoor tomato plantsPrune trained forms of fruit treesPick sweetcorn cobsContinue picking plums and freeze any surplus right awayLift and store onions

new canes about 15cm apartUse soapy sprays at the first signs of greenfly and blackflyThin out congested fruits on apples and plums - the remaining fruits will grow far larger if competition is reducedSow seeds now: lettuce, rocket, beetroot, dwarf

Tie in new shoots of blackberries and cane fruits to support wiresSow sweetcorn in deep pots, raising strong young plants to transplant into the garden in JunePinch off strawberry runners as soon as they develop, to stop them competing

Sow seeds of herbs in pots to grow on your kitchen windowsill, such as coriander, parsley and basilLook out for woolly aphid on fruit trees, and spray any with soapy waterThin out seedlings from earlier sowings to their final spacings

Lift and store carrots Pot up chives and other herbs to bring under cover for winter useSow green manure crops over bare areas of soilSow broad beans for early pickings next May or JunePrune out fruited blackberry canes and tie in new shoots