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'd venture, briefly and very amateurishly, into Pippa's territory to see what pests are doing their best to blight my garden. I'm not brilliant at such things, and quake inside when people bear down on me, clutching festering leaves in polythene bags. A very

Parts of my garden have resembled something of a battleground this year. Why is it that all my favourite plants and crops have their very own pest to contend with? Grow lilies and you'll be hard pressed not to find lily beetle munching them. My

pests out there which we, in Britain, will never have to deal with in our gardens.For example in Trinidad there is a large ant (about 1cm long) called a bachak that will (along with a few hundred friends) quickly demolish a garden. They even eat onions

I'm an animal lover. I love them all - be they wild, domesticated, farm animals, even pests. My vote always seems to go with those naturally decked in fur or feathers, scales or indeed exoskeletons. It's not always easy; I try to eat a fair

). For now, the important thing to remember is that frogs, toads, hedgehogs and birds can all help the gardener in the battle against slugs and snails, but if you don't have pests to feed these welcome predators they're not going to take up residence

the cowslips, Primula vulgaris, have gone into full flower in early April. There are a few buds left, but they won't hold for a further five weeks, so these herbs will definitely miss the show. Luckily, they're not required for any of the show gardens we

to integrate some 'planned' piles of logs and prunings at the back of borders for these creatures, but they often have their own preferences for sheds and sheltered corners.The untidy gardener in me can use all those piles of autumn leaves and debris around

There is never enough time to get out in the garden, but I have to count myself lucky in making gardening my work. For the past 25 years I've been editing one gardening magazine or another, launching Gardeners' World Magazine back in 1991. And what

Here's a thing. If a wild animal comes into a garden, it's wildlife. If a wild plant comes in, it's a weed. Now that seems just a bit unfair on our native flora.Admittedly, an animal can be considered a pest, but many are regarded as helpful

Gardeners are well known for loving beautiful things, but it would have made anyone smile to see the sight of four garden experts pouring over a 'beautiful plant' the other evening. We were recording Gardeners' Question Time in Weymouth and, having