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to Desperate Dan.At this time of year all is perfect with tightly furled funnels of foliage poking their heads through the ground. The problem begins when the leaves unravel to reveal, not flawless quilted duvets of perfection, but something moth eaten

counted about 15, the same number we get every year, give or take. They're late this year; in 2007 it was May 2nd.Then it was newts, three of them paddling about at the bottom of the pond. They were easily visible against the new butyl liner I had to put

. The photograph featured here was taken last summer during my visit to the Mr Fothergill’s trial ground, and show mizuna, pak choi and other salad leaves.Salad leaves are some of the easiest crops to grow from seed in pots: just fill a pot with compost, sprinkle

's not essential. By getting the tubers into the ground a little earlier you should be able to enjoy a delicious crop of first-earlies a few weeks before other crops are ready to harvest. Choose a sunny spot in your garden and warm the soil for a few days

of pots and still have some daffs, crocus and 200 mixed alliums to plant, I may invest in some aquatic baskets to plant the bulbs in. Once I've lifted the slabs I can dig a few holes and lower them into the ground. My spring bulbs will be none the wiser

 fruiting until the first frosts. The plants themselves are also daintier than garden strawberries, so they make a very pretty ground cover.You can still just about get away with sowing alpine strawberry seed this May, since the cold winter weather has put

Last winter, when I went to great trouble to feed the birds in my garden, my offerings were largely ignored. This winter, I'm trying again, leaving seeds, chopped apples and suet pellets for ground-feeding birds such as robins, blackbirds

a tight-pruned lime and a small cypress. Nevertheless, the city is splashed all over with natural colour as sills, walls, yards and railings are covered with pots and window boxes.Some buildings in the rickety 'old quarter' are so bedecked they look

. Today, having served their purpose, all of the small green triangular petals and half-shrivelled stamens are falling to the ground in a constant whispering cascade.Tuesday 10th Hummingbird hawkmoths pester the single small buddleja bush and a few

.If you're looking for further DIY inspiration, then watch our video on building a decked pathway, or consult our practical project on creating a patio.Hardcore: 850kg bag granular sub base MOT Type 1, 850kg bag sand, 25kg bag cement, breeze blocks 440x215