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and cotoneaster. But what I’d really like is a crab apple. It’s probably not the best option for my small, shady plot, as it requires a fair amount of sun, but I think I might chance it. A friend has one growing in her garden and I always feel a pang of jealousy

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The pebble-sized raspberries that my mum grows, and which my granny used to grow. The tiny fruits are a pain to harvest but their flavour is amazing.
Apples from the gnarled old apple tree that (obviously) came with the garden.
Masses of French beans.
Black

Plant out leeks and brassicas raised in a seed bedSpread mulch around beans and other crops to help conserve soil moistureNet developing soft fruits to protect them from birdsSpray apple trees showing signs of powdery mildew or scabWater onions

Shorten sideshoots growing from the framework of espalier, fan and cordon-trained fruit trees back to about five leaves from their basePick fresh herbs for dryingPick gooseberries, currants, strawberries and other fruits as they ripenSupport heavily

Harvest globe artichokesStake tall Brussels sprouts to stop them from blowing overDig up chicory roots, cut off their tops and re-pot for forcing, to grow on in a dark shedWrap grease bands around the trunks of apples, pears, cherries and plums to trap

easy to grow as you can plant them up, give them basic care and you're pretty much guaranteed a good result:Potatoes; 'Charlotte', 'Sarpo Mira', 'Pink Fir Apple'Courgettes; 'Gold Rush F1', 'Gemmer F1'Pumpkins; 'Jack be Little', 'Rouge Vif d

it into growth up to eight weeks early. Top up bird baths with fresh water dailyRecycle your Christmas tree at the local council tipCheck closing dates for any seed catalogue discountsAround the gardenSquash mistletoe berries into apple tree branchesCut down old

Remove blanket weed from pondsAround the gardenLift, divide and replant congested flag irises after floweringDeadhead border perennialsPick dead flowers off rhododendronsFlowersSow cabbages to pick as spring greensThin heavy crops of apples, pears

as they ripenEase onions from the soil with a forkFinish pruning trained forms of apple treesFruit & vegPlant prepared hyacinth bulbs in special hyacinth vases Sow parsley in modular traysWater crops in growing bags and potsGreenhouse30 minutesLearn how to layer

the glass with bubble polythene is a cheap and effective way of keeping your plants snug and protected from draughts.Collect and compost autumn leaves Cut back suckers growing around the base of treesVisit garden centres to choose bulbs and bedding Around