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Keep lawn edges trimmed by cutting with a half-moon edging toolLook out for cabbage white butterfly eggs and rub them off with your fingersRemove blanket weed from pondsFeed hanging baskets and patio pots every weekPrune fast-growing hedges like

on the plot, it's time for the pre-Christmas dinner harvest - only I've cocked up a bit this year! After growing the most gorgeous little button sprouts last year, it dawned on me in September that I hadn't grown any at all this season. I've brassicas aplenty

on dealing with mothsCaterpillarsCabbage white caterpillarsElephant hawk MothCodling moth

.apples, pears, quince, walnutsspring, summerMore common garden pestsMullein moth - on verbascum, buddleja and figwort.Elephant hawk moth on fuschia plants.Caterpillars on any plants.Cabbage white caterpillars on brassicas and nasturtiums.

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

't grow cabbages so I'm not too worried. The caterpillars sometimes make a mess of the nasturtiums, but the plants are so vigorous by now that not even a mass attack could do much damage. I had a quick look and sure enough several leaves have clusters

growing vegetablesMagnesium deficiencyLeatherjacketsCabbage white caterpillarsCourgette rot

I've had a great few years growing an extraordinary range of vegetable crops for my series 'Veg With Pippa' in Gardeners' World Magazine. The results of my vegetable trials have often been fascinating, and on more than one occasion I've been

. But the disasters were beyond my control. The cabbage white caterpillar invasion springs to mind, not to mention onions that simply wouldn't dry off, thanks to the horrifically wet summer we had. This time of year is also perfect for planning how to manage the plot