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sweet peas that ended up in the border, but they're no giants.I've succeeded in my personal mission to beat Adam Pasco in the height stakes, as did our our colleague Ross, who managed to grow his sunflowers to a respectable 2m. Others weren't so lucky

of the soil. Plants suitable for dry shade include:lords and ladies, barrenwort, cranesbill geraniums (left), hellebores, masterwort,Viola labradorica,sweet rocket and mourning widow.Dry shadePlants that will grow in these conditions typically suit boggy areas

.Cowslip, Primula verisLeft to its own devices, the foxglove tree, Paulownia tomentosa can grow to a height and spread of 12m x 10m. But if cut down to the ground annually, it will produce long (3m) stems with leaves up to 60cm wide.Foxglove tree, Paulownia

shape. Although it is an old variety (1906) its beauty hasn't been eclipsed. Height 1m.Papaver 'Mrs Perry'This slightly washed-out poppy bears the name of the 20th-century artist, who scoured East Anglia in the late 1930s, looking for pale versions

last week). It is a good moment to look back on the triumphs and disasters in our gardens and to make notes, so that we do not make the same mistakes again.Allow me to share a few of my best mess-ups of 2010.My first is a mistake I did make last year

.The flower stems are strong and tall, up to 1.2m (4ft), and each supports a single magnificent bloom, blood red and boldly imprinted at the base of each petal with a jet-black splodge. The stamens, arranged in a broad circle around the dark, central knob