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Raise crops in a grow bag Anyone can grow tomatoes, even if you only have a balcony! All you need is space for a bag of compost, plus a few tomato seedlings, and the promised harvest is a matter of weeks away. There's a huge range of young tomato

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

wisteria, shortening long sideshootsFlowersHarvest young marrows but leave some to fully ripenPinch out the tops of outdoor tomatoesPlant out rooted strawberry runners into new bedsFruit & vegFeed tomatoes in growing bags and pots Plant nerines, lachenalia

of hardy annual flowers Lightly clip box edging and topiary to neaten them upFlowersPush twigs into the ground to support tall-growing peasFeed strawberries with a high potash feedSow flowering companions in your veg plotFruit & vegPlant tomatoes in large

Plant sweetcorn All the juicy sweetness in corn cobs is lost if you don't eat them within (literally) minutes of harvesting - so you really will only ever experience sweetcorn as it should be when you grow your own. All they need for success is sun

Plant out lettuce There's no secret to growing salad crops - just keep planting a little and often and you'll guarantee yourself continuous fresh leaves to add crunch and flavour to your meals. Homegrown salads are tastier, too, than anything you

, the young shoots need clipping two or three times during the growing season. Dig out lawn weeds, such as daisies and dandelions Watch out for greenfly and blackfly on developing plantsCollect hellebore seeds from ripe podsAround the gardenPlant out

Sow quick salads in guttering Keep a regular supply of salad leaves by sowing seeds in lengths of plastic guttering, cut to the length of your veg beds, and filled with good compost. When the seeds germinate, you can grow them on for 2-4 weeks

to their baseFlowersGrow early-maturing potatoes in a bag of compostFork compost into beds to prepare soil for plantingChit potatoes Fruit & vegSow cucumbers, tomatoes, aubergines and peppersWater compost with a suitable pesticideSow summer bedding plants

to their supports as they growFeed plants with fertiliser solution once a weekApply shading paint or put up shade netting or blindsGreenhouse45 minutesFind out how to create a fragrant garden