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In most years I usually plant some of the more tender veg crops, such as courgette and squash, by late April. If I had done so this year, the plants would be dead by now, as May was so unusually cold. (And I don't even think the chunky bell cloches that I use would have been much...

It's been a good year for many crops, but there have been so many critters feeding on the fruit.Most years we lose a fair few apples to the local birds. I never really mind, although it is irritating when they peck small holes in fruits, which then succumb to the dreaded brown ro...

to look a little perkier  - but it didn’t put on any new growth. Eventually, with a little TLC, and extra watering, my cherished magnolia did eventually grow up and outwards. Eventually, every spring it bore (and still bears) masses of beautiful flowers

It can be much trickier changing the soil in a greenhouse trench than in a garden border. I’m lucky to have trenches with brick bases, but my heart goes out to anyone with borders glazed to the base. It's so easy to break panes when excavating soil.I must confess that I don’t ref...

It’s that time of year when one has to admit that some of that scrumptious summer veg is well and truly past its best. Suddenly, it's time to clear away spent plants and prepare the soil for autumn and winter plantings.Forking over some soil at the weekend, it was plain to see th...

It hasn’t been a vintage year in my garden. The growing season started off well with the warm spring – good for garlic and onions - but the weather deteriorated soon after that. So, I’m actually quite relieved now that autumn is here. I can forget

I’ve just been outside picking strawberries. Despite the colder nights my plants are still fruiting away and I hope they’ll have enough energy left to fruit again at the right time next year.None of the fruits have been damaged by birds – perhaps because the birds don’t expect th...

's more, this year I had to dispose of up to four diseased tubers per net. Next year I'll be more organised and buy them from the seed catalogues. I would also advise any first-time potato growers to ignore the growing instructions on some potato bags

at it too. Like every child (and indeed most adults too) they love the 'planting pretties' side of gardening. They're forever growing flowers for their plots (currently polyanthus and more polyanthus!). But they also seem to thrive on hard graft. Just a few

Potato blight, Phytophthora infestans, determines the quality and quantity of our potato harvest. We grow our own spuds every year, but harvest them in varying quantities, depending on whether or not they've been affected.The fungal infection