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Taking summer cuttings of lavender is so easy. Choose non-flowered shoots of this year's growth and ensure that it is free from pests and disease. Follow our simple step by step and get more of your favourite plants for free.Lavender plantSharp knife10cm potMulti-purpose compostR...

While you can't take cuttings from rhododendrons, there is a much simpler technique you can try - layering. Do it over the summer and by the following spring you'll have the beginnings of many new rhododendron plants.Established rhododendron plantSharp knifeRooting hormone (powde...

Roses can be grown successfully from cuttings and will grow on to make good flowering plants. Choose healthy stems of the current season's growth and follow our step-by-step advice to be sure of success. Roots will be produced over the winter months so that the rose cuttings can ...

There are many species of aphid, often with its own favourite host plants and particular life cycle. Greenfly and blackfly are the most familiar, but there are also yellow, red, orange and brown aphids. Aphids usually spend the summer on one plant, moving to a host plant to overw...

Capsid bugs are sap-feeding pests. The 6mm-long adults vary in colour from green to red-brown, depending on the species. Look for the distinctive diamond shape when their wings are folded. When they feed, they release a toxic saliva that kills off tiny areas of leaf tissue, causi...

In this pot design, the graceful astelia and black ophiopogon add structure, while a small-flowered blue pansy or viola unites the blue pot and the plants.September - NovemberOctober - March30 minutesOphiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens' x2Astelia chathamicaPansies x3Blue glazed po...

If deadheaded regularly, pretty bellis daisies will keep flowering for weeks, offering a colourful display through spring and into summer. The ivy in this pot recipe can be planted in the garden when the display is past its best.February - AprilMarch - June30 minutesPink bellis d...

Some pots cry out for a simple planting scheme that doesn't detract from their own beauty, for which this arrangement is perfect. The bamboo combines beautifully with the dark brown-bronze leaves of the red hook sedge to form a sleek display that would look great in any garden al...

The evergreen foliage of the skimmia, pittosporum and ivy set against a backdrop of carex, provide year-round interest in this elegant container display. Red tulips add a splash of colour in spring, while skimmia berries provide autumn and winter interest.The addition of the bird...

wildlife, they can be made into great plant food and are a surprisingly versatile ingredient in the kitchen.The nettle we're used to in the UK is Urtica dioica, a perennial plant full of iron, calcium, magnesium and nitrogen, which makes it incredibly