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Good morning and happy 'Grow Your Own' Week to you all.There are, I have to admit, many other gardeners who are hotter on vegetable growing than me. Give me herbaceous borders and I can muddle through and make them look pretty good, but when

garden (in my pyjamas) and pick off the fattest, ripest berries to put on my bowl of breakfast cereal. What a great start to the day.To avoid a painful harvest I only grow thornless blackberries, and have trained two of my favourites, Loch Ness

for eating in salads, some for using in sauces and some for roasting. My aubergines will be so plentiful, I won’t need to buy any again (no matter how many aubergine parmigianas I make). I’ll grow enough garlic to hang in plaits around my kitchen and my

I’m a big fan of raspberries, which are the most reliable of all the soft fruit crops that I grow. My soil is heavy and alkaline, and I’ve found that autumn-fruiting raspberries last much longer in it than summer-fruiting varieties. So now I stick

others during a trial.I'm aiming to grow strong garlic plants that develop quickly and mature early. I'll plant the bulbs at a slightly wider spacing than before, to improve air circulation and reduce humidity around the plants. And I'll avoid high

, garlic chives, lemon balm, chervil, or even mint.Lastly, don't forget radish. You'll often find them in seed ranges developed for children as they're so quick and easy to grow, although I do doubt that may kids actually enjoy eating them

rightly - and while not unpleasant, they were certainly an acquired taste.Dandelions grow bigger, with longer leaves, in wild areas than they do in lawns, where mowing keeps them flat and close to soil level. Apparently, the French often eat them as a

in this way, since the pressures of climate change force them to return to growing (more resilient) native plants using traditional methods. The Incas inspired me, too, despite the fact that I'll never have a mountain to carve a garden out of, or a waterfall

simply sold as 'sweetcorn', 'tomato' or 'white potato' when you haven't a clue what the variety actually is? We can be far more discerning, as both consumers and gardeners, choosing and growing named varieties of crops that have the flavour and eating

bumblebees. With an ample supply of fruit blossom around, there is plenty of nectar and pollen for them to enjoy, and all are welcome.One good thing about growing a single 'Victoria' plum tree is that it’s self-fertile. Unlike many varieties of fruit, like