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underwear). It takes about 1500 cocoons to make a pound of silk.In the 19th century there was the equivalent of a gold rush over mulberries in the United States. There was massive speculation and excitement about growing mulberry trees and the long

requiring the excavation of about a cubic metre of soil - nearly a skipful in total. Enough to make a complete mess of the average garden.And finally the idea of finding this tucking into your brassicas is enough to make most gardeners greet the next passing

it makes me feel better. There are some exceptions to my love of tulips: some have got a bit above themselves and, instead of elegant bowls, look more like samba-dancing sea creatures. You may remember a lady called Gertrude Shilling who used to appear

-spring, covered in white flowers which, come the autumn, turn into deep red berries, or haws. They also make spectacular trees that reach about 5m in 10 years - although if left alone they can reach 18m. They're fantastically gnarly and twisted and every wild

to disregard nettles as a useless (and delinquent) weed, as they can be very useful. Nettles make strong rope and tough cloth; up until the First World War the Germans harvested tonnes of nettles and made them into military uniforms (the sting is neutralised

vegetables also make good additions to the border - asparagus has gorgeous ferny foliage and artichoke flowers are bee magnets(Jerusalem artichokes are, however, excluded due to the possibility of indelicate post-prandial thunderings).Less obvious

of the dahlia is a copper ring which, designed to deflect slugs and snails. The copper creates a sort of electrical frisson which makes the gastropods shy away and head for the hills.Imagine my distress this morning when I discover my dahlia de-nuded of most

irises.I digress; my favourite roses at the moment are the Hybrid Musk roses. They were mostly bred by the Rev. Joseph Pemberton in the early 20th Century and make great shrubs and small climbers. They are soft coloured, like cowrie pink 'Penelope', clean

on a frosty day is one of the greatest pleasures. The winter is when evergreens come into their own and the frost just makes yews look even better. Hedges seem to be draped with diamonds and the shiny leaves of box glisten. There is not a great deal

to defend them if they are grown in pots (these are some particularly fine ones as grown by my mother) and always make sure that they're not at all stressed - well watered and out of direct sunshine (too much sun reduces the lustre of the leaves