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Last Sunday was International Tulip Guerrilla Gardening Planting Day. To mark the occasion, guerrilla gardeners (so called because they grow plants on public or private land without permission), planted tulips all over Europe in tree pits, neglected

flowers. Some of those flowers must have been monarda.It's curious how plants – particularly scented ones – can trigger memories. I have an almost encyclopedic memory of everything that grew in the garden of my early years, even if I can't name it all. I

I am not to have any plants yet in my garden. While a thick layer of snow can insulate plants from extremely low temperatures, its weight can cause branches to break. Then frozen ground prevents roots from taking up water, and plants can die from

I've just bought a new compost bin. This is all the more exciting because next year I'll use it to grow pumpkins. I plan to raise the bin on bricks and plant pumpkin plants in the exposed compost. The well-rotted matter will provide the plants

If you're bearing a grudge against your neighbours, one way to exact revenge is plant a leylandii hedge in your garden. Left unclipped, it could grow to up to 35m high and 5m wide. It will be a haven for garden birds, insects and even the odd mammal

barely seen any rain at all.In drier parts of the UK, plants are bursting into flower earlier, bees and butterflies are out earlier, and the ground, which should be warm and wet from April showers, is parched. All this and some areas are still getting

If only our gardens could really look like those at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Plunge pools and outdoor kitchen areas aside, I don't think I have a hope of achieving the 'Chelsea look'. My garden is far too scruffy, most of my plants have been

plague proportions of vine weevil in my tiny garden, I've not lost a single plant. These are not old, established plants whose roots can handle a few nibbles here and there, they are new, either grown from seed or root cuttings from my mum's garden. I

Last week I found vine weevils on the rim of the pot my orange tree lives in. It stands next to my 'nursery' of seedlings, so potentially hundreds of plants could be affected. The adults cause little damage, save for a few nibbles on the edges

I seem to be bucking a trend among homeowners. Rather than paving over my garden, I have 'un-paved' it, unlocking the earth and growing a range of plants to provide habitats for wildlife.The paving of front gardens is becoming increasingly common