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what it was, so I'd look to the sky for answers, hoping I'd see a cuckoo swoop down and spit on the plants. It was only a few years ago that I learned about the froghopper nymph, which protects itself from predators and dehydration in a coating of froth

. Beans are frost-tender, so it's important to give them protection if sowing them now, and they don't like having their roots disturbed when being transplanted. So, rather than sow indoors now to transplant later, I've just sown them direct in a deep, 50

magnet for bumblebees.There are a few green manures to sow now, suitable for a range of soil types:1. Grazing rye (Secale cereale) improves soil structure. Sow from August to November and dig in the following spring.2. Winter field bean (Vicia faba

the National Bat Helpline first for advice on 0845 1300 228.

their fence', while the local council kills established plants at their base, leaving dead stems and leaves on buildings.But a study, commissioned by English Heritage, has proved that ivy can actually protect walls. Professor Heather Viles, who conducted

it turned out) had dug a tunnel between the two. It must have been a nice little den, all warm and protected from the cold. Unaware of Weil's disease and only mildly worried that I'd be met with a fanged monster that would bite me on Boxing Day, I turned one

.We're challenging you to grow the world's tallest sunflower. The current world record stands at 8.03m, and is held by German flight attendant Hans Peter Schiffer. He took the record in 2009, but it's not been held by a Brit since 1976 (that was Frank Kelland, from

containing honey, pollen, and grubs. They create tough, silk tunnels, presumably to protect themselves from the adult bees. Before long the entire nest is gone, prompting the caterpillars to leave to pupate into next year's wax moths.When I found the wax moth