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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

. That was swiftly followed by a sudden warm spell bringing in steady rain. And when I say steady I mean it! The balmy Mendip Hills are, like Ireland, soft and green and lush - perfect for fattening the dairy cows whose milk makes the original Cheddar cheese produced

into the greenhouseInstall a water butt under the gutter of your greenhouse to collect autumn rain fall

-sown sweet peas to promote bushier growthBring pots or glasses of prepared hyacinths indoors to flowerProtect potted peach trees from winter rain and peach leaf curl by bringing under cover

plants are likely to need the ultimate short back and sides soon after. By cutting the infected haulms off promptly, preferably before it rains, I can hopefully prevent the spores from the haulms washing down and infecting the tubers below. True

. The soil is saturated in many areas and, with rain continuing to fall, the air is pretty damp, too.So, what can I do about it? Well, forking in the surface covering of algae on the soil will do the trick there. The algae on the trees I can ignore. (People

. Wind can scorch leaves as well as sun (and we’ve certainly had plenty of wind in Hampshire). Heavy rain and hail will also damage plants, peppering leaves and flowers with tiny shot marks.To make matters worse, water droplets on foliage can magnify

'm growing for the Gardeners' World Magazine series) seemed to be as happy as Larry.That will teach me to be big headed, last night I found it - evil blackish brown blotches just starting up on the leaves. Luckily it has finally stopped raining so the spores

and dying grass can be easily pulled up to reveal little or no root growth.After heavy rain or having thoroughly watered any yellow patches in the lawn, cover them with black plastic sacks and leave overnight. The leatherjackets will come to the surface

and restrict their growth.Willowherb will take over any domestic garden, spreading by seed and tough underground roots to form dense clumps.Keep digging the plants out. Willowherb can be forked out fairly easily - especially when the soil is loosened after rain