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? Could I have spotted and removed whatever was constricting it at the base? R.I.P Liquidambar 'Lane Roberts' you'll be sorely missed!

with tulip bulbs. Better to err on the side of caution.Before the recent snow, when the weather was milder, I removed the trays from the pots. I did this to prevent emerging growth being squashed, and to stop shoots becoming etiolated as a result of low light

Home-grown fruit is something I find difficult to resist; fruit trees make great ornamental, as well as edible, plants. I’ve notice that some of my espalier and cordon fruit trees are passed their best, so I’ll have to remove them. This always makes

. Generally, stakes need removing after a few years. Our hillside is very windy so there’s no way we can get away without using stakes until the trees are much bigger.

, shears at the ready! The shears moment I see the first signs of blight, I'll be out there like a woman crazed, chopping off the haulms. I'll just remove those that show the tell-tale grey brown blotches at first, but unfortunately the neighbouring

to deteriorate. If the rot has already started then I remove the flower as soon as possible. Caught before the brown rotting spreads to the fruit-end of the flower, you can invariably stop the problem ruining the fruit itself. It doesn't take long and makes all

failed again).The temperature has been so high during the day that I’ve had to remove the lids from two propagators, to prevent them from ‘boiling’ the seedlings. I keep a couple of watering cans close by, as the plants are guzzling water

pots and flower beds, keep an eye out for slug and snail eggs, plus leatherjackets (the larvae of crane flies, pictured, left), chafer grubs and vine weevil larvae. Removing these pests now will save you time (and your crops) later, and the birds

for codling moth larvae. Once they’ve been removed, everything else goes in – even the odd bit of grass.The apples need to be broken up before being squashed, and I copy Eric’s method of freezing them solid, then defrosting them thoroughly. Freezing breaks

.The solution, I am reliably informed, is to to remove the fat balls from the net before putting them out. You could even make fat balls yourself. Both options mean messy fingers, and leave the question of how to suspend them. One solution is to cram them