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We've had a mixed garlic harvest so far this year - the bulbs I planted in spring did nothing and were a total waste of time. They were probably the worst I've ever grown (or, dare I admit it, the worst I've ever seen).However, the bulbs I planted

It has been one of those typical early spring weeks, not enough hours to do everything I want to do. The team from BBC Gardeners' World Magazine came down for a couple of days to take a series of photographs on how to raise plants from seed

, 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

of slippers or soap sets really doesn't sound appealing, I would advise anyone to speak out nicely NOW and set up their own greenhouse fund, so it can then be up running by spring...

- never-ending you could say - period of rain, cold and cheerless, sunless days. My fervent enthusiasm after the excesses of Christmas usually fades as quickly as any glimpse of sunshine; the allotment lies abandoned until the first glimmers of spring

or we'd be left with a deciduous desert with little of interest until spring.

lightening - which actually made the house shake. Then came huge hailstones, which temporarily flattened the hellebores and spring bulbs. Luckily, because there was very little soft new foliage about, nothing seems to have been seriously damaged

for clay soils and spring for sandy ones. However, I usually add compost to my clay beds now. It always bothers me that all the lovely nutrients in the compost are leached away by winter rains so I go against convention and leave composting until now.

Blustery crisp days and cold nights, north winds, sleet, hail, snow and cold rain. It's amazing with this mixture of weather that plants manage to plod their way into spring.I was very excited this week to notice that one of my favourite herbs

To say that I'm delighted with my new cold frame would be the understatement of 2008. You might recall that Paul made it one afternoon last summer from some old windows and a few banister spindles from our old staircase.Okay, it's not that new