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at the back of my south-facing border, close to the wall where they'll be kept warm at night. As an experiment, one is planted in a bucket of semi-rotted compost, like a portable bean trench. All are staked with tall, strong bamboo canes. (They're only about 2

-sized tomatoes and need staking and growing in large pots or growing bags (three plants per bag). Bush types may be grown in smaller containers and usually produce cherry tomatoes and don't need staking. Popular cordon types are 'Moneymaker' and 'Gardeners

sweet peas that ended up in the border, but they're no giants.I've succeeded in my personal mission to beat Adam Pasco in the height stakes, as did our our colleague Ross, who managed to grow his sunflowers to a respectable 2m. Others weren't so lucky

Last year I wrote about autumn tidying and the effect this can have on wildlife. I left my garden untouched over winter, leaving hibernating creatures snuggled under a duvet of fallen leaves and rotting stems. None of my plants died or were ravaged

This year I'm determined to only grow one variety of tomato. This is because my garden was overrun with tomato plants last year and I couldn't get onto my patio for growing bags and poorly staked cordons. So 2011 will see a more streamlined effort

generous mulch of compost. Despite getting such little sun, the wall warms up quickly, so should keep plants warm at night, aiding growth. All plants will be given a weekly nitrogen-rich nettle feed to encourage stem and leaf growth. I'll stake them from

in my high-rise flat in Manchester. I just had the two plants, and did exactly what I was told: stake them, water well, pinch out the side shoots and shake the plants to release the pollen. I got a good crop and was proud of myself. I’d buy mozzerella