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this tree will have two sorts of berries: blue-black sloes and deep red haws.It is an example of a 'husband and wife tree'. This is quite a well-documented phenomenon, which can occur when trees are planted as whips, very close together, and grow up entwined

, though, without the plant ending up looking like St. Sebastian strapped awkwardly to a stake, and the string and bamboo look is not generally desirable.2. Take your courage and your secateurs and cut the thing right back to a couple of inches above ground

I love early September: the sun is still hot but the nights are not stifling. The majority of plants have flowered and faded away but there are still some, particularly the dahlias, that are flowering their little heads off. There was a time when

standard, in a large terracotta pot. I trained the main by tying it to a strong wooden stake, bending shoots round and weaving them together to create a domed head - rather like an umbrella on top of the main stem.Pruning has simply involved shortening

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

Captivating containersContainers offer the gardener great versatility, and are a fantastic way to experiment with planting and design.Container planting recipesGardening with containers is something I've always enjoyed. They provide some of the most

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

'Anya' or 'Red Duke of York''Half Pint' peas are smaller than regular pea plants, so don't require staking. They can even be grown in a container. The young tips can be trimmed and added to salads for a delicious spring treat, and are followed by flowers