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the hours of darkness or when you are at work: never at the weekends.May your bindweed throttle itself.May your neighbour's cat be less generous with its toilette.May all your trees grow straight and true.May all your post-digging back aches disappear after

overnight, leaving my poor orange tree to fend for itself in sub-zero temperatures (it survived, but hasn't flowered in the four years since). A cold frame, some lovely wooden seed trays and a hose pipe were also stolen, no doubt to be sold on for pennies

if you have a family to feed.I don't have the luxury of a large allotment, so I'm keen to grow as much as I can in my garden. It's probably larger than average, but then gardening is my passion, and my job!Fruit trees and cane fruits grow around the edges

to Dublin and a short drive through County Wicklow took us to Mount Usher Gardens. Regularly voted a favourite by Gardeners' World readers, their knowledgeable garden team took us on an informative tour of their impressive Champion Trees – some of the best

, compost heaps, ponds and rockeries (preferably south-facing ones so they can bask in the sun), and they need spaces under fences so they can travel between gardens. They’ll be hibernating now under tree roots or paving slabs, or in compost heaps.So don

different foliage textures and shapes on long trailing stems, with highlights of large double begonia flowers and tiny white stars of sutera. The basket can be hung from a tree or garden structure away from the house, where the calmer colours and blend

.Identifying bumblebeesThere are six bumblebees likely to visit gardens, all varying in colour, size and tongue length. Each species favours different nest locations, such as below ground, trees or long grass.Similar to the white-tailed bumblebee, but with mustard

In common with many gardeners, I would like a bigger garden. The wish list for mine would include trees, a hedge, a mini-meadow, a shed I could stand in, and three ponds. Such is the craving that it invades my sleep – I wake and realise that, once

or planting a shrub or tree, now’s the time to do it.There’s a small selection of fruiting plants in my garden, namely holly, guelder rose (Viburnum opulus), dog rose  (Rosa glauca) and ivy. All were planted as bare-root shrubs last autumn, except the ivy

skips for more wood and was experimenting with designs for robins, wrens and starlings. In the wild, birds nest in a variety of situations such as holes in trees and hedgerows, which tend not to be that abundant in gardens. A snug box with an appropriate