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The sun is shining, I can't believe it, and I'm pretty sure my plants can't believe it either! The warmer soil and increased light intensity have made a massive difference to my garden. Only now, towards the end of September has my vegetable plot

.But the downside of the cold weather is that my compost heap has stopped decomposing. The pile of fruit and vegetable peelings and garden waste has shown little sign of decay in the last few weeks. The banana skins turn black very quickly, and the local badgers

've got to admit that the French have it too.We saw so many small to medium plots of immaculately maintained vegetables, often in full view of the road, and looking lovely. And then the most extraordinarily bright and yet beautiful flower displays in tiny

of home-grown garlic, 'Red Baron' onion and a dash of pesto, all grilled on a piece of ciabatta.So here we are in early December, munching on one of the more exotic vegetable crops. I'm really pleased the peppers are still there, particularly as

of algae on the greenhouse glazing – it’ll help to provide some shade. And I’m happy that I made some late sowings of my favourite vegetables, which now stand a much better chance of putting on useful growth and thriving.In this hot, dry weather I’ve been

well in clay soils, which, after heavy rain, can pack tightly around the cloves and prevent them from reaching their full size. This winter has been phenomenally wet with most of my vegetable garden looking like a paddy field. Every time I check

in autumn are now plump, juicy and just itching to be eaten. We've already harvested and eaten some of them, which have been extremely well received. My family has been enjoying garlic butter, garlic-roasted vegetables, pasta sauce and some delicious

- similar to a pregnancy testing kit. So my next job is to go out to the vegetable patch, cut off a small sample of affected foliage and pop it in the little kit - I'm nearly as nervous about this as if it were a pregnancy testing kit! A positive result

I was producing a crop of water chestnuts).I'm also intending to start a small asparagus bed. Asparagus is a fascinating vegetable. Until a couple of years ago I heartily disliked it, but now I've fallen for its charms I'm going to attempt to grow

.Luckily many of my vegetable plants are still snugly tucked away in fleece-covered tunnels, and some of the tinier ones in a fine-mesh-covered raised bed. I've always thought these things were far more wind resistant than some claim, now I'm sure