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It's been difficult to choose my 2009 weed of the year. Butercups and daisies continue to compete with grass in my lawn, as do those lovely rosettes of plantain. Then there are the dandelions. Oh dear, this isn't making my lawn sound very good is it

place after dandelions and horsetail), and bindweed came 2nd to dandelions in northern England. Full results of our survey of weeds and other garden problems can be found in the August 2009 issue of Gardeners' World Magazine.

for the best offers on peat-free compost and mulch with that.Then there's weed control. That thick mulch provides a perfect overcoat for borders to prevent annual weed seeds germinating, but it has to be a good 7cm or more deep to be effective. Too thin

. Again, they don't really have any flavour I could detect, but are fun to add to salads.And don't forget your weeds either. Dandelion flowers have a very distinct flavour. They're quite sweet when picked just as they open, and their golden petals go

.Types to sow now include crimson clover, fenugreek, field lupins - even broad beans. They germinate and grow quickly and reduce weed growth. Flowering varieties even attract bees and beneficial insects.Nothing could be simpler, and the green manures help break

, weed and moss killer were in order. Out came the lawn applicator, into the hopper went the granular product, and off I went ... wheeling the applicator up and down the lawn as the photographer snapped away.I was so enthusiastic to get going that I set

this may often be a weed, you never know what might pop up.And this is where self-seeders - flowers you love, and deliberately let go to seed - come into their own. By resisting the temptation to snip off every faded flower in sight you give some flowers a

'. The patch of phlox spreads ever wider; topiary does its best to undo my finest manicuring; weeds and other 'self-seeders' fill any space they can find...Note for diary, early June 2010: clip back golden hop before it smothers its neighbours!

of compost I knew they would be weed-free (and still are after 15 years), and would provide perfect planting conditions.Lastly comes a camellia growing in a large terracotta pot, again filled with ericaceous compost. Despite using the perfect compost I still

not to bend over and catch the tip of a cane in your eye when weeding. It's fine advising people to pop a plastic bottle or similar cane topper in place, but these look even more obtrusive. But I suppose that's the point of them, as if you don't see them you