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Soft-bodied, 4mm-long mealybugs are often found on greenhouse plants and house plants such as cacti and succulents, feeding on their sap. They are covered by a white, waxy secretion, and congregate in leaf axils and other inaccessible parts

White, waxy, sap-feeding aphids colonise cracks, crevices and pruning cuts on the bark of apple trees in the second half of spring. They then spread to new growth and create soft swellings. If the bulges split open in frosty weather, infections

Monty Don's advice on planting summer cabbagesCombatting cabbage white caterpillarsTackling LeatherjacketsBrowse a variety of vegetable plantsChoose plants by soil type

Also know as American gooseberry mildew, this greyish-white powdery growth of the fungal disease Sphaerotheca mors-uvae appears on new shoots, which can become distorted and die off. The mildew also affects the upper leaf surfaces and stems

Hedge bindweed, Calystegia sepium, is able to spread rapidly to creep between cultivated plants, making it difficult to eradicate. It's able to re-grow from small pieces of cream-white root, so cultivating a border often aids its spread. It can make

, and is offered in a range of colours. New for 2010 is the pure white 'Double Click Snow Puff', which has been approved as a new novelty variety by Fleuroselect (a European variety trial organisation looking for the best new bedding plants). Many cosmos come

summer cabbagesTackling cabbage white caterpillarsCombatting LeatherjacketsBrowse a selection of hardy perennial plants View plants by suitability to sun exposure

Keep lawn edges trimmed by cutting with a half-moon edging toolLook out for cabbage white butterfly eggs and rub them off with your fingersRemove blanket weed from pondsFeed hanging baskets and patio pots every weekPrune fast-growing hedges like

for ChristmasPlant pots of 'Paper White' narcissus for indoor displaysRemove lower leaves from cordon-trained tomatoes up to the bottom truss, to let light and air reach the fruits

Take root cuttings from Japanese anemones and oriental poppiesPot up prepared hyacinths into bowls for indoor displaysPot up rooted cuttings taken in summer and early autumnPlant paper-white narcissi in potsRemove shading paint and netting to let