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18 April 2010. Brogdale is home to the National Fruit Collections, with 150 acres of orchard filled with 2,200 varieties of apple, plus much more: a breathtaking sight!

the long wispy side shoots back to about 20cm during summer (July is perfect), and then cutting these stems back further to about 5cm during winter. Pruning twice a year in this way not only controls the mass of new growth that develops each year, but also

ventured outdoors - the perfect way to dispel the winter blues.Carol's series continues for the next five weeks, every Friday on BBC Two at 8.30pm.

down to about a foot from the ground during winter, and new shoots will start developing from late February to continue the cycle.Many great clematis have been bred in this country by Raymond Evison, who own Guernsey Clematis, but 'Arabella' comes from

the upmarket bit. Anything called rothschildiana must have a good heritage. Apparently it was named after Baron Z.W. Rothschild (a keen ornithologist) who collected flowers from Africa to exhibit at a horticultural show in England in the early 1900's

I've just enjoyed a relaxing hour, cup of tea in one hand, binoculars in the other, gazing out of the window at my garden. Yes, some plants are showing signs of growth, there's still bloom on my winter-flowering viburnum, and the squirrels are still

.However, reading through seed catalogues last winter I discovered 'Emir', a brand new variety for 2008 from Mr Fothergill's, which had been bred specifically to be grown in our northern climate. A combination of tolerance to cold conditions and fast-maturing fruits

wasted.Later in October I'll be able to start picking other varieties (I've about 10 in all), including Cox, that have also cropped really well this year. These later ripening varieties do store much better, so I set them out in wooden, stacking trays

.So, what's left? Thankfully, I was tempted to buy a couple of hardy evergreen ferns from Fernatix while at Gardeners' World Live a few years ago and now, planted in tall terracotta pots, they take pride of place on my patio during winter.Ferns have rotten

These cold, dark winter evenings are costing me a small fortune. Not in heating costs for my greenhouse, or for electricity to light up the front of the house with decorations bright enough to be seen from the International Space Station.No, it