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by the tendency of these little birds to strip yellow flowers, such as crocus, but so what? And don't forget that the adults not only eat weed seeds, but they also feed their young with insects and their larvae. All-in-all, sparrows are a delight and a help

It's all go at the moment, there's so much to do. The recent hot weather has had quite an impact on the plot - plants have doubled in size, flowers are abundant, the onions are trying to bolt and I've got a spring in my step.When there's so much

, but it's their striking flowers most people are after. Their blooms are really spathes; bright trumpets at the tip of a stem, with a graceful twist and pointed tip unlike the flowers of anything else you're likely to grow.It's surprising that some

and weeds. Rosebay willowherb, tangles of flowering bindweed, brambles and bright-yellow ragwort. Profligate trees like ash and, in particular, sycamore crop up and create shady areas with the wrong sort of leaves that cause train operators so much trouble

pursuit of horticultural titbits to amuse readers of this blog. A lot of the island is covered with what is known as Machair - sandy soil, scrubby grass and wild flowers - which, although past its first flush of youth by this time of year, is very lovely

? Or the apple that Paris gave to Aphrodite (which decision eventually led to ten years of Trojan War)? Well, anyway, the apples in question were almost certainly quinces. They have the most beautiful coy pink flowers in spring followed by fruit that are about

animals are transient, they come, they go; but wild plants ... they come, they stay, they get in the way, they interfere, and they compete with the flowers and vegetables we choose to grow. I think this attitude to 'weeds' is grossly unfair, so here

companies is that most of the varieties come as mixtures. That means a packet contains a kaleidoscope of colours, and you can't tell what colour a plant will be until it actually flowers - fine if you want a flower bed reminiscent of Joseph's Amazing

off. The densest is our tree of Oven's wattle, Acacia pravissima, now a huge impenetrable cushion of yellow flowers dominating the end of the garden. Part of the HFW scheme is a series of garden surveys and I've had more luck with April birds than

, which has gloriously felted leaves and pale yellow flowers with jam-coloured centres. This species doesn't seem to suffer as much as some others, but I always keep an eye out and pick the caterpillars off whenever I see them. I found one on the kitchen