Have just looked into my little pond as it's getting dark. In the heat of the day all the tadpoles disappeared. Now, at dusk, the surface of the water is alive with hundreds of wriggling taddies. Has...
The large pebbles in my pebble fountain water feature are looking very black and grimey. What's the best (and easiest) way of cleaning them? I'm bulking at having to dismantle all the stones off their...
Have just found a dead baby blackbird in my vegetable patch. It was not injured or mutilated in any way and I suspect it was one of the family of four babies which has been regularly feeding in our...
My first serious effort at growing outdoor aubergines this year. Should I limit the number of flowers on the plant or fertilise them generously and let them all grow freely?
Can anybody please explain to me how somebody who has been made bankrupt deals with money, etc. once the declaration has been made? Does an official of the court come and remove all your possessions...
I have so many vegetables and special shrubs I'm trying to keep alive, but even using grey water and lugging endless watering cans around, it's hard work. Think I'll need a total back transplant by...
Was alarmed to see a family of newly fledged blue tits in my garden yesterday. They couldn't fly very well and in their confusion several of them landed into my little pond. I rushed out into the...
Was interested to see that Waitrose are planning a "back to basics" philosophy - i.e. they are going to sell blemished or "not quite perfect looking" fruit & veg in the belief that the public want...
I haven't been there for years but found it a fascinating place. Can any recent visit update me on what they have there now in terms of innovative ideas?
I planted some strawberry plants last summer as an experiment which are now cropping well and making runners which I will sever in due course and transplant. Having never grown them before I'm...
I enjoy experimenting with trying to germinate unusual things such as orange pips, avocado stones etc. but have never tried growing peanuts. Has anybody every tried it, and what sort of peanut did you...
My fingers on my inner palms seem to be permanently wrinkled these days, as if they'd been soaked in water for a long time. Is this indicative of some kind of health issue I should be addressing, i.e....
At a House & Gardens Fair in Sussex recently we bought a marvellous little torch costing ?4 which contains neither bulb nor battery but works by cranking a hand lever to produce the energy to fuel...
Mother squirrel has bought her baby to our garden to teach it how to climb the pole where the peanut cages hang but the poor little thing is so tiny that she can't climb it yet. What else can I put on...
I saw on Springwatch (which is based in Devon and possibly had an earlier or warmer spring than the rest of the country) that they have froglets already Most of my tadpoles are still quite small. A...
I ask because we live in a fairly rural area and the rat who regularly comes to visit and nibble around our bird table looks immaculately clean and has very silky fur.. He sat two yards away from us...
We have a garden storage area along the side of our house which is covered with plastic corrugated sheeting. Over the years it has become coated with dirt & lichen & we want to clean it. Any...
