I have just bought a house which has a small patch of rough garden round the back which we would like to convert into a vegetable patch. I have no idea how to go about this. What are the easiest and lowest maintenance vegetables to grow - and is there a useful beginners guide out there we could turn to for advice? Martin Bancroft, Wadebridge
Vegetable gardening is a great way to get exercise and good food but you need to keep up a regular maintenance routine. Start by choosing the right spot. It needs to be open to the sun and air and slightly sloping towards the sun ideally. Sheltering walls are good, too. If your plot is very small try using the Square Foot Gardening scheme or otherwise divide your plot into four to allow for crop rotation (this will ensure healthy, robust vegetables). Either way you will need to clear your plot. This is tough work. Once you’ve taken out all visible weeds, brambles, grass etc leave the plot alone and watch for weed seeds to appear as they will this autumn in warm spells particularly if your Wadebridge is in Cornwall. Keep weeding and, if you are on clay, leave large clods of earth exposed to the winter frost (if there is any) which will help break down heavy soil and release nutrients. In early spring it may be worth adding a mulch of compost or rotted manure - although not on areas where you plan to grow brassicas. You also need to test the soil’s alkalinity to se if you need to add lime or whatever.
Add paths in such a way that you can weed, plant, water and harvest without stepping on the beds.
You could sow some winter green manures or even some crops but, for the first few months, I’d be inclined to use the time to weed and to make out a clear plan for your garden both in terms of the design and the crops you are going to grow. When you come to sow make sure the crops run east to west and that any tall crops - like beans - don’t shade the rest of the garden. Having said that salad crops do well between rows of emerging beans.
As for the crops themselves forget potatoes if you are in Cornwall (blight can be a problem down there) and stick to crops that are either very expensive (like rocket which is, incidentally, very easy to grow and will self seed everywhere particularly on fast-draining soils) or taste sensational when freshly picked (peas, broad beans, carrots, parsnips, salads). Finally, always grow a bit of rainbow chard - it’s easy, it looks terrific right up to the frosts and it tastes good with dressing/olive oil/butter/melted cheese. Oh, and another favourite is American land cress which is an easy, nutritious crop with the great advantage that it can sometimes crop through the winter. The leaves can be a bit fiery but this can be resolved with olive oil or dressing.
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Allotment Gardening by Susan Berger is an excellent guide for beginners.
I have a bird of paradise plant that seems to have split into two plants. Can I separate them and if so, how and when? It is in flower at moment with three flowers. Sally Bacon, Portsmouth
Congratulations. Yes, you can divide them but it’s best to wait till spring. Repot them both into John Innes no 3 and then carry on as you have before - your regime obviously pleases this plant which was named after George III’s queen, Charlotte.
My third-floor flat has a balcony with window boxes (south-facing). A friend has suggested they might be suitable for herbs - won’t they be too exposed to the sun and the wind though? Ellis Blair, London
Great idea. Use fast-draining soil and, if you get strong winds on your balcony, give them some protection.
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I have a dahlia which did not produce any flowers last year and it looks like there will be none this year either. Loads of leaves but no flowers. Help. Pauline McManus, Enniskillen
It’s obviously much too comfortable in your garden. Give it hell - shout at it a little and, next year, try giving it no fertilizer at all. Make sure it gets plenty of sun and make sure its soil is still well drained and, if it finally deigns to flower, give it some high potash fertilizer. Steer clear of high-nitrogen feed.
There are plenty of reasons for non flowering and, without more details, it’s difficult to say what the cause is in this case. It could just be the plant. I’d be inclined to give it another year or so and then, if it is still being obstinate, chuck it out. Don’t put a replacement rose in the same place unless you change the soil.
Can the horse chestnut pest you described in your blog spread to beech trees? The tree next to our infected horse chestnut is getting brown leaves. Arne McLeary, London
There is a possibility that your beech could be infected by the same leaf miner but this does not seem to be very likely. Very little research has been done on this pest because it is so new to this country. It seems more likely this is the result of drought (beech are so shallow rooted they are particularly susceptible) or beech leaf weevil. If the latter there isn’t much you can do about it, I’m sad to say.
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How can I avoid all my tulips coming up ‘blind’ as they did last year? They were new bulbs - expensive parrots. I am about to buy some new ones. Penny Bateman, Guildford
Buy them from a tulip specialist. And, before you buy, check out the RHS website to research reliable bulbs that might suit your taste.
How can I stop cows wandering into my garden from the field next door? They sometimes push down the fence and then do terrible damage. The farmer gets aggressive when I ring him about it. Name and address withheld
You have legal redress here and so you may want to get guidance from your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau. In the meantime you could think about planting a thick hedge of pyracantha, thorn and holly although, be warned, cows sometimes munch or push their way through seriously prickly areas. Also don’t bother to plant so-called ‘stock-proof’ Rosa rugosa. It isn’t.