A brave decision Pa but you may as well feel as well as you can for as long as you can. I thought you had been rather quiet recently and missed your gardening updates. I've put off having chemotherapy until I get back from Thailand next year so just hope nothing serious goes wrong in the meantime. I...

I've recently read an article in the newspaper that all windfalls should be cleared up and disposed of to avoid spreading disease etc. What a waste. I put the mummified shrivelled ones in the bin. The badly bruised ones go in the compost. Undamaged ones go into cider and I put the rest in piles unde...

I manage to keep citrus going for a few seasons and then they succumb to scale insects or some other problem. The one I still have is a grapefruit that I grew from a pip. I've mentioned before I think that it has only once had a flower when it was about 4inches high and produced a golf ball sized fr...

I've had to put a dish of water in my greenhouse as my cat climbs in through the automatic vent and can't get out again. He's ok in summer when I leave the door open but on sunny cold days he's trapped. It doesn't seem to worry him but I have to warn pet sitters to check if he's in there when I'm aw...

I plant mine, hard neck saved and replanted for the past 15 or so years, in December or January in 5 inch pots and keep them in the cold frame until it's fit to put them out in the garden. I bought the originals from Marshalls but can't remember their name. They are still a good size and have a purp...

We went to Harlow Carr gardens for the Northern Fruit Society's Apple identification event unfortunately all three car parks were full because they were having Halloween events for children all day as well. Anyway we went back into Harrogate for a couple of hours and had lunch and a wander round the...

If you bring them in they may grow some more leaves, but they'll struggle to grow larger tubers if they've no leaves and the light is restricted by day length and being covered with fleece. Good luck.

Top job for tomorrow is bringing the dahlia tubers in, the -2° blackened them over night. Our little hedgehog is still coming for its cat food and peanuts every night. It was eating for over half an hour tonight. It is very small so will have a struggle getting through winter if we have another bad ...

They sound lovely Robo, I'll look out for them next year. I'm concentrating on growing fewer vegetables so will just grow my favourites and will have more space for flowers.

Robo's comment about drying tobacco leaves reminded me of when my bedroom was in the attic. Dad grew tobacco plants and converted my wardrobe into a drying cabinet for the summer as it got so hot up there. I've always liked the smell, like aromatic autumn leaves. He and my grandad made their own pip...

I've only got half a tree of Newton Wonder to pick but there are still rather a lot. They keep well too fortunately. At least it's biennial bearing so should have a rest next year. The cellar smells lovely with the scent of ripe fruit. I might make another batch of cider to use a few up. I've done s...

It tastes a bit watery with not much flavour but ok if you're doing a spag.bol. type sauce with it and plenty of parmesan.
It's a while ago so they might have ones with more flavour now.

I bet you enjoyed the fishing more Robo. Do they use a forklift to get these giant veg about, I can't imagine popping one in the car boot. I once had to drive around with a boulder in my car for a couple of months as my boyfriend hurt his back lifting it in. I've still got it in the garden, it's got...

Who would have thought cheese could excite us like this Anyway I still get carried away at the cheese stall in the market and buy more than I can eat before some starts to get past its best so a mixture of the various odds and ends grated is very handy for gratins when a cheesy flavour is all you ne...

I've always brought mine in. We get very cold winters here and if the frost doesn't get them the slugs will eat any new shoots in spring. There's been a ladybird colony on my dahlias all summer, both seven spot and harlequin and they don't seem bothered by each other. I've picked a bucketfull of kiw...