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Q - I have renovated a pond for a close friend. The water level was nonexistent, so I cleared and lined it.Ìý Now it has settled over the winter I am keen to get planting. There will be areas where the plastic will still show, and I am keen to find plants to give good cover. My friend does not like hostas, big leaves or ferns! I have been searching for creeping low growing plants and aim to get as many evergreens as poss. She has requested lots of colour but likes small flowers and some grasses. All advice very welcome!

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Christine - Waldsteinia ternate with lovely yellow flowers. The grass Stipa tenuissima.

Matthew – Carex (Sedges) would do ok in the moister conditions instead of grasses such as ‘Evergold’.

Bob – I have used rotten wood and planted ivy to make an evergreen backdrop. I recommend willowherb (Epilobium)

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Q - I have a pond on my allotment, 5ft (1.5m) deep. At some point this year I will be moving to a new house and giving up my allotment for a new one on a different site. I need to fill in the pond before I leave my current allotment site. When is the best time to drain it? As far as I'm aware there were frogs in it last year and newts.

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Matthew – Don’t do anything until you have sought advice from the allotment site or local authority allotment officer.

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Q - I have a south facing back garden but the north east corner is damp and shaded by a dividing wall, the neighbouring property and a large bay tree growing in front of and over the wall.

Window cleaners and meter readers climb over the wall and crush what is planted beneath. I require planting suggestions for this space please!

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Bob – You could try Poncirus trifoliate (‘Flying Dragon’) as it is very spikey. There is also Ruscus aculeatus (Butchers-broom) which is spiny and clump-forming.

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Matthew – I suggest Sarcococca (Sweetbox) as it will work in the location and is fragrant.

Q - A beech tree fell down in our garden during Storm Eleanor, and it has left a noticeable gap. What fast growing tree would you recommend for its replacement?

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Christine – I would look at planting a willow (Salix) for speed.

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Matthew – You rarely find Beech woodlands in clay, but you may find Hornbeam. I would try to plant that instead.

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Bob – I would go for an Ash and look for a seedling to plant.

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Q - I planted a Sorbus aria lutescens in 2008. It is now 12-15ft (3.6-4.6m) tall and a good shape, but it has never flowered or had any berries.ÌýDoes it need another tree to cross pollinate?Ìý

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Christine – It should have done by now, but it could be a result of lack of insect pollination earlier in the year.

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Bob -Ìý I would give it some potash, if that doesn’t work there may be something wrong.

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Q - I have a black plastic compost bin supplied by the council. It works well and produces fine compost, but I found that whenever I open it a number of the very many worms have crawled out and climbed up on to the rim of the bin. Why are trying to escape?

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Bob – They are often escaping to mate.

Christine – They are also searching for moisture.

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Q - I do a lot of baking and am looking for suggestions about how to use eggshells on the allotment. I used to wash and dry them, bake them in the oven, then grind them, thinking that I could use the result as a form of lime. It was rather labour-intensive and I was not confident enough to actually ever use the rather lovely powdery substance I had produced. Would it work?

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Bob – It would work very well, or you could put them straight into the compost heap.

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Q - I bought two Clematis napaulensis plants three years ago to grow up a south-east facing 8ft (2.5m) fence at the back of a border. I liked the sound of a ‘curiosity’ plant that flowers at Christmas. They have done well so far. But given that they shed their leaves and go dormant in summer, what other deciduous plants could I grow through or just in front of them that would cover the bare stems during the warm months and drop their leaves just as the napaulensis start into growth? Tried hops, didn’t really work.

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Christine – I suggest Cobaea scandens (cup and saucer vine) or the Chilean glory flower (Eccremocarpus scaber). If you wanted scent you could put Sweet peas up them or Thunbergias (Black-eyed Susan vine).

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Matthew – You could plant some other clematis such as late spring/early summer flowering clematis such as the viticella hybrids.

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Bob – I would go for a grape vine such as Siegerrebe.

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Q - I love growing regal pelargoniums as houseplants or in the greenhouse for summer displays. They are plagued year-round with whitefly; the available pesticides have little effect and biological controls are just too expensive. Is there any solution or do I give up growing them?

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Christine – I would say that the biological control is worth it because of its effectiveness against the whitefly.

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Bob – I have a lot of spiders which helps. French Marigolds also help.

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Matthew – You could be ultra clean and tidy to stop the pests.

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Q - My Musselburgh leek crop has been badly affected by some form of unidentified insect infestation. The leeks were planted in early spring in pits in my greenhouse and transplanted outside in June as part of a three-year crop rotation. They grew on well but when I lifted them in October I noticed most of them had brown streaks with dark brown pupae – about 2mm (0.08 inch) long – in the streaks. I had to remove about a third of the leek before I got down to sound flesh. What are these brown streaks and what can I do about them?

Christine – This is Leaf miner. The only way to control it is to physically cover it with fleece or environmental mesh.

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Q - I have a potted banana plant which I used to keep in my garden during the summer then bring in for winter after the first frost. As I now live on a boat it now lives in my mother- in-laws front room in the bay window. I am not sure what is the best method for looking after it. The approach I have taken is to just leave it alone. This seems to work as it has continued to produce new leaves all year. Is this the correct approach or should I be doing something different?

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Christine – I would move it out when it gets too big.

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Matthew – If it is red-leaved you can carry on growing it like that otherwise it needs to be in a much bigger pot.

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Q - Hi as an expat Brit I need mint sauce for my roast lamb. Previous experience in Surrey was that the problem was controlling mint not getting it to grow. However, after trying for 10 years in North Texas I have still not found a successful trick. Have you any advice?

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Christine – Put the plant inside a polystyrene fish box so the insulation will keep the roots cool.

Matthew – You could grow a water mint if the water is cold enough.

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Bob – After it’s been growing I would keep it in the fridge.Ìý