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Q – How do I win my pumpkin competition?

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Bob – Dig a very big hole and fill it well-rotted manure and lots of grass clippings.Ìý Black plastic sheet over that and then some good soil.Ìý Lots of water and liquid feed.

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Q – Is there an ideal time of year to make a pond?Ìý And location?

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Pippa – Any time of year it will be of benefit to something.Ìý Try to avoid too much sun or too much shade.Ìý

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Bob – 3ft (0.9m) minimum depth.Ìý Dig when the soil is a bit wetter to make it easier.Ìý

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Anne – Scrounge plants like Marsh Marigolds and Irises off people who already have ponds.Ìý You might get some duckweed in there too but that’s unavoidable.

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Q – Can you recommend some shallow-rooted perennials to plant under a street tree?

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Bob – Get the smallest plants you can.Ìý I’d recommend Day Lilies (Hemerocallis).Ìý

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Anne – Dusty Miller (Senecio viravira).Ìý Origanum laevigatum ‘Herrenhausen’.Ìý Verbena bonariensis.Ìý

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Pippa – Hellebores are good at self-seeding in thin soils.Ìý Jacob’s Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum).Ìý Columbines or Aquilegia for annuals.Ìý

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Anne – Fringe Cups (Tellima grandiflora) in the Saxifrage family.Ìý

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Q – I have a Myrtle bush which grows well but never flowers.Ìý What can I do?

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Anne – If it’s too large then thin it out and leave it alone for a while.Ìý Use high potash fertilizer.Ìý Don’t prune it too often as it can take more than a year to come back after cutting.Ìý

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Q – Would you recommend planting edibles in a front garden on a busy road?

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Pippa – I would be hesitant.Ìý I’d avoid salad crops and I’d be happier with root crops.Ìý

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Bob – Don’t let it stop you – having fresh produce is better than worrying about the odd pollutant.Ìý Use teasels to absorb the particulates and the birds and insects love them.

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Q – I’m wanting to grow tomatoes, aubergines and peppers in pots; what can you recommend?

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Bob – Buy a sack of good potting compost, put a few drainage holes in and then sow directly into that.Ìý Aubergines need bright light.Ìý Peppers hate hot roots.Ìý

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Q – I have an issue with a Eucalyptus – how can I make it better?Ìý It’s in a 50cm-diameter (20inch) terracotta pot and the plant is about 75cm (30inch) tall.Ìý 50% of the leaves are browning.

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Pippa – It’s not happy.Ìý It could have root damage from the cold weather this year.Ìý

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Anne – Terracotta pots dry out too quickly.

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Q – Could the panel suggest a purple-foliaged small/medium shrub for a shady north-facing garden near a wall?Ìý (Not a Hebe).Ìý I’d like something as beautiful as an Acacia baileyana ‘P³Ü°ù±è³Ü°ù±ð²¹â€™.

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Anne – Pittosporum ‘Tom Thumb’. ÌýCotinus (Smoke Bush)

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Bob – The shade is the difficult thing. ÌýMahonia could be ok with a heavy dose of potash.Ìý

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Q – What are your favourite high-maintenance plants?

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Bob – Grapevines

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Anne – I grow a lot of tender plants which take a lot of care.Ìý Begonia luxurians for example.Ìý

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Pippa – Aubergines – my favourite is Pingtung Long.ÌýÌý