To ensure Dahlias remain upright in heavy winds, tie new stems to stakes regularly.  Some annual plants such as Poppies, Love-in-a-Mist and Clarkia will easily set seed that can be collected and saved for use next year.  Use a paper bag to collect the seed and write on it what it contains.  For maximum viability allow the seed to thoroughly dry for a couple of days indoors and then pop bags into an airtight food container.  So go on, in these difficult times why not save a few bob next year.

Have you suffered with slugs and snails this year?  I know I have, even on the balcony the snails come on up at night and chew away.  I’ve tried throwing them several gardens away but they keep returning!  A sprinkling of SlugClear Advanced Pellets will hopefully be the answer to control any slugs or snails that venture up again onto my balcony.  How dare they!  Don’t they know who I am?  Putting bark down can help as the rough surface slows them down, and the application of pellets onto the bark will also help.