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Begonias require free draining conditions. Line your chosen container with an inch or so of gravel, broken crocks or grit, for good drainage.

Fill the pot with a multipurpose and John Innes no.2 compost mix. Gently firm, leaving one inch (2.5cm) of pot rim on show to aid watering.

Set your tubers in place, I’m using three per pot. Push firmly into the compost, leaving the tops uncovered, to avoid them sitting wet after watering.

Begonia growth is brittle and easily breaks so set stakes in place early on. Insert three peasticks around each tuber. Tie in growth regularly.

Mulch with gravel. Water in and keep covered  by night for another two weeks or so. After this first drenching avoid letting water sit in the tuber crowns.

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Late spring pond care – dividing plants, stocking up, beat the hose ban
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Well, I seem to have proof of that fact with my young gerbera plants. I sowed all my F1 ‘Revolution Terracotta’ (GroSure) seeds in one batch here in the AG office, and have been growing them on under the artificial lights of my Aero Garden.

This year I’ve been using J. Arthur Bowers grow tubes for potting on most of my flower and veg seedlings. When it came to potting up the Gerbera seedlings I actually ran out of the tubes and had to put the last few seedlings into bigger po4in (10cm) pots.

Once potted on, all plants have received the same conditions and treatment. However, as you can see from the photo here, those plants that have had their roots constrained by the narrow grow tubes are performing much better than those placed directly into the larger 4in (10cm) pots.

So while you may think your are giving your seedlings a treat with a big, roomy pot, my seedlings are perhaps proof that it pays to pot on your seedlings a few times before planting them out in the garden. Sure, you may need to spend out on more compost and more pots, but if you’re after healthy vigorous plants as early in the season as possible, it’s an investment worth making.

Coffee fertiliser

Now you’re garden and the environment can reap the rewards of that relaxing cup of coffee you had at the garden centre. Notcutts Garden Centres have teamed up with Greencup Coffee to turn used coffee beans, that would normally end up in landfill, into organic fertilizer and selling it nationwide at 19 Notcutts centres.

Along with the used beans the pellet ingredients include a range of growing nutrients, to encourage root development, and sheep’s wool to repel slugs. The recycling process is chemical free, making it so eco-friendly that each cup of coffee has a carbon footprint that’s a third less than any other coffee.

 * Coffee Fertiliser is £9.99 for a 5ltr tub. For details of outlets Tel. 0844 879 4166

I weeded and dug in plenty of compost and gave the raised bed a good feed of chicken manure pellets to replenish the soil. I rotate by brassicas to follow peas and beans, so next years purple sprouting broccoli will go in after they have cropped later in the year.

Pigeons appear to be taking a liking to all my leafy veg, so to protect the young plants I have placed cloches over them as a protective barrier. I am sure by next weekend something else will try and eat my precious seedlings.

Gardeners' World presenter Monty Don

On BBC2’s flagship show last Month, Monty told how he’d found lily beetle on a fritillary at Longmeadow, his Herefordshire plot.

“They’re bright red, so thankfully they’re easy to see, because the only way to get rid of them is to look for them, hand-pick them and destroy them,” Monty said.

But the RHS website shows that in addition to hand-picking, Bayer’s Provado Ultimate Bug Killer and Scotts’ Bug Clear Ultra Gun will control lily beetle.

While Monty is organic, and has no obligation to mention sprays, manufacturers objected to his comment that hand-picking is the only method.

“It is a shame that Mr Don does not approve of chemicals – that’s his choice – but what he means is that hand-picking is his only way of controlling lily beetle,” said John Clowes of Scotts Miracle-Gro.

“Picking beetles off can be adequate, if you like picking up bugs that are covered in their excrement. Scotts Bug Clear Ultra Gun is approved by Government and is a popular product,” John added.

Monty’s stance rattled cages at Bayer Garden, too.

A lily beetle (credit: WikiMedia)

“Gardeners need to know all the options available; they are then equipped to make an informed decision as to the approach they want to take to tackle the problem in question,” said Bayer’s Laura Varey.

“For gardeners who don’t restrict themselves to organics, Provado Ultimate Bug Killer Ready to Use and Concentrate2 will do the job well.”

Westland said its Plant Rescue Bug Killer for Ornamentals ready-to-use and concentrate would target lily beetle.

The BBC said: “Monty is well known to viewers as an organic gardener and it is in this context that he advocated removing lily beetle by hand.

“However, Monty often mentions non-organic alternatives and we will endeavour to ensure this is more consistent in future,” said the spokesman.

1)    Place an inch or two of gravel or broken crocks in the bottom of a frost-proof pot and part fill with John Innes no.2 soil-based compost. Test the level by setting the palm in the pot. The rootball surface should be an inch or so below the pot rim.

2)     Remove the palm from it’s growing pot and gently tease out any dense roots to aid root establishment in the new container. Set the plant centrally in the container.

3)    John Innes no.3 compost should  already contain enough feed to get your plant through it’s first season. Back fill around the rootball, firming down in stages until the pot is full.

4)    Add a decorative mulch to trap moisture in the pot and prevent weed establishment.

5)    Water well. From here on check weekly for signs of drying out and water as necessary. Do not feed until next spring, when you can apply a topdressing of balanced fertiliser such as fish blood and bone.

Best hardy palms for UK conditions:

Chamaerops humilis (dwarf fan palm) -12C

Brahea armata (Mexican blue palm) -8C

Phoenix canariensis (Canary Island date palm)

Trachycarpus fortunei (Chusan palm) -15C

Trithrinax campestris (Caranday palm)  -12C

Rhapidophyllum hystrix (needle palm) -15C

For tips on planting palms in open ground look out for Amateur Gardening 26 May 2012

Follow Garden editor Kris Collins, step by step on potting on plug plants.

On delivery, remove packaging and give plants a good drink. Lift cells and place water in the tray beneath rather than watering from above.

Fill cell trays or small pots with multipurpose compost. Tap down to settle and level the surface. Use a pencil or similar to create planting holes.

Use the pencil to push the plugs out of their trays. Do this in batches for quick transplanting. Handle the plugs by the root rather than top growth.

Insert plugs, pushing down or pinching around the rootball to firm in. Water in and place in a bright, frost-free spot. Do not allow compost to dry out.

Consumer editor Julia Heaton finds out which reuseable potato planters are the most user-friendly

Best buy 18/20

Three potato patio planters  £12.99 (p&p £4.50)
Haxnicks from garden centres
Tel. 0845 241 1555
www.haxnicks.co.uk

BUILD 4

Round polyethylene bags with side handles and reinforced metal edged drainage holes, offset from each other around the base and sides. Double stitching up the sides for strength. Size 14½in (37cm) diameter x 19in (48cm) tall.

FEATURES 4

Excellent detailed instructions on packaging and care tips in catalogue. Holds 40ltrs of compost, for three to five tubers. Eight drainage holes. Easy to clean and store.

SATISFACTION 5

The tallest of the bag type. Its round shape allows the top to remain open for easy filling and watering as the potato plants grow. An attractive, neat looking bag, and the dark colour will stop the tubers turning green. Like the other planters, it’s perfect for spuds, but can be used for other crops too.

VALUE 5

A versatile, quality product that should last several seasons in a row.

Other planters on test were:

Three giant growing buckets  £22.99 (p&p £4.95) 16/20 Tel. 0844 314 0043
www.ferndale-lodge.co.uk

Three potato gro-sacks £7.95 (p&p £4.95) 17/20 Tel. 0844 557 6700
www.marshalls-seeds.co.uk

Rectangular potato planter £22.95 (p&p £4.95) 16/20 Burgon and Ball Tel. 0114 233 8262
www.burgonandball.com

Two let’s grow potato spud bags £9.99 15/20 Botanico Tel. 01905 798666 www.botanicogarden.co.uk

Potato grow pot £16.99 (p&p £4.95) 17/20 Alagra Products Tel. 0843 208 1158 www.thegreenhousepeople.co.uk