Maybe one weekend I will manage to get my hedges cut. Each week I see them getting bigger and bigger, racing away and I cannot get to trim them.

This weekend it has been wet, cold and very windy. Sunday the gusts reached 60 miles per hour, it is a good job it is summer.

It is not all bad news even though seeing my outdoor plants and shrubs being battered by the wind, the Tomatoes are looking really strong and healthy. Those fruits that have set are growing nicely as are the ones formed on the cucumbers.

While on the subject of food we are eating our own lettuces and the Mizzuna is now ready for picking. This is the first year I have tried growing this salad leaf and have not been able to resist picking the odd leaf or two to chew on while working in the greenhouse. Well, why not!

The Beetroot leaves will be ready for cutting this next week or the week after and the Rocket is nearly ready. The big disappointment is the Purslane which has struggled to germinate and what has is very slow growing. Maybe it is just down to the funny growing season.

The petunias planted into the hanging basket and containers are coming on well, bushing out nicely from the base and should provide a beautiful show as the season progresses.  The dahlias suffered a little slug and snail damage when first put out but, fingers crossed, they seem to be coping well now.

The hardy Geraniums or Cranesbills are still providing much colour in the garden as are the Roses. My very large hardy Fuchsia is wonderful again this year and will be flowering for months to come. I admit that it has grown much larger (more like a tree!) than I imagined but it is in a spot where it does not matter and looks really good. The day lilies are beginning to bloom, they put on such a great show each year and their strappy leaves add so much to the texture of the border.

Perfume is so important to me in the garden and the Philadelphus (Mock Oranges) and Roses are doing a fine job.

I have seen field mice in the garden many times but this week was a first, a shrew; so tiny but unmistakably a shrew. It is always a good sign to see new wildlife in the garden, maybe I am getting the environment right.

Back to the topic of tomatoes, I get many emails asking questions covering several aspects of growing this popular fruit. Shortly I will be creating a page on my website using these questions as a Question and Answer Problem page that will be added to as more questions come in. I will let you know where to find it as soon as it is loaded.